Are we free from the Old Testiment curses?

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Permalink Reply by Juline Bruck on October 3, 2010 at 9:21pm

Hey there Donna!

There is one curse that we are clearly still under. That is our bodies die.

Genesis 6: 3 " Then the Lord said, 'My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal; his days will be a hundred and twenty years."

I would also say that this one still is in force...

Genesis 3:17 "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life."

This one is interesting because so many of us are not farmers. Yet we must endure 'painful toil'.. some of us with our carpal tunnel or herniated disks or exposure to unhealthy materials. It's thousands of years later and with all of our cleverness, most of us sitll must suffer to produce an income. How many of us hate our jobs? If we put this one to a vote, I think most people would say that this curse endures.

Here is another one that I think more people (and governments should pay attention to):

Genesis 12: 3 "I will bless those who bless you and whoever curses you, I will curse; and all peoples of the earth will be blessed through you."

If you step on Israel, you touch the apple of His eye.. and will not survive the experience. THat's absolutely true and remains true to this day.

It's not a complete answer, but I think it's a good start.

Permalink Reply by Donna Wilcher on October 4, 2010 at 4:39pm

Juline,

I don't know about you, but I don't want to live 120 yrs. Because my body will deteriorate, go south, get damaged. I don't want to have to toil that long. This world is evil; everything cries out for Christs return, so from my standpoint having to live that long...THAT would be the curse...I think it's God's mercy that shows up when we DON'T live that long.

Yes! messin with Israel is like committing suicide! Just ask Hitler.

What do you think about the 3rd & 4th Generational curses refered to in Exodus 20:5-6 and Exodus 34:6-7. And the Deut 28:15-68 ones. Do you believe those curses still apply to Christians today?

Permalink Reply by Juline Bruck on October 4, 2010 at 10:39pm

About that Deut. 28 section-- I have every confidence that as it might relate to Christians, no. To people today who are disobedient? ... yes. There is an echo of Deut 28 in Isaiah 65 where it makes a sharp contrast between those who are blessed and those who are under wrath. Here is the core of it from verses 11-15:

"But as for you who forsake the LORD and forget my holy mountain, who spread a table for Fortune and fill bowls of mixed wine for Destiny,

12 I will destine you for the sword, and you will all bend down for the slaughter; for I called but you did not answer, I spoke but you did not listen. You did evil in my sight and chose what displeases me."

13 Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says:
"My servants will eat, but you will go hungry;
my servants will drink, but you will go thirsty;
my servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame.

14 My servants will sing out of the joy of their hearts,
but you will cry out from anguish of heart and wail in brokenness of spirit.

15 You will leave your name to my chosen ones as a curse;
the Sovereign LORD will put you to death,
but to his servants he will give another name.

C.S. Lewis mentioned this in Mere Christianity, "There is nothing indulgent about the Moral Law. It is as hard as nails...If God is like the Moral Law, then He is not soft."

In discussing the rich young ruler who goes away sadly after being enjoined to leave all of us possessions, one commentator said it thusly "The being saved with all that belongs thereto, is for men generally (rich and poor) possible only through the omnipotent grace of God. "

I liked what Jeremy said today in the Fresh Bread from the Bakery because it ties in well here. "The fall of man happen when Adam chose the gift (Eve) over the Gift Giver (God). We have to understand nothing and no one comes before God. Wife,kids,brothers & sisters,or friends all take a back seat to Him."

To sum up: the severity of the law and the level of expectation of its requirements is beyond the scope of humanity without the help of the Spirit. What I believe Jesus meant in his "i came not to abolish the law but to fulfill' was to complete all of its intricate precision and then duplicate that result in our lives. Paul said it as "But we have the mind of Christ".. and "if any man is in CHrist, he is a new creation..." We are now able to keep the law not out of dull repetition.. but living excitement as love animates our motives and fires our responses. THe process is imperfect until Jesus comes...but the down payment of the HOly Spirit is our guarantee that this perfecting work has begun and will be completed ... completely! You will be perfect. You will be able to keep the whole law of love in all of its parts... not becuase we spend a lot of focus and attention but because your substance will have been elevated to be like the angels.

The 3rd and 4th generations question, I will leave to another to answer. I simply don't know.