68. Blessed
Luke 11: 28 Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it.
Jesus gives another promise of blessedness for believers: this time the blessing comes to those who hear the Word of God and keep it. The benefits and positive things that come from hearing the Word of God are too numerous to mention. All blessings stem from the Gospel in the Word that brings the power of God for salvation; the Gospel is the power that changes lives for eternity.
The condition for enjoying the blessing is hearing and keeping. Hearing means understanding the meaning of the Gospel by distinguishing Law and Gospel; it means understanding the Law that convicts of sin and urges repentance; it means understanding the Gospel that clearly shows what Christ has done for our forgiveness and salvation and eternal life; it means hearing with the heart, deep inside our inner being; it means applying the truth and love of God to our own lives in the present time.
Keeping means believing and receiving with honest and good hearts the person and work of Jesus Christ; it is holding and pondering the incredible love of God; it is holding on to the Grace and Truth as revealed in Christ; it is applying the Gospel of Christ to our own sinful and guilty heart and enjoying the purity of life. Keeping also means actually obeying and doing what the Word says, and this actual doing of the Word really takes place in the lives of changed believers. We do not see clearly the life of Jesus flowing out of His followers but it is there, not completely but as a continuous process of sanctification.
Going to church and reading the Bible yields fantastic benefits. That’s a promise.