The Blessing Of Abraham

I like to begin each day with a confession of faith. What we say has power. The Bible says, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks,” and “As he thinks in his heart, so is he.” Confession is more powerful than most Christians ever realize. That’s why Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart man believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” The confession that I begin my day with varies somewhat, because I don’t want it to become something that I don’t engage my mind in, in other words, a vain repetition, but it does stay pretty much on the same track. Part of the confession that I’ve developed is that, “I walk in the blessing of Abraham.” When I first started saying that, as a confession, I had in mind that I am justified by faith and blessed with great promises, just as Abraham was. Of course, that’s correct, but God has shown me that there is much more to it than I realized.

This text has two major considerations at which I want us to look: The curse of the law and the blessing of Abraham.

We’re very plainly told that Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law. It is clearly past tense and plainly stated, nobody should have any trouble seeing that fact. What I believe people do have trouble understanding, however, is of what exactly does the curse of the law consist? What does it mean? Let me direct your attention to Deuteronomy 28, verse 15 and following. In these verse, we can see that the curse of the law is the results for not keeping it. I would venture to say that if we know anything about the Bible, at all, we know that there is the result of spiritual death. We know that when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, although they did not immediately die physically, they instantly died spiritually. That’s why they ran from God and tried to hide, because fellowship with God is a spiritual thing. In Deuteronomy 28, we see that there is more to the curse of the law than just spiritual death, although that’s certainly bad enough. There is poverty, sickness and destruction. Verse 15 sets the stage by telling God’s people that they must obey the voice of God, and they must observe carefully all of His commands and statutes. If they fail, here’s the curse: poverty, verses 16-20; 30-33; sickness, verses 21-22; 35; 59-61; and destruction, verses 49-57; 62-68.

Now, we must seriously ask the question, what does it mean that Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law? It means that we no longer have to live under it! Please look at Psalm 103, which is not a Psalm about the law or its curse, but it is about the heart of God and His great benefits to His covenant people. Verses 1-2 tell us to bless the Lord, or as we might say, praise the Lord, but then it says, “forget not all His benefits.” Another way of saying that is to say, “Don’t forget any of His benefits.” I’m afraid many Christians have forgotten, if they ever knew. Look at the benefits that this Psalm list, that we are not supposed to forget: He forgives all your iniquities; He heals all your diseases; He redeems your life from destruction; He crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies; he satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s; and, He executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. These are all things that God does for His covenant people, who are not living under the curse. Galatians 3:13 says, “Christ has redeemed us from the curse!”

The other consideration that is coupled to being redeemed from the curse, that we see in verse 14, is that the blessing of Abraham has come upon us who have received the promise of the Spirit through faith, or have entered into the covenant by the working of the Holy Spirit, through our faith in Christ.

Abraham was blessed, and this blessing affected every area of his life, and even those around him. His cup ran over, and the saucer got some! Lot found out that just standing in Abraham’s shadow paid big dividends. Genesis 13: 2, 5-6 tells us that Abraham was very rich, and that Lot became rich, also.

Now I don’t want you to misunderstand what I’m saying. I’m not saying that godliness equals being rich in material possessions. But I am saying that God’s people don’t have to be poverty stricken, and I can base that on many verses of scripture. In Psalm 37, for instance, the Psalmist says, “I have been young, now I am old, and I have never seen the righteous forsaken or His seed begging bread.” I am trying to impress a biblical truth on you, and that is that believing God, evidenced by obeying Him, will bring blessing to every area of your life.