SIN, CURSE & DEATH (Pt.2)
WHAT IS THE IMPLICATIONS OF THE CURSE TO A NEW TESTAMENT BELIEVER?
INTRODUCTION
"God said to man, "The earth will bring forth thirstles" Man replied, "I'll weed them out. I'll develop weed killers and make my garden a paradise"
God said to man, "You will work by the sweat of your brow". Man replied, I'll invent tools that will make my work easier: the plow, the hoe, the tiller and the John Deere tractor"
God said to woman, "You will have pain in childbirth". Man responded, "Yea, so be it, let her suffer so my quiver can be full. It is God's will. My work was made hard because of her".
God said to the woman, "Your desire will be for your husband and he will rule over you" Man responded, "Of course that's the way it should be. I am to be her master I was created first".
And woman bowed her head and said, "I am indeed under a curse"
~ Carmen J. Bryant~ [Poem]
The subject of the curse and deliverance thereof has dominated the Pentecostal, charismatic & Prophetic churches today.
Coupled with the urgent need to build new altars in order to escape the wrath of the generational curses by offering money as a seed or sacrifice.
It seems God is no longer interested in animal sacrifices, he is now responding to the dollar sign. At the core of these Strange doctrines is the ignorance of the work of Christ on Calvary.
In part two of the series on Sin, Curse & Death we focus on the events surrounding the fall of Man especially as it relates to God's pronouncements of curses.
"Like a flitting sparrow, like a flying swallow, a curse without a cause shall not alight" (Proverbs 26:2)
You cannot stop the bird from flying over your head. But you can stop it from building a nest and hatching eggs on your head. A curse without a cause will not stand.
Religion taught me to keep breaking generational curses.
The first 20 years of my christian walk I repented the sins of my ancestors (fore-fathers) & broke them generational curses, family altars that I know nothing about, until I found myself asking the question;
"Did the shed blood of Jesus Christ & consequently his death fail lamentably to deal with these generational curses?"
The light dawned, I was held captive by wrong teachings, and since I believed it, I gave it power to oppress me.
"It is finished" was Jesus' victory cry.
The power of sin, the guilty of sin & the consequences of sin that included curses has been broken, atoned for/ paid for in full.
CURSE AND COVERING (Genesis 3:7-24)
Definition; a curse is a solemn utterance intended to invoke a supernatural power to inflict harm or punishment.
"Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings"
Now this is the birthplace of human conscience.
Conscience is the seat of morality. Before Adam and Eve sinned they had no conscience. Before Genesis 3 Adam and Eve were in the state of innocence.
In other words innocence is ignorance of evil. Now that our eyes are open we ought to make sure we don't silence or numb our conscience.
When tempted to touch another man's wife, conscience tells you, "this is wrong, it is adultery a sin punishable by God please don't".
Conscience nags that criminal who is about to rob a bank saying, "please think before you go through with this. This is a crime that will land you in jail for a very long time please stop".
It is conscience that speaks to a servant of God who is tempted to peddle the gospel for profit saying, "don't make the gospel a merchandise. Believe God to supply your needs than using the weapon of manipulation which is a spiritual witchcraft"
Paul talking about religious people who will be seduced by doctrines of demons, these false teachers are; "speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron" (1 Timothy 4:2)
Nakedness speaks of shame, and shame comes as a result of sin.
Adam and Eve are caught pants down, ashamed & afraid their immediate response to sin is to conceal it with fig leaves.
"He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but he who confesses and renounces them shall find mercy" ( Proverbs 28: 13)
Isn't it shocking that the architects of breaking altars want you to confess the sins of your ancestors in order for the curse to be broken?
Instead of admitting that we have sinned and take responsibility for our own nakedness we want to cover ourselves with religious fig leaves.
Building altars, deliverance services, holy oils, anointed water, miracle bracelets, seed offerings, tithes etc without repentance from our own sins are nothing but religious fig leaves.
Adam and Eve didn't confess their sin but tried to conceal it with fig leaves. What sin are you covering with religious rituals?
Now of all the tress that were in the garden of Eden, only one tree is mentioned by name; fig tree.
In (Mark 11: 12-24) Jesus Christ cursed the fig tree. Just like the fig tree covering the sin of Adam, religion just conceals our sins.
The consequences of Genesis 3 sin were devastating for the first human family that had never experienced separation.
These are the consequences of the sin of Adam;
(a). Isolation from God.
"Then the LORD called to Adam and said to him, where are you?"
(b). Fear, shame, guilty, and abandonment becomes the immediate response of man to God.
"I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked"
(c). The consumate relationship between a man and woman is ruined.
"Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?"
(d). Affliction and suffering becomes part of human life.
Man is utterly lost in the garden. And it is God who initiates the search for the soul of man in the garden.
You are holding on to Prophetic lies, church attendance, good works, serving the man of God.
These are religious works of the flesh. Religion has never brought man in harmony with God. Take off your fig leaves and allow God's covering upon your life.
"And the man said, the woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree , and I ate"
Adam instead of confessing his sin, he simply blamed his wife, and had the audacity to blame God for giving him a woman.
GRACE AND JUSTICE
Grace doesn't nagate divine justice. In Genesis 3 we see cursing & covering.
It is this tension between mercy & judgement & the implication for the New testament believer.
This beautiful creature that God created in His own image has disobeyed the commandments and the God of justice must judge him accordingly.
To the serpent;
"You are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go. And you shall eat dust all the days of your life"
"And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between you and your seed and her seed. He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel"
For the first time we are introduced to spiritual warfare. From this moment in history there will be a long struggle between good & evil.
The seed of the woman will bruise the head of the serpent. And this is prophetic speaking about 'The' Seed of the woman who is Jesus Christ.
Notice how God doesn't call it the Seed of woman & man. Because the Seed of the woman who will launch a final onslaught on the devil and crush it's head is Jesus Christ.
And this Seed of the woman will be conceived by a virgin Mary.
To the woman;
"I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; and your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you"
God's judgement for a woman is increased pain in childhood & her desire for her husband who shall rule over her.
She will have conflict now in her relationship with her husband. He is no longer innocent. He is touched by sin & therefore likely to abuse his authority.
In a post Genesis 3 woman there is a tension;
i. Her longing for independence. She will desire her husband's position & authority.
This might explain why women are attracted to powerful men in politics, in business, sports & entertainment. They long for that power & authority.
ii. She will find herself desire her husband.
This is the constant tension in a woman. Rebellion against her husband on one hand, & desire for her husband on the other.
To the Man;
"Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. Both thorn and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you will return"
The idea of physical death is now introduced to mankind. Man's judgement is toiling for bread.
While woman makes her husband an idol to worship instead of God, man makes his work an idol to worship.
Mankind is covered by the skin of the animal, an idea of the lamb that was slain from the foundation of the world.
God covered them before expelling them out of the garden of Heaven.
REFLECTIONS
• A Christian cannot be under a curse because; "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us for it is written, cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree" (Galatians 3: 13).
I speak to you the redeemed child of God, no one can curse you because you are in Christ Jesus who broke the curse on the cross. All you children of the most High lift up your eyes, for that cross is become for us the final altar.
• You are not to be entangled with sins or curse in your blood life, for you are washed by the eternal blood of Jesus Christ.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things are new" (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Do not allow mortal man to hold your guilty on account of the sins of your fore-fathers. You are a new creation child God, Hallelujah!
UPS Coach Lawrence Musunte
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