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Jul 19, 2016

We all want to be under God’s blessing. It’s not unusual to hear someone say, “I’ve been blessed by God.” Usually, this is said in relation to success, health, family, wealth, or a job. We even hear athletes say this after winning a big game.

The common understanding of being blessed by God is that we receive good things from Him. In this respect, we can say that God’s blessing is on everyone, believers and unbelievers alike. Matthew 5:45 says that the Father who is in the heavens causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and unjust. In Acts 14:17 Paul spoke to the unbelieving Greeks about the living God saying, “He did good by giving you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness.”

But is God’s blessing limited to only material things? Surely these are included, but thinking of God’s blessing as mainly material things severely limits our understanding of what the blessing in God’s heart is for us as believers. So what is the fuller meaning of being blessed by God?

Let’s begin with God’s blessing of Abraham in Genesis 12:3: “And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” Reading this verse by itself, we might think being blessed here means something outward, like a peaceful living situation. But later in Galatians 3:13 and 14, the apostle Paul explained what this means:

“Christ has redeemed us out of the curse of the law, having become a curse on our behalf; because it is written, ‘Cursed is every one hanging on a tree’; in order that the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.”

These verses explain what Genesis means by “blessed” and answer two questions.

First, how can we be blessed?

As fallen sinners, we deserve nothing but judgment and curse. But Christ became a curse on our behalf. On the cross, Christ Jesus bore the curse that was upon all humanity and died in our place. Because of this alone, we can receive the blessing of Abraham. It’s not because of our good works or behavior; it’s entirely because of the redemptive work of Christ on the cross for us. We receive the blessing of God through faith in Christ.

Second, what is the blessing of God?

Galatians 3:14 makes clear that the blessing in Christ Jesus that God wants us to receive is not material things, but the promise of the Spirit.

Footnote 2 on this verse in the New Testament Recovery Version helps us understand what this means:

“In the gospel we have received not only the blessing of forgiveness, washing, and cleansing; even more, we have received the greatest blessing, which is the Triune God—the Father, Son, and Spirit—as the processed, all-inclusive life-giving Spirit dwelling in us in a most subjective way for our enjoyment. Oh, what a blessing that we can enjoy such an all-inclusive One as our daily portion!”

But what (or who) is “the Spirit” in this verse that we receive? The next footnote on Galatians 3:14 says this:

“This verse indicates that the Spirit is the blessing that God promised to Abraham for all the nations and that has been received by the believers through faith in Christ. The Spirit is the compound Spirit, and actually is God Himself processed in His Trinity through incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, and descension that we may receive Him as our life and our everything. This is the focus of the gospel of God.

The physical aspect of the blessing that God promised to Abraham was the good land, which was a type of the all-inclusive Christ. Since Christ is eventually realized as the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit, the blessing of the promised Spirit corresponds with the blessing of the land promised to Abraham. Actually, the Spirit as the realization of Christ in our experience is the good land as the source of God’s bountiful supply for us to enjoy.”

Because Christ dwells in us as the all-inclusive Spirit, we can experience Him in a personal, subjective way by contacting Him with our spirit. We can pray, call on His name, and read His Word. By simply turning to Christ and talking to Him throughout the day, we can enjoy Him as our rich portion.

Suppose you pray for a better job and get a higher paying position. Certainly, you thank the Lord for it. But what happens when the new work environment presents some difficulties? If you realize that God didn’t just bless you with a new job but even more, with Christ in His unlimitedness living within you, you will contact the Lord in a deeper way. You will realize that He as the life-giving Spirit dwells in your spirit. Instead of praying for Him to take away the problems or to give you another job, you’ll open your heart to Him and ask Him to be your wisdom and strength to face the troubles at work. You will begin to experience Christ as the all-inclusive Spirit in that difficult situation. You will enjoy Him—the top blessing.

If we think of God’s blessing as mainly in the realm of material things, we’ll pursue these things and spend our time in prayer asking God for them. Meanwhile, we’ll miss out on the less obvious but much more real blessing of God. But by focusing on Christ and pursuing Him, we can enjoy the all-inclusive Spirit as the top blessing of God!

We should certainly be thankful for the material things the Lord gives us. But we are truly blessed when we experience Christ as our love, our peace, our patience, our satisfaction, our joy, and so many other aspects of Himself.

We have this wonderful Person, the greatest blessing in the universe!

We can pray:

“Lord, thank You for blessing me with Yourself. Open the eyes of my heart to see beyond the physical and material blessings You have given me. I desire to experience You as the highest blessing in the universe!”