Ephesians 2:8-10 The Message (MSG)
“7-10 Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and kindness upon us in Christ Jesus. Saving is all his idea, and all his work. All we do is trust him enough to let him do it. It’s God’s gift from start to finish! We don’t play the major role. If we did, we’d probably go around bragging that we’d done the whole thing! No, we neither make nor save ourselves. God does both the making and saving. He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing.”
We receive God’s grace when we accept Christ into our hearts. The grace of God is beautiful! When we accept Him as our personal savior, His grace comes and covers our sins and brings us back into right relationship with God, but that is not all God has for us. His grace is boundless, but He wants to give you an abundant life, a life of full favor and blessing. When you live outside of the will of God and do not follow Him wholeheartedly you diminish the favor and blessing that He is able to extend to you personally.
Psalm 5:12 English Standard Version (ESV)
“12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.”
Definition of Righteous- living a life pleasing to God.
A scripture that is one of my favorites is Deuteronomy 28:1-15 ESV. It outlines the many blessings that God will command to come on your life if you follow His statutes (commands/rules).
28 “And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. 2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God. 3 Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field. 4 Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. 5 Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. 6 Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.
7 “The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. 8 The Lord will command the blessing on you in your barns and in all that you undertake. And he will bless you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. 9 The Lord will establish you as a people holy to himself, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in his ways. 10 And all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they shall be afraid of you. 11 And the Lord will make you abound in prosperity, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your livestock and in the fruit of your ground, within the land that the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. 12 The Lord will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 13 And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you shall only go up and not down, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, being careful to do them, 14 and if you do not turn aside from any of the words that I command you today, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.”
On the other side of that starting at verse 15 there are consequences to not obeying or following His commands. Those verses show what not living in God’s favor looks like. I haven’t heard of too many people quoting the second half of this chapter because it touches a nerve. No one is perfect, I certainly am not and there are many things I had to fight through and overcome to grow but it is always good and part of our job as Christians to read, learn (study) and accept the full Bible.
Hebrews 4:12-13 The Message (MSG)
“12-13 God means what he says. What he says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one is impervious to God’s Word. We can’t get away from it—no matter what.”
These are just a few examples of scripture that tell us of the wonderful blessings that are in-store for us if we really love the Lord and serve Him with our whole hearts, not for show, and not just because we want His hand of blessing but because we are thankful for who He is and the sacrifice He has made for us!
He wants the very best for us and He knows us better than we knows ourselves.
John 10:10 The Message (MSG)
6-10 Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. So he tried again. “I’ll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. All those others are up to no good—sheep stealers, every one of them. But the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
Take full advantage of every gift God has for you. Live the FAVORED life.