Month: April 2021

147. Plenteous Fruit

Deuteronomy 28:11 And the Lord shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and n the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers to give thee.

The physical side of this plenteous blessing has to do with the physical land, which the Lord swore with a covenant oath to give the children of Abraham. The spiritual aspect of this plenteous blessing has to do with the spiritual kingdom, which the Lord promises all the “children of Abraham” who believe in Jesus.

Philippians 4:19: “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” God is rich, naturally; He shares His life with us; we share by grace in His abundant supply. “Riches in glory” suggest the abundance in the Kingdom of God. The kingdom in our hearts is the glory of God in us. We will never be able to fathom the eternal riches in glory that we shall inherit in the eternal new heaven and new earth. All people “desire to be rich,” but the trick is to desire to be rich in the spiritual kingdom of God, the riches that God gives us freely. The problem is that we desire to be rich in this world during this lifetime. I Timothy 6:9: “Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.”

The Bible promises spiritual riches, wealth, and plenteous blessing beyond measure, but not temporal plenty. But if God grants wealth beyond our need we thank Him for it. Meanwhile, we desire to be rich in the fruit of the Spirit. Therein is real and eternal wealth for great living.

146. A Holy People Established

Deuteronomy 28:9 The Lord shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if you shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in his ways.

God promises to establish the children of Israel as a holy people unto the Lord. This is conditional, of course: “if you keep the commandments of the Lord.” The Law of God enshrined in the Ten Commandments is the basic condition for these promises and blessings of the Lord. However, Bible history shows that they did not keep the Commandments and so did not become the holy people that God intended. But the Lord God of the entire world had something else in mind.

Out of this people would be born one human being, who was also God, who was holy and did live a holy life according to the perfect Law of God. This was the Messiah, Jesus, who was the “Holiness unto the Lord” that God promised. And Jesus kept the commandments for us, in place of the people who broke the Law of God. As our substitute, the Holy One would in truth, in reality, and in eternity, make a holy people unto the Lord.

 Jesus established a holy people out of all the people who believe in Him through His Life, Death, and Resurrection. Then, because of that Event, He sent the Holy Spirit into the hearts of His followers, who would continue to work to bring the believers more and more into conformity with the Holiness of God in their actual lives. Thus, since Jesus met the condition for us, we are established as a holy people by faith, and we are accounted righteous by God. Then the Holy Spirit creates faith in the heart and dwells there in order to change behavior to bring us closer to the holy people that God intended.

God gave the Commandments so that we could see what holiness looks like.  We also see it in the Sermon on the Mount. But seeing such holiness, still required by God for entrance into His Kingdom, we are convicted that we have broken the Law and have come up short of glory. This leads us to repent and believe the Gospel, which is the power of God for living and for saving. By daily repentance and faith we give the Lord a chance to live in us as the holy people God says we already are.

145. Blessed in Store, Calling, Kingdom

Deuteronomy 28:8 The Lord shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

If you keep the commandments of the Lord, then the Lord will command His blessing upon your savings and reserves, upon your calling and purpose, and upon the kingdom of God within you.

The “storehouse” signifies our money in the bank, the savings and wealth that is built up over the years. Somehow the Lord will see fit to make sure you always have enough for emergencies, rainy days, and needs that arise from time to time. “God knows our needs and well provides.” We all need a blessing on our reserves to help keep us free from worry about the unexpected. We don’t need a lot of money, but we do need to be free from worry. And so the Lord commands the blessing upon our storehouses. The truth is that God is the storehouse.

“What you set your hand unto” is the daily tasks, duties, chores, interests, hobbies that involve your vocation and calling for your role and purpose in life. When you go about your daily business within God’s will you are fulfilling the call of God upon your life. The Lord commands blessing for getting the job done when we are about the Father’s business, which is unique for each one of us. Whatever God calls us to be (husband, father, etc., etc.) He equips us to do and provides what is necessary.

“The Land”, as usual, is the Kingdom of God, which the Lord gives us. We are living in that Kingdom in the heart, along with all believers in Christ, and in that realm God commands great blessing now and forever. By daily repentance and constant faith in Christ, in His life and resurrection, in the forgiveness of sins, and in the gift of eternal life we receive and enjoy the “blesseds.” There is always more blessing in the Kingdom within than we make use of and give thanks for. More than enough blessing is ours every day. Our Lord commands it. Life in the Kingdom (the Land) is forever peace and eternal joy.

144. Enemies Smitten

Deuteronomy 28:7 The Lord shall cause thine enemies that rise up aginst thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

In the first place, this promise is historical and earthly; it is for the children of Israel in the days of Moses, Joshua, Judges and Kings. But in the second place, this promise is eternal and heavenly; it is for us in our own day. The promise of victory in battle applies to our spiritual enemies, sin, death, and Satan. We may, like Joshua, take courage and comfort from this promise. Our spiritual enemies will relentlessly attack, tempt and scare us daily; they will rise up against us, and they will come out against us one way. Fear not! The Victor and Overcomer, Jesus Christ, has smitten them once for all, and He will continue to smite the Enemy every time they rise up and threaten to attack. “Before your face” means that in your very presence these enemies will show up. Fear not! You may watch the “Smiter” do His work in your presence.

The wonderful promise is also that they will flee before you seven ways. One word from the Lord of armies out of the sword in His mouth drives them away. “One little word can fell him.” James 4:7: “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” I Peter 5:8-10: “Your adversary the devil prowls around…. Resist him, firm in your faith…. the God of all grace…will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” Use the faith you have been graciously given, and watch evil flee before you seven ways. This encouraging promise of Peter comes in the context of v. 7,  “casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” Anxiety comes from the devil. Care comes from God.

God did not give us faith only just to go to heaven when we die, but faith is valuable for everyday anxiety. We see anxiety as an enemy that rises against us, and we see Jesus who smites it before our face, and it flees before us. Faith may be the most practical and useful gift we have received from God. Use it according to His promise. “Cast your cares!”

143. Travel Mercies

Deuteronomy 28:6 Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

We pray for travel mercies whenever we are traveling by car or airplane; and we should do so when we just walk or go about anywhere by any means. We pray for God’s protection and blessing wherever we go and however we get there. We are always coming or going. The good news is that we will be blessed both ways. The truth is that the believer in Christ is always blessed and protected, for He is always with us and He always commissions His angels to guard and protect us in all our ways.

As always, these blessings of the Mosaic Covenant are in force if we obey the Ten Commandments. Keep the Law of God and God will bless. God blesses because He is a gracious and good God: He has laid out for us in the Scriptures the way we need to walk through life in order to enjoy a good life. It may sound strange, but the Lord has blessed us with His laws; for the Law is a blessing; however, it depends on our keeping, observing and obeying. Being blessed in all our ways is not a reward for being good. It just is. Blessing for living right is built in to the created universe. Of course, the opposite is also true: curses come upon us and overtake us when we disobey, disregard and neglect God’s Laws. Blessings and curses are consequences, not rewards and punishments. It just is.

It is good, right and salutary that we should at all times and in all places and in all the in between times and places pray for travel mercies and thank Him every time we come and go safely. But let’s be honest, we are not going to pray and give thanks every time we rise up, settle down, go or come. But God promises to be there for us always wherever and whenever, even if we forget Him. He goes with us whenever we get up and go anywhere, unless we are heading into sinful territory (trespassing). When we remember God’s promised blessings we are free to go about our lives and enjoy every moment of moving about, coming or going.

We keep our relationship with God alive and fresh, not by attempting to be good but by regular repentance and faith in the gospel. Christ keeps the Law for us, and the blessing follows. We ask God for blessing on our travel to remind us that He promised. We thank God for blessing on our return to remind us that He promised.

142. Basket and Store

Deuteronomy 28:5 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.

The promised blessings of God are designed to cover everything needful. The basket and the store cover daily needs and provisions for more than the day. Today, we might use the words pocketbook and bank account. The money that we need to spend on daily, routine living expenses is the basket. The money we need to save in reserve for later and larger expenses, or for a rainy day, is the store. The Lord’s blessings cover daily and monthly needs in addition to once in a while needs and emergencies as they come up.

This is the dream of most people: to always have enough money to get what we want and need besides having enough left over for larger purchases as the need or want arises. God is good to meet our needs; God is more than kind to provide some of our wants. We learn that God is good and God will provide what is needed for a happy and well-lived life. We learn to trust in the Lord for all things needful. We learn to “seek first the kingdom of God,” and to “choose the one thing needful,” like Mary, sister of Martha. We learn to believe that the Lord will keep His promises and give the blessings needed as we go about the business of living out our various callings. We learn to take care of others as God is taking care of us according to His promise to do so. The Holy Spirit teaches and gives this kind of faith, and “the just shall live by faith.”

Jesus wants us to ask for God’s daily blessings, and at the same time giving thanks for daily provision, thus: “Give us this day our daily bread.” Then trust God to bless your basket and your store.

141. Fruitful and Multiplying

Deuteronomy 28:4 Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy herds, and the flocks of thy sheep.

The conditional promise of blessing often has to do with abundance, fertility and material wealth. The condition, of course, is doing the Law. We fail the condition, but Jesus gives Law-keeping by faith in Him. Material and earthly and temporal wealth and riches translates to abundant spiritual life and spiritual blessings that come from faith in Jesus Christ. Faith comes from hearing the word of Christ. The Spirit creates and grows faith by the hearing of the Gospel. Therefore, believers may claim the promise of spiritual fruitfulness and kingdom wealth in the heart, and the sure hope of great health and wealth in the eternal heaven with God. After the resurrection we shall dwell in spiritual bodies fit to enjoy the abundant fertility and growth of all good things in the new heaven and new earth.

The blessing will be in the fruit of our bodies, the fruit of our ground, and the fruit of our cattle, and in the increaseof herds and flocks. The fruit of the body is the blessing of a large and growing family and descendants. This fruit includes quality as well as quantity. This fruit brings love, joy and peace to families who are faithful to the Lord and believe His Word.

The blessing will be in the fruit of crops and livestock. Abundant, healthy, and growing herds and flock along with fertile harvests were, in Moses’s time and for a long time in agricultural societies, the major indicator of wealth and blessing. Nowadays we look at salary and bank account. God promises fruit in the growth of money. The guarantee is that God provides enough for His children to live well. And in order to live well there must be love, joy and peace in the heart and in the family, for this is the true fruit of the Spirit.

We can see and understand material increase of wealth. The Lord uses the visible, tangible, earthly and temporal material things to reveal to us the rich things of God that have true and eternal value. Faith makes the transfer from material fruit of things we can see to the spiritual fruit of the things of God that we cannot see. So we believe the promise and take it by faith. We are told to “count our blessings,” but the spiritual riches of God’s Grace are really uncountable, like the dust of the earth and the stars of the heavens. Ask God to give you strength to comprehend the width and length and height and depth of the love of God in Christ Jesus. God will certainly answer your prayer and show you how blessed you are.

140. Blessings at home and work

Deuteronomy 28:3 Blessed shalt thou be in the city and blessed shalt thou be in the field.

If you keep the commandments you will be blessed everywhere. You will be blessed in the city and in the field. Home life and play went on in the city; work was done in the country fields. In the modern world it is almost the opposite, but the principle is the same: you will be blessed at home or at work, at work or at play. 

Playing with the family is a blessing. Leisure time is a blessing when spent in productive recreation. The strongest blessing most people crave is a blessing on their home and family life, on relaxing and playtime at home, on conversation with friends and family. A happy family life is a real blessing that seems to be getting rarer and rarer. Family strife and stress seems to be more and more common. Keeping the 4^th and 6^thcommandments is vital in regard to a blessed marriage and family life.

We also need the promised blessings on work, whatever the work is that we are called to do. First, we need to be blessed with a job. Second, we need to be blessed with earning enough money to live well. Third, we need a productive job that produces benefits for family and other people. Fourth, we need a satisfying job that fills life with purpose and meaning. The man is truly blessed who has all these things in his work. For this purpose we keep the 5^th and 7^thcommandments to honestly serve and enrich the lives of others.

Sin thwarts, hinders and frustrates the blessings of city and field, home and work. Thus we are diligent in daily repentance and in the daily reception and enjoyment of forgiveness by faith in the Gospel. The Lord does promise blessings when sin gets out of the way. Living a blessed life is the normal way to live; it does not come naturally, but it comes supernaturally, since every good and perfect gift comes from above. Ask for the blessings, ask forgiveness, enjoy the blessings, and thank God for a wonderful life.

139. Blessings Overtake

Deuteronomy 28:2 And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.

Deuteronomy 28 is the classic chapter of blessings and curses of the Mosaic Covenant coming into effect depending on the condition of obedience or disobedience to the Commandments. If you obey, then you will be blessed. He then proceeds to list the blessings. The conditional promise is clear. The Law does not bless us since we can’t keep it; instead, we are cursed. By the Law come the knowledge of sin and the fearful consequence of despair and loss. By the Gospel come the knowledge of the Savior and the joyful consequence of life and hope. Jesus “listened to the voice of the Lord” and kept it in our place. Jesus earns the righteousness of God and gives it to us by grace. This righteousness is certainly good enough to earn the blessings.

Even we cannot stop all these blessings, and our enemies cannot thwart them or hold them back. The blessings will come on you and overtake you. We should see the picture: blessings will chase us and catch up to us, grab us, and tackle us. We cannot avoid the blessings, even if we wanted to. These blessings will then come into us, fill us up, and even overwhelm us with all the goodness of God. Even if we are not experiencing the blessings of the Gospel so that we always “feel” it, the blessings are still real and alive in us when we hear the Gospel.

The Lord is determined to bless His children who believe in Him. His way of blessing may not be our way; His blessings may be more spiritual than physical or emotional; His blessings will definitely be eternal. God uses afflictions to prepare for us an eternal weight of glory. You may count your blessings, but it will be like trying to count the sand or the stars. But it is a beneficial exercise to thank God for promises made and promises kept.

138. Set on High

Deuteronomy 28:1 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth.

The conditional promise: if you listen carefully to the Lord to observe and do all the commandments, then the Lord will set you on high above all the nations of earth. The height of the Kingdom of Israel came during the time of David and Solomon, then it was divided and after many centuries disintegrated until the people of God were exiled into larger empires. The conclusion to be drawn is that the people did not listen and obey the Covenant Stipulations, the Ten Commandments, and all the commands given through Moses. Therefore, the political nation of Israel did not rise high above the nations.

The very people of the Covenant were eventually driven out of the Land because they polluted the Land with idolatry, sin and rebellion against God. Therefore, the land spewed them out.

The promise did, however, come true in the spiritual and eternal sense. The kingdom of God in the hearts of believers did grow, and is still growing, to become high above all the nations of the world. Earth people are left behind, while heavenly people grow and flourish, and God set them high above the kingdom of the world. Empires and worldly kingdoms come and go, expand and die, sometimes rapidly and sometimes after hundreds of years, but the spiritual and real and eternal kingdom of God expands and grows and never dies.

It is impossible to see, and hard to believe, but the eternal kingdom of God that lives and reigns in our hearts is in reality (eternal and spiritual reality) set high above all worldly kingdoms. Where is the kingdom? Where is the power? Where is the glory? It is hidden to human eyes, but revealed to faith, which is worked in us by the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the Gospel. What seems weak and foolish to the world is actually strong and wise. The cross of Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. We glory in the cross. Through the work of Christ, disobedience is forgiven and obedience is granted. So believers are set high above. Rejoice in the victory and the power and the glory!