Blessings v Curses - What Works?

I was reminded about the wedding in Cana and how in Jesus' first miracle He turned water into wine.  It symbolized a blessing and was full of life.  The wine did not have the time to decay and break down.  It is life lived abundantly the way we were meant to live.  It is recorded that this wine was the best.  John 2:10. This blessing was done to reveal His glory.

In the Old Testament, Jehovah or Yahweh turned the water into blood through Moses' staff.  Exodus 7:17. This was done as a curse against the Egyptians.  The curse symbolized death as Pharaoh's heart was spiritually dead.  Why Pharaoh?  He did not recognize the sovereignty of Yahweh and he was the object of the Egyptians' worship.  This curse was done to reveal Yahweh's power and sovereignty over all things and all people.  Yahweh is the one and only true God.

A blessing is meant to share His abundance with those around us and through us because of who He is.  It has nothing to do with our strength our skills but rather what can be done through us by Him.  We simply are trusting in Yahweh, giving freely and cheerfully what we have been already given to us by Him.

A curse is meant to bring about changed hearts and to turn back to Him.  It is not about a tally sheet but rather the faithful (or faithless) attitude of the heart.  It is meant to make us understand our inferiority in light of His sovereignty.  It is meant to illuminate our hearts and refocus our need for Yahweh, our strong tower and refuge.

Our lives should not be lived like a sales receipt when dealing with the Lord.  It should not be about how much we spent compared to how much we saved. For one, we cannot save anyone for that is the work of the Holy Spirit.  God means for us to prosper and live abundantly when we put Him first.  Not the way the world judges prosperity and abundance for we are not of this world - we are only visiting.  At the end of checking out, He is going to look down at us and see how much He saved compared to what was invested.  If one was saved, it was a good investment.  If many were saved as a witness to how we leaned on His understanding, His strength and bore the good and bad seasons in our lives then that will be an even better investment.

It is not what we can do or work for Him.  It is what we allow Him to do through us because we recognize who He is and we trust Him.  The difference is the attitude of the heart.  It is not about our works but rather being a good and faithful servant.

No comments:

Post a Comment