"Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse;" (Deuteronomy 11:26). Then God goes on to spell out the blessing; obey the commandments of the Lord, and the curse; if you don't obey the commandments of the Lord. Like Pastor Josh said in the Sunday sermon, "God did lots of cursing, he cursed everything." The Book of Deuteronomy is full of curses especially chapters 11, 27, and 28.
It actually goes back to Genesis 3 when Adam and Eve ate of the tree. God had warned Adam not to eat of the tree (Genesis 2:17) but he did anyway. The first thing God did was curse the serpent. (Genesis 3:14,15) Then he multiplied the sorrow of the woman. (Genesis 3:16). And then he cursed the ground under Adam's feet. (Genesis 3:17) And as a result of that we are plagued to this day with thorns and thistles.
Pastor Josh told us his Grandpa's story. He had acreage here in Douglas county. And like everyone who has a farm, thistles are a real pain to try and get rid of. The thorny roses around here are a real problem, too. But that's another story.
Grandpa would load up a pick, shovel, and a heavy bag. Then he would put on heavy gloves and go out into the field and work on getting rid of the thistles. He knew that leaving just one piece of these banes of existence could produce a harvest of new thistles which could spread and take over his field again. They truly are a curse. Because, after all this work, they could still blow in from somewhere else and it would be the same thing all over again.
The good news is there's a day coming when there will be no more curse. It's in Revelation 22:3. Heaven doesn't have thistles. Heaven doesn't have sin either. Sin is no longer a constant drag on the human spirit. Jesus Christ paid the price for that when he took on the curse and hung from the tree. "...for he that is hanged is cursed of God..." (Deuteronomy 21:23). When Christ returns, a new day and a new world will come into existence. Hallelujah.
It actually goes back to Genesis 3 when Adam and Eve ate of the tree. God had warned Adam not to eat of the tree (Genesis 2:17) but he did anyway. The first thing God did was curse the serpent. (Genesis 3:14,15) Then he multiplied the sorrow of the woman. (Genesis 3:16). And then he cursed the ground under Adam's feet. (Genesis 3:17) And as a result of that we are plagued to this day with thorns and thistles.
Pastor Josh told us his Grandpa's story. He had acreage here in Douglas county. And like everyone who has a farm, thistles are a real pain to try and get rid of. The thorny roses around here are a real problem, too. But that's another story.
Grandpa would load up a pick, shovel, and a heavy bag. Then he would put on heavy gloves and go out into the field and work on getting rid of the thistles. He knew that leaving just one piece of these banes of existence could produce a harvest of new thistles which could spread and take over his field again. They truly are a curse. Because, after all this work, they could still blow in from somewhere else and it would be the same thing all over again.
The good news is there's a day coming when there will be no more curse. It's in Revelation 22:3. Heaven doesn't have thistles. Heaven doesn't have sin either. Sin is no longer a constant drag on the human spirit. Jesus Christ paid the price for that when he took on the curse and hung from the tree. "...for he that is hanged is cursed of God..." (Deuteronomy 21:23). When Christ returns, a new day and a new world will come into existence. Hallelujah.
