Sunday News 20 July 2025

Thoughts on blessing.

Books have been written and teaching series dedicated to the subject of blessing in the Christian context, and I have no argument with that. To be blessed is such an all-encompassing state of wellbeing that it is difficult to think of any other subject of greater importance so far as our personal interests are concerned. The nature of blessing is described in detail in the Bible, for example in Deuteronomy 28. It appears to me to be a state of wellbeing, happiness, fruitfulness and prosperity in all that we are, and in everything and everyone that concerns us. I love the following scripture because it makes clear the unequivocal nature of blessing.

‘The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.’ (Proverbs 10:22)

I find it important to remember that blessing is about good things for us; it is not a mixed bag. Because in this article I am going to look at an aspect of blessing which might not be what we would naturally expect. But if we have a full picture of the blessing of God, we are less likely to be discouraged if we experience things which might not otherwise appear to be blessing. A better understanding can also help us to bless others.

David writes:

‘Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O LORD, and teachest him out of thy law; That thou mayest give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked.’ (Psalm 94:12-13)

And David certainly had a personal understanding of ‘the chastening of the Lord’.

‘O LORD, rebuke me not in thy wrath: neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure. For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore. There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin. For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me.

My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness. I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long. For my loins are filled with a loathsome disease: and there is no soundness in my flesh. I am feeble and sore broken: I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart.

Lord, all my desire is before thee; and my groaning is not hid from thee. My heart panteth, my strength faileth me: as for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me. My lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore; and my kinsmen stand afar off. They also that seek after my life lay snares for me: and they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things, and imagine deceits all the day long.’ (Psalm 38:1-12)

David was no wimp. He was a strong and patient man, accustomed to adversity and hardship. Yet he found himself overwhelmed by the chastening of the Lord. This is the same chastening which he describes in Psalm 94 as a blessing.

In the Biblical view of blessing, anything which is necessary to bring us into more blessing, or to establish us more permanently in blessing, is itself a blessing. And some of those things can seem unbearable at the time.

In the New Testament, James writes:

‘My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers [various] temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.’ (James 1:2-4)

Like David, who in Psalm 94 saw that the purpose of chastening was that a man would receive from God ‘rest from the days of adversity’, James saw worldly troubles, when endured by faith, as leading to a place where we can be ‘perfect and entire, wanting nothing.’ This is great blessing from God. Accordingly, the Bible presents the path that leads to that place as a path of blessing.

‘For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.’ (Hebrews 12:6)

I know that personally I have begun to doubt whether I am really accepted by God when things go very badly and I feel terrible. But the scripture above from Hebrews says that rather than seeing my troubles as a sign God is not with me, when I view them by faith they are a sign that I am indeed his child. Or at least I can know that all God’s children experience such things. To me that is a very big encouragement.

It is good to give thanks to God for things we appreciate and enjoy. But the Bible says, ‘In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.’ (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

So when there is an invitation in church for people to share testimonies of what God is doing in their lives, I do not want to criticize those who stand up and speak about ‘good things’ – healings, getting things they need, relationships going well or getting better, and so on. But after a few such stories, the overall picture can present just one side of blessing, and may not be encouraging to the people who need encouragement most – those who are seeing the other side of blessing: the hard road to a good place.

Understanding the bigger picture of blessing has also helped me with a difficult saying of Jesus.

‘Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:43-45)

‘Bless your enemies’. Personally, when people are causing me pain, when I am angry and upset by how people treat me, or by what they are doing without thinking about me – blessing those people is not what comes most naturally to me. And by comparison with a great many people, I have suffered little at the hands of others. I have not been the victim of serious crimes as so many have. And I do not live in a country where war, the careless slaughter of innocent people not to mention other, daily troubles and suffering, is the norm. People in such countries I expect have a clearer picture of what is meant by ‘enemies’. Notwithstanding the Bible teaches that our true enemies are not flesh and blood, their human proxies cause much pain.

Being reluctant to bless my enemies also calls into question whether I have truly forgiven them. And I must.

‘And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.’ (Matthew 18:34-35)

But even in moments of rage, what do I really wish for those who hurt me, out of my anger and pain? Do I really wish they should be condemned and punished forever?

I do not. Hell is not something I would wish on my worst enemy.

But I do like to think they might get some kind of punishment for what they have done. That may not be what I should think, but I know from experience it is how I do think at times.

And for those who have suffered terrible crimes against them by others, or against their loved ones, I imagine that forgiveness, let alone blessing their enemies, would be something almost impossible to do ‘from the heart’ unless there was also a promise of some kind of consequences for the offenders.

What I have come to understand from the Biblical picture of blessing is that when I bless my enemies, if they have indeed done bad things as I feel they have, I am in no way giving them a free pass out of all trouble. In fact, I am doing the opposite. I am granting them entry into the path of blessing, which will require that all their hurtful ways are addressed. And as seen from the scriptures above, and as I have seen in my own life, that is not something that is pleasant to go through, and in fact can be scarcely bearable.

‘Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.’ (Romans 12:20-21)

The scripture above gives us another reason to bless, and to forgive our enemies: so that we ourselves are free of whatever evil they have done to us. Because hurtful behaviour is infectious. It makes us want to ‘hurt back’. And tragically, that can make us like the person who hurt us.

But if the hurtful ways of a person are not addressed, but rather they seem to get away with everything and receive good things they don’t deserve – that is not blessing. That is storing up greater torment for the day when all things are addressed.

Yet again, if good things without suffering can come to my enemies through my blessing, because they do not need correction as I might imagine they do – should I complain? Do I not wish myself to find every good thing with as little suffering as possible?

I expect many people find the ways of God in their life in much more simple ways than I do. They simply learn patience by enduring, and out of the kindness and goodness God places in their hearts, they learn to forgive.

By contrast, I am a thinker. I find answers in the Bible to the most difficult matters of life. This may not be a better way, but I suspect it reflects my nature and so is the approach I must take. Not only do I find that God, through the Bible, gives effective instruction – the very experience of being instructed by God is the most satisfying and encouraging of all.

So I find myself much more able to forgive and to bless my enemies, knowing that it is no easy path I am offering them if indeed my prayers are heard. And that may not reflect well on my nature, but it helps me do what I should, and what I must do. And anything which helps with things as difficult as this is important for me to know.

May God give us hearts to forgive, and to bless our enemies, and patience in the path which leads to blessing and all good things, which are only through Jesus Christ our Lord, for ever and ever.

Amen.