Our main theme has been this: 

Because of what God has done, we are to respond in joyful obedience as we receive and use His blessings for His glory, for our good, and for the good of those around us.

God has saved us from utter destruction. And our calling is to obey the word of the Lord and seek after Him in all that we do. And responding to His work of salvation in obedience will always lead to blessing.

(Read the previous article in this series here.)

‌God gives blessings in Him

“Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel” (Exodus 19:5–6).

‌Blessings in the covenant are conditional, meaning that if we don’t obey then we will not receive the covenantal blessings. While this is true, God’s covenant is based on His work first and foremost. ‌

In other words, when God did the work of salvation in our lives, He also changed our hearts to long for Him and anything that comes from Him. His good gifts can only be found in obedience. When we return to sin, we step outside of that path of blessing altogether.

‌Let’s look at the blessings mentioned here.

Treasured possession

‌On what merit? They were slaves. They were small.

“Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine” (Exodus 19:5).

‌We are also God’s treasured possession among all people, and He has the whole earth! How blessed are we that we have been chosen from all the people of the world! In a world of almost 7.9 billion people, God has set his affections on the few.

Sit in that for a moment. Let that sink in. We have nothing to bring to the table, but God has chosen us in Christ. This … is … absolutely amazing!

‌And the majority of God’s gifts and blessings is the gift of God Himself and being remade into the likeness of Christ.

‌It is good to enjoy physical blessings, but the physical gifts that God gives us are not the end. We are to enjoy those things directionally towards Him. He is the ultimate end of all enjoyment. We and all creation are wired to enjoy the world around us, but in specific ways.  

Our bodies have positive feedback loops that hormones use to drive certain activities into completion. But if we take those activities and step outside of certain contexts, then they actually create issues. We are meant, wired, to enjoy good things but in a certain way, a Godward and obedient way.

‌A good analogy for the use of blessings, both physical goods and gifts/fruit of the Spirit is a channel vs reservoir metaphor. Channels take water from one larger body and flow the water to another body of water. Reservoirs collect water and rarely release that water elsewhere. Are you a channel of blessings or reservoirs of blessing? Do you seek to serve others and the Lord’s purposes with the gifts that he gives you? 

‌A kingdom of priests

‌A priesthood to all nations — this is the call of the church to go on behalf of God and then bring them back and go to God on behalf of them. The Old Testament has laws for bringing people into the nation, to proselytize them.‌

We can look at Israel, who failed in this calling, but let’s not look at them with prideful eyes. We are too quick to fail in the same area.

‌Who are you going to on behalf of God? And who are you bringing before God?

‌A holy nation

‌We are set apart for His purpose. Not only were the OT Laws for bringing people in, but many laws deal with how to show hospitality to people passing through. These civil and religious laws given in the OT are extremely helpful for us to see the principle and heart and live that heart out to our neighbor and to those who are around us.

‌In Christ, we are set apart for His purposes.

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy” (1 Peter 2:9–10).

Application

‌Our main theme has been this: 

Because of what God has done, we are to respond in joyful obedience as we receive and use His blessings for His glory, for our good, and for the good of those around us.

‌How are you reminding yourself of God’s faithfulness in your life? In what ways are you pursuing obedience in joy? ‌

Do you tend to look at physical blessings and prosperity from a channel or reservoir perspective? Do you have intentionality in these areas, or has it not really ever been a thought? Maybe you’ve thought about it, but how have you sought to live it out in your daily life?

‌Just like the Israelites, we need to meet with God, reflect on His word regularly, do life together as the people of God, and bring the lost into the community of God.

‌Just like my travels with my dad on those country roads, the path that God has us on can sometimes seem winding and, at times, way off, but following the Lord means that we are in the best place of all, by His side and under His protecting wings.