The power of spoken blessing

Mathew 5 vs 43-44: “You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you…”

Mathew 5 vs 43-44: “You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you…”

We live in a fallen world. Transgenerational hate — filled verbal abuse has reached epidemic proportions. Jesus warned of this in Mathew 24 vs 10-12. “And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.

“Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.” Notice that love gone cold, hatred and betrayal are all rooted in an offense.You can allow the trap of offense and unforgiveness to destroy you, or you can choose to forgive and bless the very ones who have harmed you.The pathway to a life of blessings begins with forgiving your offenders and then blessing them.Yes, you have heard me right!

Blessing the very ones who have betrayed and cursed you.

Forgiveness is often times a matter of the heart, but blessing the one who initially brought the offense is the outward expression of a forgiving spirit. Verbally blessing your enemies opens the portal to victory over the curses spoken against you and breaks the chains to your past.

Six benefits of blessing those who have cursed you.:

Completeness

Blessing the one who has cursed you will make you a “complete” Christian. Listen to the words of Christ in the “Sermon on the Mount.”

Mathew 5 vs 34– 48: “But I say to you, do not swear at all: Neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne, nor by the earth, for it is His footstool, nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. “Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black.

“But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’, and your ‘No’, ‘No’. For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.

“If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.

“Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.

“But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.

“That you may be sons of your Father in heaven, for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

Dove

“For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?” “And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so?

“Therefore, you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

Jesus was not merely commanding us to bless the people we have personality conflicts with. He was talking about people who hate you, despise you and verbally curse and persecute you! He was talking about the person who willfully betrays you and uses you for his or her own ends. He was talking about the person who willfully deceives you and steals your goods. Jesus says that if we will verbally bless such a person, we will be “perfect.” The little word, (perfect), is the Greek word teleios, and it means the following:-

a) Whole b) Complete. c) Mature

Verbally blessing an offender brings us into the blessing of wholeness and maturity! Remember the word of the Lord to Abraham: “In blessing I will bless you.” Jesus is not making a suggestion in (Matthew 5 vs 34 –38), but rather giving us a command — to bless those who curse us.

●Release

Blessing the one who has cursed you releases you from many of life’s pressures. Let’s look again at Christ’s Sermon on the Mount.

Mathew 5 vs 38-41 “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

“But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But, whoever, slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.

“If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.”

Jesus commands us: “I tell you not to resist an evil person.” The word resist in this passage is the Greek word ‘anthistemi,’ and it means to oppose vigorously. It carries the connotation of standing one’s ground inaface — to face confrontation. (Ukuthonisisa amacala, amarogwe ushawuda).

Jesus says not to do this. Interestingly anthistemi is the Greek root word of our English antihistamine. Doctors tell us that we take antihistamines to fight symptoms of colds and allergic reactions.

Jesus is telling us not to react badly to criticism. As long as you are alive, people will criticise you for all sorts of things namely:-

(a) height (b) complexion (c) dress code (d) hair do (e) The way you talk (f) Profession (g) blessing or lack of them (h) looks Some critics are not worth your confrontation, just leave them alone and bless them. We live in a culture of contention that says: “Don’t yield to anyone! Fight for your rights! — Defend yourself at all costs!”

But along comes Jesus commanding us to get out of unnecessary fights . . . to bless the person who seeks to destroy you. How? By giving him or her our right and left cheeks, our tunics and our committed service. When we do this, there is an awesome release from life’s burdens and pressures.

●Changed hearts

Blessing your enemy will produce in them a spirit of repentance. Paul said in Romans 12 vs 17-21: “Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.

“Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Therefore, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

There are several interpretations of what Paul meant by “heap(ing) coals of fire” on an enemy’s head, but I suggest that the context is repentance.

When we bless an evil person with good, our righteous actions will ultimately usher in conviction and bring the person to repentance.

●Protection

Blessing your enemy preserves and protects your life. When we refuse to bless our enemies and curse them instead, we grieve the Holy Spirit and open ourselves up to God’s judgment.Notice the words in Paul’s letter to the Ephesian Christians.

Ephesians 4 vs 29-31 “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

“Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.”

It is clear from this and other passages of scripture that when we feel the need to defend ourselves with retaliatory words of cursing, we quench and grieve the Holy Spirit. Preserve your life through the peacefulness of your tongue.

Job said: Job 31 vs 29-30: “If I have (not) rejoiced at the destruction of him who hated me, Or lifted myself up when evil found him.” (Indeed I have not allowed my mouth to sin. By asking for a curse on his soul)…Job is saying here that cursing an enemy is a sin before God. We remove ourselves from God’s protective covering when we succumb to cursing an enemy.

●Bishop Colin Nyathi is a Senior Pastor and Founder of Harvest House International Churches