TRANSCRIPT: Good morning, Five Minute Families. We at Clear View Retreat love to be able to share God’s truth here with you. We thank you for joining us and we hope you will comment on our blog or our facebook page.

“Be blessed, our friends.” What does that mean? The top definition given on an internet search is as an adjective meaning, “made holy; consecrated.” As American English speakers, when we say, “be blessed” we are typically wishing well for the hearer. We are hoping for good things for them.

But, biblically speaking, what does ‘to be blessed’ mean? The word for blessed used in the Old Testament passage in Deuteronomy 28 is “barak” which implies benefit, and we can see that play out in verses two through thirteen when the city, country, offspring, produce, basket, bowl, barns, and all that the hand touches abound in prosperity. However, the word for blessed in the New Testament passage in Matthew 5 known as the Beatitudes is “makarios,” which is more closely translated as happiness, but more fully means good spirit, which is not a feeling of happy but an attitude and spiritual state.

In the Old Testament blessings were not personal rewards for keeping the law but they were national blessings of abundance for God’s nation to be an example to the world. New testament blessings center on our relationship with Jesus Christ, no matter what is happening around us personally or nationally. To paraphrase Paul Barker of The Gospel Coalition, “So the [tangible] blessings of the Old Testament are still available, yet in a changed and [divinely theological] form.” He continues, “There is no biblical warrant to promise material wealth to believers today. The Bible is a corporate sufficiency gospel, not an individualistic prosperity gospel.” All blessings of the Bible – whether tangible or relational and whether Old or New Testament – are tied to our relationship with the Lord.

Consider the Beatitudes in Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew 5: 2-12:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons[a] of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Well, Five Minute Families, what does that mean for us? The Beatitudes are relational, and the Ten Commandments are relational, too. We need to remember that the first four Commandments are about our relationship with God and the last six are about our relationships with others. To be blessed means to keep God and others at the forefront of our minds.

Here are five thoughts we need to keep in mind about biblical blessings:

1. It is a missional term for the sake of the nations. The Great Commission tells us to go and make disciples. We are blessed by the Lord’s forgiveness to be a light for others.
2. If we are given earthly abundance and tangible blessings like the Old Testament examples, then we are to share that prosperity with those less fortunate than ourselves as stated in Hebrews 13: 16.
3. We must remember that an earthly blessing other than our forgiveness and salvation through the blessing of the gift of Jesus Christ is temporary and pales in comparison to spending eternity in heaven with God.
4. We need to be cautious on how we use the word blessed so that our children – and nonbelievers – do not get confused about why God would choose to give abundance to one person and sufferings and trials to another.
5. Receiving blessings is not about being happy but about understanding more fully the Lord and the world He created.

Thank you for joining us! We hope that your relationship with the Lord and with your loved ones deepens profoundly. Be blessed!

First aired on WECO.