19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” John 20: 19-23

We must repent and do two things to receive God’s blessings. First, believe in His sovereignty. Believe He is the origin of everything happening in our lives. Success in this world depends on God’s blessings or curses. It does not depend on effort, luck, or being opportunistic. Our well-being lies solely in God’s hands, for He has sovereignty over all things. Without believing God is the sole arbiter of happiness and success in our lives, we can never receive His blessings.

Second, we must obey God, which comes in three stages. One,  follow the Ten Commandments. Two, follow the Word of the Bible. Finally, listen and obey the Holy Inspiration that guides us in our everyday lives. Listen to your conscience! There is always a voice guiding us in the right direction. Listen to it! In the beginning, start with the Ten Commandments and work your way up the ladder.

Once we implement these two things in our lives- believing in God and following His commands- we receive His blessings. We receive two kinds of blessings. Earthly blessings are good for this world. Heavenly blessings benefit this world and the after-life. When Peter throws his net into the water and catches fish, he receives an earthly blessing. When we do as God commands and see good results, it firms up our faith. We think, “If I do as God commands, things will work out.” It also lays the groundwork for us to receive heavenly blessings. It plants the seeds for heavenly blessings.

When God tells Peter to be a fisher of men, He urges Peter to receive heavenly blessings. When God blesses us in this world, mainly through material wealth, we must invest all our earthly blessings into receiving heavenly blessings. If we apply our earthly blessings to become fishers of men and for the work of the gospel, God continues to shower us with earthly blessings because He knows we will convert those blessings to heavenly work. Gaining material wealth may no longer be a goal in our lives, but God keeps giving it to us because He knows we will use that wealth for heavenly blessings. Use your material wealth and whatever you perceive to be God’s earthly blessings for the gospel!

When we try to live this way, believing in God and obeying His commands, we face three enemies who work tirelessly to distance us from earthly and heavenly blessings. We must destroy Evil Spirit, Evil Nature, and Evil Habits to receive God’s blessings. Rise above all the temptations to believe in God and do as He commands!

We starve for His blessings. But many of us focus on the earthly blessings. We want to be rich. We want material things. We want to use the church or God for our own prosperity. God blesses us if we believe He is the sole decision-maker and bestower of happiness and despair in this world. And we must follow His commands. If we do these things and God blesses us, we must become fishers of men. We must use what God gives us in this world for the next world.

Summary
1. Repent and do two things to receive His blessings: Believe in His sovereignty and obey His commands
2. Two kinds of blessings: earthly and heavenly
3. We receive earthly blessings to firm up our faith and invest this blessing for heavenly blessings.

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