Poignant Statement: All the blessings we enjoy are Divine deposits, committed to our trust on this condition, that they should be dispensed for the benefit of our neighbors. John Calvin
Subject: The Blessing of God
Scripture: Genesis Psalm 112:1
This past week we all rejoiced greatly because our Pastor Amulya Rai had called us for the dedication of his small house. The whole family was delighted to know that the Lord has provided this place of shelter. Their faces were brilliantly beaming with joy. In the meeting I brought some pertinent truth on the blessing of God which God has been teaching me. They are Biblical and some hard truths and sooner we have Biblical understanding on this great subject the blessed we will be. We need to accurately understand the concept of blessing.
When we switch on tvs. and read some books we are given to understand that God inevitably always blesses Christians materially and if someone is not blessed materially then that person has no faith or has committed some sins which have blocked the blessing of God. These preachers are very emphatic in the pulpit and witness of God’s material blessings. In order to bolster their claims they talk about and flaunt all the riches of the world. Most of them are from the USA and we have some Asian preachers too who blindly ape and preach this half baked truth. They lead many believers astray and feed on the avarices of these people. And of course they want you to give them your money as a condition of God’s blessing to you.
There is great market in churches for messages which talks about prosperity, robust health and life without pain or tears. They want to hear all is well with those who believe in Jesus and just go to God and ask Him what you want and He will give you after all He has said “Test me in this and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have enough room for it”
I want to without doubt emphasize that God does bless people with material blessing and we all are witness of His bounty. In the story of Jacob he says “I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups” Of course there are many more and innumerable incidents of God’s blessing exhibiting in material prosperity. So when God does bless materially we should be thankful to God as Jacob was.
When I came to Nepal to minister in 1972, excepts some books and few clothes I had virtually nothing as far as material things were concern but today God has blessed me with many material things. Was I not blessed then in 1972? Am I blessed now because I have much more than what I cannot even imagine? Or am I not blessed as someone who has more than I have now? Will I be less blessed if I lose all I have now and have to live on the street? No His blessing is always consistent whatever be our material position.
God has many ways of blessing His people and there are few of them I would like to share with you
My unshakable faith is in a God who has given me three great blessings which no one and nothing can give. The first is the forgiveness of God through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. The second is the new identity by virtue of believing in the Lord Jesus Christ. The third is the eternal hope. These three are essential to our faith and these are blessings no one can ever ever give us. These are true riches which do not rust; thieves cannot steal and does not rot. What wonderful threefold blessing of God. When a man deeply mediates on these blessings then there is no need of any more blessing. He knows he has all that he needs and all the material blessings are incidental in his life. Read the Bible and see all those wonderful blessings of God given to you freely by grace. We are richer than the richest man ever alive when we have such celestial blessings.
We need to come to God with this attitude that I am always blessed no matter what because when God blesses me He has His hand on me and what more do I need? Many times God blesses us through poverty, sickness, persecution. It is God who blesses and how He blesses is His prerogative and our privilege to take as blessing from God. What God gives is His benediction and that is all we should seek for. A believer must always know that no matter what God is always with and He loves me at all times.
Jesus had plenty of things to say about material things. In Luke 12:15 Jesus warned us “Watch out, be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions”. He told us to pray for ‘our daily bread’ marking our dependence on God for all things in life.
I am great believer in believers having all the good things of life and in my preaching and private conversation I always talk about material things. I always tell people to get good education, work hard, earn more, save regularly and give generously. We are stewards of all that God gives us and it is our duty to thank God and use those resources for the glory of God. But the key to real blessing is walking with God and be approved by Him.
So who is really blessed in actual Biblical definition:
– The one who knows the Lord Jesus as personal savior, is walking in the newness of life and is convinced of the wonderful hope he has in the Lord Jesus Christ. A man saved by grace always.
– Sermon on the mountain known rightly as Beatitude mentions clearly tells us who are the blessed of the Lord. Read again those nuggets of truths and be blessed.
– The one who is happy with what he has and is not envious of what others have.
– The one who works hard and earns an honest wage and is happy with the wages he is able to earn.
– The one who is always thinking of helping others who are less fortunate than he is.
– The one who knows the danger of false hope on the accumulation of this world’s goods
– The one who designs and directs his life according to the teaching of the Lord Jesus.
– The one who has a wonderful family who love the Lord and walks in His ways.
– The one who rejoices in nature and little things of life.
If we have the above qualities then what we have or what we do not have bears little consequences in our daily life. We are fully contented with all that we have and all that we do not have. That is why Paul was able to say, ‘I can do everything through Him who gives me strength’ In the context he meant he is able, mighty and blessed in poverty or in prosperity. He could feast and eat at Lydia’s house in the morning and equally by evening be happy in jail in the midst of cockroaches and criminals. Read Acts 16.
About two days ago I was reading the Devotional My Utmost Highest by Oswald Chamber. He was talking about asking God. He succinctly says when we ask God we must ask more of God and not more of this life. How true is the statement! A child of God should be trained and the mature Christians must be focused on seeking God and let the Lord see what we need, when we need and how much we need.
So let us seek Him and not what He gives. My eyes are not only His gracious hand but on His glorious face. My delight and fulfillment is in Him. Let us train our hearts deliberately to see these truths work in our lives effortlessly. We are children of God and we can ask God for anything provided we ask primarily the things of God. Give all your pain and poverty and receive all His blessing Psalm 69:19 says “Praise be to the Lord, to our God Saviour, who daily bears our burden” Wow, what God we have!
Poignant Statement: All the blessings we enjoy are Divine deposits, committed to our trust on this condition, that they should be dispensed for the benefit of our neighbors. John Calvin
Prayer:
Lord, Bless me the way you want me to be blessed for I want the Blesser than the blessing. I know you always bless.
Republished in new layout on 8/6/20134
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