A sermon preached at All Saints’ Church in Aklavik, NT
Jeremiah 17:5-10
Psalm 1
1 Corinthians 15:12-20
Luke 6:17-26

May only the truth be spoken, and may only the truth be heard: in the Name of God, who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

The lessons this morning really have a whole lot to say about God’s blessings. 

In First Corinthians we hear about the truly remarkable blessing that we, ordinary people, sinners saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, get to share in his resurrection – a huge and incredible blessing.  In our Old Testament lessons we hear twice about those whom God has blessed being like a tree planted by the water; and not just any tree, we’re thinking one of those big fruit trees like they have down where they don’t get any snow: big branches reaching out over a river, big green leaves and plenty of fruit growing on it, never needing to worry if someone is going to come with the garden hose and water it, because God has provided all that it needs. 

And then, in today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks about God blessing all sorts of people.  God pours out his blessing on all sorts of people that, if we looked at their situation, we would say didn’t look very blessed: the poor, the hungry, those who weep, those who are hated or who are rejected by their family and friends because of their faith.  But God blesses them, and that blessing turns their situation around: the poor have what they need, the hungry are filled, those who cried in the night found joy in the morning, and those who were hated and rejected found their place in the family of God.

God is good!  Sometimes He’s so good that we have a hard time recognizing just how much His desire and His will is to pour out His blessing on His children.

And I must say, as I’ve been here this weekend, with the daytime talks and the evening services, I’ve heard and have even seen for myself how much we here have been blessed. 

Right here, in the lives in this room, there has been so much blessing, hasn’t there?

Even though the world is broken – it’s messy and hard and not as God intended it to be – still, even in the midst of that, God has blessed us.  People, even your brothers and sisters here in the family of God, have experienced healing, have experienced freedom from worry and pride and addiction, have experienced God’s miraculous way of providing what is needed.  Even as we go through the ups and downs of life, so many have experienced the unexpected gift of God’s joy to face hardships. 

Friday night we sang “count your blessings”, and we should!  Because He has blessed us.

And, it’s also right, as we saw in today’s Gospel, that we should desire that blessing for others, and for our community.  In the gospel today, a huge crowd had started following Jesus, coming on foot from across great distances to hear His teaching and experience His blessing.  And how did Jesus respond?  He blessed them!  As we read just a few minutes ago, people were being healed, having their burdens taken away as they encountered the power of God in the flesh.

God is so good!  We’ve all been blessed, and it’s His desire to bless us.

What’s the purpose of God’s blessing?

But, there’s a big question I want to ask today. 

I think we’ll all agree that, at least in some ways, God has blessed us.

But here’s the big one: what is the purpose of God’s blessing?

What is the purpose, or in other words, why does God bless us?

It’s a good question, and it’s one worth looking at.  Certainly, I’d say it’s a question that some people get wrong.  There are some on TV who preach a twisted message, saying that God blesses us so that we can get rich. That sounds nice, I guess, especially if you’d like to have money to buy a new truck or to go down south for a vacation, but is that actually what the Bible teaches?  Or, ask it this way, does it even make sense for God’s purpose, his ultimate desire, to be for us to be rich, when in today’s Gospel – like elsewhere – He warns about how hard it is for a wealthy person to please God?  And, as we all know, money is just worldly stuff: you can’t take it with you!  There’s a reason you never see a U-Haul truck full of stuff following the casket to the cemetery.

So, let’s ask that question.  What is the purpose of God’s blessing.  Why does He bless us.

“Like trees planted by the water”

I think there’s a whole lot we can learn if we look at that description of a blessed person that is given in Jeremiah 17, and in Psalm 1.  In both places we are given the same image: The one who is blessed is like a tree, planted by a river, with deep roots running out to the water source, so it never needs to worry in times of drought.

It’s a nice image, but what does that mean? 
What does it mean for God to say that you or I are like a tree?

Let’s just stop and think about that for a minute.

Think about any tree, or even a nice big berry bush out on the land, since we don’t have the big fruit trees like they have where Jesus lived.

And let’s ask the question: What is it’s purpose? Why is it there?

Bear with me, it might seem a little silly, but seriously: why is that tree there?

Is it there for its own sake?  How did it get there? 
God created the tree, brought its ancestors into being back when he created the world.  And sooner or later, when the time was right, the seed was brought to where it ended up, maybe by the wind, maybe by an animal, maybe washing down the river during the high water in spring. 

One way or another, it ended up where it is, and the sun shined on it, and it got the water it needed.  To think about what St. Paul says, we could say “one planted, and another watered”.  But how did it get there?  It was God who gave the growth.

What’s the tree’s purpose?  It’s a blessed part of God’s creation, and it’s primary purpose is, first and foremost, to reflect God’s goodness and glory.  Have you ever thought of it that way?  God created and it was good, He created out of love, and took delight in it.  He didn’t create the world so that He could walk away from it for us to figure things out on our own; He created so that we could share life with Him and rejoice in His provision.

And scriptures says that the one who is blessed is like that tree.

Sometimes, honestly, it might be easier to actually be a tree, don’t you think?  A tree never needs to worry about life in this messy world.  A tree never gets tricked into thinking that it’s self-reliant or that it exists for itself.  A tree knows, full well, that it is fully reliant on what God provides: the water on the roots, the nutrients in the soil, the sun from above.  All it can do is rejoice in that blessing, rely on that blessing.

How does a tree use it’s blessing?

But here’s the big thing: if the blessed are like a tree, it’s not enough to just rely on God’s provision.  Because, all throughout scripture we are reminded that trees actually has a purpose.  The tree is blessed to be a blessing! 

That tree by the waters, with green leaves in time of drought: what do you think happens on a hot day?  That tree is blessed to become a place of shade for those who need to rest and come away from the scorching heat of the day.  Or, I grew up in Newfoundland, and when I was young my dad would take me into the woods with him, and if you’ve ever been out on the land in winter and had the cold, damp wind come up with blowing snow, you know the relief that comes from finding trees to break that wind, to give that relief.

Back to the scriptures, what does the Bible have to say about trees?  They bear fruit!  The trees are blessed to be a blessing.  Yes, Jesus says the hungry will be filled, but one way that happens is when trees bear their fruit, giving food for the hungry.  In the Gospels, when Jesus even speaks about faith growing from a mustard seed, He talks about when that springs up, that blessed tree becomes a place for birds to build their nests and raise their young.

Think about it: Scripture says the one who is blessed is like a tree planted by the water.  But trees are never blessed for their own sake: they exist to reflect the glory of God, and to be a blessing to others.

We are blessed to be a blessing.

So, my friends, we have been blessed.  But what’s the purpose of that blessing?

Think about Jesus’ words today in Luke 7.  It’s never about what we get.

Jesus said blessed are the hungry, for they will be filled.  But it’s not about being filled… because he goes on to say “cursed are those who are full now!”.  He says blessed are those who are poor for they will be rich, but he goes on to say “cursed are those who are rich!”. 

You see, it’s never about getting God’s blessing to store it up for ourselves. 

God blesses us, so that we can be a blessing.  Then, when we fulfil that God-given purpose of reflecting and proclaiming His glory, of telling others how we’ve been blessed, guess what happens?  It’s like the person in the burning heat looking for shade, or the person in the storm looking for shelter: our blessing becomes a blessing to them!

In sharing God’s blessing to us, we bless others, and in blessing others, we are blessed. It’s a wonderful cycle, but unlike so many things in this broken world where we spiral down and down and down, God’s blessing builds us up, and never alone, but always building us up together as a church, as a family, as a community who reflects God’s glory.

How will God use us to bless others?

So let me ask: who here has ever received a blessing from God?

Now, ask yourself, what is the purpose of that blessing? 
Friends, you were blessed to be a blessing.

So now, let me ask you this: who here wants to see God’s blessing pour out on our community, on our families, on our loved ones who are wandering like those who are thirsty or burning under the heat and stress of life in this messy world?

God knows that need, but here’s the surprising part: God wants you to be part of that blessing! 

The Holy Spirit, living inside of you – yes, the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead! – is alive in you, and just as God is blessing you each day, building you up into a mighty oak of righteousness, a tree planted by the water, the Lord doesn’t want you to keep that shade and those fruits to yourself.

Blessed is the one who delights in the law of the Lord; who delights in the Word and the Ways of the Lord; who delights – rejoices – in what the Lord has done.

As we rejoice in God’s blessing, let’s allow God to use us to be a blessing to others, in Jesus name, for our families, for our community, and for a world that is hungry to hear the Good News that God sent us to share. 

To God be the glory, now and forevermore.  Amen.