Sunday, 12th April 2015
Rev. Daniel Poon
“The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran.” (Genesis 12:1-4)
Our God always wants to bless us, and if we want to build up the life of blessings, we must firstly build a close relationship with God.
1. Know the God of Blessings
a. The Origin of Blessings
Just like how God blessed Abram, He is also able to bless us and make us blessings to others.
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.” (Ephesians 1:3-4)
b. Watching Over and Keeping Safe
God watches over us like parents look after and care for their children. And when we joined and be committed to the church, church has a spiritual responsibility to watch over us. God doesn’t say that everything will go smoothly once we are Christians, instead He promises us He will always watch over us.
“I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” (Genesis 12:3)
2. Be the One who Blesses
a. Bless and be Blessed
When we bless others in the Name of the Lord, God will always ensure we have enough for ourselves. So don’t be afraid to bless, because when we do, we will be blessed more!
And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. (2 Corinthians 9:8)
The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.” (Numbers 6:22-27)
b. Bless over Curse
“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” (Luke 6:27-28)
The world value tells us to return good to those who treat us nicely and pay back to our enemies. But Christian value is love and acceptance, because we have Jesus in our lives. By faith, we can start the first step to forgive, just like Abraham, leaving his hometown; Moses, stepping into the Red Sea; and Joshua, crossing the Jordan River.
However, faith doesn’t grow immediately. We need to grow in a safe place, where we are given correct teachings. We need to have a home to grow and BOL is a safe place that is provided by God.
“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.” (Romans 12:14)
We are called to be children of God. As Jesus died on the cross, he still asked God to forgive those who prosecuted Him. When people are against us, can we also ask God to forgive them? Rev. Daniel invited us to practice thinking about W.W.J.D. (What would Jesus do?)
“Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.” (1 Peter 3:9)
Freedom is not to do whatever we want to do, but is to not do whatever we don’t want to do. In the Garden of Eden, God gave Adam and Eve the freedom to say no to the temptation. We often think that church bind us and does not give us freedom, but the truth is that church teaches us what true freedom is!
3. Hold onto the Blessed Path
a. The Journey of Faith
Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. (Galatians 3:7-9)
Just like how children always go to their father to fix their broken toys, we can also always come to our Abba Father, and ask Him to fix our problems, troubles, and broken relationships. Whatever position God put us in today has His purpose in it. Rev. Daniel encouraged us not to doubt, but live each day knowing God has given us the best!
“So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” (Hebrews 13:6)
b. Obedience brings Blessings
God loves us and he wants to give the best for us. Therefore in order to live a life of blessings, we should be obedient to God, follow His guidance, and trust that He will lead us to the place full of abundance!
“I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”” (Genesis 22:17-18)