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2 Chronicles 36:15-16 The Jews of old and many Christians and others today think of Gods blessings in terms of the immediate enjoyment of physical and material pleasures and the absence of pain. Our blessings are in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). How do you explain these errors? And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. It is good for me that I was afflicted, That I may learn Thy statutes (Psalm 119:71). Good will comes to him who is generous and lends freely, who conducts his affairs with justice. While we are clothedspiritually in Christs righteousness, I wouldnt advise leavinghome physically unclothed. Thou dost sell Thy people cheaply, And hast not profited by their sale. (5) The Jews of our Lords time believed suffering was incompatible with Gods blessings. Gods promise to Abraham was not merely the promise of a son. Let no one boast in men. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. 103 Notice that while these saints obtained promises (verse 33) they did not receive what was promised (verse 39). No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. They have been waiting for us to join them in entering into Gods promised blessings. 11:23-26). Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. Malachi 3:10 (NIV), Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. He blesses only Christians spiritually and eternally. And righteousness from the God of his salvation. Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and cast insults at you, and spurn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Neither do we have basis for complaint if and when He withholds His blessings. First the trial, then the blessing, the crown. To have enough faith is to have the means to move God into blessing us as we think best, they say. But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him (James 1:2-5). God also promised Abraham a great land that his seed would possess. Job 4:6. Then all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts. To those who equated wealth and ease with piety and the blessing of God, the story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) was shocking and disturbing. Gods blessings are not sovereignly bestowed in the way He chooses but are mechanically obtained by doing the right things. A beautiful way to begin any new year is with a dox (20) If Gods blessing cannot be equated with prosperity and ease, neither can it be said that His blessing is automatically associated with asceticism (denying ourselves of earthly pleasures). He looked for a heavenly city, a city which God would prepare. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. At the time of Sarahs death, the land of Canaan was possessed by the Canaanites (Genesis 12:6) and Abraham did not own any part of the promised land. Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. Blessings, Physical. He suffered because of his deception concerning Sarah. Your basket and your kitchen will be blessed. Pastor Sadler, you referred to our having physical blessings today. His brothers also came and fell down before him and said, Behold, we are your servants. But Joseph said to them, Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? Labs Just a few - of many - New Testament texts make this clear: Mark 1:4-5 And so John the Baptist appeared . To me, it seems like the way God uses blessed or blessings in the Bible is very different from how its used now. He who overcomes shall inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son. When we observe the Lords Supper, we are partaking ofphysical elements, the bread and the cup, which convey aspiritual message (I Cor. Oh, God, help us to live with faith. Now the first thing we notice is that God lets us know that he is a healer. Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry. Unlike many Israelites in the Old Testament, and most of the Jews of Jesus day, Abraham looked for a better blessing. And he said to his disciples, Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. In this way, each of us will be a blessing to the other. Romans 1:12 (NLT), You will be blessed in every way, and you will be able to keep on being generous. Q Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. We will be part of Gods family: They shall be called sons of God (Matthew 5:9). Let's take a close look at blessing from the bible: who blesses who, how we receive blessings, how we give blessings, physical versus spiritual blessings, and finally how the flow of blessing can influence our prayers. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever; who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry. That is why God blessed him. Jeremiah 22:15 (NLT), Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in his commands. Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, in order that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. 1:9,10). Thats in the list: All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death. Death is yours. It cuts across all ethnicities, all geographies, all politics, nationalities. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. Put it at the disposal of me and my mission. Thats the kind of radical life were called to live in the New Testament. And as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. God does not promise to make us wealthy but that our relationship with Him will prosper. L All day long my dishonor is before me, And my humiliation has overwhelmed me, Because of the voice of him who reproaches and reviles, Because of the presence of the enemy and the avenger. Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. May these Scripture quotes increase your faith and trust in our Lord! Selah. They will attack you from one direction, but they will run from you in seven directions. Gods blessings are the fulfillment of His promise and the conclusion of a process which includes suffering and sorrow. But in addition to the deserved suffering of Israel, many godly Israelites suffered. While we should not seek suffering in this life, we should expect it, recognizing it as a part of the plan of a loving God who is bringing about our good and His glory. Photo Credit: Getty Images/Unsplash Read more Site Map About Us Help I think the Beatitudes, taken together, provide a beautiful summary of the blessings promised to the followers of Christ: six immeasurable blessings are sandwiched between the summary promise Theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:3, 10). If we get hungry for God and follow his commands if we seek spiritual growth, physical blessing will follow. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.. Peter, who once rejected the idea of suffering, later has much to say about suffering in his epistles. Strengthen and help me, Lord. (3) Gods blessing is opposed to cursing. Proverbs 10:22 Deuteronomy 28:1-68 ESV / 265 helpful votes Helpful Not Helpful "And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. Unless otherwise indicated, all content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License. Verse Concepts. In summing up his life before Pharaoh, Jacob gave an account not of unceasing bliss but of much affliction: So Jacob said to Pharaoh, The years of my sojourning are one hundred and thirty; few and unpleasant have been the years of my life, nor have they attained the years that my fathers lived during the days of their sojourning (Genesis 47:9). Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage! It is that New Jerusalem which comes down from heaven at our Lords return (Revelation 21:1-2). Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. (1) What is blessing? Our text speaks only of Old Testament saints. Paul says, The world is yours. The blessings of God are not inconsistent with suffering. When a man's ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. They are His to give; they are also His to withhold. And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it. They will likely be a part of an Arab confederation known as "the king of the South" (Daniel 11:40-41 . in 1971. In Gods economy, serving others is a privilege and not a curse. Salem Media Group. But if you carefully obey his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. The apostle John heard a voice from heaven saying, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord (Revelation 14:13). The way human beings experience God's blessing changes with the redemptive storyline that traverses the major peaks of creation, fall, redemption, and final restoration. Temporal blessings are experienced by sinners, living in a sin-cursed world. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. We will be satisfied with personal and universal righteousness: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied (Matthew 5:6). While we are primarily blessed with all spiritual blessingsin the heavenlies (Eph. To sum up, let all be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil, or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing (1 Peter 3:8-9). And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. Enter into the joy of your master.. He and his mother struggled with Isaac and Esau. Since the Mosaic covenant spelled out Gods blessings and cursings in this way in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28-30, this is not difficult to understand. He is author of. 6:8). Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him with a view to an administration suitable to the fulness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth. The son was just the beginning. Put all the billionaires together. To belong to Christ is to belong to God as our Father and to be heirs of all that God owns that is, everything. As I conclude this lesson, let me share a quotation by Harold Stigers in his commentary of the Book of Genesis: God designs certain tests and trials in regard to earthly things so that we may see that our inheritance resides in God Himself--in our finding them nothing without Him, and Him everything even without them.104. Surely he will never be shaken; a righteous man will be remembered forever. Archaeologists Discover 2,000-year-old Gemstone With balm Of Gilead Engraved On It, The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it. Proverbs 10:22 (NIV), For those who are always generous and lend freely, their children will be blessed. Psalm 37:26 (NIV), If you return to the Almighty, you will be blessed again. 1 Peter 2:21; 3:8-9, 13-17; 4:1, 14-16 Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. Luke 14:12-14 (NIV), You will be blessed in every way, and you will be able to keep on being generous. Bible verses about Blessings. Or heres the way James puts it: Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him (James 1:12). For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you. Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Before one can receive . 1:3), God has also blessed us withphysical things. He points them to the true blessings which are in Christ. The great nation was still one seed, Jacob. These saints also had faith, but their faith resulted in perseverance rather than in success or prosperity. Salvation belongs to the Lord; your blessing be on your people!