Praise is most easily defined as that adoration, that joy,
we direct to God because of who He is. A blessing is something we look to the
Lord for that benefits us. Praise finds its end in God; blessings are for us. “Bless
you” (short for “May the Lord bless you”) is a concise, yet powerful, prayer.
In that little phrase, we are asking that the Lord would… what? What are we
actually asking for when we ask God to “bless” someone? Usually, what we mean
with the phrase is something like, “may something good happen to you,” and
that’s a good thing. But, for the Christian, the idea of “blessing” runs much
deeper.
To be blessed by the Lord is not simply to experience good
things, but to experience the greatest of things—God’s Presence. That is why so
many “blessings” in the Scripture are tied up, not only with what we receive
from the Lord, but with the Lord Himself. Most frequently, a blessing for us is
framed in the Scripture as a celebration of the Lord. Not only do we hear of
how we benefit, but we hear of God, and the good things that He is.
If you have been worshipping at Hebron for some time, you
will note that we end each and every worship service with a benediction. That
is not simply some ritual or action that we do “just because.” A benediction is
an important part of a worship service—it both ends the service on a “high
note” and it launches the worshipper into their week.
“Benediction” is Latin for “good word” or “good speaking.”
So, when the pastor speaks a benediction, he is blessing the congregation with
a final “good word”: a good word intended to wrap up all that has been
happening during the worship service, and a good word which should spur us on
to godliness, service, and adoration throughout the week. The benediction of a
Hebron worship service is sometimes a summary statement of the Scripture,
sometimes a charge and/or encouragement, sometimes a passage from the Bible.
The classic benediction in Scripture is in Numbers 6:22-27
where Moses is explicitly commanded by God to bless God’s people with words you
might be familiar with: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His
face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance
upon you and give you peace.” The essence of this benediction is the
announcement of God’s blessing, His grace and peace—all wrapped up with the
promise of His very Presence with His people.
Just as a benediction is to “end with a high note,” to wrap
up the worship experience with God’s Presence, and to send us into the world
with His blessings, so this week in worship we will give a “benediction” to
this past year and look forward to the one coming. For many of us, thinking of
the past year in terms of blessing will not be too easy—it certainly has been a
challenge! But, as we attend to the Word in Scripture, we will, I trust, hear
God’s blessings, and be able to carry them into the future.
Join us for worship this Sunday as we explore a marvelous
scriptural benediction, Revelation 1:5b-6.
