Jude 2

I saw the commercial for some scary movie about a girl who's cursed and it made me wonder about Christians and curses. Look in the Bible and you'll see quite a few instructions and curses on people for things like not loving God, etc. Even a tree that's cursed. Do you know of people today who speak in those terms?

Does negative thinking count? When you encounter someone who says "oh you're going to have a rough time with that" or "that's going to be painful," is that a curse or just negative thoughts? After my accident, everyone and their brother said "everytime it gets cold, you'll have a lot of pain in your neck." No thanks, I'm not going to accept that.

I'm interested to hear what is said about this. I have hard time believing that there is some kind of magical power in everything I say. I met a woman once who was very into Kenneth Hagin... She told me that I ought not say that my feet were killing me, or else they would, because we're like Jesus and Jesus cursed the tree and it died.

On the other hand... Balaam was on his way to curse God's people, and he was stopped... was it because he really had the power to curse them, or because his heart's wayward intent, however powerless, was cursing his own self?


I know I quote Fiddler on the Roof often, in jest, "May the politicians grow like onions with their heads in the ground... ptttoooey!"

Like I said, I'm interested in the perspective of those more knowledgeable than me.

Very thought provoking... I have never really thought about it... I guess I have always associated "curses" with evil/witches/devil... Hummmmm!

I would not make a mumbo-jumbo of this but I agree with what you are saying DeWayne and A2Jgirl..

I believe that "out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks"- what are you believing? Who are you putting your trust in? And, whose report will you believe? The Lord's witness towards you, to bless you, protect you and care for you; or the enemy, who speaks words of discouragement, doom and despair? "Death and life" are contained in the power of the tongue, because what we speak reveals the struggle that is in our hearts and reveals who or what we are choosing to trust. Once we make the choice to believe what Satan has whispered or threatened to us, we are not believing what God has said towards us, and we make this obvious by affirming or embracing it with our words. I would rather speak the Word and stand on what God has spoken instead.

Jennifer, I agree with you in the most important sense of what you say here. What we say comes from the heart and reflects what we believe, it reflects who we trust with the very basic, down-to-the-core, minor and major elements of life. Having said that, I don't think that the saying of something, in turn, creates something else. That the power of life and death are in the tongue is simply a truism that what we say can build up someone or destroy them, often too easily in the case of destruction. I don't find, biblically, any force or power in words themselves to create life or death, however, or anything else. As people around here say, "near as I'n tell", that power rests with God alone. And, the ways in which God moves and acts in connection with what we say, believe, conduct, etc., are all His ways and are subject to Him alone.

I hope that people don't engage in superstitions like my mother used to do about curses and what not. She was paralyzed in her thoughts and conduct by fear and by superstitious beliefs in old wives tales. It was truly amazing growing up in that environment that someone could live that way in this day and time. But, she did, up until a few years before her death at least.

dolfan is correct....totally....

dolfan wrote: that power rests with God alone. And, the ways in which God moves and acts in connection with what we say, believe, conduct, etc., are all His ways and are subject to Him alone.

Good stuff. I like it. Thanks.

This isn't a cut and dry subject matter, but I can give you documented accounts of things that almost seem too coincidental concerning the spoken word.

Even the scientific community promotes the "power of positive thinking" or doctors will encourage positive rehabilitation measures for those with negative mental states... depression, etc.

Personally, I do believe that we should be careful and guard our conversation. I believe the scripture warns against being rash with our words as well.

Wouldn't you say that Matthew 27:25 (And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!”) is an example of inviting curses? The children of Israel certainly have suffered through the years.

Having said this, I believe there is a balance to the subject and that we can become superstitious if we do not rightly divide the Bible concerning the matter.

pa

Mt. 27:25 was, indeed, an acknowledgement of the responsibility of the angry mob that demanded Jesus' crucifixion. They said it because Pilate had just right then told them that he was innocent of "this man's blood". They were saying, "Look we don't care. Just kill him. Blame us."

I would say that they got their wish in AD 70. I wouldn't say that they were inviting curses with their words. In this case, their words were actions, not just utterances. Their words were a popular vote, so to speak, for a death sentence on Jesus. Pilate complied for all of the political reasons with which we're all familiar. And, by AD 70, those people -- who rejected Jesus -- and their children, all of whom had been invited by the totality of Jesus' words and actions, and whom He lamented because of that rejection in Matthew 23:37-39, realized exactly what He meant. Not that they eventually "came around", as it were, but God's judgment on rejecting Christ was rained down on that city.

In my own little opinion, and it is just mine, it is too far to blame Israel's sufferings today as a result of some curse or even a consequence of that moment where the mob compelled Pilate to execute the Lord. A lot of nasty things through history have been done to the Jewish people, in part, because of that idea that they had it coming. God's judgment on the Jewish people was complete in AD 70. His only remaining judgment for rejecting Him is the one common to all who reject Him of every nation.

So, did that mob invite a curse? Not exactly. They invited a consequence. They were rewarded with exactly what they themselves were willing to accept. Far from being a curse, Jesus had pleaded with them to come under His wing like a hen gathering her chicks. Up until that moment of truth, that mob of mad Jerusalem-dwelling Jews was invited to be part of the new nation that Jesus was "calling out of darkness into His marvelous light," one that was ordained from all nations. After that moment, when they essentially sealed Jesus' fate in terms of the necessary human actions to accomplish God's redeeming work at Calvary, they were the objects of Jesus' woes. They were willing recipients of that responsibility, as demonstrated by their cry in Mt. 25:27, and they were accountable for it in AD 70.

Actually there is something to this.

They are called Imprecatory Prayers where you pray to God for him to punish your enemies.(which ought to be the same as his)

David's Psalms are full of them.

that doesn't mean though that we, as God's children, should engage in them or have anything to do with them. We are to pray for our enemies and do good to those that spitefully abuse us.

I'll comment on this witchcraft-as-Christianity (i e You get what your fleshly tongue speaks) when I have the time.

I'm a little busy now.

Paul turned Hymanaeous and ALexander over to Satan for the torment of their their flesh so their souls wouldn't be lost.

Sounds pretty "cussed" to me...

Mike Vande wrote:Paul turned Hymanaeous and ALexander over to Satan for the torment of their their flesh so their souls wouldn't be lost.

Sounds pretty "cussed" to me...

I had forgotten until you reminded me...

hummm...gonna have to think this one through a bit more.

In the meantime...

behave or else I will tell Jesus on you