2 Important Keys to Unlocking God’s Blessing in Your Life

Let’s define blessing.

Too often we make the mistake of tying blessing to material things. Good job, nice house, full bank account, then you are blessed. While those things are nice, those are not the proof of God’s blessing. The reason is those things are temporary; they can be taken away and they require no belief in God to obtain. A person who does not believe and curses God can get a good job, buy a nice house and build up a good bank account. In fact, we are reminded in Scripture that the “He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous (Matt. 5:45). Since this is true, then God’s blessing has to go beyond just the material. As Jesus said it so wisely:

“Then he said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions’” (Luke 12:15).

When you look in Matthew 5 Jesus uses the word blessed nine times in mentioning what we know as the Beatitudes. What does this word blessed mean? The word used here in the Greek is Makarios. In ancient Greek times blessing was reserved for the elite. They thought of blessing in the same way many people think of it today. Your status or your stuff determines how blessed you are. What is fascinating about the way Jesus defines it in the Beatitudes – they have nothing to do with status or stuff. This tells us that the true blessing of God goes way beyond these things.

In fact, this word in the Greek can mean to be happy or another one is to be content. When you apply this to life you see that this cannot come from an external source, it must come from within. It is what is inside you that becomes the source of your happiness or contentment.

The First Key

Paul says something about this as well in Philippians. Notice these two verses:

“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 all this through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:12-13).

Paul reveals two key things in these two verses. One, that he is content and also how he remains content. He establishes that he is content in every situation, which is in line with being blessed, being happy and fully content.

The second verse tells us how he remains content. He does this through Christ who gives him the strength. In other words, one of the ways you will be content and blessed in life is by remaining in Christ. There is no true blessing, meaning, happiness, or contentment outside of Jesus Christ. Whatever measure of pleasure or high you get is temporary and unsustainable. This is why many times those who have more than they will ever need are still unhappy and lacking. If you are unhappy, then you cannot be truly blessed. So the first key to unlocking God’s blessing in your life is to remain in Christ.

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The Second Key

We know that remaining in Christ brings you contentment. What is the second thing that unlocks God’s blessing in your life? I want to take you back to the Old Testament for this one.

“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go” (Joshua 1:7).

Within this verse we see the second key to unlocking God’s blessing in your life. It is your obedience. Consider these other verses that highlight the blessing of obedience.

“If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees their fruit. Your threshing will continue until grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting, and you will eat all the food you want and live in safety in your land. I will grant peace in the land, and you will lie down and no one will make you afraid. I will remove wild beasts from the land, and the sword will not pass through your country. You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you. Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you. I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers, and I will keep my covenant with you. You will still be eating last year’s harvest when you will have to move it out to make room for the new” (Leviticus 26:3-10).

Here is another one:

“If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 28:1-2).

It couldn’t be more simple than this, but every blessing that God wants to pour out on you is tied to your obedience. God blesses those who are obedient. God does not bless those who are not. Again, when you understand the true meaning of the word blessed then you recognize why this is true. If you want to experience God’s best and be blessed in everything you do, that will only come when you choose to live a life of obedience to him. There is no other way.

A Simple Reminder

I want to be clear that obedience does not mean perfection. If that were the requirement, no one would ever be able to be blessed by God. What obedience means is to set your heart to follow after what God wants you to do. There will be times and moments when you fall or trip up. The person who wants to obey God repents quickly, gets back up and keeps moving. This is the heart of an obedient person. When your heart is to obey God and to please him then you position yourself to receive the blessings of God.

Final Thought

As you go through your day, do your best to walk in obedience to God. The best part is you take your desire to obey and couple that with the Holy Spirit that lives inside you and you will discover that not only will you have the desire to obey, you will have the ability to obey. When this happens, you have unlocked the door and God’s blessing will rain over your life.

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Clarence L. Haynes Jr. is a speaker, Bible teacher, and co-founder of The Bible Study Club.  He is the author of The Pursuit of Purpose which will help you understand how God leads you into his will. His most recent book is The Pursuit of Victory: How To Conquer Your Greatest Challenges and Win In Your Christian Life. This book will teach you how to put the pieces together so you can live a victorious Christian life and finally become the man or woman of God that you truly desire to be. Clarence is also committed to helping 10,000 people learn how to study the Bible and has just released his first Bible study course called Bible Study Basics. To learn more about his ministry please visit clarencehaynes.com.