Job 1:13-22; Psalm 34:1 September 27, 2009
“The Power of the Blessing, Part 3”
Rev. Meagan M. Boozer
We are in the middle of a sermon series called, The Power of the Blessing. Everyone wants to be blessed, by important people in their lives, and by God. Many of you have told me how much this teaching is helping you. I’m grateful to God for leading us to study what the Bible teaches us about blessing. May our hearts be open to receive what God has for us today. Let us pray:
Holy God, teach us your truth, so that we can walk in your ways. Give us undivided hearts so that we can bring honor, glory, and blessing to your holy name. This we pray in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Over the last several weeks, we have noticed the partnership of creation and blessing from the first chapter of the first book of the Bible – Genesis. God created, and God blessed. We have also noticed that the blessing from God comes through words. God blessed the sea creatures and the birds of the air saying, “Be fruitful and multiply.” God blessed humanity, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply.” God’s blessing over his creation called forth, from within us, an extravagant capacity for new life, with the result being abundant life that spreads like a wildfire beyond us.
We have seen in the Scriptures, that God has blessed you and me, as the only creation made in his image, with an overflowing capacity to be life-givers, to speak out of the fullness of our lives into lives of others, calling forth significance in each other’s lives by the words we choose to say and the words we choose not to say.
Now remember, though bearing children is part of God’s blessing to be fruitful and multiply, ultimately being fruitful and multiplying is about passing on our knowledge of, awareness of, and our love for God to others.
Let me ask a question: If God created you in his image, blessing you by saying, “be fruitful and multiply,” are you limited by God to pass on his blessing? No. No matter whether you were born with limited physical capabilities, limited thinking capabilities, limited emotional capabilities, you are still blessed and called by God to be a partner with him in the business of life-giving! How many of us know someone who, in the world’s eyes, has some form of “limitation” but who is a joy to the people around them? How many times do we hear a mom or dad say of a child with even severe physical or mental challenges, “she is a blessing to our family,” “we have learned so much about what it means to serve and love unconditionally, because he is part of our family.” Even a person who can’t understand and make the choice to be fruitful and multiply God’s life-giving presence, can be (and is) used by God without limited capacity and with eternal results.
And this takes me to our Scriptures for today. Listen to what happened to Job – who, just like you and me, was created by God and blessed by God with a capacity to partner with God in the business of life-giving:
Job 1:13-22
13One day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in the eldest brother’s house, 14a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were feeding beside them, 15and the Sabeans fell on them and carried them off, and killed the servants with the edge of the sword; I alone have escaped to tell you.” 16While he was still speaking, another came and said, “The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants, and consumed them; I alone have escaped to tell you.” 17While he was still speaking, another came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three columns, made a raid on the camels and carried them off, and killed the servants with the edge of the sword; I alone have escaped to tell you.” 18While he was still speaking, another came and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house, 19and suddenly a great wind came across the desert, struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people, and they are dead; I alone have escaped to tell you.”
20Then Job arose, tore his robe, shaved his head, and fell on the ground and worshiped. 21He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there; the LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” 22In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrongdoing.
Think about what you would do in such a circumstance. Some of us have lost children to sickness, some have lost children before we even got to hold them or know them, some have lost children in tragic accidents.
Some of you have lost your jobs, some are concerned you might lose your job.
Some have lost their homes, their businesses.
What would you do if everything were gone in one day –all your children, your farm, and all the animals?
Job’s wife wasn’t too helpful, (2:9), “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die,” she said. 10But Job replied, “You talk like a godless woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.”
In Psalm 34 we read these words, “I will bless the Lord at all times, his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
We’re talking about a choice here. Job had a choice. Job’s wife had a choice. Job said, “You sound like a godless woman by the words you’re saying.” How many times have we sounded godless by the words we say?
David, the writer of Psalm 34, had the choice. He said, “I will bless the Lord.” Not, “I won’t, or I can’t, or I’ll think about it.” “I will,” he said, because it is a matter of our will. If you are a stubborn person, make it work to bless God. I will bless the Lord at all times.
Not just good times. All times.
Not just when I’m feeling well, but when I’m feeling poorly.
Not just when have enough to pay all the bills this month, but when I can’t pay them.
I will bless the Lord at all times – even when someone you love is dying,
even when your child seems to have rejected everything you have tried to teach them over the years,
even when you’re studying as hard as you can, but still not getting the grades,
even when you’ve been told a diagnosis that is beyond comprehension,
even when your favorite football team loses . . .
you get the point, right?
I will bless the Lord at all times – his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Far too often, we turn to the Lord only when we feel a need for something – and when he gets us through that valley, we say, “Blessed be the name of the Lord.” Friends, we need to bless the Lord by giving him his due at all times. When things are going well for us, we need to acknowledge that God has given us the abilities, the opportunities, the gifts, and the driving purpose of bearing fruit and multiplying eternal fruit-bearers.
I will bless the Lord at all times – his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Now, think about that. His praise shall continually be in my mouth. We think about praise coming out of our mouths, don’t we? David wrote, “His praise shall be continually be in my mouth.”
It’s sort of like eternal, perfect not-too-sweet-tasting, no-cavity-producing gum.
When you come to know Jesus and fall in love with him and decide you want to live a life filled with thanksgiving to him, that’s when you get the special gum.
You can’t ever swallow it because it is unswallowable!
It stays in your mouth forever, giving you great, fresh breath all the time.
With this gum in your mouth, you just can’t get nasty words, swear words, vulgar phrases, sarcastic comments, critical darts, or gossip out of your mouth – because the praise gum is in the way.
And sometimes, it can’t help itself, it bubbles out - in prayer, in singing, in words of blessing toward others and toward the Lord.
I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will continually be IN my mouth, David wrote as he began Psalm 34. A little further into the psalm, he wrote, “Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Which of you desires life, and covets many days to enjoy good? Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit.”
We sang in the first song this morning: Every blessing you pour out I’ll turn back to praise. When the darkness closes in Lord, still I will say, “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
I’ve said from the beginning of this sermon series, that blessing is about capacity and result. Well, let’s acknowledge one more nugget of truth before I close for today: God’s capacity is limitless. Infinite. There is no truck bed that can hold all that God has to give – clearly exposed in the gift of Jesus Christ for the world.
For us as humans, when we speak blessing over other people’s lives in the name of the Lord, their capacity for living the life-giving life increases. But speaking out a blessing to God cannot increase his already limitless capacity.
But here’s the thing about God: Though he doesn’t need us, though he doesn’t need words of blessing to increase his capacity for love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, God made us to bless him continually (capacity), because he knows that when we choose to bless him with our words, the result is that we and everyone around us are more fully blessed. That’s just like God – for he is the great giver of all that is good, the bread of life, the living water who completely satisfies our deepest thirst, the light who shines in the darkness.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love.
Let us bless the Lord!
May His praise be continually in our mouths!
Amen.
“The Power of the Blessing, Part 3”
Rev. Meagan M. Boozer
We are in the middle of a sermon series called, The Power of the Blessing. Everyone wants to be blessed, by important people in their lives, and by God. Many of you have told me how much this teaching is helping you. I’m grateful to God for leading us to study what the Bible teaches us about blessing. May our hearts be open to receive what God has for us today. Let us pray:
Holy God, teach us your truth, so that we can walk in your ways. Give us undivided hearts so that we can bring honor, glory, and blessing to your holy name. This we pray in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Over the last several weeks, we have noticed the partnership of creation and blessing from the first chapter of the first book of the Bible – Genesis. God created, and God blessed. We have also noticed that the blessing from God comes through words. God blessed the sea creatures and the birds of the air saying, “Be fruitful and multiply.” God blessed humanity, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply.” God’s blessing over his creation called forth, from within us, an extravagant capacity for new life, with the result being abundant life that spreads like a wildfire beyond us.
We have seen in the Scriptures, that God has blessed you and me, as the only creation made in his image, with an overflowing capacity to be life-givers, to speak out of the fullness of our lives into lives of others, calling forth significance in each other’s lives by the words we choose to say and the words we choose not to say.
Now remember, though bearing children is part of God’s blessing to be fruitful and multiply, ultimately being fruitful and multiplying is about passing on our knowledge of, awareness of, and our love for God to others.
Let me ask a question: If God created you in his image, blessing you by saying, “be fruitful and multiply,” are you limited by God to pass on his blessing? No. No matter whether you were born with limited physical capabilities, limited thinking capabilities, limited emotional capabilities, you are still blessed and called by God to be a partner with him in the business of life-giving! How many of us know someone who, in the world’s eyes, has some form of “limitation” but who is a joy to the people around them? How many times do we hear a mom or dad say of a child with even severe physical or mental challenges, “she is a blessing to our family,” “we have learned so much about what it means to serve and love unconditionally, because he is part of our family.” Even a person who can’t understand and make the choice to be fruitful and multiply God’s life-giving presence, can be (and is) used by God without limited capacity and with eternal results.
And this takes me to our Scriptures for today. Listen to what happened to Job – who, just like you and me, was created by God and blessed by God with a capacity to partner with God in the business of life-giving:
Job 1:13-22
13One day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in the eldest brother’s house, 14a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were feeding beside them, 15and the Sabeans fell on them and carried them off, and killed the servants with the edge of the sword; I alone have escaped to tell you.” 16While he was still speaking, another came and said, “The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants, and consumed them; I alone have escaped to tell you.” 17While he was still speaking, another came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three columns, made a raid on the camels and carried them off, and killed the servants with the edge of the sword; I alone have escaped to tell you.” 18While he was still speaking, another came and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house, 19and suddenly a great wind came across the desert, struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people, and they are dead; I alone have escaped to tell you.”
20Then Job arose, tore his robe, shaved his head, and fell on the ground and worshiped. 21He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there; the LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” 22In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrongdoing.
Think about what you would do in such a circumstance. Some of us have lost children to sickness, some have lost children before we even got to hold them or know them, some have lost children in tragic accidents.
Some of you have lost your jobs, some are concerned you might lose your job.
Some have lost their homes, their businesses.
What would you do if everything were gone in one day –all your children, your farm, and all the animals?
Job’s wife wasn’t too helpful, (2:9), “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die,” she said. 10But Job replied, “You talk like a godless woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.”
In Psalm 34 we read these words, “I will bless the Lord at all times, his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
We’re talking about a choice here. Job had a choice. Job’s wife had a choice. Job said, “You sound like a godless woman by the words you’re saying.” How many times have we sounded godless by the words we say?
David, the writer of Psalm 34, had the choice. He said, “I will bless the Lord.” Not, “I won’t, or I can’t, or I’ll think about it.” “I will,” he said, because it is a matter of our will. If you are a stubborn person, make it work to bless God. I will bless the Lord at all times.
Not just good times. All times.
Not just when I’m feeling well, but when I’m feeling poorly.
Not just when have enough to pay all the bills this month, but when I can’t pay them.
I will bless the Lord at all times – even when someone you love is dying,
even when your child seems to have rejected everything you have tried to teach them over the years,
even when you’re studying as hard as you can, but still not getting the grades,
even when you’ve been told a diagnosis that is beyond comprehension,
even when your favorite football team loses . . .
you get the point, right?
I will bless the Lord at all times – his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Far too often, we turn to the Lord only when we feel a need for something – and when he gets us through that valley, we say, “Blessed be the name of the Lord.” Friends, we need to bless the Lord by giving him his due at all times. When things are going well for us, we need to acknowledge that God has given us the abilities, the opportunities, the gifts, and the driving purpose of bearing fruit and multiplying eternal fruit-bearers.
I will bless the Lord at all times – his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Now, think about that. His praise shall continually be in my mouth. We think about praise coming out of our mouths, don’t we? David wrote, “His praise shall be continually be in my mouth.”
It’s sort of like eternal, perfect not-too-sweet-tasting, no-cavity-producing gum.
When you come to know Jesus and fall in love with him and decide you want to live a life filled with thanksgiving to him, that’s when you get the special gum.
You can’t ever swallow it because it is unswallowable!
It stays in your mouth forever, giving you great, fresh breath all the time.
With this gum in your mouth, you just can’t get nasty words, swear words, vulgar phrases, sarcastic comments, critical darts, or gossip out of your mouth – because the praise gum is in the way.
And sometimes, it can’t help itself, it bubbles out - in prayer, in singing, in words of blessing toward others and toward the Lord.
I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will continually be IN my mouth, David wrote as he began Psalm 34. A little further into the psalm, he wrote, “Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Which of you desires life, and covets many days to enjoy good? Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit.”
We sang in the first song this morning: Every blessing you pour out I’ll turn back to praise. When the darkness closes in Lord, still I will say, “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
I’ve said from the beginning of this sermon series, that blessing is about capacity and result. Well, let’s acknowledge one more nugget of truth before I close for today: God’s capacity is limitless. Infinite. There is no truck bed that can hold all that God has to give – clearly exposed in the gift of Jesus Christ for the world.
For us as humans, when we speak blessing over other people’s lives in the name of the Lord, their capacity for living the life-giving life increases. But speaking out a blessing to God cannot increase his already limitless capacity.
But here’s the thing about God: Though he doesn’t need us, though he doesn’t need words of blessing to increase his capacity for love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, God made us to bless him continually (capacity), because he knows that when we choose to bless him with our words, the result is that we and everyone around us are more fully blessed. That’s just like God – for he is the great giver of all that is good, the bread of life, the living water who completely satisfies our deepest thirst, the light who shines in the darkness.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love.
Let us bless the Lord!
May His praise be continually in our mouths!
Amen.
