"Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore." Anyone who has done much fishing has likely heard the joke, "There is a reason they call it fishing and not catching." The point of the joke, if it isn't clear, is that many people spend their time baiting, casting, and reeling, but usually not a lot of time actually catching fish. This unfortunate reality flows from the fact fishing involves a combination of things that are controllable as well as things that are not. And while someone can do everything "right" on their end, there are still factors that are outside of any person's control. That being said, there are actual variables that are completely in the would-be-fisherman's control, and any sincere, reasonable effort to catch fish requires doing those things correctly. I cannot go into the woods with my fishing pole and emerge hours later and complain about being empty-handed. Why? Fish are not found in the woods, and if I want fish I need to go where the fish are. In one respect, we can think of blessings like fish. They are are out there. We can obtain them. God even desires for us to possess them. However, we need to go where God has assigned them to be if we actually want to get them. The complaint that we have no blessings falls flat if we refuse to acknowledge and reckon with the the nature of blessings and where they are found. Psalm 133 celebrates the blessing enjoyed by God's people. Among other things, unity is a blessing that exists between brothers who gather together in the worship of the LORD. The basis of this unity is the LORD, and it is coupled with the desire to worship Him. Psalm 133:3 specifically states, "For there [where God's people enjoy unity] the LORD has commanded the blessing, life forevermore." That place of unity is compared to Mount Zion, the specific place God revealed Himself to His people for their good. God promised His people "In every place where I cause My Name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you" (Exodus 20:24). Mount Zion is where God chose to caused His Name to dwell (Zechariah 8:3). It is the fixed place where someone could draw near to God with confidence that they would, in fact, meet with the LORD. The point could not be clearer: true blessing is found where God is worshipped and His people are unified.
But let's back up and consider the nature of blessing for a moment. In the broadest sense, blessing refers to a good thing. Blessings make people happy. Psalm 1 opens with the phrase "blessed is the man...[whose] delight is in the law of the LORD" (Ps 1:1-2), and it can just as well be rendered as "happy is the man." Blessing relates to filling, specifically with good things. Jesus said He came that we might have life, and life abundantly (John 10:10). This is the difference between saying someone is alive vs saying someone is living. True life involves more than simply having a pulse--though its certainly never less than that! A blessed life is a full life; Jesus came so we can share in this full life that belongs exclusively to God but is given freely as a gift by God's grace. As people, we must be constantly filled and refilled in order to live. We need to be filled with air, water, food, etc. We are leaky vessels that are not self-sufficient, and thus are constantly in need of refilling. As such, we are constantly on the lookout for fresh blessings to fill us up. And when we feel like we are full and satisfied, that is when we say that we are blessed. If you were an Old Testament believer, the place to go to seek God's blessing was Mount Zion (Jerusalem). God established the temple in Jerusalem with the sacrificial system so that sinners could safely reconnect with the LORD, the source of life. Drawing near to God meant acknowledging God's holiness and human sinfulness, and submitting to the necessary requirements to "clean" your feet before coming into His house. God appointed priests to mediate God's Word, to offer sacrifices on the people's behalf, and to assure the people of God of salvation for those who come to the LORD for refuge. On the other side of the cross of Christ, believers do not go to the temple in Jerusalem for blessing. Jesus told us that His body is the fulfillment of what the temple taught. Jesus is where someone goes to safely meet with God (John 14:6). Jesus is the perfect sacrifice offered once for all (Hebrews 10:10). Jesus is the priest who mediates God's Word to us (John 17:4). Jesus assures our hearts of the good news of the forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 10:22), and He bestows the power to live a new life (Titus 2:11-14). Jesus gives the Holy Spirit to fill us (Romans 5:5)--to bless us--beyond what we could imagine. If we want to be blessed, we need to go to Jesus. It is in Jesus where all of the promises of God become "yes" (2 Corinthians 1:20). Going to Jesus, however, is not merely a private, individual affair--though it is also not less than that. Jesus has established His body on this earth, and the "church...is [Christ's] body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all" (Ephesians 1:22-23). A critical piece of God's plan of salvation is there is aways a physical, embodied way to meet with God. In the days of Moses, "everyone who sought the LORD would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp" (Exodus 33:7); at the birth of Christ, "the Word became flesh and dwelt (tabernacled) among us" (John 1:14); and after the ascension of Jesus, He poured out the Holy Spirit for us to be "strengthened in our inner being, so that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith" (Ephesians 3:16-17). God is still in the business of setting up tents among His people, and the question is this: where is the closest one to me? God has established the church as the place where He meets with His people, and there He pours out His Spirit for the filling of His saints so that they may serve as conduits of His blessing to others. "There is one body and one Spirit" (Ephesians 4:4), and God gave the church "the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ" (Ephesians 4:11-12). As such, Christians are to see themselves as individual members of the body "joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love" (Ephesians 4:16). In other words, we are blessed when we fully participate in the life of the church, because Christ promises to pour out His Spirit for that purpose. So where are you fishing for blessings? God has commanded His blessing for the body of Christ; join His church through faith in Christ and baptism, receive His grace through the Word and sacraments, and share what He gives you for the good of your own soul and for the good of the souls around you.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorI am follower of Jesus Christ by God's grace, married to Kelsey, father to four children, and pastor of Lighthouse Church (EPC). Archives
November 2022
Categories |