Daily Thought

To have the blessing of God was the overwhelming desire of the people of Israel. Yet the people freely acknowledged, ‘A Syrian ready to perish’ was their father. God found them toiling in the brick-kilns of Egypt, beneath the cruel lash of Pharaoh’s taskmasters.

We Cried unto The Lord. Their cry of helplessness went up to the throne. It brought Jehovah down to see their affliction and to deliver them. In response, the people came with baskets full of the fruit of the Jehovah’s land, and they worshipped before the Lord their God.

An ever-increasing appreciation of our deliverance will bring us before God with hearts filled with love and lips full of praise.

Bringing the Tithes. According to the commandment of God, they brought the tithes of their increase, and gave to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, ‘that they may eat and be filled’. With all the commandments of God fulfilled, the people prayed, ‘Look down from thy holy habitation, from heaven, and bless thy people’. The blessing of God was not just dependent on Israel worshipping. It demanded also meeting the needs of others.

God has not changed His mind over the passage of time. The order of worship, active benevolence, and divine blessing still holds today.

Moral Qualifications for Blessing. ‘Let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased’, Heb. 13. 15, 16.

Praising God and active benevolence always go together. To have lips full of praise, and at the same time hearts shut up to a person in need, disqualifies us morally from asking God to look down and bless us. We look up to God and offer the sacrifice of praise. We look out at a needy world and do good. We look in and seek by God’s grace to keep ourselves unspotted from the world. Then we have the moral right to pray for, and expect God to look down from heaven and bless us.