What does 'blessing' in this verse mean to you?

Amen. I really can say with you too brother Jeff that I had certain concepts and thoughts concerning this matter of " blessings"

It was always something outward and material. Of good health, good home and job. Good this or that, but not really anything that is spiritual.

To touch this I really want to share what one dear brother has unveiled concerning these three words in Eph 1:3

1. We see Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ

2. Blessed us

3. Spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ.

"This first " Blessed" concerning the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ means " well spoken of", that is, praise with adoration. In this section of Ephesians chapter 1, God in His Divine Trinity is well spoken of, praised with adoration. We see...

a.The Father in His selection and predestination for God's eternal purpose (vv. 3-6)

b. The Son in His redemption for the accomplishment of God's eternal purpose ( vv. 7-12)

c. And God the Spirit in His sealing and pledging for the application of God's accomplished purpose ( vv. 13-14)

Through ALL the virtues of God in His Divine Trinity, we, the once fallen sinners , become the church, the Body of Christ, the Fullness, the Expression of the One who fills all in all ( vs 23)

Secondly, we have been blessed. When God blesses us, He praises us, speaks well of us. Not only do we ' Speak well of" God but God also " speaks well of" us... Isn't that amazing who we have become in Christ? Hallelujah!! :)

Thirdly, these are spiritual blessings. All blessings with which God has blessed us, being spiritual, are related to the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit of God is not only the channel but also the reality of God's blessings. In this verse God the Father, God the Son and God the Spirit are all related to the blessings bestowed on us. God's blessing us is actually His dispensing Himself INTO us. Hallelujah!

These spiritual blessings are in the heavenlies in Christ. Heavenly here indicates not only the heavenly place, but also the heavenly nature, state, characteristic and atmosphere of the spiritual blessings with which God has blessed us.

These blessings are from the heavens, having a heavenly nature, heavenly state and heavenly characteristics and atmosphere. The believers in Christ are enjoying on earth, these heavenly blessings which are spiritual as well as heavenly.

They are different from the blessings with which God blessed Israel. Those blessings were physical and earthly.

The Blessings bestowed on us, Hallelujah, are OF God the Father, IN God the Son, THROUGH God the Spirit and IN the Heavenlies. These are the spiritual blessings bestowed by the Triune God on us, the believers in Christ.

Last, Christ is the virtue, the instrument, and the sphere in which God has blessed us. Outside of Christ, apart from Christ, God has nothing to do with us, but IN CHRIST, He has blessed us with every spirtual blessing in the heavenlies."

These words are taken from our dear brother Witness Lee from the recovery version bible.

Just in ending, when I first read " God and Father" of our Lord Jesus Christ, I was once again deeply touched with the account in John, when the Lord had resurrected and Mary was in the garden seeking Him out. He told her, " Go and tell My brothers I ascend to the Father, To My Father and YOUR Father, to My God and YOUR God"

Prior to this, the disciples were called" Friends".. but because of all that Christ has done, today we can call His Father and God, OUR Father and God. We today are the many sons who cry out ABBA FATHER in the spirit of sonship :)

What a blessing to us:)

Thank You Lord Jesus! Thank You Triune God!!

Love in Christ

sandy

What blessings are the saints of God foreordained to receive in this life? Paul here lists the following: 1. All spiritual blessings, which of necessity includes the companionship of the Holy Ghost and the gifts of the Spirit in this life, to say nothing of eternal life in the realms ahead; 2. The everlasting gospel; 3. Baptism; 4. Membership in the Church; 5. The gift of the Holy Ghost; 6. Redemption from the spiritual fall, including the remission of sins; and 7. Adoption into the family of God the Father, as sons of God and therefore as joint-heirs with Christ his natural Son

2-3. Two Gods, not one! Since true religion centers in a knowledge of the true God, Paul, wisely, begins each of his epistles by talking about the Father and the Son. Only when men know the true and living God, and Jesus Christ whom he hath sent, who also is God, can their worship lead them to eternal life. (John 17:3.)

3. All spiritual blessings] Everything which God, in his infinite wisdom and by his grace and goodness, has, through the gospel, showered upon the saints, and more particularly that blessing, eternal life, which shall be enjoyed in heavenly places.

3-4. Thus, the saints came into this world with the promise of eternal life, a promise given them in pre-existence, before the foundation of the world.

For the concept of being "blessed" to have validity, one must accept to antithesis of being "cursed." One has no validity without the other. So if one is "blessed" with good health, then another is "cursed" with bad health. If an athlete is "blessed" by being able to run fast, then the lame are "cursed" by being unable to walk. If one is "blessed" when an approaching storm passes over without causing injury, then the storms' victims must logically be considered as those "cursed."

Personally I believe that such magical thinking is not a functional alternative to thinking in terms of statistical probabilities.

because of what Christ has done for us, we have EVERY blessing that can come from God. An earthly blessing can be wonderful, but when we begin to realize that we can receive every blessing from God, that is truly amazing, and sometimes even hard to explain. we have a personal relationship with God, through His Son, and His Spirit dwells within us- and that would be the greatest blessing of all.

The cup of blessing was the name of the final blessing offered for the end of the common Jewish meal. It was this cup that Jesus blessed at the end of The Lords Supper. When He had supped , and He interpretated that as being THE NEW TESTAMENT IN MY BLOOD. The communion of the blood of Christ refers to the believer sharing in the salvation provided By Christ's death. The scriptures do not teach that the bread and the wine become Christ's blood and body. See many scriptures to understand this study. And, all of us us that are His, are of this one body, and we are to be a body of one as believers in unity. The more we read the scriptures and pray, the more we see about the incredible power of the Blood, His blood and what it means to all of us, that will truly seek HIm and belong to Him. Full GOspel SHirley

I was thinking today about all the truly lovely people I had met in my life, the beautiful things that I had seen, heard and felt, and all the wonderful ways in which God had been there every step of the way, sending beams of sunshine into dark situations and showing me that He was well and truly there however gloomy things seemd. "Behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face". It is wonderful to be able to cast all our care upon Him, for He cares for us.

Blessings could be anything; an improvement in financial status, a raise, a new job, a new child, etc.

Dictionary definition

blessing |ˈblesi ng |

noun [in sing. ]

God's favor and protection :

God's favor and protection is an incredible blessing because it brings the peace that passes all understanding.

Our Lord's Love for us, is His Blessing.

The Holy Spirit.

He is WITH us.. He WALKS with us and He LIVES in us...

If that isn't a blessing, not sure what is ;)