Finishing up the recap of my Father's Day sermon from last week, the final three verses of Psalm 128 show us that if we are Fearful, Faithful, Fruitful, and Family Focused, that we will be Fortunate! God promises that those who follow his commands will be blessed. And so far throughout my life, He has delivered on every promise He has made.
"Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord, the Lord bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life! May you see your children's children! Peace be upon Israel!" - Psalm 128:4-6
So what do these blessings we read about entail? A fancy car, a nice house, a big bank account? Verse 6 tells us what real blessings are, "May you see your children's children." Now any of you who are parents and grandparents know that feeling, because my parents love me, but they really love my son. This verse shows us that while the rich man may chase after "blessings" in personal belongings his whole life, he won't take them to heaven with him. But I plan on taking my wife, child(ren), and any future grandchildren to heaven with me. That is a real blessing, knowing your loved ones will be spending eternity with you in heaven! I would hate to leave this world knowing I fell short on leading them to Jesus Christ and salvation.
God doesn't limit his blessings to just us and our families either. Verse 5 tells us, "The Lord bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem..." If we are living right for the Lord, He will bless our entire country. I really believe that as our families go, so goes our nation. Families make up communities, which make up counties, which make up states, which make up the country. As we prepare to build a house, if one brick is the foundation begins to crumble, will the rest stand? Possibly so, but that is the start of the fall. The same is true with our country. As our families start slipping away from God's plan, we begin to crumble and fall into moral decline. Then we wonder why so many tragedies and bad things happen in our country. If you want to see improvement, it must start with following God.
Maybe you are a father, or know a father, who needs to make some changes in his life to begin living better. Maybe it seems hopeless that he'll ever change. But I encourage you not to give up. In Mark 5 we read a story of Jesus healing a man who had been wild, unclean, and un-chainable. No one had been able to help him until Jesus came along and saved him. Maybe you're that father who has struggled with lust, greed, addiction, or other sin. If you've tried everything else, try Jesus, the ultimate problem solver and healer. If we will seek and follow him, we will be truly blessed.
"Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord, the Lord bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life! May you see your children's children! Peace be upon Israel!" - Psalm 128:4-6
So what do these blessings we read about entail? A fancy car, a nice house, a big bank account? Verse 6 tells us what real blessings are, "May you see your children's children." Now any of you who are parents and grandparents know that feeling, because my parents love me, but they really love my son. This verse shows us that while the rich man may chase after "blessings" in personal belongings his whole life, he won't take them to heaven with him. But I plan on taking my wife, child(ren), and any future grandchildren to heaven with me. That is a real blessing, knowing your loved ones will be spending eternity with you in heaven! I would hate to leave this world knowing I fell short on leading them to Jesus Christ and salvation.
God doesn't limit his blessings to just us and our families either. Verse 5 tells us, "The Lord bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem..." If we are living right for the Lord, He will bless our entire country. I really believe that as our families go, so goes our nation. Families make up communities, which make up counties, which make up states, which make up the country. As we prepare to build a house, if one brick is the foundation begins to crumble, will the rest stand? Possibly so, but that is the start of the fall. The same is true with our country. As our families start slipping away from God's plan, we begin to crumble and fall into moral decline. Then we wonder why so many tragedies and bad things happen in our country. If you want to see improvement, it must start with following God.
Maybe you are a father, or know a father, who needs to make some changes in his life to begin living better. Maybe it seems hopeless that he'll ever change. But I encourage you not to give up. In Mark 5 we read a story of Jesus healing a man who had been wild, unclean, and un-chainable. No one had been able to help him until Jesus came along and saved him. Maybe you're that father who has struggled with lust, greed, addiction, or other sin. If you've tried everything else, try Jesus, the ultimate problem solver and healer. If we will seek and follow him, we will be truly blessed.
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