The opposite of divine blessing is judgment. People under judgment do not prosper because their choices are incompatible with God. Living outside of God’s blessing is manifested by both eternal and temporal poverty. Eternal poverty is the eternal existence in the lake of fire. Temporal poverty includes spiritual, emotional, mental, physical, and financial poverty. The manifestation of the various traits of temporal poverty is the purview of God.
Since the fall of man (Genesis 3), mankind has been in a state of rebellion against God. Therefore, the inability to live consistently obedient to God is innate in human nature. The gospel is the story of how God redeemed mankind from this fallen condition and empowers mankind, through the Holy Spirit, with the ability to progressively grow in the capacity to obey God. As redeemed mankind grows, the ability to live under the blessing of God grows.
The opposite is also true. Unredeemed mankind is, by nature, in a state of rebellion against God, which means that mankind lives in idolatry. Idolatry is the natural condition of any person who does not know Jesus and, therefore, has not been empowered with the Holy Spirit to live progressively in alignment with the will and ways of God. The mark of idolatry is temporal poverty in all its forms: spiritual, emotional, mental, physical, and financial. The full manifestation of this poverty in the life of a person may vary according to the forbearance of God. But one can be sure that eternal poverty and temporal poverty, in all its forms, will be the lot of unredeemed people.
Psalm 1 is a quintessential statement of this truth. A life well lived happens when mankind seeks alignment with God. This is the only way to the blessings of God. To live this way requires regeneration. The validation of regeneration is a progressive sanctification through the power of the Holy Spirit. Regenerated people will uniquely enjoy God’s blessings and unregenerated people will not.
Here is your business tip. Wise organization leaders and managers understand that alignment with the will and ways of God is the predicate for building excellent organizations. To build such organizations requires stakeholders who are individually seeking to obey God though the power of the Holy Spirit. Such people are blessed. Leaders and managers who commit to building organizations with blessed stakeholders will build organizations that are blessed and will then bless those they serve with excellent value propositions. To build with stakeholders who are not seeking alignment with God will not, in the end, be blessed. Enduring blessing is the by-product of obedience to the will and ways of God by every stakeholder. This is a high standard, but it is the correct standard.
