God’s Double Blessings
I met Oscar in Jan 06. He looked unkempt with hair considerably too long, and a nervousness that was very apparent. I could see it in his eyes and see it in his actions. I knew he was the one I had come for. We loaded him in the car and took him home. Adjusting to life with the Donato family wasn't easy for OC. He may have been abused in the past, because he cowered every time someone approached him. And even though we had brought him home and showered him with love, affection, and tons of table scraps, he was still afraid and nervous. He evidently had some other problems. He has separation anxiety. OC is neurotic. He is Bea’s shadow. If I could speak OC’s language, I would say to him, "Relax. Everything is okay. You're part of our family, and we'll take care of you. Whatever happened in the past is past. You're with us now. Your life is different. Enjoy it." That's what I would say if I could speak dog. Unfortunately I don't. I've tried saying it to him in English, but I don't think he gets it. So, for now at least, OC remains just a little neurotic. In the church, I've known a few Oscars. In fact, there have been times in my own spiritual life when I've related to God the same way Oscar relates to us: timid, cowering, afraid of being abandoned--and not having a clue about what it means to be part of God's family and enjoying His blessings. As a minister was addressing a group of men, he took a large piece of paper and made a black dot in the center of it with a marking pen. Then he held the paper up before the group and asked them what they saw. One person quickly replied, “I see a black mark.” “Right,” the preacher replied. “What else do you see?” Complete silence prevailed. “Don’t you see anything other than the dot?” he asked. A chorus of no’s came from the audience. “I’m really surprised,” the speaker commented. “You have completely overlooked the most important thing of all—the sheet of paper.” Then he made the application. He said that in life we are often distracted by small, dot-like disappointments or painful experiences, and we are prone to forget the innumerable blessings we receive from the hand of the Lord. But like the sheet of paper, the good things are far more important than the adversities that monopolize our attention. This reminds me of a bit of verse which, though I admit is somewhat trite, does express good practical advice. Someone has written: “As you travel down life’s pathway, may this ever be your goal: Keep your eye upon the doughnut, and not upon the hole!”
Yes, rather than concentrating on the trials of life, we should fix our attention upon is blessings. Have you ever considered the double blessings of God?
Let us say with the psalmist,
“Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits, The God of our salvation! Psalms 68:19 (NKJV)
Eph 1:3-6 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.”
This majestic passage has often been referred to as a doxology, a literal explosion of praise to God for all that He has done. John Wick Bowman once called it “a hymn of salvation.” It relates how God laid the plans for man’s redemption and how those plans are being fulfilled in the hearts and lives of those first century Christians and will be realized also in the lives of all who have been and are responding since that early day. Paul begins by praising God for the spiritual benefits which are his and his fellow Christians because of their relationship to Christ. Blessed, as used here, means to “speak well of. Praise in other translations.” God alone is worthy to be praised/blessed because He is genuine and constant in His character and action. He alone is truly praiseworthy because there is no mixture in His motives and intention. God is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has made known to us the nature of God. The Supreme One is not an austere, arbitrary judge but the Eternal Father, loving, merciful, and tender in spirit like Christ. He desires to bless His people abundantly, with double blessings. God loves us so much that He does indeed send double blessings. Look at Ps 103:1-5 as it expresses praise to God for His care of the People of Israel at the time of their deliverance.
“Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-- who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
What great and tremendous blessings! We are all undeserving of these blessings, yet He blesses us anyhow! Our heavenly Father is gracious, merciful, loving and tender. He is truly worthy of all praise, glory and honor. Let us look at just a few of His double blessings. I. HE FORGIVES AND FORGETS Eph 1:7 “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace
Heb 10:17 “Their sins and their lawless acts I will remember no more.”
A. We are just the opposite. Something gets in our craw and look out! We hold on to resentments and broken promises, or insults and hurts, like there was no tomorrow. When was the last time you thought about the unresolved issues that you carry around on your back? The tragedy is that this only hurts and destroys our own souls. There is power in peace and forgiveness and you must do everything in your power to keep it. Jesus said, Pray for those who mistreat you” (Luke 6:28). People will hurt you in life. That goes without question or debate. All have issues and need emotional healing, but take the time to forgive and receive forgiveness. Need to ask forgiveness of others and/or release them from our scorecards before we come to ask God for anything else. I have known Christians who barely speak over something trivial, or a personality glitch. Now, it’s been so long some don’t even remember what it was, or perhaps now realize that it wasn’t worth ruining a relationship over. Bea has a relative who when they get angry at one person in the family takes it out on everyone and will not speak to anyone in family. Wonderful! Sounds like some Christians I know. Upset with one person so take it out on whole congregation or leave instead of resolving the issue at hand. How does that look to one another? More importantly how does that look to God. Thank God for his promise of restoration and renewal. Through Him we can move forward in forgiveness. “You are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate; slow to anger and abounding in love” (Neh 9:17). B. Fortunately for us that God forgives and forgets. Yet, how often do we look to God as an angry old man who just puts up with us? How do you picture Him when you think about your sins? What do you think His expression is when you come to Him time after time?
1. For many, term “father” conjures up feelings of fear, dread, hurt, and disappointment which robs them of the assurance of forgiveness the heavenly Father sacrificed so deeply for them to experience. 2. But God is the One who initiated forgiveness. Why? He wants us for His very own, his prized possession! His love has no limits, His grace has no measure, His power has no boundary known unto man, for out of His infinite riches in Jesus, He giveth and giveth and giveth again.” Hallelujah! He forgives and forgets. (Illus.: computer flight simulator) You can break sound barrier, crash into buildings or crash into Lake Erie. Greatest thing is that the game always “restores” you. No matter what happens, you can start all over again.” God is faithful to forgive us when we come with true repentance and restores us when we mess up and gets us back into action hopefully a little wiser after our failures and bad decisions. C. God forgives and forgets. All who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and repent of their sins can receive this double blessing. (1 John 1:9; Phil 3:13 “forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.” D. We have the joy of knowing His forgiveness. The joy of being forgiven/cleansed from ALL sin. No record in heaven! Washed in the blood, cleansed! Joy of salv; knowing been cleansed by Jesus! When Jesus shed His blood on Calvary’s cross, it washed sin away justified you in the presence of a holy God, just as if you’d never sinned. II. HE SANCTIFIES AND SATISFIES I Thess 5:23 “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. A. To receive and experience God’s sanctifying grace, you must first receive and know His peace. Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, Romans 5:1 (NIV)
B. Must hunger and thirst for God (Matt 5:6) To suffer deep hunger, to crave ardently and seek with earnest desire. To be consumed by thirst and painfully feel the need of. C. Christians must make a total commitment to Christ, surrendering themselves totally, unconditionally to God. Must not hold in reserve a portion of their lives for selfish reasons or purposes. (Illus: Foolish man who built barns for earthly treasure, but lost his soul.) 1. Never be completely satisfied until you go all the way with God. 2. Those who completely yield to God experience the cleansing and infilling of His Spirit. D. Discontentment and dissatisfaction abound today. God’s double blessings sanctify and satisfy His obedient children. Obedience will satisfy the conscience. “And we are His witnesses of theses things and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him” Acts 5:32.
III. HE TEACHES AND TOUCHES Ps 32:8 “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you
Matt 8:3 “Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him...” A. Many people are un-teachable. They insist on exerting their own will and going their own way. They fail in their pursuits to please God. We must remain teachable. B. We need the touch of God. Pastors need the touch of God. Teachers need the touch of God. Our churches need the touch of God. Our homes need the touch of God. Our communities, cities, nation need the touch of God. This must come from His Word, His anointing, His teaching. C. God’s blessings are given to those who heed His admonitions and seek His direction “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths” (Prov 3:5-6). D. When we trust implicitly, He touches us physically, mentally, and spiritually. Song: “He touched me.” IV. HE REASSURES AND WILL RECEIVE. Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God ; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. John 14:1-3 (NIV)
1 Jn 5:13-14 “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
A. Our world is filled with danger, frustration and insecurity Millions are seeking peace and security B. Real and lasting peace and security is found only in Jesus Christ. All who find Him will receive peace and security (1Jn5:13-14). C. Jesus promised to come again and receive us. When this happens we will be in the land of the “no mores.” There will be no more sorrow, sin, sickness, or suffering. “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true." Rev 21:4-5 (NIV)
D. He will receive His children to heaven very soon.
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 1 Thess 4:16-17 (NIV)
Oh beloved, we are not looking for the undertaker, we are looking for the Upper taker! We’re not looking for a hole in the ground, but a home in the sky, in the heavens by and by! We’re not looking for hell and damnation, but we’re looking for the purity and beauty of heaven. Do you know God’s double blessings? Are you in need of them just now? Will you be willing to swallow your pride and forget about what people will think if you come to the altar. Just simply come from where you are and in coming say “I am going to stand and live for Jesus.
