A Double Blessing
- Mark Batterson
- Apr 25, 2022
- 17 min read
NATIONAL COMMUNITY CHURCH
October 13, 2019
Original Blessing
Dr. Mark Batterson
Well, welcome to all seven of our campuses, shout out to our extended family online. This
weekend we kick off a new series based on a book. Looks a little something like this and excited
book releases next Tuesday, but we got our hands on some black market copies. And so you can
grab one at all of our campuses on the way out. It's a gift from Lora and I and I might mention
just what a privilege we count it to serve this church to serve you. And I might mention that the
book is dedicated to you and so I'm going to put this on the screen; “To those who have
generously invested their time, talent, and treasure in National Community Church. Once a
shareholder, always a shareholder.” So here's to you, which you give it up for yourselves.
[clapping]
And here we go if you have a Bible, you can turn all the way back to the book of Genesis and
we'll meet there in a minute. In Greek mythology, there is a legend about a labyrinth that was
inescapable. Those who entered never exited for within that maze meandered a minotaur, a
fearsome creature that was half man, half bull. Every nine years, the evil King of Crete
demanded that the Athenian send seven boys and seven girls to be sacrificed to the minotaur. As
you might imagine, the Athenians did not take to this tradition well. On the occasion of the third
minotaur games. Theseus the Prince of Athens volunteered himself as tribute. When Theseus
landed on Crete, the daughter of the Cretin King, Princess Ariadne fell head over ancient heels in
love with Theseus. She knew, however, that no one who had ever ventured into the labyrinth had
ever found their way out. So she devised a rather ingenious plan. Ariadne gave Theseus a sword
with which to slay the minotaur and more importantly a ball of thread. Theseus tied one end to
the entrance then he unwound that ball of thread as he meander through that maze. After slaying
the minotaur with the sword, Theseus moon walked his way out of that labyrinth. Hold that
thought.
Life is a labyrinth. It's full of relational twists and occupational turns that we did not see coming.
We zig through big decisions. We zag through bad decisions. There are situations we get
ourselves into that we do not know how to get ourselves out of and we all encounter some
minotaurs along the way. Some of you may work for one; half man, half bull, right? I think
weaving our way through difficult seasons of life, it can feel like we are lost in a labyrinth and I
think addiction feels this way. I think depression feels this way. I think grief feels this way. But I
want you to know this weekend there's a way out. There is a ball of thread but we've got to go all
the way back to the beginning to find our way forward.
What I want to do this weekend is a little bit of reverse engineering. Genesis chapter one verse
26, I'll put it on the screen. "Then God said, let us make man in our likeness, in our image." Now
I want you to notice the plural pronoun; Let us
make man in our
image. This is collaboration
between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. "So God created mankind in his own image, in the image
of God, he created them, male and female, he created them." There is a double emphasis on the
image of God because this is double trouble. If we don't understand whose image we are created
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in. We have a core value at National Community Church that you are invaluable and
irreplaceable. It traces all the way back to this ancient truth, to this fundamental fact that you are
the image of Almighty God.
Now, I know that there are people that you do not like, or is that just me? How do you love
people you don't like? And it's usually the people who don't look like us, who don't think like us.
We live in a divisive culture. We live in a divisive city. How do we bridge that gap? How do we
love people who aren't like us? I think it starts right here. It's recognizing we may not like them,
but they are made in the likeness of God himself. This goes so far beyond political affiliation or
racial identity or socioeconomic status. You are the image of God.
In 'The Weight of Glory" CS Lewis said this, there are no ordinary people. He said, you have
never talked to a mere mortal. He said, the dullest, most uninteresting person you talk to may one
day be a creature which if you saw it now you would be strongly tempted to worship. And I love
this comparison point because we'll celebrate communion at all of our campuses this weekend.
He said next to the blessing sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your
senses.
All right, verse 28; we're only 28 verses into act one, we're still at the hospital, in fact, we're in
the delivery room. The umbilical court hasn't even been cut. And what does God do? What is the
very first thing that God does? I'll put it on the screen. "Then God blessed them..." and I'm going
to stop mid sentence and talk about it. I want you to hear what I'm about to say. Before original
sin, there was original blessing. That sequence is so significant because if we get the sequence
wrong, the entire algorithm is off. Why? Because it changes who we see when we look in the
mirror because it alters the way that we relate to God. If we doubt original blessing, we second
guessed the goodness of God and we relate to God for all the wrong reasons.
Let me interrupt this sermon and talk a little bit about writing. When I write a book, I kinda liken
it to hiking into a huge forest, vast, dense, and I call it the writing forest. And so you start writing
a chapter and you have a general idea of where you want to go and what you want to say. But
you get into the writing forest and you get lost and you don't know how to find your way back
out. And so that's why in recent books I started writing shorter chapters. Kid you not, easier to
get in and get out, but it's also a little Jedi mind trick. I've learned that the shorter the chapter, the
better people think they are as readers. When I wandered into the Double Blessing forest I
thought this was a book about the art and science of gratitude and generosity, and it is. I thought
it was about flipping the blessing as a way of life, and it is. But let's not miss the forest for the
trees. This is a book; this is a series about rediscovering God's heart for you.
Blessing is God's most ancient instinct. Blessing is God's first and foremost reflex. Blessing is
God's default setting. Now, God won't bless disobedience. God's not gonna bless pride or greed
or laziness; he loves us too much to do that. We've got to position ourselves for blessing and
we'll talk about some habits of highly blessed people, but here's the big idea. God wants to bless
you beyond your ability to ask or imagine. God wants to bless you in categories you can't even
conceive of. That's what I'm believing for you. I'm believing this begins a new season of
blessings. So let me get theological, then we'll get practical and I think those are the same thing.
Okay, spirituality is practicality.
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In the second century, A D a church father by the name of Irenaeus was a key player in resisting
heresy in defining orthodoxy. Irenaeus was the Bishop of Lyons, but he was originally from
Smyrna, one of the seven churches that is written to in the book of Revelation. Now, the Bishop
of Smyrna was a man by the name of Polycarp and I've talked about him in some books and in
some sermons. Polycarp was known as the 12th martyr. When Polycarp was dragged into the
Roman Coliseum and told to recant his faith, he said this, 86 years have I served him and he has
done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King and my savior? Then Polycarp according to
ear witnesses heard of voice from heaven that said, 'be strong, Polycarp play the man.'
Here's the rest of the story. According to church tradition, Polycarp was discipled by the Apostle
John himself, and just as John discipled Polycarp, Irenaeus is believed to have been discipled by
his pastor, Polycarp. So, Irenaeus was discipled by someone who was discipled by someone who
was discipled by Jesus. He is a third generation follower of Christ. I don't think you need to
know that historical context, but I think it adds some weight. It was Irenaeus who was the first to
allude to this idea of original sin. Now, Augustine in the fourth century expounded on this idea,
but he made it much less optimistic and far more deterministic. And then the Protestant
reformers, Martin Luther, John Calvin among them, picked up this idea of original sin, took it to
the nth degree, and I think that's when original sin overshadowed original blessing. But please
hear me, I don't doubt original sin, I have children. But listen to me, children need to know that
their blessings first and sinner second, and so do you. If we see ourselves as sinners first and
blessing second, I think it creates all kinds of identity issues. I don't doubt the sin nature, all have
sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, but sin is secondary, blessing is primary.
Now why am I making such a big deal about original blessing? Well, in Aristotelian philosophy,
there's something called a first principle. It's a basic assumption. It's a foundational truth.
Aristotle said, a first principle is the first basis from which a thing is known. So I want you to
know first and foremost that you are blessed by God and I'll take it one step further, you are
blessed to bless.
Let me double back to the beginning. You've got to tie one end of Ariadne's thread to original
blessing. Blessing is God's most ancient instinct and that means that blessing is our earliest
memory as a human race. This week I spoke at the American Association of Christian
Counselors in Nashville. It made me think of one of the best in the business, a man by the name
of Alfred Adler. His signature move with new clients was a quintessential question, and you've
heard me share this before. He would ask his new clients, what is your earliest memory? Now,
no matter how the patient replied, Adler would say, 'and so life is.' Adler believed that our
earliest memories leave a profound imprint on the soul and I think he's right. Now, imagine
Adler asking Adam that question; lots of unforgettable moments and memories from roaming the
garden to naming the animals to rib surgery, but none of those represent his earliest memory.
Adam says to Adler, my first memory is being blessed by God. Blessing sets the tone. Blessing
sets the table. Blessing establishes the emotional baseline and spiritual trend line of Adam's
entire existence. Yes, sin enters the equation. Dysfunction, pain, imperfection come into play,
but none of that changes the fact that we are the image of all mighty God and that we are blessed
by God himself.
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Okay, stick with me. Blessing is our earliest memory and that's why I believe blessing is our
deepest longing. There is a longing within each one of us to be blessed, to be celebrated for who
we are, to be accepted for who we're not, to be loved with no agenda, no strings attached, no ifs,
ands, or buts about it. You are loved as is. Did you hear me? This is not based on anything
you've done or not done, you are loved because of who you are, but more important because of
whose you are, you are the image of God. You are God's workmanship. You are the apple of
God's eye.
I've met people who have accomplished so much. They've done more, made more, experienced
more than I could probably imagine in several lifetimes, people who are so gifted, so successful,
and yet some of them so insecure and so lonely. In fact, I think that they would trade everything
they've accomplished for their mother's love or their father's pride. They never got a blessing and
it leaves a gap, and this instinct is as old as Esau, Jacob steals the birthright, steals the blessing.
It's one of the saddest scenes in scripture. You have to almost read it with a quivering voice
because Esau says, have you only one blessing, father? Bless me, even also. Oh my father and
Esau could not control his voice and wept aloud.
What happens when you don't live from a place of original blessing? I think verse 41 happens.
Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him. So many of our
emotional issues, our greed, our lust, our anger, our pride, our jealousy they come from this place
of woundedness, this place of emptiness and it's something that only God's blessing can heal, that
only God's blessing can make whole. Your family of origin may have felt like more of a curse
than a blessing. Sometimes that makes it really hard to believe that blessing is God's most
ancient instinct.
Let me make it personal. I can't not love my kids. It doesn't depend on the day of the week. It
doesn't depend on how they're doing. It's not contingent upon their accomplishments. It's not
compromised by the mistakes they make. There is nothing that can change my default setting as
an earthly father. I can't not love my kids. When our kids were very young, single digits we were
vacationing in Deep Creek, Maryland, and we're staying at this house in the woods and it was a
little scary at night. Okay, a lot scary at night, pitch black. So one night we're in the hot tub on
the back porch and I'm having one of those moments that sometimes as parents you have where
you are just so overwhelmed with how much you love your children. And I turned to my kids
and I said, kids, if a bear came out of these woods, I would die for you. Things not to say to
young children. Our kids jumped out of the hot tub, ran into the house screaming where Lora
comforted them, thankfully. I can't not love my kids.
In his letter to the Romans, Paul said it this way. "I am convinced that neither death nor life,
neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor
depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in
Christ Jesus, our Lord." In his letter to the Corinthians, he said, "these three remain, faith, hope,
and love, but the greatest, these is love". Love is the first principle. Love is the default setting.
Love is our fallback position.
Let me take a minute, talk about what blessing is, what blessing is not then we'll land this plane.
If you're taking notes; Number one, blessing is not good luck. It is not winning the lottery. In the
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words of the notorious BIG, "mo, money, (congregation responded 'mo problems). Thank you.
God doesn't bless us to raise our standard of living; God blesses us to raise our standard of
giving. If all we do is raise our standard of living, the blessing backfires and becomes a curse.
Your greatest asset becomes your greatest liability if you don't use it for God's glory. That's the
lesson of the rich young ruler.
Two, blessing is not health, wealth and prosperity. Now those things can be a byproduct of God's
blessing, but we devalue the blessing of God when we think of it in material terms. It's not an
exotic vacation with hashtag blessed beneath the picture. It is not a hashtag blessed bumper
sticker on an expensive car. The blessing of God is things you can't put a price tag on. It's joy
unspeakable. It's peace that passes understanding. It's knowing that your past mistakes do not
define you because your sin is forgiven and forgotten. It's not knowing what the future holds. It's
knowing who holds the future and the fact that he is preparing good works in advance for us. So
let me jump the gun and tell you what the blessing is. The blessing is right relationship with the
One in whose image we are created. It is God with us. It is God for us. It is God in us.
I'll add one more to the mix. Number three, blessing is not zero gravity. In other words, blessing
is not no problems, that's impossible. Jesus said in this world, you will have trouble. Now
gratefully it doesn't end there, right? Take heart, I have overcome the world. But everyone walks
through the valley of the shadow of death. You will grieve. You will get hurt. In fact, the more
you love, the more it hurts. Life is not fair, but God is good and his grace is sufficient.
Carl Young made a striking observation about how people are and are not healed. I want you to
dial in right here. He said, all the greatest and most important problems of life are fundamentally
insoluble. Well, that's depressing, but he doesn't stop there. Carl Young says this about our
problems. He says they can never be solved, they can only be outgrown. That is so true and it's
so hard and so true. The circumstances, you want God to change maybe the very circumstances
that God is using to change you. And what you perceived to be a curse, I don't think we know
enough to make that evaluation up front ‘cause sometimes it's a blessing in disguise. Sometimes
it's the catalyst for spiritual and emotional and relational growth. I mean what makes us think
that we can become like Jesus without being betrayed by Judas or denied by Peter or tempted by
the enemy himself. This is not an immunity card. Sometimes you have to hit bottom in order to
bounce.
I'll make one last observation. The blessings of God will complicate your life. Now listen, sin
will complicate your life in a way that it should not be complicated, but the blessings of God it
will complicate your life in a way that it should be complicated. The reward in the parable of the
talents is not an early retirement or extra vacation time. The reward for good work is mo' work,
right? Let me complicate. Well done, good and faithful servant, let me complicate your life.
When Lora and I got married, it complicated her life. Listen, praise God for 27 years of
complications. We have three complications, we named them Parker, Summer and Josiah, I can't
imagine my life without those complications. When we made the decision to go multisite as a
church, it complicated our org chart. When I started writing books, it complicated my calendar.
But I dare say that those complications have been the catalyst for growth in my life. You know
why? You need to build relationship with someone who is not like you because it will complicate
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your life and that's how you grow. You know why you need to go on a mission trip? Because it
will complicate your calendar, it will complicate your budget, but that's how we grow. Why do
you need to plug into a small group or plug in it will complicate your Sunday morning and your
Wednesday night? Why do we need to do this? Because these things are the catalyst for growth
and the byproduct of God's blessing.
Let me close with this. At the end of his earthly life, Jesus celebrated the Passover with his
disciples. It was a celebration of course, of Israel's exodus out of Egypt. It was a sacred
celebration, but there is a plot twist in the Gospels. Jesus redefines what it means. It says he took
the bread, gave thanks, broke it. Then he said something that made no sense until about 24 hours
later. He said, this is my body, and then after supper he took the cup and said, this cup is the new
covenant in my blood. That same night, Jesus was betrayed by one of his disciples for 30 pieces
of silver. Don't know this for sure, but probably sanctuary shekels because he was paid off by the
high priest. It's not an easy calculation, but in today's currency, the shekels would be worth about
72 cents apiece. Judas betrayed Jesus for a 20 spot.
Let me flip that ancient coin. Jesus might've been worth $21 and 60 cents to Judas. Judas was
worth the cross, the Christ. It's where self-worth comes from. It's where wholly confidence
comes from. It's about what Christ was willing to do so that we could experience his blessing.
This weekend we celebrate communion at all of our campuses. In fact, we will every week
during this series, and I'm going to tell you why. I think communion is a pilgrimage back to the
foot of the cross. Now maybe you're dealing with the curse of criticism or the curse of mistakes
you've made or maybe the curse of trauma inflicted on your life. Listen, the cross is the place
where the curse is broken. The cross is the place where sin is forgiven. The cross is the place
where chains are broken, where the blessing is bestow.
Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians called the communion cup, are you ready for this, the cup of
blessing. If one end of Ariadne's thread is tied to original blessing, I think the other end is tied to
the communion table; it is tied to the cup of blessing. So I want to invite our ushers to comment
all of our campuses. We're going to distribute the bread and the cup in just a minute, but I want
to do two things. First, maybe you're here this weekend and you have never celebrated
communion before. This is an open invitation. Now, I think it's important to understand what the
bread and the cup represent, but I can't think of a better way to take the first step or next step in
your personal journey than to celebrate communion. You might even want to keep that little cup
as a little memento of a pretty big step.
Now the second thing I want to encourage us to do is to examine ourselves. The apostle Paul,
First Corinthians 12:28 says, "everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat the bread
and drink the cup". Now, the amplified version says thoroughly examine. A couple of weeks
ago, our team took our planning retreat, annual planning retreat, and we did some SWAT
analysis. Now if you're in business, very familiar with this, right? In fact, I'm going to put it up
on the screen and this is identifying internal strengths and weaknesses and then external
opportunities and threats.
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I think this might be a helpful way for us to approach communion this weekend. What if we did a
little SWAT analysis of ourselves? I'm less concerned about some of those external things. Well,
what have we made sure that in those first couple of quadrants that we're doing a little bit of self
examination? We tend to think of confession in negative terms and I get that. Certainly need to
confess what's wrong. First, John 1:8 & 9, "if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to
forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness". So confession is the way that we
reset spiritually, but it's not just resetting what's wrong, I think it's celebrating what's right.
Romans 10:9 & 10, "if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that
God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved". That is a confession of faith. I want us to do
both of those things as we prepare to celebrate communion.
Not long ago, our worship team wrote a song titled 'Confession'. It'll be on the album that we
record next year. I love this song, I can't stop listening to it, and so our teams are going to come
and lead us in that song. After we do a little bit of examination, a little bit of confession, you can
hang on to the bread and the cup our campus pastors are to come at all of our campuses and they
will lead us in communion. But I want us to prepare our hearts to drink the cup of blessing.
Lord, right now, would you meet us right here, right now and God, would you speak to each one
of us? Lord, thank you that your blessings are as unique as our fingerprint and so is your mercy
and so is your grace. God, I pray that you would reveal your heart towards us in these moments
just like you did on the cross so long ago. And so right now we make a beeline to the cross. We
kneel at the foot of that cross and we drink the cup of blessing because of what you accomplish
for us. In Jesus name. Amen.
God wants to bless you beyond your ability to ask or imagine! The very first thing God does, after creating us in His image, is to bless us. Blessing is God’s most ancient instinct. Of course, God doesn’t bless us to raise our standard of living. God blesses us to raise our standard of giving. Simply put, we are blessed to bless! In fact, the way we get the blessing is by giving it away. That’s what Double Blessing is all about, and it’s the heartbeat of this church.