STEPPING INTO BLESSING

Deut. 11:26-27 – Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse; the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you today;

‘Bless’ defined:

1) Barak (#1288) means to kneel, adore, praise, salute.

• This is the root word for the word ‘blessing’ in the following:

2) Barakah (#1293) means benediction; by implication prosperity; source or pool of blessing; praise of God; a gift; treaty of peace.

Requirements to Receive Blessing

1) Ex. 32:29 - …Consecrate yourselves to the Lord (i.e., fill yourselves up with the Lord) that He may bestow (appoint; anoint) a blessing upon you.

• We must be intentional to stay filled with the Lord’s Presence by staying in His Word and growing in a submitted relationship with Him.

• (Deut. 11:28) To do the opposite invokes the ‘curse’ or ‘vilification’ – expressing a heart-stance of taking the Lord and His Word lightly or viewing it as despicable, thereby opposing God Himself.

2) Deut. 11:27 – That submission expresses itself in obedience to His Word/Commands

• Let’s condense all the commands down to the two Jesus identified,

o Loving God and loving people –

o How do you and I measure up to that standard? If we get these rightly aligned and a part of who we are, then all the law is being fulfilled in our lives through the grace of Jesus who dwells within us.

• Receiving blessing from God, then, depends on not just our relationship with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit but with people!

Blessing Explained

1) Deut. 28:2-14 – The blessings identified. How might ‘prosperity’ be more rightly viewed other than wealth?

• Blessed in city or country, children, (business) crops, animals, (physical needs) provision of food, your coming and going, enemies defeated and running away from you, investments/storehouses, established as a witness of God’s goodness.

• READ: Deut. 28:11-14

• Definition of prosperity from a dictionary: The state of being prosperous; advance or gain in anything good or desirable; an economic state of growth; successfulness.

• Etymology of ‘prosperity’ – flourishing or thriving condition; good fortune, wealth, or success in anything good or desirable. To advance in any good thing.

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2) Ps. 21:2-6 – You have given him his heart’s desire and have not withheld the request of his lips (Selah). For you meet him with the blessings of goodness; you set a crown of pure gold upon his head. He asked life from You, and You gave it to him – length of days forever and ever. His glory is great in Your salvation: Honor and majesty You have placed upon him. For You have made him most blessed forever; you have made him exceedingly glad with Your Presence.

• How do these verses describe us prospering with God’s blessing upon our lives?

• Heart’s desire met - prayers answered; receive goodness from God’s hand; crown of pure gold on head (speaks of godly thoughts);

• Length of life; deliverance/salvation – the Lord’s gracious compassion in every situation;

• being honored and blessed with an excellent character (majesty); exceedingly glad (joy-filled).

3) Pro. 11:11 – By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.

• The blessing on our lives affects the community around us.

• Our lives should be bringing the Presence of the Almighty God into our homes, friendships, neighborhoods, churches, communities, businesses, etc.

• Our message should be clear and in agreement with the scriptures, not compliant to the thinking of the world around us.

4) Pro. 28:20 – A faithful man will abound with blessings; but he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished (i.e., to be made empty or clean).

• Our faithfulness to God is the key to blessing.

• Blessing results in anything that brings praise and thanksgiving to God for His goodness to us.

• Blessings and praise are closely linked and become a part of our heritage and legacy.

Living as Blessed by God our Father as seen from -

1) Eph. 1:3(v. 4-14) – Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ…

• This blessing includes our being chosen and made holy without blame (v.4), being adopted to Himself ‘for His good pleasure’ (v.5) and He has accepted us (v. 6).

• In Jesus we have redemption, forgiveness of all sin by the richness of His grace (v. 7),

• His wisdom and understanding is made available to us (v. 8)

• Revelation of His will has been made known to us (v. 9)

• His administration (dispensation) to completely fulfill His plan and purposes for us both in heaven and on earth (v. 10)

• We have obtained an inheritance which He has purposed and willed for us (v. 11)

• READ v. 13-14 – In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

2) II Cor. 9:8 – And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.

• We live in the abundance of God’s grace.

• That grace is sufficient for anything He gives us to say and do.

• His works through us causes His righteousness in us to endure forever (v. 9) and spreads out to others.

• We walk as those who imitate Christ Jesus – with His boldness, His lovingkindness, and His humble obedience to the Father.

• We are people who live in His Blessings daily.