Blessed, Not Cursed

The interaction between Balak king of Moab and Balaam the prophet is insightful, for it demonstrates the ones God has blessed cannot be cursed.  Balak bribed Balaam to curse Israel, but to Balak's dismay he blessed them again and again!  Balaam said in Numbers 23:19-20, "God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? ²⁰ Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it."  God previously made a covenant with Abraham, that through him and his descendants all the earth would be blessed.  Efforts to curse whom God had blessed would amount to nothing.

Balaam continued in Numbers 23:23:  "For there is no sorcery against Jacob, nor any divination against Israel. It now must be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'Oh, what God has done!'"  God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and He would bring them into the land of promise.  It was God's doing and is marvelous to this day.  Balaam's prophecy reminds me of what Isaiah would proclaim in Isaiah 54:16-17:  "Behold, I have created the blacksmith who blows the coals in the fire, who brings forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the spoiler to destroy. ¹⁷ No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is from Me," says the LORD."  God's people could rest comfortably by faith in God who would protect them spiritually and physically from destruction.

This heritage of the servants of the LORD extends beyond the nation of Israel, for Jesus Christ is righteousness for all who trust in Him.  Through the Gospel, salvation has been provided through a new covenant in the blood of Jesus.  Paul spelled this out in Galatians 3:8-9:  "And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, "In you all the nations shall be blessed." ⁹ So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham."  Jesus Who became a curse for us has redeemed us from the curse of the Law.  This is massive!  There are Christians who fear they are hopelessly subject to curses (generational or otherwise) in the Law when Christ has redeemed us from them.  The Law has been crucified to the cross and thus wields no power to curse those Christ has purchased.  We are not vulnerable to Satan, demons, witchcraft, spells or curses uttered by spirit or man, for no weapon formed against us shall prosper.  Rather than being puffed up with pride, we ought to be humbled and grateful by what Jesus has done for us.

God has created the spoiler to destroy, and there are times He allows Satan space and opportunity to afflict the people of God.  He allowed Satan to buffet Job to the end he, his friends and all who read the book of Job would know God is full of compassion and merciful (James 5:11).  God chose for Paul to suffer the effects of a "messenger of Satan" so he would not be proud by the spiritual revelations he received from God.  Instead of delivering Paul from this unholy messenger God spoke this message:  "My grace is sufficient for you.  My strength is made perfect in weakness" (2 Cor. 12:7-12).  In his weakness from spiritual assault, Paul discovered God's strength.  The best example is of Jesus Christ who was betrayed by Judas after Satan entered Jesus' disciple.  Satan intended to destroy Jesus by crucifying Him, but God flipped the script and spoiled the spoiler:  by Jesus death on the cross He provided atonement, forgiveness and eternal salvation for all who trust Him.  Through Christ's shed blood we have been purchased as His beloved inheritance, and our righteousness is from Him.

You are blessed, believer in Jesus Christ.  You may not feel blessed today, perhaps even cursed!  By faith in God and His word, choose what Jesus has accomplished to determine what is reality in your life more than by how you feel or what you see.  Jesus has destroyed the curse of the Law, and no one can reverse it.  No weapon fashioned against us shall prosper to accomplish evil intent,even if deadly blows are landed on us, for Jesus our Saviour is risen from the dead and reigns on high forever.  How blessed we are to look to Jesus today and always!