Could it be that our definition of “blessing” is not the one that Jesus had?

“The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

“Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the king of Israel!” – John 12:12-13

If your definition of blessing is incorrect could that have an affect on your vision of God?

In the passage above Jesus was coming into Jerusalem for what would be “the hour” of His death. What were the people shouting, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel!”

Did Jesus correct them?

Did Jesus say, “hey guys are you out of your mind I am going to suffer a cruel and inhuman death” or did He accept it?

Perhaps there is a lesson in what Jesus and Paul and the others in the New Testament saw as a “Blessing.” When Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount wasn’t He talking about a place that people’s hearts and minds were at, “meek,” “merciful“, “pure in heart” and “peace makers.” These were states or attitudes that Love had brought them to and because of these attitudes or states the people were blessed. Not with material goods or with larger church membership but with being states. “Be filled”, “be shown mercy”, “be called the children of God.”

The people who were blessed were the ones who freely gave Love- the kind of Love that comes from the source- the kind of Love that loves without judgment.

In Acts 20:35 Paul reminds us of the philosophy of Jesus when he quotes the words of Jesus,

“It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

Perhaps this is what Jesus knew as He road in on that donkey. Perhaps He knew that He was about to be the All Time poster child for Gods Love and as such He would Bless us even 2,000 years later- Wow that is one long lasting blessing. My prayer is that this week I will be able to Give more Love.

Here is a meditation for you to start your week with. Find a quiet time and a place that you probably wont be disturbed and if you are it was meant to be so relax and accept it as Gods way of saying “Hello and glad to see you meditating.”

Take a couple of deep breaths and get a clear picture of you giving a loving smile or a kind word to someone this week. Once you have that picture in your head see Jesus clapping for you as you do it. Then start to go over this:

Breathe in and say:

“It is more blessed”

Breathe out and say:

“To give”

My hope is that this will change your focus to outward giving instead of always looking for blessing.

Have a Blessed Week and Don’t worry be Grace-Full!

Be a Love Them All!