The Power to Bless [Part 3]

Pastor author and Bible teacher Alan writings what in the world. We have wound up with a pentad bold old people the world a bit doubtful because you get logo do you get a little girl who jumped out holdouts are terrible and all the while were declared in a mix water where boiling spinach were feeding the tadpole and an end of excited for you to be here this Pastor Alan's new book, the power to bless `just released yesterday and Pastor Alan is in the studio with his really unpacking the themes of this book and celebrating all that God is going to do through it and really at speaking a blessing over the book. I think to see with baitfish and faith eyes of what the Lord will do through this. A Pastor Alan that's good to be here with you again today.

The jump right into this this concept because this is a very common theme. Especially, I would say in America. Should we not in a sense, maybe withhold some blessing in order to spur those we love on to greatness and I understand this is probably some backwards thinking while I think that that is the mentality that probably most people have grown up with is almost like blessing was withheld dangled like a ^ that if you will run a little faster, jump little higher you'll finally get my blessing, and the sysops of the way God the because the God's blessing comes first in the beginning he blessed Adam and Eve and then he said, be fruitful and multiply, and what you see in the Scripture is blessing is this mystical release of grace that is empowering people to be who they are destined to be the blessing. Here's the way it happens. Blessing comes first, which instills both hope and identity. And if you want to understand how gospel transformation happens it happens through hope and identity. Once you have an I'd entity and you see you you are in Christ and you begin to live in accord with that so that's why so important we learn to bless and affirm who people really are in Christ. That's what's going to change our lives. There is a story in this book is the power to blessed by Pastor Alan Wright and by the way this release we could just released yesterday so you're here at a good time to get in and devour this in your gonna love it if for no other reason than for the tadpole story of the immortal tab click it. I love this story, you know, I think sometimes God just puts interesting things in my life so I'll have an illustration right yet all he did that was some of the Old Testament prophets they just make them go through something weird. So then they could teach and preach about it, but our daughter Abby when she is five. She came home from preschool with tadpole and as it was a learning exercise to bring it home and you watch it become a frog and you learn about how tadpoles become frogs to the process of metamorphosis and so she brought home course and when you you have the same for your kids and it's nice for a preschool teacher just send them home with you, but you're the one is there you have the D chlorinate the water and and then that turned out. Tadpoles are picky eaters the best food for them is to boil spinach, then freeze it and I put it little Ziploc bags and sprinkle small portions into the tadpole bowl each day so we began doing that. No worries on a matter a few weeks. Certainly the tadpoles going to become a frog and we were going to release the full-fledged frog into the wild.

So she put her tadpole up on on a shelf and the temple grew nicely. The next few days.

After two weeks the other preschoolers.

Tadpole said that I started sprouting legs and dropping the tales, but abbeys didn't her tadpole just kept swimming happily around the ball as a tadpole, some two months went by and we still had a temple and so and once she bumped into abbeys preschool teacher Ms. Nikki said Ms. Nikki. When the world's a tadpole intro to the frog and she said what you talking about an answer. We are temple when it was a no go frog. She said it, it can't still be of of tadpole in the got the better frog is a map and was in no we still have a tadpole and Daniel. The funny thing of the story is that another month went by another another another note, no lie about a year and 1/2 later we still had a tadpole world record is a world record. I think we set a world record.

We had an immortal tadpole like what in the world. We have wound up with a pet tadpole with all people the world up at tadpole because she can't logo do you get a little girl tadpole that's her tadpole and all the while were D chlorinate mix water where boiling spinach were feeding the tadpole and and and no fraud while one day she comes home from something else at church camp or something and now she's come home with an aquatic frog. So now we have an aquatic frog and a tadpole, and at first we thought will put them in the same bowl. I advised against it by this time the tadpole was so large I thought the little frog will be in danger of the of the of the sizable tadpole. So we put the little frog in a bowl next to the tadpole. This is what happened.

Verifiable my seven-year-old daughter. Call me at the office, daddy, daddy, daddy, you will believe it is and what she said. The tadpole grown legs said what what what you talking much time tell the truth. The temple is legs and so I stopped whatever I was doing.

I said I got to come home and see this. This is impossible after 18 months, you mean overnight is growing like I went back and sure enough that temple had begun grown legs. The tail was dropping and within a day or two, it became a full-fledged frog and we have just declared that it just needed to see what a frog look like. So we put a frog on display next to it. It said that's what I'm supposed to be and it became it and I think the lesson learned here is that human beings are the same way we just need to see who we are and who are made to be underachievers don't start excelling because someone just tells them to try harder. Depressed people get better because we tell him just to be happy no.

If you want you know quit being a tadpole gross legs. You need a new vision of your life, you need someone to tell you who you really are. In other words, it needs to be put into a display for you to see this is who you are and that's what happens when we bless. So it it puts a vision of who you can be and out of that identity. I believe we begin to change. While that story gets me every time, especially the fact that it wasn't even just a week, month or whatever. Later it happened almost instantaneously. That was of a is after 18 months to have tadpole started to frog it just couldn't happen by chance.

This is this crazy the power to bless is, by the way where that story will will be found in its full context and it's a book that is released now in where and release week here celebrating this accomplishment by Pastor Alan and something that you want to to get to not only receive a blessing in your own life, but then to be able to start to speak blessing for those around you that you love and were to be talking more about that as we go along here.

A key theme though from Scripture and by the way, you can get this book wherever books are sold. A good book stores online vendors as well.

Amazon, for instance, in a Pastor Alan.org will will connect you will get there but Ephraim and Manasseh. This is a key theme from Scripture, and for for Jewish households. This is not a is not a foreign concept. This is not a Ifor who know it yet very very key key names of Hebrew household so you and to bring us into why this is so quick.

Well this this this is the heart of the book really the crescendo of the book, so spoiler alert a little preview of where this all goes for 3700 years Daniel Jewish dads have been blessing their kids saying. May God make use Ephraim and Manasseh, well, the reason for that is Genesis chapter 48 in Genesis chapter 48 Joseph who learns that his father Jacob is nearing death rushes to his father's bedside and brings his his own two sons Joseph, sons Ephraim and Manasseh, and he wants his father to bless him fight that's what you see in the Scripture. It'll tell you how important blessing is when you see how much the Hebrew patriarchs, it was understood.

This is the most important thing that could happen is I want my children to be blessed and he wanted Joe to be blessed by their grandfather. So here's here's the scene he brings his two sons, the firstborn, the older is named Manasseh and the younger is named Ephraim and Hebrew Friday and he brings them knowing that, according to the customs of prima janitor and the culture of the time, the firstborn son will receive the stronger blessing was customary that the firstborn son would get a double portion, double portion of the inheritance customary that that firstborn would get us stronger. Blessing and so the right hand would be placed on the firstborn in the left hand. The weaker on the younger is what was done so the two boys and Jacob comes in me. Joseph comes into Jacob and he brings his boys to be blessed and the he puts the older Manasseh under Jacob's right hand is the older deserves the strong right hand blessing and he puts the younger Ephraim under the left and before he blesses them.

Jacob do something very odd. He crosses his arms and takes his right hand symbol of the strong favored blessing and puts it on Ephraim's head and he takes his left hand and puts all Manasseh said with his troubles. Joseph really thinks will my dad's gotten kind of old, kinda blind, and is not quite sure what is doing anymore. So very respectfully, Joseph takes Jacob's hand tries to move them where they should be. Says no daddy said to this. This is Manasseh, the firstborn, your right hand goes on his head and the left on any tries to reposition them, but the text says that Jacob crosses arms again and said no my son is that I know what I'm doing and the Bible then says. Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh, and thus you shall put my name on the people of Israel, saying that God make you as Ephraim and Manasseh Allen right will have more teaching moment from today's important series its launch week the power to bless is Pastor Alan writes his latest book and releasing this you can get it wherever you find great books old, including Amazon.com, will connect you Pastor Alan.who are not only will you be blessed by reading the build with sink, but you'll also learn step-by-step how to be a blessing to others by importing the lives of those around about to bless releasing this week Allen right these teaching now continues here once again is Allen right so interesting is it for 3700 years, every Sabbath, Jewish dads down there boys.

May God make you beat like you from the Manasseh, and nobody seems to know why I studied a lot of red lots of rabbinical teaching about this and the prevailing thought amongst their ancient rabbis in the modern times was that these boys Ifor Manasseh might be a little different than other siblings and that they there's no evidence that they had sibling rivalry like Cemex but all the other characters in the Bible. Well, it's a nice thing if your kids get along with each other but I think that there be something more important than that. If this is the blessing God wants put on every single child will why not if you don't take some money out save. May God make you to be like Elijah and Elisha, or may God make you like Moses and Joshua or David and Solomon but Ephraim and Manasseh. These obscure boys with our know anything about them. We don't know much of their story, they never really do much in the Bible. Why, if women Manasseh, I don't think it makes sense until you see it through the gospel of the New Testament says of the old that it's full of shadows pointing to the new and this is the story of the gospel. There was a father.

He is the creator of the heavens and the earth, and he had a firstborn Jesus is called the firstborn of all creation. Jesus came to this earth, and he lived a sinless life he lived a perfect life he lived a life that well he deserve nothing less and nothing other than just the right hand of blessing from his father strong right hand the perfect blessing the strong double portion blessing that the blessing that says you are my firstborn you are under my favor and Jesus went to the cross and there is Jesus hung and cried out. Ellie Ellie Lammas, Connie, my God, my God, why you forsaken me. He was experiencing. The Bible says curse on our behalf because whoever hangs on the tree is cursed. And so in a very real sense. What I saw is it is as though God in the heavens crossed his hands. He took that right hand of blessing that should've been reserved only for the firstborn for Jesus and instead he crossed his hands and extended it to the second, more to the undeserving. To me to you to everyone listening who whoever would receive the good news of the gospel except the saving news of Christ, you become the one that gets the right hand blessing you become the one that gets a share of the blessing that should've been reserved only for Christ. This is why Paul is able to say were blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ and that we are co-heirs with Christ. It means and this is mindbending to me, Daniel, but it means that we have received the blessing that only Jesus should have received because God in the heavens crossed his arms, and I believe that that's why God for 3700 years is had Jewish dad saying. May God make you as Ephraim and Manasseh, because he say, may you be a child of the gospel. May you be like what is pictured here, the recipient of the crossed arms of God, the great exchange where he who knew no sin became our sin and we who were so full of sin became the righteousness of Jesus. May God make you as if from a Manasseh is to say, may you live all your days under the unmerited favor of God. That is the depths of what it means to be blessed you'll find this in the power to bless a book that just released this week.

In fact were celebrating that release right now with Pastor Alan in the studio and you can get your hands on this book at wherever fine books are sold in stores online. Even through your e-reader right now the power to blessed by Pastor Alan Wright and that would encourage you just had to pick that up to start reading it. Let let bless your life and then that outpouring into others around you and if you would be so kind, leave an honest review what you've read the book and that's certainly a big help in this as well. Best, Allen therefore essentials to the blessing that you've seen as we talk about Ephraim and Manasseh here talk about these yeah so why Ephraim and Manasseh, and as I've shared the pinnacle of that is these crossed arms, but I think there's something else that's there. And interestingly, Daniel. The first thing that happened was that when Joseph brought these boys before Jacob, to bless them.

Jacob adopted the said there be mine just like Reuben and Simeon and when he did that he effectively made them heirs of the promise land and I think when you bless people what you're doing essentially is you are saying like someone who's adopted I want you to be secure. Insecurity is a form of anxiety, and it causes us to not only have worry but it leads us into all manner of error in our lives.

But when we really secure when we are really strapped into God's love and we know it we know it will never leave us. And we know that someone is for us that change is so much I'm the first thing that happens therefore when you blessing someone's life is that your help and instill in them a sense of security. So that's the first essential but I think there's something in these names also in the name Manasseh firstborn son. His name means forgotten all my troubles because Joseph was in a land of trouble. He had been abused in his life hated in his life. He had been thrown up yet sold into slavery falsely accused. Put into a prison and then he's promoted in Egypt is second in command of all of Egypt and he has a son who is this beautiful boy and he's aware of the providence and the grace of God, and he named him Manasseh because he said God's may me to forget all my troubles that's a beautiful thing about Joseph anything is a beautiful thing about blessing is that what blessing does is instead of like curse.

It says look you made so many mistakes you're doomed blessing says is the opposite. So we got all things possible and so were helping people let go of the baggage of the past. In a sense the blessing of today can be so strong that the troubles of yesterday are eclipsed and I think it's one thing we want to do it would be like Manasseh, so he adopted them, making them secure like Manasseh means forgotten all my troubles in the name Ephraim F. Frain. It means twice fruitful. His second born son.

He said twice fruitful one part of it I think was, you know, this is the second son is that were fruitful again.

I think there's more men there and I think it is that God wants our lives to be fruitful. This is different than just blind ambition and are versions of success the world gives us this is all about abiding in Christ and he produces by the spirit fruit in your life, and unashamedly the Bible speaks of our allies being fruitful and Jesus said no. I want you to bear much fruit, abide a manual bear much fruit, so when we bless people we are blessing the fruitfulness of their lives.

And as we explained in those crossed arms.

The favor of God is on display. So I think that's the essence of it and that's what the blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh is all about you are learning from Ephraim and Manasseh, how blessing in general works. It instill security.

Those people move on from the past into a bright future. It promotes and empowers their fruitfulness and it is to speak the favor. The unmerited grace of God over their lives. And when that happens, were changed as the heart of the message of the power to blessed since a new book by Pastor Alan actually just releasing yesterday and you can get this book right now. It's available everywhere in stores online through your e-reader and is certainly Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Those type places have it and you go to Pastor Alan.org to learn more about the author and learn more about the various resources that we have a but also will connect your write up to Amazon through that website, Pastor Alan.org and Pastor Alan again so excited about this week it's been a long time coming.

I know specially for you this, but he blessed your life out working towards this moment and that were just anticipating some really encouraging stories of change lives that will come from.

I want to say to our listeners who been with us today.

You are no capital God's destined you to be a frog if you missed the earlier part of our program that will make sense to you but this is to say that sometimes you need someone to speak over you and identity of who you really are and you be surprised how much you can grow from there. And Daniel, as always, I just want to say you know where sharing our excitement about this book, but our excitement is unto the glory of God is its it's his message is not mine.

It's is his word not mine is his is his beautiful plan for the world, not mine. We just are exposing what the Scripture has always shown us and put in it. Hopefully into away the Mesa six accessible to everyday readers.

Anyone can learn how to bless others. Anyone can move from a line and unblessed unless that's what it's all about the power blessing this launch week the power to bless is Pastor Alan writes his latest book and releasing this you can get it wherever you find great books old, including Amazon.com, will connect you Pastor Alan.who are not only will you be blessed by reading the build with sink, but you'll also learn step-by-step how to be a blessing to others by importing the lives of those around about to blessed releasing this week Allen right that surrounds women talking about the power to bless you actually have a parting blessed in this book cannot encourage you to impart a blessing on everyone right now if you will.

It is Daniel my heart in the book, not just to teach about blessing but to release blessing.

Think about time you read the book you will go.

I have had an impartation. That's what I want and here's part of an extended blessing that are crafted at the end of the book, and love shared as we as we in our program today.

Beloved, you belong to God before God's voice thundered into the unformed cosmos, sending forth light in 186,000 mi./s before he created the canis majoris*large enough to house, seven quadrillion earths before set the earth on its elliptical course and started spinning.

God imagined you as I saw your unformed substance in your days were written in God's book, when as yet there was none of them according to Psalm 139 before the Lord formed you in the womb. He knew you.

Jeremiah 15. The pinnacle of God's creation is not seen in the expanse of the Grand Canyon or in the towering sequoias of the Redwood forest. You are the pinnacle of God's handiwork. His greatest masterpiece is not unveiled in the multihued sunset over a rolling ocean or in a radiant rainbow arced across freshly empty clouds you are God's masterpiece is a blessing for the day and our appreciation to you for your partnership.

When you go and purchase the power to bless and tell someone else about it as well and they got fuel your life the very power of the blessing of Ephraim's if you only caught part of today's teaching. Not only can you listen again online but also get a daily email devotional that matches today's teaching right to your email inbox free. Find out more about these and other resources@pastorallen.org that's pastoralan.org. Today's good news message is a listener supported production. Allen like ministries