A GOD WHO BLESSES

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark

"The Lord said to Moses, "Tell Aaron and his sons, 'This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: " ' "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace." ' "So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them." Numbers 6:22-27

The closing verse from Numbers, Chapter 6 form what has been referred to as the Aaronic Benediction. In it the Lord tells Moses to have Aaron and his sons to bless the Israelite people with words from His mouth.

Indeed the words of the Lord here offer meaning to the word benediction, a word we commonly relate to concluding a service of worship or other special events. In fact, we use the word so much in relation to finishing something that we might come to think the word actually has some it as a root meaning. An examination of the word however refutes this possibility.

For the word "benediction" actually is derived from the Middle English word "benediccioun" which was derived from the Latin word "benedicere" which meant "to bless". Further, benedicere could be broken down into the Latin words "bene" which meant "well" and "dicere" meaning "to say". So benedictions are blessings that should speak well in some way about someone or something.
Back to our scriptures. The Lord has certainly given Aaron and his sons words that speak well to Israel and to us as well. Let’s take a look at the blessings within this Aaronic Benediction:

1. The Lord bless you and keep you. In this blessing, the word "bless" means to "invoke divine care upon" while "keep you" speaks to the protection and sustenance the Lord wishes for His people. The bottom line is that God cares for His children. He wants the best for each and every one of us and because of this we should always be in a spirit of praise and thanksgiving unto Him.

2. The Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. When the Lord shines His face upon us, it is because He favors us. And we need go no further than Jesus to see how much God favors His children. For instead of seeing any of us perish from our sinfulness, God was willing to give up His only Son and in doing so was more than gracious to us. In fact, what God did was nothing less that amazing grace. To see the full light of the Lord’s face shining on you, look to the cross where you will always see it in full brilliance.

3. The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. The King James version of the bible renders this translation: "The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace." So what is it to have the Lord’s face toward us or His countenance upon us? It is to be in the midst of His care and presence. We matter to God and He wants to watch over us. After all, we are His children and He is our Heavenly Father. And our Father in Heaven doesn’t wish us to be living in anguish. No…He blessed us with this life to rejoice and be glad in it, regardless of the circumstances. Paul, in Philippians, Chapter 4, verse 4, says, "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" So how can we possibly live in a spirit of rejoicing, even in difficult times? Paul once again had the answer from that same passage in Philippians 4, one of my favorite passages in all of scripture. For Paul said:

"I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need,
and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and
every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:11-13

Do you know Jesus in your life? For it is in Him and only in Him, that we can find the strength to make it in whatever our circumstances…to be, like Paul, content…and at peace.

Friends, without Jesus, we are left without hope and destined to despair. There is no peace short of Jesus and His Father…our Father through which we can only reach by Him (John 14:6) This Father is the One who blesses us with the verses from Numbers…the One who wants us to turn to Him just as He turns to us…the One who wants us to not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present our requests to Him. And when we do, we find the kind of peace He wishes for us…His peace which transcends all understanding. (Philippians 4:6-7)

Truly, we serve a God who loves us more than we can ever love Him back in return. This God is a God who blesses us beyond belief and ever wants the best for us. All praise, honor and glory be unto Him now and forever. Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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