As I come to the last blog on being blessed I have turned my attention to the Old Testament. The reason behind this is to show the difference in the meaning of the word blessed in the Old and New testament. In the beatitudes, the word blessed means to invoke God’s favour and be spiritually […]
As we come to the last situation where God’s favour is manifested it is important to note that Jesus used three verses to explain this situation very clearly. Matthew 5:10-12 says: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute […]
It has been so encouraging to look at the various situations in which we have the opportunity for our spirit to grow through God’s favour. Because it will only happen when we do not give in to our fleshly desires. One of the main battles that we face on an ongoing basis is the importance […]
I have been so encouraged by the truth that Jesus first taught His disciples. Jesus wanted them to understand that in the many situations of living, each situation was an opportunity to experience God’s favour and to grow spiritually. The next verse that Jesus taught is such a challenge because it is the exact opposite […]
Today we live in a world in which people live isolated lives and there is much suffering that goes on unnoticed. Occasionally we experience a major disaster and we rally to help out the best that we can. While this is good in the verse today Jesus is talking about something entirely different, Matthew 5:7 […]
As we continue to look at what Jesus taught His disciples in preparation for their three years of ministry with Him, we need to be reminded that the disciples had no spiritual background. Because the Pharisees accused Jesus of being with sinners when He ate with the friends of the disciples. When I look at […]
It is so good to be reminded that our God is the God whose priority is to bless us so we need to control and reject any thought that says that He punishes us. There can be a danger that when we reap the reward of bad behaviour that we do not blame God for […]
As we continue to look at the situations we find the blessing of the Lord, we must not overlook the way we experience His blessing in our spirit. Being blessed is part of our spiritual growth as we experience God’s favour in various situations of life. Matthew 5:4 says: “Blessed are those who mourn, for […]
Now I want to look in greater detail of what Jesus taught His disciples on the mountain. It is important to refresh ourselves the true meaning of being blessed. Bless or blessed means “To invoke God’s favour, to be happy, to be holy consecrated”, it is important to understand from these definitions the Bible is […]
Today we live in a world with so much pain and suffering and ungodly behaviour is being manifested all the time. In bad times like these, it is easy for people to blame God for what is happening to the people. The insurance industry calls storm damage “an act of God” which is ridiculous and […]