A FATHER'S BLESSING
OPEN HEAVENS FOR TEENS
DATE: SUNDAY 16TH OF JUNE, 2024
THEME: A FATHER'S BLESSING
MEMORISE: Honour thy father and mother: (which is the first commandment with promise:) Ephesians 6:2
READ: Genesis 27:27-40
[27]And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed:
[28]Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine:
[29]Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.
[30]And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.
[31]And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me.
[32]And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau.
[33]And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed.
[34]And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father.
[35]And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing.
[36]And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?
[37]And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son?
[38]And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept.
[39]And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above;
[40]And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.
MESSAGE
A wise child will always seek ways to get the blessings of his biological or spiritual father because a father has tremendous power over the lives and destinies of his child. One beautiful thing about a father's blessing is that it is irreversible, as seen in today's Bible reading. When Isaac realised that he had mistakenly blessed Jacob instead of Esau, he could not reverse it. This means that once your father blesses you, you are blessed forever.
Another thing to note is that a child may not get his or her father's blessings easily; he or she might have to provoke it. For instance, Isaac told Esau to prepare him a meal so that he could bless him. My dear child, are you doing the things that would provoke your father to bless you? I charge you to provoke your father to bless you today from the depth of his heart. You can buy him a gift, wash his car, put a call through to him when he's at work, send him a beautiful text message, or run errands for him. These acts should not be done occasionally; they should be done often so that your blessings will be constant.
ACTION POINT
Do something unique for your dad today in celebration of Father's
QUIZ
Among the kings of Judah, whose reign was the longest?
HYMN 1 - LET US WITH A GLADSOME MIND
1 Let us, with a gladsome mind,
Praise the LORD, for He is kind:
For His mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure.
2 Let us sound His name abroad,
For of gods He is the God:
For His mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure.
3. He, with all commanding might,
Filled the new-made world with light:
For His mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure
4. All things living He doth feed;
His full hand supplies their need:
For His mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure
5. He His chosen race did bless
In the wasteful wilderness:
For His mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure.
6. He hath with a piteous eye
Looked upon our misery:
For His mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure
7. Let us, with a gladsome mind,
Praise the LORD, for He is kind:
For His mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Kings 15:25-17:24 Acts 10:24-48
AUTHORS: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE
PASTOR MRS FOLU ADEBOYE
