“Wait a minute, Steve! Don’t you mean ‘Have a blessed day’?”
No, I don’t.
When I say to someone “have a blessed day”, that really doesn’t mean anything, since it is God who gives blessings, not me. I may wish them to have a blessed day, but I have no power to fulfill that wish.
But…if I say to earn a blessed day, I am reminding that person they have the power to make sure they receive a blessing.
If you prefer to watch a video, click on this link: Watch the video.
“Wait a minute, Steve- again! Don’t you know that we can never earn salvation?”
Yes, I do, but I am not talking about salvation, I am talking about blessings.
True, salvation is the greatest blessing of them all, but what about all the other blessings God can give? Such as traveling mercies, good health for yourself, being able to have healthy children, financial stability, being in loving relationships, and protection from evil.
Did you know God tells us we can earn those blessings?
If you didn’t know that, then read Deuteronomy, Chapter 28.
Now, many Christians have been taught that they do not have to obey God’s Torah. That is not true, and not validated by anything in the Old or New Covenants; at least, not when the passages traditionally used to validate that lie are properly interpreted using Hermeneutics, Circles of Context, and cultural understanding of the way people communicated at that time.
(If you would like to learn more about how to properly interpret the Bible, I have done an entire teaching series on that topic; if you are interested, click on this link: How to Properly Interpret the Bible).
So, now you might be thinking “If I have been told I don’t have to obey God’s Torah, but God said if I don’t I will be cursed (you need to read the entire chapter), what should I do?”
Well, it shouldn’t surprise you that my recommendation is that you obey God and not what some religion tells you. Does this mean you have to convert to Judaism? No. It just means you have to obey God, which does mean you have to read the Torah to see how God wants you to worship him and treat others.
The Torah isn’t just commandments, it is a way of life. The New Covenant God promises (which is Jeremiah 31:31) is that he will place his Torah (which means learning) on our hearts, and that is what Yeshua (Jesus) was doing when he taught us the deeper, spiritual meaning of the laws.
The Pharisees were only teaching the literal meaning, or plain language of the law. They said don’t kill, but Yeshua said don’t even hate in your heart; they said don’t commit adultery, but Yeshua taught don’t even lust with your eyes.
Can you see now? Yeshua didn’t change the law- Yeshua changed our understanding of how to fulfill it.
So, it is up to you to decide if you will be more obedient to what God says, or to stay in your comfort zone and do what some religion tells you to do. And, since nearly every Christian denomination teaches its followers they don’t have to do what God says in the Torah, which is the same as rejecting God, you might want to consider how God feels about that.
And especially consider how Yeshua feels about it- imagine, teaching that the Son of God told people to ignore the laws of his Father in Heaven, essentially placing Yeshua in the same light as rebellious Absalom who tried to wrest the kingdom from his father.
So, I don’t know about you, but I am going to start to tell people to “Earn a blessed day”, and if they ask me what I mean, I’ll tell them about Deuteronomy 28.
Who knows- maybe I can help them receive more blessings than they ever could before?
Thank you for being here and please share these messages with everyone you know. Subscribe to my website (while you’re there, buy my books) and also to my YouTube channel. Next time you are on Facebook, join my group called “Just God’s Word” (but please read and make sure you agree to the rules).
And I always welcome your comments.
That’s it for this week, so l’hitraot and an early Shabbat Shalom!
