Blessings and Curses
See on YouTube
Blessings and Curses
Jeremiah 17:5-10
Psalm 1
1 Corinthians 15:12-20
Luke 6:17-26
This day is a hard day for me to preach. However, when God gives you a word to share then you have to share it. Life is full of blessings and curses. Some blessings feel like curses even though in reality these curses truly are blessings. There is a problem in our world though and even with many within the church who decide their faith based upon whether they feel blessings or curses within their lives. This is called circumstantial faith which really shouldn’t be called faith at all. The reality is that there are good times and bad times for everyone and blessings can be found in both.
Jeremiah 17:5-6 says, “Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord. That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.” Note that this doesn’t say that there won’t be prosperity but that those who turn away from the Lord based upon their circumstances will not be able to see the blessings and prosperity when it is right before their eyes because they are so focused upon their circumstances. They look to their own will power and because of that when the difficulties in life come, they remain in their difficulties and view their world as a never-ending wasteland or desert. I have had the privilege to go to Arizona many times and see the desert. From point of view all you see is sand, dryness, and emptiness all over. It looks like a dry wasteland. However, from another point of view there is raw beauty everywhere. One can look at the circumstance of the dry desert and see only negativity while others can look beyond their circumstances and see true beauty and life all around in the desert place.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 says, “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Note that Jeremiah does not describe a tree planted where there are no problems or no difficulties. There is still heat and there is still drought but the tree does not worry because it has sent its roots down deep so that it remains strong and still produces fruit whether there is good weather or bad. Those who dig deep into the word and dig deep into their relationship with the Lord, will remain strong when the bad weather and difficulties come. It is because their happiness is not found in just the good times. They find their happiness in the Lord. Therefore, they find blessings even within their curses.
The life of a Christian is not always going to rainbows and roses. In fact, the cost of following Jesus can often result in much physical suffering, abandonment, and ridicule from those who we wish to reach with the good news. However, Jesus tells us in Luke 6:20-23, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.” Jesus sure isn’t describing puppy dogs and rainbows here. There are some tough things for people to endure but Jesus calls those who do endure blessed. It is a blessing to suffer all of these things on the account of the Son of Man.
When it comes to the people who have it all easy, for those who have great wealth, who have an abundance of food, who have laughter in their lives and everyone speaks well of them, Jesus says nothing but woes to them. There is nothing wrong with them having all of these things. However, those who keep it all to themselves and do not give and help those who are less fortunate because they hoard it for themselves, these people have received their blessing and reward in advance. That is why Jesus says woe to them because this was how the false prophets were treated. They were given riches, wealth, and blessing for teaching and spreading a false message. This is true even today for some so-called evangelists and “servants of the Lord” who lead people astray with either a watered-down theology or with completely false theology that appeals the ears of the wicked. The blessings of such people will end in curses for they lead people to follow a circumstantial faith.
In the entire book of Job Satan is attempting to prove that Job’s faith is only circumstantial. Satan believes that if he loses everything then surely, he will blame God and turn away from him. However, Job proves to Satan, to his friends, and to his wife that his faith is not dependent upon his circumstances. In fact, he told his wife “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” This was after he lost everything and then including his health and not once did his circumstance keep him from his faith and trust in God. When Satan first took away his children and wealth, Job said “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” Not once did Job blame God for his curses for he understood that the Lord is sovereign and that the Lord is good. He understood that good and bad can happen to anyone and that neither one should affect the goodness of God for God is good all the time and all the time God is good.
My father finished his fight with cancer this past Friday evening. Not once through this process did, I hear my father blame God for his suffering and for this tumor that was eating away at his body and his strength. He spent his time trying to learn and understand what God’s plan and path would be for him in all of this. Of course, he said that all of this really sucked and it truly did. However, God was never the one to blame for any of this. He thanked my mother for taking care of him in this process and didn’t blame her or curse her. He certainly fought her a few times in the end because he was agitated and wanted his way and couldn’t communicate what that was. However, he was able to receive the blessing of leaving this world in peace despite the curse that was plaguing his body. He had the blessing of family caring for him. He had the blessing of friends and other loved ones praying for him, encouraging him, and hoping for him. Just because he was experiencing this difficulty it did not mean that he did not have blessings as well. He showed us all a faith that was not based upon his circumstances. Therefore, how dare I or anyone who watched him go through this ever say anything other than praise the Lord. For praise be to the Lord that he sent his son to take the place of our punishment for our sins so that my father after suffering in the last year of his life could enter into an eternity of life and joy in the kingdom of God. Praise be to God.