Read along & Link up (Chapter 7): Why we don't have to wrestle blessings from the King

Welcome to the Read Along for Daughters of the King: Finding Your Place in the Biblical Story! Today we’re covering Chapter 7. Still need to buy your book? Grab it on Amazon or Paypal.

The blessings of living in the King’s kingdom are not opportunities to be seized, a prosperous destiny to be claimed, or a reward doled out for good behavior. The good gifts we receive in life come from and because of Christ – and this is the really important part – they are already ours to savor and enjoy.

Here’s why we don’t have to wrestle blessings away from the hand of our King:

The life of Christ is the literal fulfillment of all the promises God made to Abraham (2 Cor. 1:20).

Christ is the substitute for God’s people on earth. Only Jesus lived a sinless, perfect, obedient life – unlike God’s people. The Gospel writers call Christ the beginning of a new humanity. Luke calls Jesus the new Adam, and Matthew subtly likens Jesus to the new Israel – succeeding where both failed (Luke 3:23-28; Matt. 4:1-11; see also 2:15).

Christ is the substitute for God’s Place as the temple on earth. God’s promises to his people involved restoring to them a special place to dwell with him – a special land. Before the people entered into the Promised Land of Canaan, God graciously gave them the tabernacle and later the temple in which to reside in his presence. Because Christ came to dwell with men directly, man no longer needs these places in which to worship God (Luke 2:41-52; John 1:14; 2:18-21; 7:37-38).

Christ is the substitute vice-regent over creation; Christ is the King. As divine image-bearers, mankind was intended be God’s vice-regent over creation. But mankind failed to fulfill this important role in God’s kingdom. And so, Christ, as the King over creation, fulfills this role on behalf of man. He perfectly submitted to God’s rule, living and walking on this earth without ever sinning. Christ demonstrates to us what the restored image of God looks like in man – one who lives as God’s people, in God’s place, under God’s rule.

Christ fulfilled the requirement of the Law perfectly, so you and I would no longer be bound to the letter of the Law to receive God’s blessings (Matt. 5:17). Christ releases us from slavery to the Law in order to receive blessings.

But I can easily forget that my blessings come through Christ alone and not by how well I uphold my covenant relationship with my King. Sadly, I sometimes dwell and operate in an “old covenant mentality.”

I talk about my struggles in this area in my book:

I sometimes believe that the works of my hands will bring me special blessings or special treatment from my King. I battled this legalistic line of thought when my husband and I were trying to have children. I read passages like Ps. 127:3 and knew that children were indeed a blessing from God, a “reward,” even. So, why did God grant the reward of children to so many unwed teenagers and not me? The thought came out more like a ripe accusation than a true question. I felt like I had played by “all the rules,” and coming away from parenthood empty-handed made it seem like God wasn’t.

For most of my doctor’s appointments, I sat in waiting rooms filled with teen moms in their third trimester. They talked about their dating woes, hot boyfriends, ditching class, and the latest text to circulate the school. When I went back for my second miscarriage, the disparity of these blessings grew so large in my mind that I almost changed doctors.

But God spoke to my heart through a very wise Sunday School teacher. He showed me that while children are indeed a special blessing, they are not the only reward God gives his daughters. He pointed to the story of Abraham, who, in his great age, was promised a son. To Abraham, God clearly told him, “I am your…exceedingly great reward” (Gen. 15:1). It was all I needed to hear to convict my heart that I do not need to wrestle blessings away from God. God has already given me the greatest, most previous reward I could desire: himself. Excerpt from Chapter 7, Daughters of the King

Ladies, don’t fall prey to the deception that we deserve certain and specific blessings from God! When we do, we grossly misapply Christ’s work on our behalf.

The King desires to bless all his daughters and has already given his daughters every blessing we will ever need. Our righteousness and blessings come only through Jesus Christ. If we are found in Him, we will never have to wrestle blessings from the hand of the King. Even in the face of great disappointments, we can rest in knowing we’ve been blessed beyond measure in the present and will receive even greater measure of those blessings in the age to come.

Be encouraged. We are loved by our King.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us…” Eph. 3:1

What blessings do you feel you must wrestle from the hand of God? Share you thoughts in the comments!

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