Blessed by GodSample

The Blessings of God have Generational Impact

There are many wealthy people in the world, and most of them have wealthy parents. Though not always true by any means, it is undoubtedly a fact that it is easier to inherit great wealth than it is to create great wealth. There are some "self-made" millionaires, but immensely wealthy people were given the resources worth them. There is much truth to the saying, "It takes money to make money." Many people will build their inherited wealth to a far greater level, but they still begin with the blessing of an inheritance granted to them.

Spiritually speaking, there are no "self-made" people. We are all utterly and wholly impoverished and dependent on the grace and mercy of our Lord. Yet, there is a sense in which God's blessings have a generational impact. The blessings of God are indeed passed from generation to generation. This is not because God randomly ensures that the children and grandchildren of every obedient servant of God will be blessed if they live in disobedience in the same way as if they lived in obedience themselves.

There are many illustrations in the scriptures that bear this out, and we all know how true it is from people we know or even in our own families. The scriptures are clear that we all are individually responsible for our own relationship with God and the lives that we live, and the decisions we make. Yet, there are generational blessings passed on from parents who obey the Lord to the children and even the grandchildren that follow them. They can impact generations not yet born when their life is over. There are no guarantees that the blessings will last, whether financial or spiritual, but the potential for generational impact is certain.

God told His people concerning the Law that they were to diligently live it out but to also diligently teach it to their children. They were to talk about it all the time, apply it to daily life, place it where it could be seen and read, and make sure the next generation knew who God was and what obedience to Him meant.

That is the responsibility we still have today. We are to "train up a child in the way they should go..." We are to raise our children "in the fear and admonition of the Lord." Timothy is a great Biblical example of the generational blessings of God. He was a devout follower of Christ from an early age and figured prominently in the life of the Early Church. We don't know anything about his father, but we do know that he had a devout mother and grandmother.

When one generation teaches the eternal truth of God's word to their children, helping them to know Jesus, experience His Word, and surrender their lives to Him, they are passing on the blessings of God. The blessings of God in one generation are testified to, taught, and passed on to the next generation, who pass it on to the one yet to come. There is an eternal significance to the blessings of God, and it has an impact from generation to generation to generation.

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