A Closer Walk
"How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, Who walks in His ways. When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, You will be happy and it will be well with you," Psalm 128:1-2 NASB. Our Lord instructs us that everyone who fears Him and who walks in His ways shall be blessed. Hallelujah! Notice there are no qualifications or credentials required. We don't have to be from any certain country or any certain place. We don't have to be any certain race or creed. We are not even required to wear any certain garment or style of dress. All that is required is to fear the Lord and walk in His ways.
And what happens if we do that? What happens if we fear the Lord and walk in His ways? Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord and walks in His ways. Blessed is everyone. Who fears the Lord. And walks in His ways. There is none left out; not even one. Every single person who does these two things, fears the Lord and walks in His ways, will be blessed. Everyone. Praise the Lord!
Further, when we eat of the fruit of our hands, we will be happy and it will be well with us. Even though the Lord promises blessing upon us and our lives and that is more than enough, our God adds this nugget. When we eat of the fruit of our hands we will be happy and it will be well with us. Our Heavenly Father will bless the work of our hands so that our work bears fruit and that fruit will feed us and our families. All the while we will enjoy happiness and it will be well with us. The Old Testament Book of Deuteronomy explains this well. “And the Lord will make you abound in prosperity, in the offspring of your body and in the offspring of your beast and in the produce of your ground, in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. The Lord will open for you His good storehouse, the heavens, to give rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hand... ,” Deuteronomy 28:11-12 NASB.
The Psalm 128 above goes on to explain: "Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine, within your house, Your children like olive plants Around your table. Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed Who fears the Lord," Psalm 128:3-4 NASB. Our blessing from the Lord will include family. And isn't family a wonderful blessing?
Then to emphasize the point we are told that Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord. Fearing the Lord brings blessing upon our lives. Walking in our Lord's ways brings blessing upon our lives. Who would not want that? Who would not want that?
“Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him , all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heavn'ly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!” Lyrics Thomas Ken 1637-1711, Bishop of Bath and Wells, Canterbury, England; Music from the Genevan Psalter 1551.