Christian Living

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Blessin’s & Cursin’s (Part 4 of 4)

“Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the LORD your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the LORD your God:
“Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country.
“Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks.
“Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.
“Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.
“The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.
“The LORD will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you.
“The LORD will establish you as a holy people to Himself, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways. Then all peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they shall be afraid of you. And the LORD will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the LORD swore to your fathers to give you. The LORD will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. So you shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right or the left, to go after other gods to serve them. Deuteronomy 28:1-14 NKJV

In Parts 1-3, we considered the difference between living by faith, as did Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and living under the Law, as did the Israelites, whom Moses delivered from Egyptian slavery through the resurrection of Jesus. Abraham lived by Faith in God and God's promises, and God did not hold Abraham's sins against him - Abraham's unwavering faith in God made him righteous and blameless in God's sight. (See Romans 4) The Israelites, however, saw great miracles in their deliverance from Egypt and in the wilderness, but they continually disbelieved God and His promises to lead them into The Promised Land; they were incorrigible complainers and unbelievers, and God pronounced the Law upon them to keep sin somewhat at bay until Jesus could come to defeat sin's power. When Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave, all sin from then until Jesus returns was forgiven, because Jesus became sin for us that we might be made righteous. (See 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 3:19-25)

What we so often fail to remember is that Jesus' work on the cross and His resurrection robbed sin of all of its power over us, and it restored our relationship with God to the status that Abraham enjoyed. Even better, Jesus' blood did more than simply cover our sins, it completely destroyed them. God overlooked Abraham's sins because Abraham was willing to follow God in order to obtain what God had promised him. (See Romans 4:20-22)

There is now no need for us to focus on our sins, because they have been obliterated by the blood of Jesus, and the only qualification for eligibility to receive all of God's blessings is your acceptance of all that Jesus did. That is not to say that we no longer sin, we do; nor is it to say that sin has no consequence, it does. No one is perfect but God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit - Christians are not perfect, but we are forgiven. Sin can negatively affect your life, your health, your career, your finances, and any other area of your life because it can open a door for Satan to plant thoughts of condemnation in your mind, and/or it can make you ill, and/or it can harm your reputation, etc., etc., but God has already judged your sins by the death of Jesus on the cross. (See Romans 8:1) God no longer curses you for your sins as he did under the Law. When a born-again believer sins, God sets things right through the believer's act of repentence, which simply means to acknowledge to God that you sinned, accept His forgiveness, do what He leads you to do to set things right with anyone affected by your sin, and move on. You are still eligible for all that God has for your life. (See 2 Corinthians 5:16-21)

You, as a born-again, forgiven believer are now free to enjoy the same promises that God gave to Abraham, not because you can perfectly keep a set of rules, but because your Faith is in the only One who could and did. Honor His sacrifice with your Faith! He will honor your Faith with His blessings!

**Adapted from the author's website at http://www.seedwords.com/pages.asp?pageid=79196

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