Blessed -- A Covenant Promise of God or Earthly Happiness

What does blessing mean to you? Do you connect blessing to earthly happiness? Is it the mere prosperity and abundance of material things? In the greatest sermon to ever be, that of our Lord to a multitude on the mountain in the longest single discourse recorded during His time among men, Christ used the term blessed over and over again (Mt. 5-7). My very soul cringes when I hear expositors translate the opening verses of the sermon on the mount using "happy" instead of blessed. Do you really think it is possible to be happy in any of these circumstances? Nay my friend, but you will be vexed to your very soul under any of these circumstances and it will seem as if there is no hope when such a condition has continued for more than a very short time. Yet none I know can define a biblical season and often the very elect find themselves facing one and often several of these conditions for days on end. The introduction to the sermon on the mount ends in Matthew verse twelve where the Lord lays before us that which is impossible for the human soul to comprehend or accomplish alone, rejoice in the face of the deepest of human depression, when hope for tomorrow has ceased and your constant prayer is for death today.

Yet God has never required anything of mankind He did not first provide. We find many verses similar to Matthew twelve that "command" the believer to rejoice in the face of tribulation. The theme is repeated too often in too many contexts not to see that truly hope springs forth eternally in the soul of the believer. Unlike those of the world and their trite little example of the little train climbing that impossible hill with a load much too large for it and its constant "I think I can" repeated over and over, the Christian can climb that hill with twice the load shouting for joy, "I know I can, for my strength comes from the Lord."

We are told David wrote this Psalm as he fled rather than fight his own son. There has never been a man who would have faulted David if he had chosen to stand and fight, even bringing about the death of his own son. A son who had not only betrayed his father, but had taken his father’s wives in public view that all might know he had "defeated" his own father and was now declaring himself king of Israel. We all have times when those we know, trust, and love cause deep hurt or desert us at the most inopportune time. The pathways of our lives are most often filled with broken relationships where those we have or would call friends have chosen to go their own way. We all face frustrations and tasks that seem impossible to bear at times. Can you imagine being able to "rejoice" during such episodes?

This is what being blessed is about, not happiness. Few can understand how you can have joy and rejoice and not be happy. Yet the truth is that blessed speaks of the covenant relationship we have with God through our Savior. The promise of the Messiah to David and the saints of the Old Testament, made manifest in Christ’s birth, confirmed in His death and resurrection as like those ancient brothers we await the return of the Messiah in victory over the last enemy, that of physical death. Because we are blessed, that is we have the covenant promise of God of this eternal life we can do the impossible and "rejoice" in the face of the greatest tribulation. Adversity merely drives us to our knees in awesome wonder at so a great a salvation given to the likes of such mere mortals. As Christ arose the third day, so shall we. The God of creation has so decreed and as sovereign over all, both the visible and invisible it cannot fail that we too shall rise in life eternal.

What do you fear more than death? Yet death is but gain to the believer, for he is blessed. Nay, rather than fear, death is but the entrance into an eternal reward we did not earn and do not deserve. What others say or do have nothing at all to do with it. They may doubt and scoff at our faith, but that is of no value here nor in the life to come. Truly many will look at the circumstances of the saints and declare that not even God could help such a miserable soul. Yet John says that we can know this truth, that we are the sons of God. The Scriptures shout that we are joint heirs with Jesus Christ who arose as the first fruit among many brethren. With Paul then let us call ourselves blessed and sing with joy in our souls, "O death where is thy sting, O grave where is thy victory." If we do not fear death, what is left in this temporal world to fear?

While we can find great comfort for the moment in the words of Christ in the sermon on the mount, His word to us in John 16:20 is the well of living water from whence hope in any human or earthly situation is indeed an ever flowing stream. " Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy" (John 16:20 AV). Here we can enter into this darkness of life and lay ourselves down and sleep (rest) for it is indeed the Lord that sustains us and who will awaken us. We sink not into the pit of eternal despair, but of earthly sorrow that the glory of God might shine forth. As we have been blessed, so we are a blessing to the whole world. This is the light we need to understand why Christ would say that the rain falls on both the just and the unjust. Because man alone cannot sustain himself in such circumstances, the power of God is revealed and the blessing of our covenant relationship spread before all that none might not have seen the glory and power of God in His love and goodness toward His own in such trials of life. Though we have been totally passive, still the glory of God is made known and the greatest gift to ever exist, Jesus Christ revealed to all, the just and the unjust. Though Paul says faith comes from the Word of God and shows the necessity of the gift of the preachers to the church to declare the Gospel, it is such blessings bestowed in adversity that gives feet to the truth of the Gospel. Perhaps the greatest fallacy in the modern church is to create a "seeker" friendly church, the truth is there would be no "seekers" without the Gospel being made manifest in the blessing of adversity.

Elizabeth Skogland in a book entitled More than Coping uses the analogy of a deep and dark forest for the loneliness and hopelessness of profound mourning or depression. In her narrative she tells us that it always happens that at the point of the deepest and most forlorn emotions we see a tiny point of light in that dark wood and begin the trek in that direction. After God’s season we reach a clearing and break into the glorious light of a spring meadow. The rejoicing is great, until we look up and see just before us another dark wood we must enter. She says we should rejoice as we leap across the meadow to enter that next wood and praise God for the confidence He has shown in us, for He will not put more upon us than we can bear in His grace. Indeed His grace alone is sufficient. Laugh at adversity fellow traveler, sing with joy before your mockers, for you are blessed. You are in the covenant of life with God, and life eternal in victory over death is assured. God has broken the teeth of the ungodly and we are more than conquerors in Christ.

By:  Dr. Chuck Baynard