THE BLESSING OF GOD - HOW DISPENSED
[p. 39] THE BLESSING OF GOD — HOW DISPENSED
Genesis 27:24 - 40; Numbers 6:22 - 27
What I have on my mind is to speak a word about the blessing of God. I thought rather to show the manner of its communication than to enlarge upon the thing itself — it would be undertaking a rather big task to speak upon the blessing itself.
In response to Esau’s question, “Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?” it comes to light that Isaac had more than one blessing, and, coupling this with the allusion to this incident in the New Testament, we are confirmed in that thought. We are told “By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come”. Hebrews 11:20 So that you can see that in speaking of blessing we touch a very wide subject. Undoubtedly every family shall have its own distinct blessing. It is intimated here. The Lord Jesus will have to say to each family and will bless each. So the subject becomes very extensive, and I do not attempt to speak of the thing itself but of the manner of it.
You will remember what is said in regard of ourselves: we are blessed “with every spiritual blessing” Ephesians 1:3 — others may have one or two, but we have all, and, more than that, we have them in heaven — that is the place we have them in — “In the heavenlies in Christ”. I refer to that as a theme that should prepossess every christian heart. Other thoughts have their place, but that thought should prepossess our hearts. I commend it to you, and may the Lord lead us to ponder the greatness of the portion that is ours when the full mind of God is disclosed. That is what gives character and preciousness to Paul’s line — the whole counsel of God. Finding an appreciative company, he is enabled to bring it to [p. 40] light, and when the whole counsel of God is brought to light we find we have the first place in connection with Christ. He begins with the assembly. The assembly has the first place there; it is formed and placed in the heavenlies in connection with Christ before the blessing of the other families. We have part in all the others while having distinct blessing of our own. We are blessed with every spiritual blessing by the Father Himself, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ”. Ephesians 1:3 In such fashion was the apostle, in apprehension of soul in the presence of the Father, moved by the greatness of the divine thought in regard to the assembly. He would lay it on the hearts of the Ephesian saints, that they might be in the light of it. What marvellous light it is! — the bringing in of what the heart of God cherished in a past eternity — that we should have that place. We would not have it in any other than Christ Jesus. As loving the Lord Jesus the youngest believer would instinctively refuse to have it in another; but the magnitude of the position is emphasised.
As I was saying, I desire to present the manner of it, and I take Isaac to be typical of Christ as the Blesser; that is to say, from the birth of Isaac, especially from his weaning until he blesses Jacob and Esau, we have the christian dispensation in type. From the moment of Isaac’s weaning we have in the forefront a man whose origin and destiny is heaven — at every turn you find heaven signalises the presence of that man here. After he is weaned Ishmael mocks. There was nothing in the babe to draw out hatred, to provoke malice, the malice must have arisen from another cause — it was not the babe personally. Hence the unjustifiable attitude of Ishmael. Ishmael must go, but he is cast out as blessed. The angel called out of heaven to Hagar - [p. 41] there is the allusion to Isaac — out of respect to Isaac, Ishmael is blessed. If you examine the previous allusion to Ishmael when Hagar fled from Sarah, the angel of the Lord spoke to Hagar but not out of heaven; but now that Isaac is on the scene, even Ishmael is taken account of in heaven. Such is Isaac! At the offering up of Isaac the angel of the Lord calls twice out of heaven, emphasising the fact that he is a heavenly man — the man whom Abraham offered up was an object of interest in heaven. I allude to this so that we may get clearly before us the position of Isaac as the heavenly man. Ishmael comes into blessing and Esau comes into blessing. It is very simple and it throws light on the dispensation to which we belong — a dispensation in which everybody is blessed. I do not say everybody enjoys the blessing; but it is there for everybody, without preference even a mocker, a persecutor, is blessed. The man, too, who despised his birthright, the profane person — the Spirit tells us, “By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau”. Hebrews 11:20 That gives us some idea of our dispensation — I think we should boast in it — a dispensation in which blessing goes out unhinderedly.
I want to dwell upon Isaac — I have often said he is Paul’s great text in the Old Testament. The section of Scripture that records the birth and life and the doings of Isaac presents the ministry of the apostle Paul. It is the man who, first of all, obtains the place of pre-eminence in Abraham’s house. Abraham makes a feast when Isaac is weaned — doubtless an allusion to the separation of the Lord Jesus from Israel. Isaac obtains the pre-eminent place in the house; hence the mocking of Ishmael. Then, on the other hand, he becomes the victim, and as the victim offered up, heaven claims him — he is the supreme object of heaven. Twice in chapter 22 the angel called out of heaven. Then we get the relationship with the assembly — Isaac receives Rebekah. His [p. 42] mother dies and he is alone in the field — he is said to be praying. Did you ever see Him thus? His mother’s tent is empty and Isaac is alone in the field. Now you will never understand your place in His heart until you see Him thus. The Lord needs us! Chapters 23 and 24 taken together, show the Lord recognising the place Israel has in the mind of God and the fact that it will cease. It is one thing that Isaac was weaned, it is another thing to see Israel deceased. The Lord felt it, and Paul felt it!
In the end of chapter 24, Isaac is seen alone in the field — what is he meditating about? It refers to prayer — there is a want in his heart. There is a place in the heart of Christ for every saint. One would love to fill a place in the heart of Christ! The love of Christ is towards the assembly — He loved the assembly and gave Himself for it. What a thought to have a place like that in the heart of Christ!
Isaac is alone — at this point Paul comes in; the mission of Abraham’s servant is typical of Paul’s ministry. Paul got near enough to the heart of Christ to discern what He wanted. Paul went out into the world to get the assembly — the assembly was there before; the coming of the Spirit had formed it; the treasure was in the field. The field is not Israel; it is the world — it is where Isaac was meditating. Paul went out and brought it in. What a ministry! Those with David heard when he longed for water from the well at Bethlehem. This indicates somewhat how Paul felt the longings of the heart of the Lord Jesus. John heard the voice of the Bridegroom but Paul heard the beatings of His heart. “I have espoused you to one husband” 2 Corinthians 11:2 gives the idea. He would have their affections undivided — any division of our affections is the work of the enemy — he says, “I am jealous as to you with a jealousy which is of God”. 2 Corinthians 11:2 He feared that as the serpent beguiled Eve, so their thoughts should be corrupted from simplicity [p. 43] as to the Christ. How does he beguile us? By the introduction of something that divides the heart with Christ. A divided heart is the work of the devil — a double minded man is unstable in all his ways. Let it be what it may that divides the heart with Christ, it is the fruit of the devil’s work. Paul presented one Man. He says, “Henceforth know we no man after the flesh; yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more”. 2 Corinthians 5:16 Where did Paul meet the Lord Jesus as a heavenly Man? The first time he saw Him, the first time he heard Him, it was out of heaven, and he presented in the gospel what he saw and heard. What was his ministry? It was the ministry of Christ. He came to Corinth and presented one Man in the gospel. The effect was, souls were converted. He loved Christ and he attached them to Christ. In that way Paul espoused them to Christ. Think of that word ‘espoused’. He says, “I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ”. 2 Corinthians 11:2 He presented Christ, and they were brought to love the Lord. That is how the assembly is formed — you are brought into the assembly in that way. You discover your place in His heart, and He has got a place in yours. That place is to be reserved for Him! The Lord detests a divided heart — it results in idolatry; the Lord is displaced.
Now that is really chapter 24 — Rebekah is brought to Isaac and he is comforted after his mother’s death. When we come to chapter 27 we have the blesser. It is all the history of Isaac, and it shows the extent of the blessing — even he who deserved the curse is blessed. We see how indiscriminate the blessing is: “By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau”. Hebrews 11:20 That is our dispensation! Blessing is universal in the hands of the heavenly Man. The heavenly Man is marked by suffering rather than vindictiveness. Look at the Lord Jesus — He says to Saul, “Why persecutest thou me?” Acts 9:4 How easily He could have disposed of Saul in judgment! What had he been doing? He had gone into the houses of the members of Christ and dragged both men and women off to prison. As James says, “Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you”. James 5:6 That is the heavenly Man! That is Christ! It shall not be so in the future. The Psalms call for vengeance. We could not use the Psalms as the experience of our exercises. Take Stephen — he was condemned and killed, and there was no resistance. The Lord says to Saul, “Why dost thou persecute me?” There was nothing there to call out Saul’s hatred. “It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks” Acts 26:14 — that is the heavenly Man. Is it not a simple thing to see what the heavenly Man is? There, too, you have what the assembly is — the Lord discloses in that one verse what the assembly is. That is what the saints were at the beginning and the Lord acknowledges that such people are Himself The Lord does not own the man who defends himself — he belongs to another dispensation. The heavenly man does not resist; he becomes a martyr; Stephen’s face shines as the face of an angel. That indicates something of what Christ was as expressed here. Saul got in the Lord’s first address to him what He is Himself and what the assembly is.
Now that is how Saul met the Lord Jesus and his heart was imbued with a sense of blessing. We know how he spoke of it afterwards, that instead of dealing with him in judgment, the Lord converted him, brought him to Himself and gave him the Holy Spirit. There we come to what we have in Genesis 27; “Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau”. The Lord blessed Saul of Tarsus; so you can see in the first meeting of the Lord with Saul how the idea of His position as the Blesser comes out — instead of being dealt with in judgment, Saul is blessed.
[p. 45] I wish to show you that Isaac, in chapter 27, is conscious of the blessing. The nearer you get to the Lord, the more He impresses you with His ability to bless. Isaac would bless Esau — the thought in his mind is to bless. He says of Jacob, “Yea, and he shall be blessed”. But Isaac had more than one blessing; he blesses Jacob and Esau; that is to say, if the heavenly Man blesses, the blessing is universal, it is available for all.
I would add one more thought. In speaking of the manner of the blessing, it afterwards comes out through the priest — the priest was a heavenly man; he was clad in the robe of blue. But here you come to a man under obligation, as an official. Isaac was not an official; he is conscious of the blessing, and he blesses accordingly, “Yea, and he shall be blessed” — there is no possibility of reversal. “See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which Jehovah hath blessed”. What a wonderful thing to have an odour like that! When you come to the priest, he is directed how to bless; he has access to God; he goes inside. The habit of going inside is very important; turning to God is our greatest privilege — we are entitled at any time to take up the priestly function. The sanctuary is all lit up by Christ. Suppose you go to heaven actually — you see One there who has a Man’s feelings, a Man’s sympathies. The One who has got you and me on His heart is the Light of heaven — He illuminates heaven. We are encouraged to draw near, having such a High Priest. The way is open — “Let us draw near!” Hebrews 10:22 That High Priest is on our side — that Man knows all about you; He has your name on His breastplate. How lovely! Does it not give us confidence? As we draw near we are supported by the Lord Jesus. I allude to that in connection with the Priest — our names are on His heart, and He has direct access to God.
In Leviticus 8, the priests abide at the door of the [p. 46] tabernacle for seven days, and in chapter 9, Aaron and Moses go in to the tabernacle, and when they come out they bless the congregation. The blessing was then on the earth; now Christ blesses out of heaven. In Luke 24, the Man who blesses the people is carried up into heaven — heaven is influenced by that Man. What a thought! The Man who has gone in and who illuminates heaven has been carried up. It is not that He went up, that He ascended — the point in Luke is, the Man who blesses is carried up.
In the ritual in Numbers, the priest blesses according to all the intelligence of the mind of God. The blessing comes to us through such a Man — through the Man who has got access, and who blesses according to all His infinite intelligence and holiness. So that blessing for all comes out through the heavenly Man, and comes to us through the Priest. The One who lifted up His hands and blessed them is carried up into heaven — heaven will have a Man like that.
May the Lord enable us to follow these thoughts, so that we may realise the importance of the manner of the blessing of God — how it comes out universally, and to ourselves.