To bring evil or harm on, swear, swear at, blaspheme, words a person says when he asks God to curse someone or something.
This kind of cursing is applicable to man and his tongue
James 3:1-12 Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged by God with greater strictness. We all make many mistakes, but those who control their tongue can also control themselves in every other way. We can make a large horse turn around and go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth. And a tiny rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot wants it go, even though the winds are strong. So also, the tongue is a small thing, but what enormous damage it can do. A tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is full of wickedness that can ruin your whole life. It can turn the entire course of your life into a blazing flame of destruction, for it is set on fire by hell itself. People can tame all kinds of animals and birds and reptiles and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father and sometimes it breaks out into curses against those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing a cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right! Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? Can you pick olives from a fig tree or figs from a grapevine? No, and you can't draw fresh water from a salty pool.
Ephesians 4:29 Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.
Mark 7:10 For Moses gave you this law from God: 'Honor your father and mother,' and 'Anyone who speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death.'
Proverbs 20:20 If you curse your father or mother, the lamp of your life will be snuffed out.
From me:
(Ok, those are some scary verses considering we've all complained about our parents at one time or another. LOL) This is tough. I am not in a place where my tongue is tamed. But as I typed these verses out, I felt the Lord impressing on me that if the tongue can start a fire for evil, it can consequently, when under His control, start a fire for good. Instead of being full of deadly poison, let my speech be seasoned with salt, filled with encouragement. Instead of cursing, or criticizing those around me, lift them up in prayer and look for something good to say. Let God's goodness and mercy bubble out of my mouth instead of bitter water. Instead of looking to merely tame my tongue, I pray for the Lord to change it completely, use it for His glory.
This is especially hard when those who are in authority over you seem to do some many things that are harmful or corrupt. Yet the Lord tells me I am to respect them. And that means not speaking negatively over them or about them. Imagine taming this proclivity for ill speaking? James tells us then we can control anything in our lives!!
Oh Lord, get me there !!!
The next type of curse Mom pondered was the curse given by the Lord in the Garden of Eden. This is what she wrote:
God's curse - Temptation in the Garden of Eden caused man's fall and thus God said:
Genesis 3:1-19 The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” 2 “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. 3 “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’” 4 “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. 5 “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” 6 The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. 7 At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. 8 When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man[a] and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees. 9 Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” 10 He replied, “I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.” 11 “Who told you that you were naked?” the Lord God asked. “Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?” 12 The man replied, “It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it.” 13 Then the Lord God asked the woman, “What have you done?” “The serpent deceived me,” she replied. “That’s why I ate it.”
14 Then the Lord God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this, you are cursed
more than all animals, domestic and wild.
You will crawl on your belly,
groveling in the dust as long as you live.
15 And I will cause hostility between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring.
He will strike[b] your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
16 Then he said to the woman,
“I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy,
and in pain you will give birth.
And you will desire to control your husband,
but he will rule over you.[c]”
17 And to the man he said,
“Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree
whose fruit I commanded you not to eat,
the ground is cursed because of you.
All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it.
18 It will grow thorns and thistles for you,
though you will eat of its grains.
19 By the sweat of your brow
will you have food to eat
until you return to the ground
from which you were made.
For you were made from dust,
and to dust you will return.”
Footnote" coming under God's judgment. Conflict between Satan and God's people.
Consequently man's fundamental roll is laborer/provider (work) and work shall be with difficulties and futilities. This a a life long struggle and only ends (curse if lifted) when death occurs (physical death, not spiritual) or Jesus returns before we die.
From me: We struggle so much in this world. Day after day, working at jobs that we hate or just tolerate, looking to make ends meet, failing so often. Appliances break down, roofs leak, loved ones get sick, things drop and spill, we trip, stumble and fall...not to mention the extreme poverty some endure, persecution of our Christian family, and natural disasters. Yes it certainly is evident that this world is under a curse...and being Christians does not make us immune to any of it, in fact I think it makes us more of a target as the whole world is under the sway of the evil one and he "don't like us much." But as the saying goes, "I've read the end of the book and God wins!"
Revelation 22:3 No longer will anything be cursed. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and His servants will worship Him.
Revelation 21:4 He will remove all of their sorrows, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain, For the old world and its evils are gone forever.
My God visit today, a reminder on what comes out of my mouth. Watch what I am saying!!
Psalm 19:14 May the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing to You, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Lord, I submit my mouth to You today. Make my speech pleasing to You. Let it be a blessing to those around me and let it bless and not curse my fellow man. Help me to look to You for strength in living in this fallen world and keep my eyes focused on You and be filled with hope and joy for the future.
No comments:
Post a Comment