- Overcomer Literature Trust
- Swindon
- Wiltshire
Being Blessed and Being a Blessing
By The Editor
“The Lord watches over the way of the righteous” (Psalm 1 v6)
A believer should always cultivate a thankful heart, for the Bible says “every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights”, (James 1 v17). So while we do not envy others’ possessions or gifts, we must see, in any blessing of life, our loving heavenly Father’s goodness, generosity and grace. The blessings of medical care, the blessing of an education, the blessings of family and the blessings of food provision, to name a few.
Let us now consider the spiritual blessings in Christ which far outweigh any earthly blessing. There is the blessing of forgiveness of sins, so that now we know that according to the Bible we will never have to be judged for them. This is because our Lord Jesus Christ took our punishment on Calvary as the sacrificial Lamb of God.
Another blessing to remember is a relationship with God the Father, through the Holy Spirit. As believers we all live under different governments, in different societies, have different financial pressures and personal circumstances, yet by the miracle of the New Birth we can all communicate with our Father in Heaven. His Spirit is our comforter in times of trouble and our helper for everyday life. This is why it is so important for us to ask the Holy Spirit to fill us each day, to speak to Him in prayer and to listen to what our Heavenly Father wants to tell us through Him. There is no better way to do this, than to read the Bible daily and to get to know what His will is.
Being blessed does not mean we will have an easy life, but the Bible makes clear that we are blessed. Jeremiah says, “blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him” (Jeremiah 17 v7). So if you trust in Jesus Christ, then you are blessed according to Scripture. The angel appeared to Mary and said, “greetings, you who are highly favoured. The Lord is with you” (Luke 1 v28). Some translations of the Bible read “blessed” instead of “highly favoured”. Shortly after this she and Joseph with their newborn baby had to flee to Egypt as refugees.
Our Lord received the blessing of the Holy Spirit after His River Jordan baptism by John the Baptist, but after this joy came an important testing in the desert by the enemy. These examples clearly show us that being blessed does not always mean a continual earthly ease. However, we read that if we love the Lord and walk in obedience, then “every place where you set your foot” will be blessed (Deuteronomy 11 v24). If we look at our Lord’s life we notice that everywhere He went people were healed and set free of demons. His life is a model to us of being a servant, He is our Servant King. To be a blessing we must serve like He did, then we will notice blessings and successes around us. If our heart is to abide in Him and to receive words of blessing from His Word everyday, then the Bible guarantees blessings that we can see will follow. “Whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it, not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it, they will be blessed in what they do” (James 1 v25). A personal example that comes to mind was a decision I made to pray for the healing of those around me who I knew were ill. This was despite my wife and I not being able to have children for several years. Yet I recall seeing others get blessed by the Lord. Finally we did have a son after 11 years of marriage, contrary to the doctor’s diagnosis. The point here, is that if your motivation is to bless others and to be a blessing like Jesus Christ, then despite your circumstances but by His strength you will see blessings in your own and other’s lives.
Most importantly we must remember that we are blessed because of your relationship with Jesus Christ through the finished work of the Cross of Calvary. As you abide in Christ, then His word becomes active in your life. This can be applied to peace, joy, patience, love, justice, gentleness and any other working of the Holy Spirit in our lives. When we read, “now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13 v13), the heart and will of God is clearly seen here. We must be motivated by heavenly grace and not by selfish ambition. Each of us can see blessings in our own lives and our family’s lives if we choose to look on life with a heavenly perspective. “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5 v18). This is because our God is a true, loving and kind God who really wants to bless us. However, because we live in a sin-cursed and fallen world, and often we make the wrong decisions, opposition to His blessings can often come. This is why He said, “follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit” (1 Corinthians 14 v1). This is a heavenly principle, to seek God, because, “blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5 v3).
To sum up, as believers we can know that we are blessed and that we can be a blessing to others because of the Lord Jesus Christ, whose blessings are eternal spiritual ones. Secondly, we must continually praise Him for our blessings, for it is He who “causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matthew 5 v45). He alone is good and our spirit is now united to His, meaning that only through Him can we know and be known, giving us peace that all good things come from Him. Praise His glorious name.