The Blessing (part 1): 'the functions of a blessing'
'So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
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.”
Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.'
(Genesis 1:27-29)
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
“I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
(Genesis 12:1-3)
By reading the two above passages, you will notice that God’s encounter with Adam, Eve and Abraham started with a blessing.
The two above passages teach us that the best way to start anything is by receiving a blessing from God.
The Blessing is a form of empowerment that increases the likelihood to achieve success.
Blessings have function
Blessings are not just words pronounced for the sake of speaking. In its core nature, a blessing contains a function. In other words, when blessing is spoken, it should not just say: ‘You are blessed’ or ‘I am blessed’.
Instead of just making a plain statement, the blessing should specifically mention a function as in these examples:
‘You are blessed and every work of your hands shall be profitable.’
‘You are blessed and your womb shall be fertile.’
‘You are blessed and you shall not borrow from nations but you shall lend to nations.’
As you can read in the above examples, we can see that each of those blessings have clear function.
The function of a blessing represents the clear nature, objective, the unique characteristic and the role of the blessing.
In Genesis 1:28, the Bible shows that the blessing contains the functions of fruitfulness, fertility, dominance and economic access. In Genesis 12:1-3, the Blessing has a function of greatness, nation building, alliances and defence.
Here is another good example in Luke 2:34-35:
‘Then Simeon blessed them, and he said to Mary, the baby’s mother, “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, and many others to rise. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him. As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your very soul.”
Simeon blessed Jesus and Simeon’s blessing contained the following functions: ‘ stumbling and elevation, being a sign from God, the discernment of thoughts and the ability to pierce souls.
In Genesis 49 from verse 8 to 28, Jacob blesses his sons while speaking unique functions of those blessings.
Therefore, whenever we bless ourselves or others, we must speak a blessing that contains a clear function.
The function or unique characteristic of a blessing explains why some people can be very good at doing specific things while failing in certain other things.
Speak a blessing that contains a function.