Blessing and Curses: Response to Gus

Posted on December 29, 2009
Filed Under Personal, The State, Worldview |

Gus wrote this:

I am troubled by the premise of your new show that in stories filled with pain and pathology—things just aren’t working very well—it is most likely because of defying God’s design and when things are going well it is most likely because of an alignment “with” God’s design. In my understanding this is not biblical at all. I only have to think of the Biblical account of Job whose life was filled with much pain and yet he did not defy God.? Am I missing something?

I really appreciate the comment and whenever someone says “that’s unbiblical” we need to take it seriously and examine what we’re doing.

So, let’s do that.

It is true that there are times when calamity strikes and it has nothing to do with sin or defying God. Gus rightly points to Job and the situation that he was in. He could have also pointed to the man born blind in John 9, where Jesus said that his blindness was not because of his sin or his parent’s sin, but so “that the works of God might be displayed in him.”

There is another interesting one in Luke 13 where Jesus clearly states that eighteen people, who lost their lives when a tower collapsed, didn’t die because they were greater sinners than anyone else. Jesus then makes the point that we are ALL sinners but not every disaster is the result of that sin.

These passages are ones that should prevent us from arrogantly declaring that a calamity like Katrina was a judgment of God because of Mardi Gras or earthquakes or fires in California are judgments upon Hollywood.

On the other hand, we should not let these passages overshadow the vast majority of the Scripture that tells us there are consequences for our actions. We see that from the very beginning with Adam and Eve. Abel’s blood cried up to God because of Cain’s evil act. God confused the language of the people at the Tower of Babel because of their sin. The Philistines in Ashdod and then Ekron were afflicted with tumors and death because they wrongly possessed the Ark of the Covenant.

And this was the whole point of the visual lesson that God played out for the children of Israel when He had them assemble before Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim after they entered the Promised Land. The priests then called out the blessings and curses that would come as the result of following God or denying Him.

The vast majority of the book of Proverbs is filled with this “blessings” and “curses” motif: the sluggard’s house is in disarray because of his laziness, however wealth comes to the diligent; when the righteous rule the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan; scorners set the city aflame, but wise men turn away anger; and on and on it goes.

This has nothing to do with salvation, which is not by works, but by the grace of God alone. It does, however, have everything to do with the stark reality that there are real consequences for defying and denying God and His Design. Are there consequences today because of a breakdown in the family? Yes! Are there consequences today because we have distorted God’s design for the State or the Church or in the business world? For sure!

Our purpose in this new show will be to look at the situations in life around us and ask these kinds of questions.

So, we will assume, for example, that the Scripture is right when it says in Ecclessiastes 8:11: “When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong.” And, therefore, if we look at our culture and find that the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong AND sentences for a crime are not quickly carried out, we are going to offer the distinct possibility that there may be a connection between the two. Or, if we find an amazing story of how a young man’s life has been turned around (a blessing) because of the personal involvement of a Christian family after years of institutional attempts failed, we will ask the question “why?”…and try to help people understand God’s design for caring for the needy versus man’s ideas.

So, thanks for the comment. I hope this helps clarify what we are going to try to do.

P.S. Someone wondered if the “Scars of Life” story were real. The answer is no. I originally wrote this over 20 years ago for Easter, but modified it last week to be a Christmas story. Thanks for plowing through it!

[Thanks, Rod, for the correction. The reference to Mark 13 should be Luke 13]

Comments

18 Responses to “Blessing and Curses: Response to Gus”

  1. Positioning on December 30th, 2009 8:08 am

    Hi, I don’t like commenting but I did find this helpful for newbies on this topic. TY

  2. Chris on December 30th, 2009 9:51 am

    Del,
    Thanks for the clarification. We are about to do a whirlwind study of Proverbs in our church and the whole point of that book seems to be summed up by the phrase, “you reap what you sow”. Of course this is not some impersonal law operating in the Universe, but the result of God’s providential government according to His own character. He is a righteous, just, holy God who rewards a man according to his works, while at the same time being a merciful and gracious God who works repentance in the hearts of men and forgives their sins which includes giving them a new heart for obedience that he will consequently reward. Wow that was a Paul sized sentence.

    I’m sure that you will provide more details about your show and I look forward to catching it when it airs. I wasn’t aware that you were no longer with Focus on the Family. Are you still involved with the TrueU project?

    Finally, we just finished our first run of The Truth Project and all I can say is what a blessing to share The Truth made accessible with my beloved brothers and sisters. Thank You and Thank God!!

  3. Michael on January 1st, 2010 7:23 am

    God is in control, i never concerned myself with statement until i finally understood that God works everything for his purpose AND he gets the glory in everything on this earth. Good or bad according to man’s very limited understanding. i take great comfort in knowing it is God’s plan, not mine.
    i am in the middle of the Truth Project & it is reaffirming what I believe in a bold way & i thank you for it!

  4. Rod on January 3rd, 2010 7:56 pm

    “There is another interesting one in Mark 13 where Jesus clearly states that eighteen people, who lost their lives when a tower collapsed …”

    In which version of the Bible is this story found. I checked the NIV and KJV, and didn’t find it in either of those, in Mark chapter 13. Can you give a specific scripture reference? Thanks!!

  5. Chris on January 4th, 2010 4:03 pm

    Luke 13:4

  6. Carol on January 4th, 2010 5:52 pm

    We are using Andy Stanley’s study entitled “Defining Moments” in our Sunday School class. Yesterday’s message was based on Mark 2 - the story of the paralyzed man brought to Jesus by four friends. It gave me much comfort. I am watching my only sister struggle with cancer which I do not believe she “deserves”, but which is simply the consequence of the sin and death that entered the world through Adam in the Genesis account. Her comfort is in a God who loves her, has forgiven her, and has a place prepared for her in His presence. She has done all that she can to stay alive, but in the end we all face death - the curse of mankind’s disobedience in the garden. God’s plan to restore our relationship with Him is the greatest gift we will ever receive.

  7. Greg on January 4th, 2010 6:04 pm

    Ok, so what am I missing?? Is it not the curses or appearances of curses in our lives that bring us closer to Christ and point others to Christ as well?? Did Paul not say that, and I paraphrase, that Christ’s work on the Cross is not complete until we endure suffering?? The work of salvation is complete that is not to be questioned. I think Dr. Tackett makes it very clear in Tour 10, that we cannot handle blessings very well. They quickly turn to pride and self-sufficiency. Remember from where you have fallen… Isn’t it more about our response to the blessing and the curse than it is about the blessing/curse? As long as we continue to respond in a way in which does not cause the world to ask “Why would you respond that way?” then I think we as Christians are very watered down today. I heard a question posed the other day. Two men were praying for a baby. God came to them and asked one of them a question that the answer would affect both men. “I have two babies for you to choose from. One baby is healthy, one is not healthy, which will you choose??” Wow!! Dr. Tackett laid the challenge down to us in his paryer at the end of tour 10. Until we begin to take on some things that appear to be curses, and take a stand for Truth, the world is never going to ask us what is different about us. Will the world beging to step up and take notice then? Blessings and Curses should not be the story line, our response to them should and how it points to Christ.

  8. Ed on January 5th, 2010 9:11 am

    Greg,

    What I get from Gus’s note is a desire to clarify that God doesn’t cause the suffering (not in most circumstances anyway) — the suffering is due to our fallenness. When our Father says don’t play in the street, and we do anyway and we’re injured, that suffering is our own doing, not our Father’s.

    To bring this together with Dr. Tackett’s response, I think he’s saying his show will focus on how God works through the suffering to “work everything for His purpose.” I don’t sense that he and Gus disagree, unless I’m missing something on one side or the other.

    We come closer to God because of suffering and need, but God does not cause grief and suffering to the innocent in order to bring us to Him. I believe that would be against the nature of God, and is perverse. There are times when God did bring suffering in order to bring justice, but our God is not capricious.

  9. Greg on January 5th, 2010 3:04 pm

    Ed, Thanks for your comment, but I have to say that I am not sure I agree, totally. Not at all attemtping to argue, only wanting to see if we have the right view of God. The bible is clear on chastening, as well as growing us into maturity and it seems that in 2010 we aren’t grown through prosperity, unfortunately! :) And I don’t think that any of us are “innocent.” Hence the need for Christs work on the cross. We have heard in our day that we all have a God shaped hole in our heart that needs to be healed. Again, not at all trying to argue, but it is fun to discuss.

  10. Scott on January 5th, 2010 8:13 pm

    This is an extremely important subject to a Christian and I wanted to comment too. As a believer of 25 years, it is still difficult for me to understand and accept that although as Christians we house God’s Spirit and have every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places(Eph 1:3), we nevertheless continue to experience an ongoing intense conflict within ourselves (called “war”, see Rom 7:23, Jam 4:1, 1 Pet 2:11) that will be manifested as sin of varying degrees. Curses were pronounced under the Old Covenant for sinning against any part of God’s Law. The New Covenant releases us from the Law’s curse (Gal 3:13), but it is clear from life that CONSEQUENCES remain for sin in our lives. If you don’t believe that, start compulsively lying to everyone and watch your troubles increase dramatically. God fixes our sin problem by forgiving it (there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus; Rom 8:1), but in my experience, he doesn’t remove the sinfulness of our Old Man. Paul said our “body is dead because of sin” (Rom 8:10). We will continue to struggle with sin, and likewise will continue to experience consequences from our sin. Even if we became perfect, the world’s sin would continue to affect us. There is no way to completely escape the affects of sin and the creation’s “slavery to corruption” (Rom 8:21). Practically speaking, we can reduce it, and in fact God commands us to engage in warfare with sin (Eph 6:12) and this only with God’s help, but we shouldn’t hold our breath waiting for “heaven on earth” as a result of following God’s Design. Temper your expectations…

  11. Robert C. on January 6th, 2010 6:16 am

    I have not been through the truth project yet, but I am looking forward to it. I have briefly looked through this article, and just want to say from my understanding of scripture is that God does not work through the church the same as he did for His people the Jews. Blessings/Curses were a physical result of obedience/disobedience. Today the church is commanded to glorify God in all we do. The result is to the “good” Romans 8:28 The “good” may mean suffering in jail, or beaten, or death. Yes it could mean material blessings, but God’s overall plan is for the church to grow, and that usually is through persecution. Well, just my thoughs anyway.

  12. John S. on January 6th, 2010 8:11 am

    Understanding God’s workings is not usually a simple thing. Hence seeming contradictory things keep popping up when we seek Truth. For the Bible believing Christian great care must be taken to study diligently the whole of Scripture and not proof text one idea against another.

    In this case understanding the subject of blessing and cursing is multifaceted.
    1. The entire creation groans under a cursed condition. Romans 8:22
    2. People do suffer injustice while others enjoy good while doing evil. 1 Peter 2:19; Jeremiah 12:1
    2. God never forgets to reward (bless) the least good we do in His name. Matthew 10:42; Mark 10:28-31
    3. God will ultimately exact payment for (curse) every wrong committed. Romans 12:19
    4. God is merciful and slow to anger leaving room for repentance. Nahum 1:3; 2 Peter 3:8-10
    5. Suffering can be because of wrongdoing on the part of an individual themselves or brought on them by the wrongdoing of others. 1 Peter 2:20
    6. God will sometimes act sooner and sometimes later. Joshua 23:16; Isaiah 48:9
    7. Sometimes God explains His actions, sometimes He does not. John 15:15; Matthew 24:36
    7. Blessing can be the general grace of God or God rewarding a good deed. Matthew 5:44, 45; James 1:25

    This is not exhaustive of what should be considered on the subject of blessing cursing suffering. A whole volume would need to be written.

  13. Johnna on January 14th, 2010 7:55 pm

    Del, what new show are you talking about?

  14. Delbert on January 18th, 2010 12:07 pm

    Recently I was looking for a book that I could use for a men’s bible study. I had read “Blessing or Curse, you can choose” by Derek Prince” a few years back and decided to use it for this study. In this book is the revelation of scripture pertaining to the curses that God is placing upon not only the individual but families, communities, and entire nations for not worshipping Him as the one true God. What is so revealing is the consequences of our sins that are expressed and weaved into the pattern of history. Cause and effect are revealed in Scripture as relating to, listening to God’s voice and obeying what is said[Blessing] and not listening to God’s voice and not obeying what is said[Curse]. Deut. 27 and 28 sets the stage for entering into the Promised Land. Today is no different, God still requires us to listen and obey so that we many enter into the Land of Promises. I have never heard a sermon on curses or their causes or effects. History is the outworking of them. I would recommend this book to all who would like spiritual clearity according to the sovereignness of God about Blessings and Curses. In Job 1:11 Satan says to God, stretch out Your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face.[remove the blessings] Interesting that even his wife encouraged him, but he did not curse God. Even the Jews wanted Jesus to be accused of God by choosing crucifixion as the way of death. So maybe Satan is still encouraging us to curse God today? Proverbs instructs us to be careful of the words we speak because words are the main vehicle to which we bless or curse. Bless or blessing occurs about 410 times and Curse about 230 times in the Bible which would indicate a major topic. However even footnotes do not explain how we are affected by the results of curses. This requires a systamatic study which Derek Prince has done. I believe that the Truth Project was a journey of exploring the consequeces for not listened and obeyed God’s voice. The good news is Jesus became a curse that we might receive the blessing, Gal.3:13-14
    I believe the new show will be a blessing of revelation to the truth of God. My prayers are with you. Satan won’t like it, too much exposure.

  15. Gail on February 6th, 2010 9:23 am

    I completed over 90 hrs at Be In Health Ga last July. I am a nurse since 1979 and have helped many people with natural remedies. Pastor Henry Wright has found a correlation between over 600 diseases and the spiritual roots behind them. Also the fact that these diseases and bondages can be generational. (Have you been to a Dr and they ask your family history?)

    The devil has kept us hindered because we have buried past hurts and allowed them to become part of our body (read Dr Caroline Leafs book on Who Switched my Brain)
    Just as Job feared and what he feared came upon him..we christians(this includes all of us) with buried garbage…unrepentance…unforgiveness(includes forgiveness of onesself)..have consequences for allowing the enemy to have a legal right because not every part of us is surrendered (dead wood)
    Be in Health has documented that 80% of disease is spiritually rooted this is backed up by medical documentation.
    The rebellion we see in some of our children and ourselves can have generational roots.

    Blessings and prosperity to you all brothers and sisters

  16. Stan on February 8th, 2010 6:17 pm

    A late response to Chris on 12/30/09 about a whirlwind tour of Job, PLEASE if at all possable take your time their is to much in the book of Job to whirlwind it:) if you know what I mean and if that is not possable at least go back later some time and do justice to it you will never be sorry, I have been blessed to have been through it a couple times and would do it again any time, but enjoy what ever time you do spend in it ok.

  17. Stan on February 8th, 2010 6:20 pm

    I goofed Chris sorry you are in Proverbs:( well enjoy that study sorry I did not read better, getting older and from the top of the page to bottom I had a memory lap.

  18. Michael on March 2nd, 2010 6:59 pm

    To Ed and Gus,

    Ed, you’re right, God does not “cause” suffering, but He does allow it to put us through His fire and to refine us so we, the Bride, will be acceptable to Jesus.

    Gus,

    THANK YOU FOR “TESTING EVERYTHING” It is so refreshing to see others who are “thinking” about what people are putting out there for us to absorb without determining (testing) whether it is the Truth.

    If you, or any of the readers/bloggers want to begin a TOTAL life in Jesus and He in you, if you want to begin living a crucified life, please read The Crucified Ones by Edward E. Newbold, Jr. It has changed my life and IS the life I have been searching for-for many years. Here is the link where Newbold GIVES his books away. It will answer a lot of questions you both seem to be asking.

    http://www.christineboudreau.ca/newbold/index.html

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