Tag: curse

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I Put a Spell on You

Deuteronomy 21

22“If someone has committed a crime worthy of death and is executed and then hanged on a tree, 23the body must never remain on the tree overnight. You must bury the body that same day, for anyone hanging on a tree is cursed of God. Do not defile the land the LORD your God is giving you as a special possession. (Deuteronomy 21:22-23, NLT)

Galatians 3

1Oh, foolish Galatians! What magician has cast an evil spell on you? For you used to see the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death as clearly as though I had shown you a signboard with a picture of Christ dying on the cross. 2Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by keeping the law? Of course not, for the Holy Spirit came upon you only after you believed the message you heard about Christ. 3Have you lost your senses? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? 4You have suffered so much for the Good News. Surely it was not in vain, was it? Are you now going to just throw it all away?

5I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law of Moses? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ.

6In the same way, “Abraham believed God, so God declared him righteous because of his faith.” 7The real children of Abraham, then, are all those who put their faith in God.

8What’s more, the Scriptures looked forward to this time when God would accept the Gentiles, too, on the basis of their faith. God promised this good news to Abraham long ago when he said, “All nations will be blessed through you.” 9And so it is: All who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith.

10But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all these commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.” 11Consequently, it is clear that no one can ever be right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” 12How different from this way of faith is the way of law, which says, “If you wish to find life by obeying the law, you must obey all of its commands.” 13But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” 14Through the work of Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, and we Christians receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith. (Galatians 3:1-14, NLT)

The Daily DAVEotional

In 1956, Jalacy “Screamin’ Jay” Hawkins recorded his most famous song, “I Put a Spell on You.” The song (which you can listen to here) became a cult classic that’s been covered by a number of artists over the years, including Nina Simone, Annie Lennox and Alan Price.

For me, I grew up listening to the Creedence Clearwater Revival Rendition of the song. It was classic rock at its best.

To have a spell put on you means that you’re completely held by something, whether a person or an idea. Dictionary.com describes it as “a state of being enchanted, entranced or fascinated.”

In this 3rd chapter of Paul’s letter to the Galatians, Paul is asking the question, “who put a spell on you?” Paul is so dumbfounded by the change he has seen in how the Galatians are living out the Christian life that it’s as if they have been put in a trance by an evil trickster posing as a servant of Christ.

The issue that Paul was addressing is highlighted in verse 3 where Paul says, “Have you lost your senses? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort?” [emphasis added]

This problem is one that is actually pretty commonplace among believers even today. Many Christians place their faith in Christ to BEGIN the Christian life, and then resort to a works based system in order to MAINTAIN the Christian life.

Paul is saying that this approach to the Christian life is so contrary to the actual gospel message that it’s EVIL.

Twice in the first 5 verses Paul asks the question: did you receive the Holy Spirit by keeping the Law? The question is rhetorical in nature, but Paul answers it anyway with an emphatic NO!

How does a person receive the Holy Spirit?  Through belief, or “by faith”.

If you are a Christian, you came to Christ by placing your faith, or trust, in Jesus to pardon your debt of sin and provide forgiveness through His death on the cross. This is why Paul, in the very first verse, references the cross of Christ. Every Christian who has ever existed has come to Christ in the same way, by believing in Jesus and His death on the cross as a payment for personal sin.

According to Ephesians 1:13, at the moment of belief in Christ, all Christians receive the promised Holy Spirit, who comes to live inside the life of the new believer.

The problem for many Christians is what follows that initial conversion experience. After beginning the Christian life by placing their faith in Christ, many Christians fail to continue the Christian life in faith, empowered by the Spirit. Instead, they opt for a rules-based approach in which they seek to please God through their “human effort” (see verse 3).

This was not just a problem with the Galatians. Paul also addressed this issue in Romans 4. I wrote about it in my blog post, “How Good Do You Have to Be to Be Saved?”

This problem persists today as well.

In our rebelliousness, we desire to make ourselves the center of the universe. Most religions are man-centered, meaning that the religion is centered around human effort and good deeds.

Biblical Christianity, on the other hand, is God-centered. It is the ONE major religion or philosophy that does not depend on what man DOES but is instead ordered around what God DID via Christ’s death on the cross.

The issue with the Galatians was that while they began the Christian life in the Spirit by faith, they sought to maintain their standing with God by following the Law, the Jewish religious code.

Paul reasons that if you didn’t come to Christ by adhering to the Law, why are you trying to maintain your relationship with God by adhering to the Law?

Essentially, Paul is saying that you can’t mix and match these two approaches. They started out with a God-centered approach based on faith but then shifted to a man-centered approach based on human effort. This makes no sense. If you want to base it it on adhering to the Law, you will have to obey the whole Law. Otherwise, you are under a curse.

The other option is to base your approach on faith, which is preferable, because in this approach, Jesus was a curse for us via his death on the cross (see verse 13).

By switching from a God-centered approach back to a man-centered religion (the Law) as a means of seeking God’s approval, you are invalidating the whole reason why Christ was necessary in the first place, which is why Paul asks the Galatians, “Are you now going to just throw it all away?”

The Christian life is a life of faith. We don’t just come to Christ by faith. We live the Christian life by faith as well. In this way, God is the center at all times.

If you are under the impression that we come to Jesus by placing our faith in Him but then we must follow some sort of religious moral code in order to keep our standing with God, well then Paul’s question to the Galatians extends to you – who put a spell on you? That is not just a minor misunderstanding or small theological difference of opinion. Paul says this ideology is evil and man-centered, designed to keep people living as slaves instead of living in freedom and experiencing true transformation.

Reflection

What is your reaction to the idea that we are under the curse of the Law, but Jesus, by hanging on a tree, became a curse for us? What imagery does this create in your mind? What thoughts and emotions does it provoke?

What do you think are the reasons why Paul calls the Galatians approach to the Christian life evil?

What are some examples you can think of in which people tend to make Christianity man-centered instead of faith-based and centered on God?

What do you think it looks like practically to continue the Christian life in faith instead of human effort?

 

Photo by Dollar Gill on Unsplash

 

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Did Jesus Need a Snickers Bar When He Cursed the Fig Tree?

Mark 11

12The next morning as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus felt hungry. 13He noticed a fig tree a little way off that was in full leaf, so he went over to see if he could find any figs on it. But there were only leaves because it was too early in the season for fruit. 14Then Jesus said to the tree, “May no one ever eat your fruit again!” And the disciples heard him say it.

15When they arrived back in Jerusalem, Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the merchants and their customers. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the stalls of those selling doves, 16and he stopped everyone from bringing in merchandise. 17He taught them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a place of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”

18When the leading priests and teachers of religious law heard what Jesus had done, they began planning how to kill him. But they were afraid of him because the people were so enthusiastic about Jesus’ teaching. 19That evening Jesus and the disciples left the city.

20The next morning as they passed by the fig tree he had cursed, the disciples noticed it was withered from the roots. 21Peter remembered what Jesus had said to the tree on the previous day and exclaimed, “Look, Teacher! The fig tree you cursed has withered!”

22Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. 23I assure you that you can say to this mountain, ‘May God lift you up and throw you into the sea,’ and your command will be obeyed. All that’s required is that you really believe and do not doubt in your heart. 24Listen to me! You can pray for anything, and if you believe, you will have it. 25But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too. ”
(Mark 11:12-25, NLT)

The Daily DAVEotional

Mark 11 gives two different stories in which Jesus seems to go off for no good reason. The chapter begins with Jesus triumphantly entering Jerusalem on a donkey as the crowds praised Him. Everything seems to be going great, which makes the two stories that follow all the more difficult to comprehend.

The next morning, after the triumphal entry, Jesus is hungry. He sees a fig tree and since there’s no fruit on it, He curses it. The author makes a point of telling the reader that the tree only had leaves on it because it was too early in the season for fruit. In other words, the fig tree didn’t have fruit on it because it shouldn’t have had fruit on it. The fruit wouldn’t arrive until several months later.

Jesus had to know this, and yet He curses the fig tree anyway.

What’s going on with Jesus? I imagine one of those Snickers commercials in which the person who’s hungry takes on a completely different persona until a friend gives them a Snickers bar. After taking a bite, the person returns to their normal self. The commercial ends with the tag line, “You aren’t YOU when you’re hungry.”

The text says that Jesus was hungry. Did He just go temporarily crazy because He was hungry?

After cursing the fig tree, they returned to Jerusalem where Jesus went to the temple and began driving out the merchants. He’s knocking over tables and though the text doesn’t say this, I sort of imagine Him with a whip, driving out the money changers from the temple area in Indiana Jones fashion!

Will someone please get this man a Snickers Bar?

After Jesus’ episode at the temple, He and the disciples leave the city and the next morning, they see the fig tree. It’s withered from the roots. The disciples make mention of the tree to Jesus, who responds by telling them to have faith in God and they will be able to move mountains.

If you’re like me, you’re probably scratching your head while squinting your left eye and thinking, “what?”

We can probably dismiss the idea that Jesus was just raging because He was hungry. After all, He spent 40 days without food in the desert being tempted by Satan and He was able to withstand all of Satan’s efforts, so there’s no reason to believe that Jesus went into an uncontrollable rage due to some minor hunger pangs.

Remember that much of what Jesus did was for the sake of His disciples. He was always teaching them, often through object lessons. This is certainly the case here too as the text says, with regard to Jesus cursing the fig tree, that “the disciples heard Him say it.” The author makes a point of letting the reader know that when Jesus cursed the fig tree, the disciples heard Him. That seems like an important detail, otherwise there would be no need for the author to mention it.

Look too at the text and notice that the story of the temple is sandwiched in between the details of the fig tree – the fig tree is cursed, Jesus drives out the merchants at the temple and then the fig tree is withered. Certainly, this is not coincidental story telling by the writer, but intentionally written in order to make a point.

Yes, but what’s the point?

Let’s look at the details of the temple passage to see if we can make sense of it. After Jesus drives out the merchants, He says:

“The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a place of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”

Jesus is angry because the temple is supposed to be “a place of prayer for the nations”, but it has been turned into “a den of thieves”.

The temple was a massive structure that had different sections for different purposes (Click here to read more about the different areas of the temple). Outside the temple was a courtyard that was divided into different areas, one of which was “the Court of the Gentiles”. This was the only place where non-Jews could come and worship the Lord at the temple, and yet it had been converted into a farmer’s market and mobile banking exchange center.

Imagine you are a Jew who wants to come to Jerusalem to make a sacrifice. You can take the long journey and bring your animals with you (doable but inconvenient) OR you can come without your animals and you can purchase your sacrificial animal when you arrive in the city (much more convenient). This is how business works – you figure out what people need, you provide that need for them and you make a profit off the sale.

This is what was happening here. The idea of providing animals for people was not what made Jesus angry. What was objectionable was the fact that their profits were exorbitant, hence, Jesus calls them thieves. Additionally, they were conducting business in the only place that Gentiles could access the temple for worship, thus negating the temple’s purpose as a “place of prayer for the nations.”

Jesus was not reacting to hunger pangs but to a pattern of unrighteousness and greed exhibited by the religious rulers and business leaders.

So what does this have to do with the fig tree?

Most commentators agree that the fig tree is representative of the nation of Israel. Jesus doesn’t curse the tree because He’s hungry and there is no fruit on it. He curses it as an object lesson for His disciples. The tree illustrates the nation of Israel, which was fruitless and had been for some time.

The curse illustrates that because of Israel’s fruitlessness, God’s judgment on Israel would be forthcoming. The temple was the center of religious life and what was happening at the temple was an example of the fruitlessness that existed and the fact that Israel had neglected their role in God’s greater purposes to be a light to the Gentile world.

The temple was destroyed in AD 70 and it has never been rebuilt. Thus, Jesus’ foreshadowing of impending judgment on the nation of Israel was fulfilled.

All this writing is making me hungry. I think I need a Snickers!

Reflection

How have you understood these stories in the past? What was your explanation for why Jesus cursed the fig tree and drove out the temple merchants?

It is clear that Jesus was angry when He drove out the merchants. How do you reconcile Jesus’ anger with the Biblical truth that He was sinless?

In what situations do you think it’s ok to be angry? What factors cause anger to be sinful?

What do you think are some effective and appropriate ways for dealing with anger?

While we are not under a curse like the nation of Israel was, it is clear from Scripture that God desires for His followers to bear fruit? What would bearing fruit look like for you and what steps can you take to ensure that you are not a fruitless Christian?

 

Photo by Magda Ehlers from Pexels