Let us bless God

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation." 2 Corinthians 1: 3

Blessing God means praising God, celebrating what he is, giving thanks. God is worthy to be blessed, but how to address Him ?

In God, God calls himself "the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" (Exodus 3: 6, 15, 16). But Paul designates him as "the God and Father of our Lord Jesus". This is the full name of God in the N.T.

God is both the God of man Christ Jesus (seen in his humanity) and the Father of the eternal Son of God (seen in his divinity). This Son is "our Lord Jesus Christ," a title that describes His sovereignty over all things. His name of Jesus ("The Lord is Savior") recalls his redemptive work. And the name "Jesus" associated with "Christ" (the Anointed One, the Messiah announced by the OT) is "the only name (Jesus Christ) given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4: 12).

Paul, by virtue of the mercy and consolation of God of which he was himself the object, associates two characters of God already revealed in the TA. In the title he uses. He is "the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation" :

- "Who is a God like thee, forgiving iniquity and passing over the rest of his inheritance ? He will not keep his wrath in perpetuity, because he takes pleasure in kindness. He will have once more compassion on us, he will put our iniquities under his feet ; And thou shalt sow all their sins in the depths of the sea" (Mich. 7:18, 19).

- "Exult, heavens, and cheer up, earth! Mountains, burst into songs of triumph ! For the LORD will comfort his people, and will show mercy to his afflicted ones" (Isaiah 49:13).

The Apostle Paul knew the mercy and consolation of God, not only through the Scriptures, but also through his personal experience (1 Tim 1: 13, 2 Cor 7: 6).

Testing, like consolation, contributes to our spiritual good. With Paul, let us bless our God and our Father, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, inexhaustible source of mercy and consolation.

Source (To pleasing the Lord)