Blessed with Every Blessing?

The question is simple. Have you been blessed with every blessing? The Bible says you have, but do you say the same thing?

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Ephesians 1:3

To understand if this is true for our lives, firstly, we must understand what a blessing is. Then we may ask ourselves the question whether God has truly given it to us.

It seems to me that the modern interpretation of a blessing is more in line with the material world. A blessed life is one with a new car, a big house, and lavish meals in exotic destinations. Sometimes it is more immaterial, such as having your health or perceived favor. Whichever the case, the blessings are still all about this present life and their impact. This is why when we say God wants to bless us, we immediately think he has a winning lottery ticket and a life of comfort for us (at the very least a life easier than others).

This philosophy and understanding of a God blessed life does not line up with the Biblical understanding of a God blessed life. You need only look at some of the prophets of the Old Testament (Ezekiel having to eat poop bread, Hosea and his adulterous wife, Jeremiah living in a pit, the list goes on) and the message becomes clear. Following God here on Earth is not easy. The New Testament and the subsequent New Covenant is not much easier. Paul, for instance, lists some of his struggles in following the will of Christ in his life, discussing having been shipwrecked, beaten, stoned, hungry…

Would you consider this a blessed life?

The blessings God has for you go far beyond this world and are worth far more in comparison. The more we can come to appreciate the blessings God has already given us, the more we will cherish him and the kingdom over the world. The weight of grace and forgiveness should never become familiar. The joy of resurrection should never lose its luster. You have been seated with Christ in Heavenly places. How could the riches of the entire Earth compare? Present suffering for eternal glory. If the riches of God are not worth the allure of the world in your eyes, then the devil has deceived you, where he failed to deceive Christ.

⁸ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ⁹ “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Matthew 4

This is not to say, God does not care about your comfort or does not desire to bless you in the Earthly sense. God blessed countless people throughout the Bible with land, money, strength, affluence, children, food, community, and more. Verses like Jeremiah 29:11 are true for you, but we have to acknowledge they are not the goal of life. In many cases, the riches of the world are a hindrance to us. A "blessing“ that leads us away from God is not truly a blessing. We have all heard phrases like the money changed him, but there are biblical examples that point to this as well. Consider King Solomon.

King Solomon was the wisest and richest man in his time. He could also arguably be the most famous, as people came from distant lands to meet him and hear his words. A man with over 1000 wives and concubines, yet he writes in Ecclesiastes, repeatedly, how everything is meaningless. This is the other piece of worldly blessings that most don’t learn until discovering it themselves. The treasures are empty and without taste.

You can spend your whole life chasing after something that is fading, only to find in the end that it does not satisfy. Jesus is the well of fresh living water in a dry desert land, and when you realise how thirsty you are, nothing is worth more. The only blessing of worth.