“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing…” – Ephesians 1:3 (NLT)
As we perform our daily duties, we may have heard a lot of talk about the blessing of God within the circumference of the Body of Christ. Everyone strives to live in the blessings of God. Unfortunately, many believers do not know that there are two kinds of blessings. Namely:
- The blessing of God (Hebrews 6:7)
- The blessing of the Father (Ephesians 1)
Many believers strive daily to experience God’s blessing on their lives when, in reality, they should be striving to live under the blessing of the Father. There is a big difference between God’s blessing and the Father’s blessing.
The blessing of God is the general goodness of God to all of His creation without discrimination. For example, when God sends the seasonal rain, it falls on both the just and the unjust. Also, when a farmer (believer or unbeliever) plants his crop with the right conditions, it yields well because the blessing is already in the seed. Therefore, it means that the blessing of God can be accessed by both the just and the unjust. The non-believer receives the blessing of God regardless of his inability to acknowledge divine providence.
Ephesians 1 shows us the relationship God has brought us into through Christ Jesus.
- We are faithful followers of Christ (Ephesians 1:1). All Christians must be saints. If we do not come under that character on earth, we will never be saints in glory.
- God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, “has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heavenly realms…” (Ephesians 1:3). This means that in Christ we have all the benefits of knowing God – being chosen for salvation, being adopted as His children, forgiveness, insight, the gifts of the Spirit, power to do God’s will, the hope of living forever with Christ. We can enjoy these blessings because we have an intimate relationship with Christ. The ‘heavenly realms’ mean that these blessings are eternal, not temporal.
- Spiritual and heavenly blessings are the best blessings (Ephesians 1:3-8). God has laid up spiritual blessings for us in His Son, the Lord Jesus, but requires us to draw them out and fetch them in by prayer. Even the best Christians need to pray for others and to be prayed for (Ephesians 1:15-23).
Have you entered into this loving relationship with God? Are you satisfied with the blessing of God, or do you yearn for the blessing of the Father?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, help us to understand that salvation depends totally on You and there is no way to take credit for it. Help us to express our thanks for Your wonderful love. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
Read: Deuteronomy 1:31; Proverbs 20:7
Bible Reading Guide: Psalm 78:40-55; Acts 20; 2 Kings 1; 2 Kings 2