The Lord Bless You!

There is an episode from one of my favorite tv series involving not following directions. During the episode two of the main characters are on an in-person sales call to an old client because they are upset by their company pushing customers to use technology by buying online rather than from salespeople, which would render them obsolete. While driving to the sales call they are using technology, a GPS, for directions to the client’s office. The scene culminates in the two main characters driving the car into a pond. When they return to the office soaking wet and are asked by their fellow employees for an explanation, they blame technology for telling them to drive into the lake. The scene is comical because it was obviously not the map’s fault, but the main character’s fault for driving the car into the pond.

Setbacks hurt your goals. Keeping a source of income with advances in technology may mean learning a new skill set when your company lets you go. Healthy eating goals with cheat days that turn into cheat weeks, hurt your healthy lifestyle goals. Paying for college goals while sleeping past your alarm for the third day in a row, hurts your chance at making money at a summer job. Setbacks force you to work longer and harder for your goals. Because of this, setbacks cause many people to abandon their goals, but in our New Testament reading from Romans 5, God shows us another purpose for setbacks:

And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Romans 5:2-5

Paul reminded the Romans that God has given us the end goal of glory with him in heaven and he will get us there by his grace, but we will be tested with suffering and setbacks along the way. Setbacks either make us doubt we are good enough for heaven or leave us trading heavenly glory for earthly pleasure.

God’s goal is blessing his people. In our Old Testament reading from Numbers 6, God made it clear to the people of Israel that his goal was to bless them. The book of Numbers records the history of Israel during their time wandering between their freedom from Egypt and entering the land of Canaan, which would become known as Israel. Although the book of Numbers does contain a lot of numbers in the form of census of Israel, the book could also be titled “In the Wilderness.” The book records a pattern of Israel’s setbacks as they abandon God despite God coming to them with his promise of blessing. A fitting theme for the book is found in Numbers 14:

Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.

Numbers 14:9

The theme, “The Lord is with us,” runs throughout Numbers because God did not abandon Israel although they did not listen and were afraid of their enemies despite God’s promise of protection.

Your setbacks lead you to act like Israel. Like Israel, you are wandering between being set free and waiting to enter a new land. Because of sin, you and Israel both face setbacks that make you doubt your worth in God’s eyes or give up waiting for heaven to have temporary gratification. Both setbacks take your eyes off God’s blessings. However, the truth is your worth to God is not earned or determined by how you live. Your worth to God is based on his love for you. Your worth to God does not change because his love for you does not change. And it is a false idea that you cannot enjoy any of the blessings of heaven now. It is a lie that to be happy you must indulge in temptation and sin. The joy of heaven is built on your relationship with God and the blessings that come from that relationship. When setbacks come into your life, this is the truth you must hold close, “Without the Lord, I am not blessed.”

The positive way to say that is, “With the Lord, I am blessed.” You and I like all people have a pattern of setbacks because of sin. These sinful setbacks are solved by God as we hear in our Old Testament reading from Numbers 6:

The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: “‘“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’ “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”

Numbers 6:22-27

These words are God’s response to our sin. They show what God’s love means and what a relationship with God gives. It is the answer to any setback you have because with God you are always blessed. No one takes away the blessings God gives you. God is the one who gives the blessings to you.

God’s blessing takes your focus from setbacks to thankfulness. In our Gospel reading from John 16, Jesus knew the disciples would face a tough road that would threaten to break them. On the night he was betrayed, Jesus spoke these words to his disciples,

“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth.

John 16:12-13

Jesus knew the disciples watching Jesus’ crucifixion would be what they perceived as the greatest setback. So, to prepare them he encouraged them with the promise of the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit did come to fill them with all truth. Knowing the truth of God’s blessings given through our Savior allow us to survive all trails, sufferings and setbacks. The blessings God gives are summarized in Numbers 6, and here is what they mean for you.  First,

“The Lord bless you and keep you.”

Numbers 6:24

This is the work of God the Father who made you and preserves your life. He keeps the universe in motion allowing the seasons and rains to come producing crops and livestock to give you food, clothing and shelter. Second,

“the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you.”

Numbers 6:25

This is the work of Jesus our Savior who was born into our world shining his light among us, who was rejected and crucified. He exchanged his glory to experience all our setbacks, trials and sufferings from sin, and taking them away he gave us his glory, forgiveness, worthiness, righteousness, holiness and inheritance as a child of God to the eternal life, joy and peace of heaven. Third,

“the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

Numbers 6:26

This is the work of the Holy Spirit who came not just to the disciples, but who filled your own heart with faith, hope and love. He reestablished your relationship with God so that in each setback you know God’s blessings are still yours. He gives you wisdom through the Word of God and gives you peace. These blessings are what you hold on to when setbacks and tests come in your life. Setbacks are not your chance to show yourself, the world and God how strong you are. Setbacks are the time for you to test God’s faithfulness to his promise to bless you.

Using a map means knowing how to read it. Setbacks pull your eyes off the blessings of God. Your sinful heart sets you back, but God has taken away your sins through Jesus. The Bible shows you the map with warnings of the setbacks of sin and the destination of heaven. You are blessed because you already have Jesus’ forgiveness and with Jesus’s forgiveness comes heaven. You have the Father’s love and the Holy Spirit’s gift of faith. Live with thankfulness because the Lord has put his name on you to bless you. The Lord bless you. Amen.