“I will bless you … and you will be a blessing.” (Genesis 12:2 NIV)
1. Our
blessings should flow to others.
The Bible teaches
us that we are blessed not just so that we can feel good, not just so we can be
happy and comfortable, but so that we will bless others. God told Abraham in
Genesis 12:2, “I will bless you ... and you will be a blessing” (NIV). This is
the first law of blessing: It must flow outwardly.
How do you bless
others? By serving a need, whether it is physical or emotional support,
financial help, or practical advice. "Forget yourselves long enough to
lend a helping hand" (Philippians 1:4 MSG).
2. When
we bless others, God takes care of our needs.
God promises that
if we will concentrate on blessing others, he’ll take care of our needs.
There’s almost nothing that God won’t do for the person who really wants to
help other people. In fact, God guarantees this blessing. In Luke 18, Jesus
says, “I guarantee this. Anyone who gives up anything for the kingdom of God
will certainly receive many times more in this life and will receive eternal
life in the next world to come.”
When you care
about helping other people, God assumes responsibility for your problems. And
that’s a real blessing, for he’s much better at handling your difficulties than
you are.
3. Our
blessings to others will come back on us.
The more you
bless other people and the more you help others, the more God blesses your
life. Luke 6:38 tells us, “Give away your life; you’ll find life given back,
but not merely given back — given back with bonus and blessing” (MSG). You
cannot out-give God. The more you try to bless other people in the world around
you, the more God says, “I’m going to pour blessings out on you. We’ll play a
little game here. Let’s see who will win. Let’s see who can give the most. The
more you bless others, the more I’m going to bless you in return.”
4. The
more we’re blessed by God, the more he expects us to help others.
Jesus said it
this way in Luke 12: “Much is required from the person to whom much is given;
much more is required from the person to whom much more is given” (GNT). We are
blessed to be a blessing.
Talk
About It
- Based on the blessings of
your life, what would you say God expects from you?
- What are the
needs around you for which you can use your gifts to be a blessing?
Rick
Warren is
the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest,
Calif., one of America's largest and most influential churches. Rick is author
of the New York Times bestseller "The Purpose Driven Life." His
book, "The Purpose Driven Church," was named
one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. He is also the
founder of Pastors.com,
a global Internet community for pastors.
