Cursed by God

Introduction

Scripture reading — Romans 5:18-20

Imagine that you were cursed by God

Greg’s story of the Yalunka

“Curse of Ham”

Misinterpretation — Genesis 9, Ham means “dark” ?, Canaan is cursed

Truth — Ham’s other sons aren’t cursed, Ham doesn’t mean “dark,” Ham isn’t cursed, Canaan’s punishment happens in the OT

If you can, though, imagine you were cursed by God

Even Job in all his misery was not cursed by God

It may make you uncomfortable, but God pronounces curses in the OT

Explanation

To be cursed by God results in destruction.

Gen. 3 — serpent/woman/man (painful labor)

Gen. 4 — Cain (wandering)

Deut. 28 — Israel (disease, famine, war, enslavement, ruined families)

Malachi 2 — reversal of blessings

How is this different than Job? Ultimately, it leads to destruction

Deut. 7 — totally destroy the Canaanites

Deut. 9 — b/c of wickedness of Canaan, not righteousness of Israel

Why were they cursed? They disobeyed God. And this is terrifying…

1 Cor. 6:9-10

To be born is to be put under the curse of sin.

Romans 5:12

ancestral sin — drug addicted baby

Galatians 3:10

The standard is perfection

Why does it matter that Jesus was crucified?

sweat blood, beaten, flogged, crown of thorns, beaten on the head, unable to carry cross, bones broken, nails through hands, either suffocate or push on hands

Cup of wrath > physical pain

Galatians 3:13

Crucifixion showed he was cursed by God

Jesus crushes the serpent’s head

To be born again is to be set free by Christ.

Galatians 3:14

Exhortation

1 Cor. 6:11

Where are you living like this is still you?

Comes between practical examples of leaving sin behind — lawsuit and prostitutes

It’s time to leave the sin behind

Where are you thinking this is still you?

It’s time to leave the shame behind

Are you still under the curse?

Apart from Jesus there is no life

This Resurrection Sunday, you could be buried and raised with Christ