What does it mean to be cursed?

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Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’—so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

Galatians 3:13-14 (ESV)

What does it mean to be cursed? Is it the idea that many modern Americans have of magic or witchcraft? Most of the time, we hear the word “curse” and think something bad has been placed upon us that will plague us for the rest of our lives. However, this is not the kind of curse Paul is describing in Galatians. The curse here is the curse of sin and the conviction brought by the Old Testament law. When we read the law, we are shown by it that we are imperfect and sinful human beings. We read it and see how bad we really are. Many of us can look at the Ten Commandments and see that we have broken every single one. Some will say, “I have never murdered anyone and I haven’t committed adultery.” However, we read in Matthew 5 that Jesus says if we are angry at our brother unjustly, we have already committed murder in our hearts and if we lust after someone, we have already committed adultery in our hearts. This is the curse we suffer. We are born slaves to sin and bound to our own desires.

However, there is good news. Jesus took upon himself the curse of the law. Jesus took upon himself the sins of us all. Jesus became sin for us. He did this so the blessing of Abraham could be given to the Gentiles (those who are not Jewish). The blessing of Abraham is being grafted into the kingdom of God. That is, we are brought into relationship with God. He also did this so we would receive the Holy Spirit through faith. This is amazing news! No longer are we slaves to sin, because Jesus became sin for us. No longer are we under the curse of the Law, because Jesus took the curse upon himself. We have been set free.

This week, celebrate the salvation that has come to you. If you have not surrendered your life to Christ, I invite you to place your faith in Him and let Him set you free from your sin.

June 4, 2018