**********THE BLESSING IN YOU********** Do you really value it? You see, the value you attach to a thing determines the amount of zeal with which you pursue it. It is true what David Oyedepo said “that your sense of value determines the flow of virtue to you”. Mike Murdoch said that “what you don’t respect, you don’t attract”. The things of God are only released to those who value them. In one of the parables of Jesus in Matthew 13, He described a merchant who saw a pearl of great price and sold all he had to obtain it. Please note that he bought that thing from somebody; maybe the fellow who sold it did not understand the worth, so he was ready to sell. What I’m saying is that if you do not value this blessing enough to be ready to sell all that you have to get it, you probably will never get it. This was the difference between Jacob and Esau. Esau did not understand the value of the covenant that his father had with the Lord. He thought he did not need what blessing it was that the birth-right would confer on him. He was man enough on his own; his own hands would bring him prosperity and security. He was self sufficient. Jacob, on the other hand, saw the blessing in the birth-right; he realized that this was the end to all struggles. He knew that his own hands could not bring him the good he wanted in life. For this reason, Jacob was ready to die to get this blessing, if it would require that. That was the passion with which he pursued it, so that when the opportunity came, he grabbed it. In the natural, Jacob may have appeared cunning, but the real spiritual reason why he got the blessing out of the hands of Esau was because of his passionate love for it; a thing that Esau despised. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew; and he ate and drank, and rose and went on his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright. Gen 25:34 It is interesting to note that his lack of regard for the things and the blessing of God is called immorality and godlessness. …that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. Heb 12:16 It also good to note that this same portion of scripture called this birth-right that he missed ‘the . For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected… Heb 12:17 My friend, if you are going to experience the blessing of God manifested in your life, you must place a great value on it. You must want it dearly, thirsting for it with the whole of your being. The reason why many do not long after this blessing is because of their trust in what they have. “Why do I need to get this blessing to make me rich when my father is already rich and I stand to inherit all his property when he dies?” You may not use those words, but it is manifested in your actions. You trust more in human connections than in prayers; you trust more in a rich job to make you rich than in locating the place that the Lord has planted you. A person who does not value this blessing does not give attention to it, to nurture it with the word of God. He is busy planning, looking for human connection, trying to marry a rich person and compromising the values of the gospel he or she has been taught, just to get rich. He believes that he is disadvantaged just because he does not have the ‘right’ parents or he does not have the right degree. He thinks that the colour of his skin is a disadvantage; he is persuaded that he cannot breakthrough as long as he is in a place that does not look like it is blossoming. He does not understand the value of this blessing. Let us see again the case of Abraham in his encounter with the king of Sodom. He understood the value of the blessing of God and lived a life full of the expectation of the release of that blessing. This was why he could refuse what looked like an opportunity. A small caution There is something we need to know about the riches that you get in life as a believer that do not come as a product of this blessing. You see, the way you get a result is the way you will have to sustain it. The riches you gained by the flesh will have to be sustained by the workings of the flesh. You will have to continue with the sleeplessness that brought it to you; you will have to continue with the bribery and the begging that started it. Eventually all this will crystallize into your flesh in the form of hypertension, diabetes, depression, marital problems and other forms of troubles. These are the things that the Bible called sorrow. It is the blessing of the LORD that makes rich, And He adds no sorrow to it. Prov 10:22 However, if it came as a result of the expression of the blessing of God, then the sorrows are not a part of it. It is born by the will and Spirit of God, and by the same means it will be sustained. It will continue to grow and multiply because it has within it the life of God. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world… 1 John 5:4 Whatever is born of God! If your riches came out of the blessing of God, it will continue to triumph and to grow; it will endure for generations after you. This is why you need to be careful to ensure that it is the blessing of God that is making you rich. Anything produced from the struggles of the flesh will not stand testing. …All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, When the breath of the LORD blows upon it… The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever. Isa 40:6-8 The Bible says it is like the flower of the field; when the Spirit of the Lord blows in the testing of trials and adversity, it will wither. That is all that a man can produce by his own qualifications outside the blessing of God. As a child of God, be careful! Be sure that you are being blessed by God and not by the whims of your flesh. Be careful so that you will not be disappointed when it might to be too late to recover. All the crooked dealings that are putting plenty of money in your pocket are only setting you up for failure later; you will lie down in sorrow. Who is among you that fears the LORD… Let him trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God. Behold, all you who kindle a fire… Walk in the light of your fire And among the brands you have set ablaze. This you will have from My hand: You will lie down in torment. Isa 50:10-11 Those He loves The Lord pours His blessing on those who know they need Him and live like they do. He has no time for the Esau type of people who feel they are okay and are able to succeed by themselves. I met a man once who was doing fairly well in his medical practice and business; while discussing with his friend he remarked that “I don’t believe in God, I only believe in myself.” I felt sorry for him especially because he said it in my hearing and the Lord will have to blow on him if only to make a point to me His child. The Lord never has need for any such person. The people He wants are those who will say like Jacob that “I will not leave you until you bless me”. You need to deliberately forsake your apparent advantages and tell Him that without Him, you are nothing. My friend, as a believer you have to come to that point, either willingly now or inevitably eventually. The Lord’s name will most certainly be glorified. Paul said it this way: But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord… that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection… Phil 3:7-10 This is why faith in God appears to be easier for those that do not have much to trust in the flesh; they do not have rich parents, neither do they have good welfare coverage to depend on. Those earthly advantages are often a hindrance to faith; they hinder one’s dependence on the blessing of God. This is why ministers have noticed that they see greater miracles when they go to undeveloped nations and to unenlightened people. The Lord Jesus at a time explained the difficulty in a man having earthly riches entering the kingdom of God. He also taught the disciples that though it is the Father’s good pleasure to give them the kingdom, the prerequisite was the forsaking of all earthly advantages. "Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom. "Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves purses which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Luke 12:32-34 If you place value on this blessing, you will be willing to sell all that you have to get it because you understand it is the most precious thing that a person can ever hope to possess. Please let me explain something that is expressed in the above quoted passage of scripture: When the Bible says that something is reserved in heaven for you, it does not at all infer that you will get it only when you die. Heaven is a store just like a bank is a store; the contents can be collected for use when the need arises. To have treasure in heaven means to have a spiritual back up of supply for the time of need. It is also important that we understand that treasure stored in heaven are real and they control the movement of physical resources. …it is Heaven that rules Dan 4:26 The distribution of wealth on the earth is not an accident; it is controlled by what happens in the heavens. When the Lord says you will have treasure in heaven, all He’s saying is that your treasure will be stored where there can be no bank failure or collapse of the stock market. He is not saying that you will suffer in this world and then enjoy in heaven after you have died. Please get it
Posted on: Wed, 10 Jul 2013 16:00:11 +0000
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