EXCERPTS

The operation of blessings or curses in our lives is not haphazard or unpredictable. On the contrary, both of them operate according to eternal, unchanging laws. It is to the Bible that we must look for a correct understanding of these laws. Proverbs 26:2 establishes this principle: 'A curse without a cause shall not alight.' Behind every curse that comes upon us, there is a cause. If it seems that we are under a curse, we should seek to determine its cause. Then we will be in a position to take appropriate action against it.

There is one and only one all-sufficient basis for every provision of God's mercy: The Exchange that took place on the cross. All who desire to pass from curse to blessing must go through the same door. First there must be a clear recognition of the issues that God sets before us. Then there must be a simple, positive response. Once we have made this choice, we can claim release from any cures over our lives.

The Exchange that took place on the Cross

• Jesus was punished that we might be forgiven. 

• Jesus was wounded that we might be healed. 

• Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness, that we might become righteous with his righteousness. 

• Jesus died our death that we might share his life. 

• Jesus became poor with our poverty, that we might become rich with his riches. 

• Jesus bore our shame, that we might share his glory. 

• Jesus endured our rejection, that we might have his acceptance as children of God. 

• Jesus became a curse that we might receive a blessing. 

This list is not complete. There are other aspects of the exchange that could be added. But all of them are different facets of the provision God has made through the sacrifice of Jesus. The Bible sums them up in one grand, all inclusive word: Salvation. Christians often limit salvation to the experience of having one's sins forgiven and being born again. Wonderful though this is, however, it is only the first part of the total salvation revealed in the New Testament. 

In the original Greek text of the New Testament, the verb "sozo," normally translated "to save," is also used in a variety of ways that go beyond the forgiven of sins. It is used for instance, in many cases of people being physically healed. It is also used of a person being delivered from demons, and of a dead person being brought back to life. In the case of Lazarus, it is used of recovering from a fatal illness. In 2 Timothy 4:18, Paul uses the same word to describe God's ongoing preservation and protection from evil, which will extend throughout his life. 

The total outworking of salvation includes every part of man's being. It is beautifully summed up in Paul's prayer in 1 Thessalonians 5:23: "Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and my your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." Salvation includes the total human personality: spirit, soul, and body. It is normal to progress by stages from one provision to the next. Many Christians never go beyond receiving the forgiveness their sins. They are not aware of the many other provision that are freely available to them. 

When we come to God on the basis of Christ's sacrifice for us, we need to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. We cannot impose our priorities upon God, but we must let him work with us in the order he choses. A person may for instance be determined to seek financial prosperity, whereas God's first priority for him is righteousness. If he stubbornly insists on claiming prosperity before righteousness, he may not receive either. Again a person may seek physical healing, not knowing that the root of his physical sickness is an inner emotional problem, such as rejection or grief or insecurity. In response, God will move to bring the emotional healing that is needed. If the person does not open himself up to this however, but continues to beg merely for physical healing, he may in the end receive no healing at all, either physical or emotional. Sometimes God seeks to reveal to us a provision of salvation that is our most urgent need. 
 

Such then is the path that leads us out of the territory overshadowed by curses, into the territory that enjoys God's blessings. Its first requirement is unswerving faith based on the exchange that took place on the cross. Faith of this kind reckons God's promises as effective from the moment they are apprehended. We do not wait for confirmation from the senses. By prompt, unquestioning obedience and patient endurance, we move from our legal rights in Christ into the full experiential enjoyment of them. We meet all Satanic opposition with the sword of the Spirit:

the spoken Word of God.

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Indications of God's Blessing:

• Exultation (joy, elation, triumph)

• Health

• Reproductiveness (bearing fruit in all areas of life)

• Prosperity

• Victory

• God's favor

Indications of a Curse:

• Mental or emotional breakdown

• Repeated or chronic sicknesses, especially hereditary 

• Barrenness, miscarriages, or female problems

• Breakdown of marriage or family alienation

• Continuing financial insufficiency 

• Being accident-prone

• A history of suicides and unnatural or untimely deaths

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Causes of a Curse:

• Worshiping false gods; participating in the occult

• Various moral and ethical sins, dishonoring parents

• Anti-semitism

• Legalism, religion, self-sufficiency

• Theft, perjury, robbing God

• Authority figures' negative words

• Self-imposed curses

• Servants of Satan

• Soulish talk

• Soulish prayers

Seven Steps to Release​

1. Confess your faith in Christ and his sacrifice on your behalf. 

2. Repent of all rebellion and sin, including generational. 

3. Claim forgiveness of all sins

4. Forgive all others who have ever wronged you. 

5. Renounce all contact with anything occult or satanic. 

6. Pray the prayer of release from any curse.

7. Believe you have received, and go in God's blessing. 

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