God's Blessings
Thanksgiving is almost here - and it's one of those rare times where the entire nation pauses - for at least for a few minutes - to be grateful. But for believers, Thanksgiving is more than just a cultural moment. It's an opportunity to spiritually reflect on our blessings from God and how those blessings shape our priorities. Gratitude is meant to lead somewhere - it's meant to redirect our focus and renew our obedience to God.
And of course, when we honestly take the time to think about it, we can come up with a pretty good list of blessings. But there may be circumstances in our lives that may not be so great. We're not called to put on a fake smile and just pretend everything is perfect - but this is the time we focus on those things that are good.
As I mentioned earlier, the 'thankful cards' I asked you to fill out - as we put them up on the bulletin board - take the time to read them. These are reminders of how God is working in His Church! This is important!
I've got a brief video I'd like to share…
Now, as your preacher, at Thanksgiving time I'm supposed to remind you of all of your blessings. I'm supposed to encourage you to be thankful for those blessings. I'm supposed to point out the blessings that you might have overlooked and just how blessed we are compared to others.
Now, all of that is true. I do want you to be thankful. We are blessed in this country more than the vast majority of the world. But, I think that with all of the talk of thanksgiving – we might be overlooking something. We are blessed, but despite the fact that in this country we are actually wealthier than most – I think that many of us are still missing out on a lot of blessings.
In order to explain what I mean, I'd like for us to look back to a book from the Old Testament. There's an account of a real story about what happened when God's people…
I. Made a choice
The book of Haggai is only two chapters long. You don't usually hear a lot of sermons out of Haggai. This is only the third time I've ever preached from it. Many may not even know where it is, but it's right towards the end of the Old Testament. Here we find this account, and I want to start with Haggai 1:2-11 (NIV)...
This is what the LORD Almighty says: "These people say, 'The time has not yet come for the Lord's house to be built.'" (3) Then the word of the LORD came through the prophet Haggai: (4) "Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?" (5) Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways. (6) You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill.
You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it." (7) This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways. (8) Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build the house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored," says the LORD. (9) "You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?" declares the LORD Almighty.
"Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house. (10) Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. (11) I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the oil and whatever the ground produces, on men and cattle, and on the labor of your hands."
We're going to get a bit of context as we go along, but as I said – the people had chosen to do things their way instead of God's way. So let's look a bit at…
A. Their way
Did you notice that passage started with, "These people say…", not, "My people say…". That subtle shift in language signaled distance. The people who belonged to God were drifting away from Him. Their lives had become filled with good things that had taken the place of the best thing.
Here's the situation – God's people, the Israelites, had been in captivity, in exile in Babylon for years but then were finally released and allowed to go home. God had instructed the people to rebuild His temple that had been destroyed, and some small projects were done in the first few years, but then construction just... stopped. And it stayed that way for fifteen years.
I've been through the process of constructing a home and being stalled out. Anyone who's ever dealt with construction knows it's never easy, but I can't imagine construction being on hold for fifteen years.
So what was the problem that delayed the construction of God's temple? The people had become busy with their own properties. But if we do a little digging around in other historical accounts in the Old Testament, we also find this passage in Ezra 4:4-5 (NIV)...
Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building. (5) They hired counselors to work against them and frustrate their plans during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia.
God said to rebuild His temple, but the people around the Israelites, the other nations didn't want them to. They stirred up trouble and made accusations about the Jewish people to other rulers in the region who then ordered them to stop construction. So, because of busyness and outside pressure, God's people chose to put off God's instructions.
And how did that work out for them again? Let's reread that section from Haggai 1:10-11 (NIV)...
Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. (11) I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the oil and whatever the ground produces, on men and cattle, and on the labor of your hands.
God basically said, "Fine. Go ahead, you can absolutely choose to ignore my instructions, but because of your disobedience I will withhold my blessings." The people bowed to outside pressure and ignored God and the result was devastating. There was drought and famine and nothing they tried seemed to amount to much. When they chose to ignore God's instructions, they missed out on all of God's blessings.
Some would suggest that's mean - 'It's like God was forcing them to choose His way or be punished.' If I have a child who directly disobeys me, should I reward that behavior...? Of course I would still provide food and shelter, but should I go out of my way to do a lot extra for a child who's ignoring or outright rejecting my authority as a parent...?
When the people finally were convicted, they realized what they were choosing wasn't working. They realized again that they needed God and the only way to regain His blessing was to do things…
B. God's way
Once the people finally realized just how futile their efforts were without God's blessing – they decided to act. They gathered together and started the work again. And then we find God's response if we look in the second chapter of our story in Haggai 2:18-19 (NIV)...
"'From this day on, from this twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, give careful thought to the day when the foundation of the Lord's temple was laid. Give careful thought: (19) Is there yet any seed left in the barn? Until now, the vine and the fig tree, the pomegranate and the olive tree have not borne fruit. From this day on I will bless you.'"
When the people ignored God and did things their way, they were hurting. They were tired and hungry and nothing seemed to work out for them. Once they came back and started following God's commands again, God once again poured out His blessings. And did you notice - God didn't wait for the entire completion of the task. God didn't say, "Once you finish the temple, then I will reward you." God started pouring out His blessings as soon as they started obeying!
God was eager to bless His people. God wanted to bless them, but He wasn't going to do it as long as they were ignoring His commands. The people tried things their way and it led to heartache. They followed God's way and it led to great blessings.
We serve the same God who the Israelites served when they learned their lesson the hard way. So what is...
II. Our choice?
Do we always do things God's way, or do we sometimes choose to follow our own way? King Solomon, the wisest man in the Bible understood this dilemma. He wrote, in Proverbs 14:12 (NIV)...
There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
Evidently, at first, the nation of Israel thought it best to keep the peace, and back down, and pause construction of the temple despite God's direct command. It may have seemed like the right decision at the time, but we see how that worked out.
Now, of course, we have the benefit of hindsight and can learn from their mistakes – but - do we always do that? Do we make obedience to God the top priority - or do we assume by our affluence, our prosperity that, of course God's okay with how we're living. Even with a down economy - based on total Gross Domestic product - we're still the richest nation on the planet – of course God's blessing us...right? - Are we in line with God's directions or are we living off the blessings that God poured onto our nation because of the faith and obedience of those who came before us?
I think some tend to focus so much on how blessed we are that they forget from where those blessings come - and why they came in the first place. Despite the fact that compared to other nations, we are amazingly 'financially blessed', we still need to remember…
A. Man's way leads to trouble
We like to focus on our blessings but sometimes forget our obligation to obedience. If we get so over confident to the point where we think that either we earned these blessings or that we ourselves are the source of our blessings – we're on the wrong track. I'm reminded of Jesus' words from Matthew 7:13-14 (NIV)...
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. (14) But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
God's way leads to life, man's way leads to destruction. Are we choosing to follow God's way?
Man says - marriage is outdated - breaking vows isn't a big deal, marriage can even be redefined to fit people's preferences. Man says - the tragedy of ending the life of unborn children is a protected healthcare choice, a right. People reject their God-given biological gender...
I'm not standing here pointing out all of 'those bad people' - many don't really know any better. But I'm pointing out the distinct contrast here between man's values and God's values. God's Word says— we'll read it again from Proverbs 14:12 (NIV)...
There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
So, whose way should we follow...? And of course it's easy to point out 'those people' who aren't following God's ways. In what areas do we do the exact same sort of thing and follow man's way and ignore God's way? Do we always treat marriage and human life as sacred? Do we always follow God's ways in our attitude and language, how we relate to money and things, our priorities? What we really need to remember is that…
B. Obedience brings blessing
And this really isn't about guilt or 'beating anyone up' or being judgmental or 'self righteous'. It's about pointing people to the truth so that they can then fully receive God's blessings and live a blessed life! Anyone - anyone - can receive God's blessing by following His ways! What's 'mean spirited' or judgmental about teaching people the truth about how to receive God's blessing? If you want a blessed life – follow God's commands. King Solomon wrote in Proverbs 19:23 (NIV)...
The fear of the LORD leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble.
Do you want to avoid unnecessary trouble, and pain and frustration in this life? Follow God's commands. Now we all know that bad things still happen to good people - I'm not saying that if anything bad ever happens it's solely because you aren't obeying God. I'm not saying that – but I am saying that ignoring God's instructions will lead to trouble.
God commands His people to not use His name in vain – that respect for God leads to humility. God commands His people not to lie – our honesty leads to stronger and better relationships. God commands His people not to covet what others have – that leads to contentment and happier lives. God gives us commands not to restrict us, but to free us to live the best, most blessed lives we can possibly live!
So What?
If you're not trying to follow God's instructions for how to live – don't expect God's blessing. If you aren't trying to read His Word, aren't trying to pray, aren't trying to grow – don't expect God's blessing. If you are living in a way that is in direct opposition to what the Bible teaches – you can't expect to receive God's blessing.
However, if you do want God's blessing on your life - then choose today to follow God completely in every area of your life, despite what everyone around you is doing. Now, you don't have to – you can choose to live however you want and ignore what God says. But don't expect God to give His stamp of approval and pour out blessings on your life.
But if you do want to follow Him – as we saw from the story in Haggai, it doesn't take complete and total perfection to somehow earn God's blessing – it just takes your willingness to begin to obey. God wants to bless you! God is eager and ready to bless you! All He wants is that you start honestly following Him and He will pour out more blessings than you could ever imagine! God really isn't as concerned with any past disobedience as He is concerned with what are you doing right now to follow His Word; to follow Jesus.
As you sit at your Thanksgiving table this next Thursday and take the time to count your blessings – think about How much more God is waiting to pour out on each of us when we simply, humbly obey.