Lesson for September 27, 2026 — Our Spiritual Assets — Lesson 29

Divine Blessings

When a person trusts Jesus Christ as personal Savior, a potential is established for blessing from God. Salvation is based on the grace of God, apart from any human merit, as is the Christian Way of Life. (Titus 2:11-12) Therefore, the potential for blessing is based on the grace of God. A blessing is something beneficial given to believers by God.

Why does God bless believers? Since blessings were given to us in eternity past and based on the grace of God (Ephesians 1:3), it is impossible for us to earn or deserve these blessings of God. In other words, God does not bless you because of your works, even if they are legitimate divine production (i.e. witnessing, giving, praying, etc.). God blesses you on the basis of His righteousness resident in your soul. (Matthew 6:33, II Corinthians 5:21) This allows God to be just and in keeping with His grace policy (even if you are not living your spiritual life). You cannot coerce God into blessing you by what you do or do not do. However, it is your choice to access or appropriate these blessings. The way to access divine blessing is to increase your capacity to receive blessing by learning and applying Bible doctrine under the filling of God the Holy Spirit. And remember that the production of divine good is itself a divine blessing.

Increasing capacity in your life is a grace function. As you study and apply Bible doctrine, it produces spiritual growth and increases capacity. Remember that God is not going to give you more than you can handle. (I Corinthians 10:13) Therefore, divine blessing comes as a result of compliance with God’s system of blessing. Is your volition involved? Absolutely! You are the one who must choose to trust Jesus Christ as your Savior, you must choose to study and apply the accurate teaching of God’s Word, and you must choose to allow God the Holy Spirit to guide your life. Accordingly, God is waiting to send blessings to each of us. (Isaiah 30:18)

In order to understand the concept of increased capacity, we need to briefly review the Royal Priesthood and the Royal Ambassadorship of Church Age believers. Remember our illustration? Your spiritual life is your relationship with God, as a Royal Priest. Your Christian life is your relationship with others, as a Royal Ambassador. Together we call this the Christian Way of Life.

As Royal Priests, we represent ourselves before God, which is always a private matter. When we commit sin, it removes us from fellowship with God. However, we are able to go directly to the throne of God in prayer and use the Rebound Technique of John 1:9, which restores fellowship. The more time we spend studying and applying accurate Bible teaching under the filling of the Holy Spirit, the faster our capacity will increase. This translates into spiritual advance and eventually leads to spiritual maturity (our goal as believers). The only way that we are going to increase our capacity to receive God’s blessings is to develop our relationship with God.

As Royal Ambassadors, we represent Jesus Christ to the world. (II Corinthians 5:20) This, of course, involves interaction with others. This representation is a spiritual service and does not contribute to your spiritual growth or your capacity for blessing as a believer. It is a result of your growth. It is a blessing in itself and a means for you to be a blessing to others.

Now, let’s review the grace provisions of God for Church Age believers:

1. Life support – God keeps us alive for a purpose after salvation. This purpose is to glorify Him as a witness for the “Supreme Court of Heaven” against Satan and fallen angels. By trusting Jesus Christ as Savior and fulfilling God’s plan for our lives, we demonstrate to Satan and his followers the fairness (justice) of God. (Psalm 68:19-20)
2. Temporal supply – God has promised every believer certain blessings, regardless of their spiritual health. Food, clothing, and shelter are a few blessings provided to all believers. (Matthew 6:25-34)
3. Security in two stages – God provides physical protection in the devil’s world by means of guardian angels and government entities, to name a couple. He also provides spiritual security by holding us “in the hollow of His hand” and by giving us the sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit. (Hebrews 1:14; John 10:28)
4. Spiritual provision – This involves the spiritual blessings of the 40 assets received at salvation and certain temporal blessings. It also involves blessing by association in the workplace, at school, at home, in an organization, and/or historical impact on a nation. Undeserved suffering is also a spiritual provision, though it may not seem so at first glance, but it is a means of growth and increased dependence upon God. And finally, dying grace is provided where God gives a maximum amount of His grace in a believer’s death, as a testimony to those they leave behind.

Eternal Rewards

Eternal rewards for believers are in many ways similar to the blessings of this life, but there are some differences. Eternal rewards are represented in the Bible by rulership over cities and crowns/wreaths:

Let’s take a look at each reward:

1. Rulership of cities – This reward is given to all believers who faithfully fulfill their spiritual lives before God. It is given to those who are advancing in their Christian lives and to those who are consistently learning God’s Word from accurately taught Bible doctrine and making correct application of it to their lives. (Luke 19:17; II Timothy 2:12; Revelation 5:10)
2. Crown of Righteousness – This reward is for all believers who attain spiritual maturity, thus fulfilling the potential established by the imputed righteousness of Christ, in their souls. In other words, they are making their experience align with their position in Christ. (II Timothy 4:7-8)
3. Crown of Life – This reward is reserved for all believers who pass the test of undeserved suffering or divine testing. This crown is attained by applying Bible doctrine to your experience, while in the midst of suffering. Remember that all suffering is not divine discipline. Some suffering is designed for our growth. (James 1:12; Revelation 2:10)
4. Crown of Joy – This is a reward reserved for all believers who consistently share the Gospel with others. (Philippians 4:1; I Thessalonians 2:19-20)
5. Crown of Glory – This reward is reserved for those with the gift of pastor-teacher. It is given for faithfully fulfilling the gift by using it to teach accurate Bible doctrine. The primary job of the pastor-teacher is to study and teach. (I Peter 5:4)
6. The Winner’s Crown – This reward is given to all believers who advance according to the rules. In other words, doing a right thing, in a right way. This reward is for those who exercise self-discipline, diligence, and persistence over a long period of time to learn a system of doctrinal truth and accurately apply it. (I Corinthians 9:25; II Timothy 2:5)

Eternal rewards are themselves blessings and they are based on the grace of God. God in His grace gives believers the tools they need to attain these rewards. However, these rewards are given as a result of compliance with the terms of an agreement between a believer and God.

The writers of Scripture were very familiar with the Roman system of rewards for both the military and athletic competition. These are primarily the illustrations used throughout the New Testament to represent our eternal rewards as believers. For example, crowns refer to wreaths given at the Olympic games, which came with immense honor and wealth. Some were made rulers over cities or estates, some received land, some received cash, but all were exempt from paying income taxes for life.