WINNING THE BATTLE AGAINST FAMILY CURSES
Num 14:18 ‘The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generations.’
Iniquity- avon- Bent- turned toward a direction. A natural deviation from the right path. It has more to do with character of the action. When a sin is practiced for so long that it is in that person’s nature.
Not Clear the guilty- Is God saying that He will punish the children for the sins of the parent?
Ezek 18:20 The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father’s iniquity,
So, NO, God is not punishing the child. All people answer to God for their own sins, not someone else’s.
What does it mean??
* Iniquity is infectious. It can be a learned behavior. When children grow up in an environment of iniquity, they are “bent” in the direction of that sinful lifestyle. They are more likely to continue that lifestyle because they are taught to live this way.
* Children of divorced parents are more likely to get divorced.
* Smoking, alcoholism, drug abuse, sexual immorality, shacking up, unwed motherhood.....all these are more likely in children whose parents lived in those sinful behaviors!
Curse- to predispose someone to a failure of some kind.
So... Iniquity is a natural likelihood to a particular sinful behavior and a curse predisposes you to that iniquity.
Parents, do you want to curse your children? Then......
* Commit adultery, shack up- you increase the odds that your children will grow up to be sexually immoral just like you are.
* Stay drunk all weekend- your kids more likely to become alcoholics.
* Abuse drugs- your kids will be more likely to become dopeheads.
* No Fault Divorce- teach your kids to be quitters/covenant breakers
* Sin creates a stronghold in a family and generation suffer because of it. If you are suffering and want to break free, if you want your children to be free of it, then you must win this battle over sin.
HOW TO WIN THE BATTLE AGAINST FAMILY CURSES!
A. RECOGNIZE THE CURSE.
1. Realize there is a Problem.
Mt 9:12 Jesus said "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick.”
* When my Dad was about 50, he was knocked off a ladder by a falling pipe at work and was injured. That fall saved his life. His BP was found to be 210/140. His heart was a ticking time bomb. He had never went to the doctor because he didn’t know he had a problem. HBP is called the silent killer.... you don’t know you have it.
It is hard to fix a problem that you don’t realize you have. BUT:
* Many people live in denial.... I don’t have a problem!
* Many people play the blame game... It’s not my fault!
2. Realize the Battle is Spiritual.
Eph 6:12 our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
* Curses manifest in the physical realm, but their source is from the spiritual realm. If you are going to break free, you must not only address the physical problems but also the spiritual stronghold.
B. BREAK THE CURSE.
1. Full Surrender to Jesus Christ.
When an army is defeated, it must choose annihilation or surrender.
To surrender means you give yourself to another and submit yourself to His complete authority.
People have “salvation” all wrong today. They get the emphasis backwards. They think they are receiving Christ, but to be saved they must actually completely give themselves to Him!
Lk 9:23 “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.
The Way of Salvation has never been inviting Christ to join us, but for us to join Him in humility and submission to Christ as Lord.
But why must we surrender to Him?
1 Cor 6:19-20 do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20 For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.
We must surrender because we are His. We are bought with a price. His blood. His death. His sacrifice. If we are to come to Him at all, we can only come in total surrender of our self and our will to Him.
2. Repent of Sin/Iniquity.
Acts 3:19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that he will forgive your sins.
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
What does Repentance Involve?
(1) Agree with God in reference to our guilt.
(2) To express sorrow and regret over that sin.
(3) Commit to God to leave one’s life of sin behind and follow Christ.
(4) God’s response to our repentance is His forgiveness or our sins.
3. Fight the Battle with Spiritual Weapons.
* Helmet- you are a Spirit-filled born again believer in Jesus Christ!
* Breastplate- you are no longer a sinner, but a righteous child of God!
* Shield- You are trusting in the power of Christ, not your own power.
* Sword- study and apply God’s Word to your situation. When attacks or temptation come, do as Christ did and quote the Word of God.
* The Blood of Christ- (not listed as a weapon)... but there is Power in the Blood! You must plead the blood of Christ over yourself and the problems and temptations you face. Plead the blood over your family and your children that they might not suffer the same family curse.
* Pray boldly. Believe Completely!
4. Walk in Christ.
Col 2:6-7a 6 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your established in your faith
The key to staying free from these destructive sins is to walk in Christ. As you are rooted and built up in Him, your faith growing daily, walk in Him. Leaving your old life behind– the guilt, failure, shame, etc....
5. The Curse is lifted.
Ezek 33:14,16 14 But when I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ and he turns from his sin and practices justice and righteousness,..... 16 None of his sins that he has committed will be remembered against him. He has practiced justice and righteousness; he shall surely live.
This tells me that if you don’t like living in iniquity, if you are tired of living in guilt and shame....... you can quit.
You can leave it behind.
And, God says that when you repent, He will remove your sins from you and remember them no more.
The great inventor/developer, Thomas Edison, had built a huge set of laboratories in New Jersey with many inventors working for him. In 1914, a monstrous fire broke out and burned down all the labs in NJ. You’d think he would be distraught over all that was lost.
He walked thru the rubble the next morning and said “There is great value in disaster, for all our mistakes are now burnt up.”
* He knew he could start again.
Maybe your life seems like destruction right now. All your problems, mistakes, failures, guilt and shame– all of these are weighing heavy on you right now.
* You look at your past and see no hope for the future.
* God has a future for you far greater than you can imagine. Won’t you bring all your heartache to the altar and give them to Jesus today?
* Just like Edison, you can start again and leave the ugly past all behind and start your life fresh.
