State of Blessedness

“…for I [Laban] have learned by experience that the Lord has blessed me for your [Jacob’s] sake.” Genesis 30:27.

This is the story of Laban and Jacob, where Jacob had worked for Laban for several years. Laban was Jacob’s uncle, and despite the fact that Laban had deceived him already, Jacob continued to work for him faithfully. After the birth of Joseph, Jacob wanted to leave Laban, and Laban begged him not to leave, citing the above verse, that he realized that it was through Jacob that he was blessed. Jacob himself echoed this in verse 30, saying, “For what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount; the Lord has blessed you since my coming….”

This was the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham earlier on, in Genesis 22:17-18, where God told him that “blessing I will bless you… In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” This is the exact phrase God repeated to Jacob while he was on his way to Laban’s, while he slept on the stone, that “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father… in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.” Gen. 28:13-15.

Abraham, through whom Isaac, Jacob and their descendants were blessed, had done nothing to deserve or receive the blessing, except believe in God (Rom. 4:2-3, 13). Isaac, Jacob and the rest also received it by faith. When the law was introduced, the blessing ceased to be inherited, until Jesus came. Jesus is the seed of Abraham through whom we are blessed, and joined to the lineage of Abraham. We are Abraham’s children through faith, and are made heirs of the promise to Abraham through faith in Jesus. “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Gal. 4:29. “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law… that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” Gal. 3:13-14.

Today, like Jacob, we can walk in a state of blessedness by faith, being a blessing to many others. God blessed us already (Eph. 1:3), not for any other purpose, but to be a blessing to all the nations of the earth. As children of Abraham through faith, we ought to study our forefathers (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob), and watch how they walked. They were blessed in all they did, and many were blessed through them. This is the fulfillment of what Abraham was told by God the first time He spoke to him, that “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing… and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Gen. 12:2-3. 

Remember, to be "blessed" is to be "empowered to prosper," Deuteronomy 8:18. You have an empowerment to prosper in all you do. The blessing is not a physical and tangible thing; it is a spiritual and supernatural empowerment, and you have it in you (Eph. 1:3). It is this empowerment that caused Joseph to be a blessing to Potiphar's house, to the prison-mates at the prison, and eventually to the whole nation of Egypt, despite having nothing physical to show. Genesis 39:2-5 says:


The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. ³ And his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. ⁴ So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority. ⁵ So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house and in the field.

Joseph arrived as a slave, with nothing, but because of the blessing upon him and God with Him, he ended up transforming Potiphar's house. Abraham had the same thing, which is why when He was told to leave his land and family to go to a land he did not know, he left it all and went, and still prospered wherever he went. When his men started having disputes with Lot's men, and Abraham had to choose which land to possess, he did not care about what was green already, as he knew it was not about the land or what was to be seen, but what was in Him and upon Him - the blessing, courtesy of God being with Him (Gen. 13). You do not have to go to a certain country or place for you to prosper; the ability to prosper and be a blessing is within and upon you, and the Lord is with you wherever you go! (Heb. 13:5).

As we have seen in our opening verses, Jacob was aware of the fact that Laban was blessed through him. He was aware of the blessing upon him. You will start being a blessing when you:

• Acknowledge you are blessed
• Have faith in the blessing
•  Purpose to be a blessing wherever you go
• Be determined to glorify God.

Phil. 6 says that the communication of our faith becomes effective by the acknowledging of every good thing that is in us, in Christ Jesus. People around us will sense and know that we are blessed and have faith in what we believe in when we start acknowledging we are blessed, and being determined to be a blessing to anyone who comes our way. God, the author of the blessing, is not selfish, and wants many to be blessed through us. All we have to do is acknowledge He has already blessed us, have faith in the blessing, that it will work, purpose to be a blessing wherever we go, and glorify God. Ask God how to be a blessing to your customers, fellow students, bosses and colleagues, matatu drivers and conductors, waiters, family members, church members, your church, your pastor etc. He will show you how, and through you the nations of the earth will be blessed. God never brings you anywhere or bring anywhere across your path without a reason; He does so because He knows you are blessed, and wants you to be a blessing to the person. Instead of thinking how you can benefit from whoever God brings your way or brings you their way, think of how you can be a blessing to them. 

People continue to do the needless, to get God to do what He has already done. They are told to give to be blessed, pray, fast, sing, jump etc., to move God to bless them. Guess what; He already did it! If you are going to give, pray, fast, sing, jump, worship etc., do it out of gratitude for what God has already done, do it because you are blessed. So stop pursuing the blessings, as you already have them, and you have the Blesser with you to show you how to enjoy the blessings and use them to be a blessing to others.

Remember, You are not going to be blessed, you are not being blessed, you are blessed! What's more important, the Lord is with you wherever you go!

You are blessed; be a blessing.

Blessings.


-- Sam Gitonga.

(28/09/14 Sunday Service Morning Exhortation, Teaching Transformation Ministry.)

Brother Sam Gitonga is a Youth Leader at Teaching Transformation Ministry. We are located along the Thika-Ruai Flyover Junction (at the Thika Rd./ Bypass intersection), Next to Eastgate Restaurant.