In the Old Testament we see descriptions of the Promised Land that was prepared for God’s people. These were shadows of the Promised Land for us today and the provision that flows from heaven:
“So the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm, with great terror and with signs and wonders. He has brought us to this place and has given us this land, ‘a land flowing with milk and honey.’” (Deuteronomy 26:8-9)1
“…when the LORD your God brings you into the land of which He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give you large and beautiful cities which YOU DID NOT BUILD, houses full of all good things, which YOU DID NOT FILL, hewn-out wells which YOU DID NOT DIG, vineyards and olive trees which YOU DID NOT PLANT…” (Deuteronomy 6:10-11)
All of this means that they were walking right into a finished work!
Our promised land of rest is the place of God’s rest, seated in the heavenilies. God has flung open the gates to the land of rest and said to us, “Come on in! It’s a land flowing with milk and honey. There is endless supply of every provision!” Everything we will ever need has already been provided.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, WHO HAS BLESSED US with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ…” (Ephesians 1:3)
We often think of spiritual blessing as having nothing to do with physical blessing. We might think, “Well, it’s great that one day I’ll get to heaven and never have to worry about money or sickness or hardship or problems. But what good does that do me now?” What we aren’t understanding when we think like that is that everything in the natural came forth from the Spirit. God is a Spirit. A Spirit created this natural world. A Spirit created you and me. Everything we will ever need in this life was provided for us through Jesus and His finished work and is simply accessed by faith. It doesn’t mean we’ll never have a problem in this fallen world, but it does mean that God has already provided.
The Greek verb tense Paul used in the verse above when he said “who has blessed us” is the aorist tense. This means that the action has already taken place in the past. God has already blessed us, and these spiritual blessings are to be discovered and enjoyed right now. God’s provision is available to us now!
(from pages 338-339 of Unveiling Jesus)
Want more from Tricia Gunn? Check out excerpts from the Unveiling Jesus 20-part series!
Unveiling Jesus, by Tricia Gunn, is a verse by verse study of the pure gospel of grace. It’s an amazing journey of love, identity, and freedom in Christ.
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1All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New King James Version. Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
