Begging for a Blessing, Part 2

We've got a generation of people with nothing to look forward to. Dr. Tony Evans says it's never the Lord's will for us to just muddle through a mediocre life. But you've been positioned and put together by Almighty God for some special meaning, some special purpose. This is The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, author, speaker, senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, Texas, and president of the Urban Alternative. Blessings come from God, but not just from God. Today, Dr. Evans will touch on the importance of the blessings we pass on and what to do if they were never passed on to us.

Let's join him as he begins. It became apparent to me that the large part of our men who were sitting in church every week had never been blessed. And it's hard to pass on what you've never had. It's hard to pass on a blessing to your children if you don't know what one is and you don't know how to transfer it. How important was this thing called the blessing?

So important that in Genesis 27 Esau was begging for it. He says at the end of verse 35, bless me, even me, O my father. In verse 36, the last line, have you not reserved a blessing for me? Verse 38, bless me, even me, O my father.

So Esau lifted up his voice and he wept. To not be blessed would make a grown man cry. What was this blessing? In summary, it was experiencing and enjoying and extending the covenantal promises of God for your life. It was experiencing, enjoying, and extending, passing on the promises of God for your life. The blessing was when God was operating for them. The curse was when God was operating against them.

It was an umbrella that no matter what rain showers were around them, they were undercover. Look at chapter 25. I want you to understand the blessing. Verse 30, Esau said to Jacob, please let me have a swallow of that red stuff, for I am famished. Jacob said, first, sell me your birthright.

Now, that's a lot to ask for a bowl of stew. He said, let me sell you—sell me your birthright and I'll give you some stew. Esau said, I'm about to die, so what use then is my birthright to me?

I ain't getting ready to die. I'm so hungry. And Jacob said, first, swear to me. So he swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and a lentil of stew, and he ate and drank and rose up and went on his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright. What was your birthright? The oldest son got a double inheritance of everything that the father left behind. He got a double inheritance.

Jacob said, sell me your position and I'll give you something to eat. The Bible says, Esau thought so little of his birthright that he was willing to sell it for some stew. But what Esau forgot is that when you give up your birthright, you give up your blessings. See, to say I don't want the will is to say I don't want the stuff in the will, and the blessings are in the will. The blessings had to do with what the father was passing forward. What was in this blessing?

Here it is, verse 28 and 29. Now may God give you of the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth and an abundance of grain and new wine. May people serve you and nations bow down to you.

Be master of your brothers and may your mother's son bow down to you. Cursed be those who curse you and blessed be those who bless you. Let me tell you what's in the blessing. A blessing meant a special God-designed, custom-designed future. He says to Jacob, who he thinks is Isaac, because Jacob has tricked him, he says to Jacob, let me tell you about your future. Because a blessing talked about the future. Yeah, there was stuff in the present, but the blessing was the future. He said, look, three things, three things, Jacob.

He thinks he's talking to Esau because he's been tricked, but he says three things, three things. The first thing is divine provision. He says in verse 28, the dew from the heaven will fall and of the fatness of the earth and abundance of grain and new wine.

In other words, heaven is gonna rain down what you need to get the promises of God fulfilled. I don't care how hard you work the earth, if there is no rain from heaven, nothing's gonna grow. Some of us are working hard to make something of our lives. We're working hard to give ourselves the future.

We're making hard to get something done in our lives. We wonder why nothing is growing. If there is no rain from heaven, it doesn't matter how hard you work on earth, nothing is going to grow. If heaven doesn't visit earth, there are no vegetables. If heaven doesn't visit earth, there is no grain. If heaven doesn't visit earth, there is no fruit.

There is no grass for the livestock to eat so that the cows can give milk. If heaven does not visit earth, earth can't show up with anything. A lot of us wonder why everything on earth is not working out because we've not yet gotten a visit from heaven, which is in the will.

God told him, he says, now, I want you to leave Egypt and I want you to go to the promised land. He says, now, when you get to the promised land, here's what you're going to find. You're going to find a land flowing with milk and honey.

That means highly productive. You're going to find when you get to your future, you're going to find I've already gone ahead of you to your future. There are some sinners in there, but while the sinners are occupying the territory, I'm going to tell them to dig some wells. While the sinners are occupying the territory, I'm going to tell them to plow the fields. While the sinners are occupying the territory, I'm going to tell them to plant some grapes so that when you arrive, stuff has already been taken care of.

Heaven will have already visited earth and earth will have been produced so that you're going to arrive to stuff that you didn't know existed, and when you get there, it's going to be more than you expected. Second, spiritual authority. He says in verse 29, the people will serve you. The nations will bow down to you.

You will be master. He says, you're going to have authority. Remember in the beginning of our spiritual authority series we said everybody's been given a garden. Like Adam, a place over which you are to rule. Using your gifts, your talents, your skills, and the opportunities that God brings you, everybody here has a garden. There's no Christian here that has not been given a garden, a place where God wants to root you in order to service His kingdom and to service you for good and to be a blessing to others. Everybody in here has a garden, a place over which you function as master, a place where you call the shots.

And he says, and I'm going to make sure when I take you to where I'm taking you, that you are running your garden. One of the greatest things in the world is to know that there is a place for you. That you are not a mistake.

You're not an evolutionary mishap. There is a place for you. God didn't just leave you here to wonder and to just go around bouncing around like a pinball machine. There is a place for you to master. There is an area where He wants you to control.

He has given you gift skills and time, and He wants you to use that for the mastering purposes for which He has given you. That is a secure place. It is a secure place to know that God has a place for me, so for you to get me out of my place, you have to overrule God. That is a secure place to be, that you have to slap God to get me. Because He says, in the place I'm putting you, you will master that place. And that's the bad thing about folk getting in places that they're not theirs. Because now you don't have any—you're not under the umbrella, see, because God is only going to give you the umbrella in the places He's provided you. Not only that, He says, and I will curse those who curse you, and I will bless those who bless you.

That's divine protection under the umbrella. I'm a curster. If they come after you, they just came after me.

And if they for you, they for me. Look, you know how long they've been trying to get rid of Israel? They've been trying to knock Israel into the Mediterranean. Israel is a little tiny country surrounded by millions and millions and millions of people who can't stand them. They have tried to get rid of Israel, and every time they try, they fail.

How can this little, teeny country surrounded by all these other nations still survive when they got that much hatred surrounded on all sides? Because God said, I'm going to curse those who curse you, and I'm going to bless those who bless you, because they're under the umbrella. And even though they're in disobedience right now through the rejection of Christ, He still made a promise regarding the land, and He said, and I have you under My umbrella. And while they may make you shake a little bit, they are never going to be able to destroy you, because My covenant, you and My will.

Isn't that a free position? To know that when somebody comes after you, they're coming after God. Isn't that what David said when he met Goliath? He said, you just came after God. The battle is the Lord's.

God, He's talking about you. Dr. Evans will come back with more of our message in just a moment, including a look at why so many of us are still begging for our blessings. Before he does, though, I want to let you know that what you're hearing today is just one installment in the 20-part message compilation called Coming to the Comforter. This collection of messages from Dr. Evans helps us understand how to deal with problems and pain more effectively and honestly, and the entire series perfectly complements the insights found in Tony's brand-new book, Hope for the Hurting.

Together, these two powerful resources can help you discover what God wants you to learn during difficult days, how to find treasure in your trials, how to be made whole instead of just better, and how to develop a stronger faith even in the midst of trials. We'll send them to you as our gift, and thanks for your contribution toward supporting Tony's ministry here on this station and other outlets like it around the world. Just visit tonyevans.org to get the details and make all the arrangements. Again, that's tonyevans.org. Or let one of our resource team members help you day or night at 1-800-800-3222.

That's 1-800-800-3222. Well, Dr. Evans, we'll come back with part two of today's message right after this. Deep green forests, snow-capped mountains, breathtaking glaciers, eagles soaring overhead, whales breaching the surface of the ocean. It's a place abounding with natural wonders, a magnificent example of what our Creator can do. Few places evidence God's creative power, like the stunning wilderness of coastal Alaska. And now you can experience it with us. Join Tony Evans and other friends of the ministry as together we discover the glory of God's spectacular creation on an unforgettable Alaskan cruise. Set sail with us to take in the splendor of God's creation, along with the wonders of His Word. We'll enjoy great teaching from Dr. Tony Evans and other gifted instructors, as well as life-changing worship and special musical performances. This spiritually uplifting cruise will give us time to relax, refresh, and refocus as we take a journey through Scripture while surrounded by the awesome creation that is Alaska.

Find out more about the Urban Alternative Alaskan Cruise at tonyevans.org today. We've got a generation of people with nothing to look forward to. They have no sense of destiny. They have no sense of future because they haven't been given it.

But we can't expect them to have been given it because nobody gave it to their mom and daddy. There are a bunch of adults here who's still looking for your blessing. You're still looking for somebody to tell you you mean something, for somebody to tell you you're significant, for somebody to tell you you have a future, for somebody to tell you you're not a chance happening, but you've been positioned and put together by Almighty God for some special meaning, some special purpose. And you're not a nobody. You're not a nothing. You are a king of God. You are a queen.

You are a prince or a princess. You know a generation haven't been blessed when they walk around with pants around their ankles. They walk around with pants around their ankles and they call it cool.

Here we are with a generation of boys sagging and think it's good. It's not only that they're doing it, it's what they think about it. Then you understand that all they are are reflecting the emptiness. What they're doing is saying, somebody look at me, somebody pay attention to me, somebody say something to me that makes me feel significant and special. Somebody's even if you have to use me up. Somebody pay attention to me. Somebody stop and stare me down. Somebody say, you sure look good girl.

And even though I've got to compromise my virtue and compromise my morality, if I could just for God's sake, get somebody to say, I have something of value. All they're saying is, can somebody bless me? Can somebody bless me?

Can somebody let me know that there is something special out there that special that I mean something that there is substance and significance. Jacob says, oh, for a blessing. He's 40 years old and he's begging for a blessing.

Esau has money. What he doesn't have is a blessing. He has nothing to look forward to. Nothing. No future.

And when you don't have a future, all you get to do is exist. You have a generation of boys who need to know you don't have to be a thug to be somebody. A generation of girls who can say, if you're not going to treat me like a princess and talk to me like a queen, and we don't have anything to compensate about because that's who I am. God got blessed by my mom and by my daddy, by my church. And when they blessed me, they told me I was a princess, a queen in waiting. Therefore, if you're going to treat me less than I know I am, you're not worthy of my time and attention. And I'm going to be okay till I get somebody man enough to be a prince or a king. People going around looking for somebody hard.

Just looking for somebody hard. Oh no, no, no, no. He said, I'm going to bless you my son. You have a special future. You are an extension of the covenant and you have a tomorrow.

But he was 40 years old. Let me give you a verse. Can I give you a verse? Deuteronomy 23 verse five. Let me tell you what Deuteronomy 23 verse five says.

Deuteronomy 23 verse five says, God says this, watch this now, it's good news. I will turn your cursing into a blessing. He says, I will turn your cursing into a blessing.

And then he throws in a line, throws in a line. He says, because I love you, because I love you, because I love you, I'm going to turn this thing around. I'm going to turn what these years of cursings have been and I'm going to turn that thing. If you will come under the umbrella, I can't change my umbrella, but if you'll come under my umbrella, I'm going to turn what all those years, the years that the locust have taken away.

The years that have been ripped off from you, where you were used and abused and messed over and forgotten. And even where you have sinned and walked away from me. If you come back under my covenant, under my umbrella, I will turn the curse.

I got some good news for you today. If you're here and you've never been blessed, you've been under a curse. Your mama cursed you, your daddy cursed you, and you went out there and cursed yourself. He says, I can turn that thing around and I can turn a cursing into a blessing.

Why? Because you and I have a birthright in the new covenant. In fact, let me tell you how sweet this birthright is. The Bible says in the book of Galatians that you and I are sons and daughters of Abraham.

Wait a minute now, I don't know if you caught that. Galatians says you and I are sons and daughters of Abraham. Well, let's go back to the Old Testament. God said, Abraham, I'm going to make of you a great and mighty nation.

I want you to pass this on to Isaac. Isaac, God told me that I'm a great and mighty nation. You come out of me.

Guess who you are, boy? You are a great and mighty nation. Isaac tells Jacob, Jacob, God told my daddy, your granddaddy, he was a great and mighty nation. I'm a great and mighty nation because I came out of him.

You came out of me. Guess who you are, boy? You are a great and mighty nation. Jacob has 12 sons. 12 sons, y'all are messed up.

Sometimes y'all are jacked up, but I want you to know something. God told your great granddaddy Abraham, he is a great and mighty nation. He told my dad, Isaac, that he was a great and mighty nation. Isaac told me, I'm a great and mighty nation.

You 12 boys are going to be great and mighty nations. Those 12 boys became the 12 tribes of the son of Israel and established Israel. God then skipped over the covenant of Moses and repicked up with Jesus Christ, the covenant of Abraham. So that in the book of Galatians, he wants Christians to say, way back in the Old Testament, God told Abraham, you are a great and mighty nation. You special, you're going to be somebody.

Abraham told Isaac, Isaac told Jacob, Jacob told his 12 sons, through Judah came Jesus Christ, who was a great and mighty nation. You now have the birthright of Jesus Christ pulsating through your vein, which ties you back to Abraham, you are somebody. God has a blessing for you. He has a glorious future for you. You say, but things look so bad.

Things look so terrible, I can't see the future. That's why, that's why the prayer of Jabez, prayer of Jabez, you know, the prayer of Jabez from 1 Chronicles 4 sold 20 million copies, a little teeny book. It sold 20 million copies. You know why? Because people trying to find out how to get blessed.

So everybody was buying that little book. How can I get blessed? He said, Jabez said, Lord, bless me indeed. Let me tell you what Jabez means in 1 Chronicles 4. It means pain.

It says, because I was born in pain, my mama named me Jabez. And that means every time she called me, pain, your dinner's ready. Pain, time to go to school. Pain, time to do your housework. Pain, time to do your homework. Pain, it's time to come in and go to bed. Pain, pain, pain.

He got tired of having a life full of pain. And he looked up one day and said, Lord, bless me indeed. In other words, I was put here for more than this.

I wasn't just put here to be pain, to be known as pain, to cause pain, to receive pain. I am here for something more than this. Bless me indeed. And then expand my territory. He says, give me room to handle all the indeed stuff. You're going to send my way. And he says, and then place your hand on me because I can't do this without you. I can't make it without you. I'm not going to try to make it without you. I need you.

Put your hand on me. Then he says, keep me from evil. Put a restraining order on the devil because the devil's going to try to snatch it. The devil's going to try to trick me. The devil's going to try to deter me. He's going to try to get me to rebel against you. So keep the devil off my back so I can get everything that you have planned for me because I want to be blessed indeed.

I want all that you have for me. Dr. Tony Evans, talking about the power of the blessing that grows out of our connection with Christ in a lesson called Begging for a Blessing. Now, if you'd like to get a full length copy of this message, including material we didn't have time to present on the air, it's included as a part of that comprehensive 20-part series, Coming to the Comforter. As I mentioned earlier, it's yours as our gift when you help us keep Tony's teaching on this station with your generous contribution. For a limited time, along with 10 messages on CD and 10 as digital downloads, we'll also include one of the first copies of Tony's brand new book, Hope for the Hurting. Just visit tonyevans.org to make the arrangements before this special offer runs out. Again, that's tonyevans.org. Or reach out to our resource center at 1-800-800-3222. Team members are standing by to help you day and night.

Again, that's 1-800-800-3222. When something hurts, we want to make it stop, but sometimes that's a mistake. Join Dr. Evans tomorrow as he explains why things that seem to wear us down can really be building us up. The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans is brought to you by The Urban Alternative and is made possible by the generous contributions of listeners like you.