Jesus' Five Gifts

What gifts did Jesus promise to give us? Surprisingly enough, we don't find that many in the Bible. Sometimes spiritual blessings are said to come from the Father (such as the Holy Spirit), but as far as specific gifts from the hand of Christ, there are more or less five. These gifts tell us what is really important in life, and what we humans really need. 

photo credit: ben

1. Soul Rest

Matthew 11:28—His gift to us is rest. This means that we can sit down in the inside and stop striving! God isn't like a harsh boss who's impossible to please. We get so messed up in this life, looking for love and approval, striving to be worth something. This is what Jesus offers us! Lay down your yoke and pick up His. It is far lighter. 

2. Defense for the Truth

Luke 21:13-15—Jesus said that He would defend Himself to the world, that's not our deal. It is for us to bear witness to the truth, and then He will do the work of convincing others of it. We don't have to worry about bludgeoning others with the facts, arguing our point convincingly enough and coming up with the right proofs. Jesus has promised that he will take care of that.

3. One Commandment

John 13:34-35—The idea of "a new commandment" sounds like a burden, but it's actually a gift. Instead of the huge body of laws from the Old Testament, Jesus gave us one commandment: love one another. If we love then we have satisfied the Father's heart. How refreshing!

4. His Peace

John 14:27—Jesus was in a lot of troubling circumstances during His life on earth, but whether He was on trial, or in danger of stoning, or in a boat on a stormy sea, He never lost His peace. And He has given us that precious gift. We can choose to be Velcro or Teflon—troubles can stick to us or roll off. There is no circumstance in my life, no matter how traumatic, where I can't take this peace of Christ. 

5. Eternal Life

John 4:10-14, John 6:27, John 5:21—More than anything else, Jesus says that He will give us eternal life, that living water that becomes a well inside. This is a special new life that we can experience here and now, but the key is that this life knows no end. It is the only thing that makes this life on earth worth living.  


Remember: Gifts are useless unless we use them. Have you ever been given a gift card and forgotten to use it, or only used a little of it? As much as $41 billion in gift-cards has gone unused since 2005. That money was a gift, but didn't do the recipients any good. A gift isn't a gift unless it is received and utilized. We have to take advantage of Jesus' gifts.

5 Essential Reminders

One of the major ministries of the Spirit is to remind us of Jesus' teachings. Paul and the apostles spent most of their time reminding people of truths they already knew, and those things are of the Spirit because this is the Spirit's ministry.

Here are 5 reminders of vital truths that are all too easily forgotten.

Reminder3 by bibliojojo

1. Our salvation is based on Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. In 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 Paul is reminding people of the basics that they first believed and that they stand on. He's saying don't forget this--it is what saves you when all the other complex bits of theology mean nothing. Remember that Christ's life is a substantiated historical event. Don't forget that we are saved by Jesus and not our own works.
2. The Spirit that lives in me one of power, love, and a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:3-7 is a reminder that we may carry fear around, but we have a mighty Spirit inside of us. We aren't out there by ourselves, we have God's spirit in us. God doesn't take fears away, but He gives us a way to overcome them. We are either cowards or courageous heroes, and our faith must always be squeezed and pressured. If you know the skills and abilities and passions God has given you, don't give way to fear but go forth and conquer through the Spirit of God!
3. Remember where you came from. Take a look at Titus 3:1-11. This would make a great mission statement for individuals and entire churches. It is easy for us to judge others when they don't live up to this incredibly high standard, but don't forget how bad your life was before Jesus turned it upside down! If others are slandering and fighting against you, remember that there was a time when you used to live in sin also. Remember this, and it won't be hard to stop condemning others.
4. You can confirm your calling.  2 Peter 1:3-15 lets us know our marching orders in this world. It has been shown that we can physically change our brains when we do something over and over again, or hear something again and again. Peter wrote these things down, nothing we haven't heard before, but we need to hear it again.
5. Do the fist four. In Jude 1:3-7, Jude is reminding us that we can fall. How we start the race doesn't matter if we don't cross the finish line. This is a reminder that you can be gifted and experience great things, and still forsake faith. Sin crept into the angelic realm and angels chose it over glory, what makes us immune? The Israelites who saw all the plagues went to worship a golden calf. We can cross the line very easily, and we must look out.

Earning a Blessing: Give

If we want a blessed life, we must be givers.

We reap what we sow, so if we want good friends we have to be a good friend, if we want grace we must give grace.

open hand, blue wall (day 90) by Jenny Spadafora

Matthew 5:38-42—The principle here is that no matter what, we must give, and give back not what the other person deserves, but what we would want.

Earning a Blessing: Stewardship

If you want to live a blessed life, you must practice good stewardship. What exactly is stewardship? Luke 12:35-40 is a picture—we are to be ready and alert servants. Good stewardship is faithful service to those over us and their expectations. We are responsible to Jesus in particular, but also to many other authority figures.


Let's get practical: what does good stewardship look like for us tomorrow? In our jobs it looks like pleasing our supervisors, knowing their expectations, and in general making them look good. Do we have a sense of immediacy? The good servant is waiting at the door, ready at any moment to open immediately for the master. We should be by the door, prepared to serve those over us. This isn't just for employees; an entrepreneur listens to his customers and gives them what they need, and he will be blessed for it.

Earning a Blessing: Judge Not

Grace is free, but blessing is earned.


We've already looked at one principle, that you must master your anger to be blessed. Let us look at another.

Luke 6:37-38 paints a picture of uncontainable blessing. But this blessing is given only to those who do not judge or condemn and are liberal in forgiveness. Blessing will come back to us if we do not judge others.

Matthew 7:1-5 — The word for "judge" here means to "separate, distinguish, exclude, prefer, be selective, condemn." Don't play favorites or be prejudiced against people. We don't do well with judging. Imagine this: we all have a backpack, and our backpacks are made for bricks. Some bricks are necessary, but if we take up a revenge brick it is an unnecessary load. Judgment is a brick to weigh us down and does us no good, neither does it affect the person we are judging. When we separate people out it is like putting a heavy brick in our pack, and it hurts us. We can't be blessed by God when we are speaking judgment on ourselves. This is an eternal principle, sowing and reaping. We get blessing because we sow seeds. This is not money, but grace to others.

Earning a Blessing: Anger Management

Grace is free, but blessing is earned.

There are things we can do to increase our blessing that we overlook. Sometimes we sin or make mistakes, and God's grace sweeps under the rug; then there are also the sins that lead to death. However, there are things we have to do if we want blessing and favor. For example, we can't expect God to bless us if we don't bless others, or build us up if we tear others down. We can't expect blessing if we aren't grateful. We must press through and persevere if we want blessing.

Today we're going to look at something can block blessing in your life.

If we are going to be blessed we must be masters at anger management, what the Bible calls self-control. Anger leads into traps and snares, proves us as fools, and blocks blessing. Proverbs 15:18 — we want to be peacekeepers who calm strife. Proverbs 19:19 — carrying anger on our sleeves will bring a penalty, not blessing.

The Kingdom of God: Beyond the Gospels

We don't hear too much about the Kingdom of God outside of the gospels, but those few times are weighty and meaningful.

• Acts 14:21-22, “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.” It's normal to have some tribulation, wrestle with demons, and fall flat on your face in the Christian walk. In fact, the disciples "strengthened the souls" of first century Christians by telling them that there would be trials! Jesus--the shining King of the universe with all power--was actually made perfect by the sufferings he endured (Hebrews 5:8-9). We are certainly no greater than our master. Let your faith be strengthened by your daily trials. Let even your failures and mistakes encourage you; that is the way we grow strong.
• Romans 14:16-18, "the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." Jesus did not usher in the Kingdom of God so that we would all eat right, dress right, and talk right. The design and purpose of us being snatched out of the world is to taste righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Our righteousness is secure in Christ, and we have the ability to live a good life through Him. We can also live peaceful lives; if we don't have peace, where are we? If you're not experiencing the joy of the Holy Spirit, then where are you living? If you're not being filled with righteousness, peace, and joy, then I suggest that you're not being filled with the Holy Spirit. We can have all of this, right here and now on earth; that's our inheritance. Luke 11:13 says, "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"
• 1 Corinthians 4:18-20, "the kingdom of God does not consist in words but in power." David wonders why he stands up and talks to us on Sunday. Too much of teaching is just teaching the mind. Teaching a mind is so hard, and often we forget even the most important things that we learn. The Kingdom of God is about power, not empty talk. Paul didn't talk to convince, but spoke with power that addressed the spirit, not the mind. We need to hear with the ears of the Spirit. Seek the power of God in your life, not just talk. Make this a regular part of your prayer life. 

How is your citizenship in the Kingdom of God impacting your week?