[Passage]
[Deuteronomy 28:1 – 7]
“Now it shall be, if you diligently obey the LORD your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. [2] “All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you obey the LORD your God: [3] “Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. [4] “Blessed shall be the offspring of your body and the produce of your ground and the offspring of your beasts, the increase of your herd and the young of your flock. [5] “Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. [6] “Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out. [7] “The LORD shall cause your enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you; they will come out against you one way and will flee before you seven ways.”
[Introduction]
Dear brothers and sisters,
In Genesis chapter 26, Isaac had to move to another place when there was famine where he was living. But unlike what he thought, the LORD God appeared to him and told him not to go to Egypt but stay in Gerar, where the Philistines were living. God said, “Sojourn in this land and I will be with you and bless you.”
So Isaac obeyed God. But because of that, Isaac was put into a difficult situation. His wife was almost taken away. Of course, it was because Isaac said she was his sister utilizing his fleshly thoughts. He was afraid that the people of that land might kill him to take his wife, for she was beautiful, and for this reason he said she was his sister.
But by the work of God Isaac received back his wife, and he could dwell in the land safely under the protection of the king of the Philistines. Then, Genesis 26:12-13 says, “Now Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. And the LORD blessed him, and the man became rich, and continued to grow richer until he became very wealthy;” This is the blessing that Isaac received from God after his soul became prosperous.
Through this trial, Isaac could change his attitude with which he would rely on his own wisdom. When Isaac obeyed God in a situation where he could not easily obey, as a matter of fact, he did not receive blessings immediately. But rather, there were some troubles. Isaac however did not complain about or resent the situation. He relied on God and received the solution, and he realized the fact that he was utilizing his own thoughts.
Through this process, Isaac broke down his own thoughts and his soul became prosperous. Then, God blessed him very much. This is the blessing of God given to those people whose souls are prosperous.
Brothers and sisters, our goal obviously is not to become wealthy on this earth. But those who are loved by God will enjoy abundant blessings on this earth. Therefore, you should also receive the blessing of your souls’ prosperity first. Only then will you be able to say Yes and Amen to the words of God without utilizing your own thoughts.
The original voice will work on such people, so that the blessings can come upon them. Through this message ‘blessing’, I pray in the name of the Lord that you will all receive the works of the original voice bringing blessing to you.
[Main]
Dear brothers and sisters,
Continuing from the last session, let us delve into what we have to do to receive the blessings of God.
Based on verses 1-2 from the reading passage, we are looking into the three conditions to receive blessings. The first was about the words and commandments of God. Verse 1, Amplified Bible says, “If you will listen diligently to the voice of the Lord your God, being watchful to do all His commandments which I command you this day, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.”
Here, I explained, that to listen diligently to the voice of the LORD your God does not only mean hearing it and storing it as knowledge. It is to obey what we hear. In order to do that, we first have to hear the word of God diligently. We have to read it, hear the messages, and meditate on them. What is more important is to learn the Word of God spiritually, keep it in our mind, and practice it immediately.
Next, let us look into the commandments. In the reading passage it says, “being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today,” As a condition for us to receive blessings, God tells us to keep all His commandments. Commandments are the things that God Himself ordered us to do certain things. Ten Commandments are the best example.
The commandments have the strongest force among all the words of God. We can feel the force from the word ‘commandment’ itself. So, it is not something about which we have an option. It is something that we simply must do.
For example, saying, ‘Drive carefully’, and ‘Fasten your seatbelt while driving’ are very different from each other. ‘Drive carefully’ includes many things, but ‘Fasten your seatbelt while driving’ is directly related with life. For this reason it is mandated by the law.
As in the above example, most of the commandments of God are directly related with the life and death, and blessing and curse. But some believers find the commandments of God burdensome. Easily put, they find it difficult to keep them. But as I said earlier, commandments are not something optional to us. And if we just have the willingness to keep, they are not really difficult to keep either.
Deuteronomy 30:11-14 says, “For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach. [12] “It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?’ [13] “Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?’ [14] “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it.”
When I told you to listen to the ‘seed of life’ ten times, to read the ‘Romance of Three Kingdoms’ two times, and to read the Bible out loud, those who really wanted to obey from the heart must have felt it was not difficult to obey.
On the other hand, those who did not have the willingness to obey must have felt it was such a great burden. You must have given many reasons and excuses for not being able to obey. 1 John 5:3 says, “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.” The commandments of God would not be burdensome to those who love God.
But rather they feel the love of God the Father contained in the commandments, so they rather feel joyful to keep the words of God. Deuteronomy 10:13 says, “…and to keep the LORD’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good?” As said, the commandments are given to us for our own happiness. So, if we understand this heart of God, we will obey voluntarily and with joy the commands of God telling us to do certain things. Such people are the ones who prepare the vessel to receive blessings fully.
