It is God’s will that everyone be blessed, according to the Scriptures.
His promise of a fulfilling and abundant life is given to all, not a selected few.
• It does not matter who you are, what race or nationality, how educated or rich you are, whether single or married, God wants you to be blessed.
• He tells Abraham, “I will make you a great nation, I will bless you… and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” (Gen 12:2)
Obviously, for that to happen, a few things is necessary. Moses highlighted them:
FIRST, OUR BLESSINGS ARE IN HIS HANDS, NOT OURS
It’s good to remind ourselves that blessings do not come to us simply because of our hard work and good planning. It looks that way because we fail to see the grace of God.
• Apart from Him, we have nothing. He is the SOURCE of our blessings because this world is His handiwork.
• Everything we “own” actually belongs to God. The psalmist says, “The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” (Ps 24:1)
• He owns the blessings that we are receiving.
Moses paints God’s absolute control over all we have – verse 4 - the fruit of your womb, crops in the fields, livestock in the folds, and the harvests we gather in the barns.
• These produce of nature are not within our control. They are gifts of God. In fact, I doubt if any blessing is ever, really in our control.
• We heard this common saying - that we can buy a bed but not sleep; food but not appetite; a house but not a home; medicine but not health; amusements but not happiness; religion but not salvation; a passport to everywhere but heaven.
• Blessings in life are gifts from God. Acknowledge that. Recognise it.
We see this refrain in this text: the Lord will grant, the Lord will send, the Lord will bless, the Lord will establish, the Lord will open, the Lord will make you…
• It’s all about Him. God will take us where money cannot, where people cannot, where our own wisdom and strength cannot.
• We need Him. Stay connected to God. Stay close to Jesus.
• If you do not know Him, consider Jesus today and put your trust in Him as your Saviour. It is only through Jesus we know God. You’ll be blessed if you know Him.
Deut 28:2 “All these blessings (that are not in your control but His) will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God.”
• Other versions put it – “and OVERTAKE YOU” (which is a more accurate translation).
• His blessings will come running after you. It is in abundance.
• Psalm 65:11 “You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance.”
The second thing we need to know is:
SECOND, OUR BLESSINGS COME FROM OBEDIENCE, NOT WORKS
Since they are gifts of God, then they are not merely the result of human efforts.
Moses started with a big IF in verse 1 and ended with another in verse 13.
• If you fully obey and carefully follow all God’s commands.
• This is the way to His blessings - by doing life His ways. That is, the right way.
It is quite clear that God’s desire is to bless us with abundance and success.
• Beside material blessings, God promises to “set Israel high above all the nations on earth” (v.1); that “enemies who rise up against them will be defeated” (v.7); He will “bless all the work of your hands” (v.12), “make you the head, not the tail.” (v.13), and “always be at the top, never at the bottom.”
• God has His eyes upon Israel, to bless them with abundance and success.
The message is clear, God desires to bless us.
• But we need to understand one thing - He wants to bless us on His terms and in His ways. The abundance and success will come, but not in your own terms and ways.
• These blessings are different from what we can get from this world. They are from God and therefore they are enduring and lasting. What the world offers are fleeting and superficial.
When people pray for blessings, we want God to bless us on our terms. Bless me the way I want it.
• But God is not our agent to help us accomplish our will. He is the One who works all things FOR our good, but according to His perfect will.
• We are the ones who need to align to His will. His blessings flow when we are in sync with His will. Obedience is the key to blessings in life.
When the people of Israel HEED what God says, they experience these promised blessings, by God’s grace.
• That is why Moses sandwiched these words of blessings with two important lines – verse 1 and 13 – the two important IF lines.
Notice the way Moses emphasizes it:
• 28:1 “If you FULLY obey the Lord your God and CAREFULLY follow all His commands.”
• 28:13 “… If you PAY ATTENTION to the commands of the Lord your God that I have you this day and CAREFULLY follow them…”
This is quite straightforward, but the problem is, it is not easy for many of us.
• We have a hard time, not just in DOING God’s will, but in even BELIEVING the truth of what He says.
• We find it hard to obey because sometimes, deep down in our hearts, we find it hard to believe this is the only way. We tend to think there are alternatives.
If I work hard enough, then my business should turn around. If I plan well, my future will be bright. If I just get my act together, things should be alright.
• On the surface, it may sounds good, but over time, we will come to realize that apart from the Maker of life, we will not be able to get life right.
• There is no abundant life apart from Christ. There is no true blessing apart from God. And there is no blessing without obedience.
Moses say IF because that choice is in our hands. It has always been and it will always be. We are as blessed as we want it to be.
• We will never go wrong if we follow the Manufacturer’s manual. That is why it is so important that we KNOW God’s Word, to read it, study it, remember it, and meditate on it. Without this, there is no basis for blessings.
• When Joshua reminded the people again of what Moses taught them, he says, “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” (Josh 1:8)
Don’t undermine what we are doing in GIC. We are building foundations and deepening our roots. Heed God’s Word and His blessings will flow.
Lastly, I want to share with you this thought. If blessings are God’s promise to us, then you are already BLESSED today.
THIRD, ENJOY WHAT GOD HAS GIVEN YOU
Our obedience brings forth His blessings. We are blessed, do you know that?
• Enjoy His blessings today. Count them. Train your eyes to see them and be happy.
• We don’t EARN our blessings, we INHERIT our blessings because of Jesus Christ.
• Servants earn their wages, while sons receive an inheritance because they are sons! As children of God, we are already richly blessed.
Paul says, “My God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 4:19) So enjoy MORE what God has given you.
• And don’t think of God’s blessings only in physical and material terms. God is more capable than that.
• We are blessed today because we are loved, cared for by our family. We have brothers and sisters who pray with us in our times of need. Friends who stay with us through thick and thin.
Learn to ENJOY the blessings of God and be grateful to Him.
One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family. On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the trip?"
"It was great, Dad."
"Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked.
"Oh yeah," said the son.
"So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?" asked the father.
The son answered: "I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We pay to get our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them."
The boy's father was speechless. He didn't quite see it that way.
Then his son added, "Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are."
The boy has a different perspective. He sees the poor people as more blessed than he is.
• Are we blinded to God’s blessings in our lives? Are we using the wrong yardstick to measure life? Do we feel that the grass is greener over the other side?
• There is a common Chinese saying, 在福中不知福. Be grateful and enjoy God’s gifts.
We can never out-give God. What God gives you always exceed what you can give to Him.
• The promise of blessings is not just reserved for the rich and successful, or for those who live in a land of opportunity.
• It is for everyone everywhere who obeys God and follows His ways. Heed His Word and let His blessings flow.
