“God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.””
Genesis 1:28 (NIV)
God longs and is very willing to bless us. He wants us to receive the blessings from Him, because He is our Father. Do not take pride in our abilities and connections, but rely on God instead.
The first phrase in Genesis 1:28 says, “God blessed them.” Notice the first word was “God”. God is the Source and the Subject, while we become the objects. The dimension of blessings is created by the Giver of the blessings, not the blessing itself. Our relationship with God is the greatest means to be successful in life, in spite of our connections, degrees, or capitals. If we lose something today, don’t be disappointed. As long as our relationship with God is fine, then we can recover. As long as we have God, we have hope and future. Let God take the wheel in our lives.
The second word from the verse was “Blessed”, which means “Increase, add”. God doesn’t want to take anything away from our lives. When He does, He wants us to not become greedy and focus solely on the worldly wealth. He teaches us to share with others. God always adds something to our lives. Don’t complain when we have little. If God is on our side, no matter how little we have, that would be multiplied. Whatever we hold in our hands today, it will grow and increase.
God’s first command was, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it”.
God wants us to grow. Develop knowledge, skill, and right attitude. When you lose your job, declare by faith, “I am the job”. Stay proactive and productive, do whatever is entrusted to us wholeheartedly.
Hold onto God’s revelation and don’t let the knowledge hinder us from getting new revelation from God, so that we can enter the dimension of blessing. When God tells us to grow, God will give us the resource, which is faith. Only those who have vision could produce something extraordinary out of the ordinary.
Look to God in spite of the condition of the world. That doesn’t mean we should deny our feelings, yet don’t let our feelings rule over us. Live by your faith, not merely by knowledge and feelings.
How to walk in the Dimension of Blessing.
- Discover potentials and appreciate a simple start
God gives us the seeds, so that we can discover our potentials and appreciate a simple start. The seeds talk about dreaming big with little resources. What seems to be irrational like five loaves and two fish, when placed in God’s hands, could feed five thousands men. - Work diligently and do not slack off
Do your job not solely to get paid for it, instead get paid for doing your job. Don’t easily give up nor quickly celebrate. Work wholeheartedly and do not slack off. Believe that the harvest time will come. - Keep on sowing even while reaping
In our today’s success, don’t finish the crops all at once. We have to sow some of them on the ground. There are blessings that have to be sown back to the ground. In every fruit that we harvest, remember that it has seeds that we need to work on, the seeds carry potentials that would bring us to future’s success.
In our success, don’t slack off. Run faster, don’t lower your guard and celebrate irresponsibly. Remember to always remember God.
Excerpted from Ps. Philip Mantofa's Sermon, 03 June 2020, Youtube & Instagram Live
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AutCy3TT0ng
