#r12=d28

Deserve Blessing

In this series #r12=d28, we have been examining how to live out a covenant relationship
with God. And over the past week or so we have been studying Romans 12 in the light
of the following themes. In 12:1 we discussed the concept of surrender to God. In 12:2
we discussed being separate for God. In 12:3 it was about taking a sober assessment
of who we are so that we can find the "real me". In 12:9-13 we looked at serving, use
our gifts to serve the Kingdom. And yesterday 12:17-21, we looked at the correct way to
respond to evil. I know some of you are saying ok coach, all of those words start with
the letter s and I get that I am supposed to live a certain way, but why? Why would you
do things like respond to evil with good? Well I hope the answer is that we are correctly
responding to the love God has shown for us on the cross by living a life worthy of such
a sacrifice. Here in lies the great news though, when our why is right (a love response
to great love) and when our what is right (living out the principles found in the word of
God by obedience) we trigger the a Covenant response from God. Let's look at
Galatians 3:27-29:
Sons and Heirs
27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ like a
garment. 28 There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female; for you are all
one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abrahams seed,
heirs according to the promise.
That is right, your vacation bible school teacher had it right. Father Abraham had many
sons, and many sons had father Abraham, I am one of them and so are you! I think the
message from heaven right now is return to my Covenant in recent messages I have
heard on separate occasions I have heard Pastor Tommy in Union City, TN, Steven
Furtick, Charlotte, NC, and Alan Beauchamp in Springfield preach either directly on the
Covenant or point to it. God is looking for a people that will walk in Covenant
relationship with him. And the good news is he will bless those that do. Yes r12 or
being a Romans 12 Christian equals d28 or living under the blessings of Deuteronomy
28.
Deuteronomy 28Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Blessings for Obedience

28 Now if you faithfully obey the Lord your God and are careful to follow all His
commands I am giving you today, the Lord your God will put you far above all the
nations of the earth. 2 All these blessings will come and overtake you, because you
obey the Lord your God:
3 You will be blessed in the city
and blessed in the country.
4 Your descendants[a] will be blessed,
and your lands produce,
and the offspring of your livestock,
including the young of your herds
and the newborn of your flocks.
5 Your basket and kneading bowl will be blessed.
6 You will be blessed when you come in
and blessed when you go out.
7 The Lord will cause the enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you.
They will march out against you from one direction but flee from you in seven
directions. 8 The Lord will grant you a blessing on your storehouses and on everything
you do;[b] He will bless you in the land the Lord your God is giving you. 9 The Lord will
establish you as His holy people, as He swore to you, if you obey the commands of
the Lord your God and walk in His ways. 10 Then all the peoples of the earth will see
that you are called by Yahwehs name, and they will stand in awe of
you. 11 The Lord will make you prosper abundantly with children,[c] the offspring of your
livestock, and your lands produce in the land the Lord swore to your fathers to give
you. 12 The Lord will open for you His abundant storehouse, the sky, to give your land
rain in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations,
but you will not borrow. 13 The Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you will only
move upward and never downward if you listen to the Lord your Gods commands I am
giving you today and are careful to follow them. 14 Do not turn aside to the right or the
left from all the things I am commanding you today, and do not go after other gods to
worship them.
We will spend time next week looking deeper at Deuteronomy 28 and not just the
blessings but the curses for disobedience found in the same chapter. #r12=d28 is about
living life in such a way that you deserve to be blessed. One of the things we talk about
in football all the time is deserving victory. In fact our vision statement is to deserve

victory by leading the state in attitude and effort. That should be our personal vision
statement, to deserve blessings by leading the Kingdom in attitude and effort!
In Christ Love,
Humbly His by Grace
Coach Jackson