“1 And it shall come to pass, if you shall hearken diligently unto the Voice of the Lord your God, to observe and to do all His Commandments which I command you this day, that the Lord your God will set you on high above all nations of the earth:
2 And all these blessings shall come on you, and overtake you, if you shall hearken unto the Voice of the Lord your God.
3 Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field.
4 Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, and the fruit of your ground, and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your kine, and the flocks of your sheep.
5 Blessed shall be your basket and your store.
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 that rise up against you to be smitten before your face: they shall come out against you one way, and flee before you seven ways.
8 The Lord shall command the blessing upon you in your storehouses, and in all that you set your hand unto; and he shall bless you in the land which the Lord your God gives you.
9 The Lord shall establish you an holy people unto Himself, as He has sworn unto you, if you shall keep the Commandments of the Lord your God, and walk in His Ways.
10 And all people of the earth shall see that you are called by the Name of the Lord; and they shall be afraid of you.
11 And the Lord shall make you plenteous in goods, in the fruit of your body, and in the fruit of your cattle, and in the fruit of your ground, in the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers to give you.
12 The Lord shall open unto you His good treasure, the Heaven to give the rain unto your land in His season, and to bless all the work of your hand: and you shall lend unto many nations, and you shall not borrow.
13 And the Lord shall make you the head, and not the tail; and you shall be above only, and you shall not be beneath; if that you hearken unto the Commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day, to observe and to do them:
14 And you shall not go aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.” Deuteronomy 28:1-14
The blessings of the Lord are and have always been conditional upon obedience. For the Old Testament Saints, it was their obedience to the Law but for the New Testament Saints, us who are under a “Better Covenant” because of the Blood of Jesus Christ, we are obedient unto the faith; the faith which was given unto us at Salvation…that mustard seed of faith planted in our hearts when we chose to believe upon Jesus Christ as our Saviour.
It is this faith which we contend and fight for daily. The blessings of the Lord are incumbent upon our faith in Jesus as the Source and His Cross as the means by which we receive such blessings. The blessings we speak of are not always materialistic but so much more. These blessings are the Grace of God made strong in our weakness; it is the peace of God beyond all understanding and joy unspeakable as the storms rage.
These blessings are conditional on our obedience to the faith in Jesus Christ and Him crucified. This is WHY we who have tasted of the goodness of the Lord are so determined to know nothing else except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We NEED His Grace to see us through. We have SEEN His Hand move in our circumstances as we have set our face like a flint unashamed of His Gospel.
Yes, there are many who are determined to know nothing else among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We are peculiar as we pass through this pilgrim land but nonetheless, we are just passing through; running a race yet occupying until the end. Not looking to the right hand or to the left but going on with Jesus every step of the way!
“For the Lord God will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.” Isaiah 50:7
-Donna Clark Warren
Living in The Spirit 