Title: The Source and Reason For Blessings
Scripture Reading: Psalms 128:1-6
Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.
2 For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
3 Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.
4 Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.
The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.
6 Yea, thou shalt see thy children’s children, and peace upon Israel.
The idea of fearing God has vanished from our world-view.
Our Key Text this morning is Psalms 128:1 ‘Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.’
The theme of this key text is the source and reason for blessing.
Our heart’s motivation in this entire Psalms can be summed up in one world: blessing.
Here in Psalms 128, it calls the person who fears God ‘blessed.’ In fact, the fear of Him is the secret to a happy and fulfilling life.
In this short Psalms, the thought moves from:
- the blessing announced (verse 1)
- the blessing described (verses 2-4)
- the blessing pronounced (verses 5-6).
- The Source of all our blessings
In the Voice translation, Psalms 67:7 says, ‘God is the source of our blessings; may every corner of the earth respect and revere Him.’Stated clearly and unambiguously, all blessings originally come from God.
Recognizing that God is the source of all blessings is often the key that unlocks our blessings.
Genesis 18:14, ‘Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.’ Here God is attempting to build and confirm Abraham and Sarah’s faith and trust in Him. YHWH is telling Abraham and Sarah ‘is anything is too difficult, too wonderful, extraordinary for the wonderful acts of God.’
- It’s a covenant blessing
Psalms 128:1a ‘Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord.’ The word ‘blessed’ is plural, but the object is singular, ‘the man.’ The singular man is blessed in plurality. This could be explained by:
A. The plural is a Hebrew way to denote all the blessings of God. When God blesses, it is always plural. And this singular man can have all the blessings of God.
B. The man’ is a singular plural, denoting all humans who know and obey God. No matter how many, you can be one of this man, to have all the blessings of God if we know and obey God.
word ‘blessed’ means ‘happy,’ ‘honored,’ or ‘well off.’
‘Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD.
Firstly, the concept of blessing relates to God.It means the proper honor and respect the creature owes to the creator, is the beginning of blessings.
Secondly, YHWH’s blessings are directly related to those covered by His covenant.
Thirdly, the concept of blessing relates to men. I am referring to his family and the people of God. In summary here, the truly blessed person is the one who is rightly related to:
- God
- His Family
- The people of God.
All three sphere must be in harmony.
- The reasons for the blessings
Psalms 128:1 ‘Blessed is everyone that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.’
A bible commentator set an even higher standard for this blessing. He says, ‘the blessing is not for everyone, not even for all covenant people, but only for faithful followers.’
Some Christians have taught the monstrous opinion that the God of the Old Testament is a God of wrath and that the God of the New Testament is a God of love.
In fact, we can only understand grace in the light of His wrath. We need to learn to fear God. Such a disposition is not only biblical, it is also healthy. It is healthy to fear God who can send us to hell.
Numbers 21:1-3 says, ‘And when king Arad the Canaanite, which dwelt in the south, heard that Israel came by the way of the spies; then he fought against Israel, and took some of them prisoners.And Israel vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said, if thou wilt indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities.And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Israel, and delivered up the Canaanites; and they utterly destroyed them and their cities: and he called the name of the place Hormah.’
It was not fundamentally a matter of having certain feelings towards God, but a matter of a life of obedience.
- The Promises of blessings
Psalms 128:2-3 ‘For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with Thee. Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.’
Notice the covenant promises for faithful followers (here, it is addressed to one individual intentionally to refer to you.) You will enjoy the fruit of your labors. You shall be:
- Happy
- Have a good life
- Have a good home life
The vine is a symbol not only of fruitfulness but of sexual charm and of festivity. Good wives are also fruitful in kindness, thrift, helpfulness, and affection. She is a cluster of comfort and wine of consolation.
It is quoted by the Jews: ‘At this day every Jew is bound to marry about eighteen years of age, or before twenty, else he is accounted as one that liveth in sin. Christianity brought in the idea that singleness is also a calling of God, and that in some cases is to be preferred over being married. That is an exception and not the general acceptance.
I have just described the family life and even the church life. They will be like a fruitful vine, like olive plants. These were two important crops in ancient Israel. The grapes and wine from the fruitful vine and the oil from the olive plants were not necessities for survival, but they made life so much better.
The interesting thing about these two images: vine and olive plants, is that they are biblical symbols of the abundant life.
- The Blessing pronounced
Psalms 128:5-6 says, ‘The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life. Yea, thou shalt see thy children’s children, and peace upon Israel.’
Having announced the blessing and having described the blessing, the Psalmist does not leave us, dangling. He actually pronounces the blessing upon God’s people. It is equivalent to a benediction. Thus, he says, ‘The LORD bless you out of Zion.’
Finally, the blessing is not only for us, it is also for our inheritance. Thus, it concludes: ‘yes, may you see your children’s children (grandchildren).
It is important to remember in verses 5-6 that there is power in the pronouncement of the blessing. These are not just empty words. They come with divine authority, and they accomplish the work of the blessing. We learn that it is not enough to announce the blessing and to describe the blessing; we must also pronounce it, set it free to happen as we speak it in faith.
In conclusion, the heart’s motivation is blessing. What we are so interested in today is blessings. But then many of our lives are far from that which is described in Psalms 128. We don’t have a happy, good life and good home life. We don’t have a happy fulfilling life. We don’t have happiness, health and prosperity that God wants for all of us. Our life on the contrary is filled with poverty, lacks, sicknesses and conflict in the family. We are like the children of Israel that groans, under the heavy burden of the world’s system of rule. We lived under years of oppression. I remembered the first 17 years of my life was one of worry, lack, my mum constantly pacing the floor of the house, wondering where to get money for the next meal and my father gambling away all his hard earn money, instead of bringing them home that is badly needed for the family. The bible says the people of Israel began to cry to God for help. When they turned to the LORD, he turned to them. Until this time, we have been worshipping the gods of this world and had probably been calling on them for help and deliverance. Then God sent another man, Jesus. He was one with the father. Yet when he was on earth, he too suffered the curse of this world for our sake. He experienced attacks, fear, temptations and weaknesses. He had no pillows to lay his head at night. A few times his disciples would come to him and say, ‘there is no food’ to feed the people. At the cross, he was stripped naked (a symbol of lack). He suffered the pain of crucifixion for our sins. Why? So that we can be enriched. He became naked so that you can be fully clothed (a symbol of prosperity). He was whipped so that you can be healed of your sicknesses. The crown of thorns was pressed upon his head so that you can be filled with a peaceful mind. He was rejected by God because of sin so that you can be accepted by God this morning. When He was resurrected, Psalms 128:1 became possible for all of us. ‘Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.’ Today Psalms 128 has become possible because Jesus is risen. You just have to come to him and embrace him, acknowledge him and honor, respect and revered Him. He has made all things possible if you only believe, cooperate and walk his way in faith and obedience.
