Video summary
The video argues that the concept of believers being under generational curses is a fundamental misunderstanding of Scripture, noting that neither Jesus nor the Apostles ever taught such a doctrine despite addressing spiritual realities extensively. The speaker contends that if generational curses were a valid spiritual reality for Christians, one would expect explicit mention from key figures like Peter, John, or James; their silence indicates that no such thing exists for those who are born again and filled with the Spirit. Instead of supernatural curses imposed by demons or God upon families, what people often perceive as generational curses are merely natural cycles, consequences, or patterns of behavior that repeat across generations without any malevolent spiritual force behind them. The transcript emphasizes that there is no biblical evidence for a devil or demon orchestrating these events, and attributing suffering to such forces misrepresents the nature of God's work in the lives of His people.
To clarify this issue, the speaker examines Old Testament passages regarding curses, specifically focusing on Ezekiel 18 and Jeremiah 31, which address the proverb about children suffering for their fathers' sins due to sour grapes. These texts initially describe a situation where Israel faced consequences for ancestral sin, but God explicitly declares through prophecy that this dynamic will change in the future under the New Covenant. In those coming days, each individual will be held accountable only for their own sins and righteousness, not for the actions of their forefathers. The speaker explains that while there was a period of partial hardening upon Israel due to past covenant-breaking, this was a specific historical condition rather than a perpetual generational curse applicable to believers today. Consequently, the idea that a Christian is currently bound by ancestral sins contradicts the prophetic promise that every soul stands alone before God for judgment.
Furthermore, the video asserts that any mention of curses in the New Testament applies strictly to those who rely on the works of the law for salvation rather than faith in Christ, as described in Galatians 3:10. Since no one can perfectly keep the law, attempting to do so places a person under a curse because they inevitably fail, whereas those in Christ Jesus are declared free from condemnation and have become new creatures in 2 Corinthians 5:17. The speaker highlights that God has reconciled the world to Himself through Christ, not counting their trespasses against them, which makes it impossible for Him to hold ancestral sins against a believer. Additionally, believers are being conformed to the image of Christ's Son, a process that is incompatible with being under any form of curse, reinforcing the truth that those set free by Jesus are truly liberated without question.
In conclusion, the speaker urges viewers to reject the notion that Christians can be under generational curses because it distorts the liberating work of Christ and contradicts clear biblical teachings on individual accountability and freedom. The message is that anyone claiming otherwise is not reading Scripture accurately and should be corrected, as such claims undermine the liberty believers walk in through Jesus' sacrifice. By understanding that God loves His children and does not loathe or esteem them lightly, believers can stand firm in their identity as forgiven and free, walking confidently in the grace provided by Christ without fear of inherited spiritual burdens. The final takeaway is a call to embrace the fullness of salvation offered in the Gospel and to stop listening to voices that attempt to limit the freedom Jesus has already secured for His people.
Read the full video transcript
You remember the time when Jesus and
Paul both talked about generational
curses?
No. Me neither. [music]
[music]
>> You would think that if there were a
such thing as a generational curse or
truth be told a curse at all for a
Christian, you would think that Jesus
would have made mention. But you know
what? Maybe after the cross, you would
think that Paul would have said
something. Maybe Peter, maybe John,
maybe James, maybe Jude. Nobody. Nobody.
Why? Because there is no such thing.
It's a fundamental misunderstanding, a
gross and neglectful way of
misunderstanding what Christ is doing,
what God is doing. To think that a
person can be born again, full of the
spirit or have the spirit under the
protection of God, having angels who
serve as ministers to those who are
saved according to Hebrews 1. You would
think that that person would understand
that that person cannot also
simultaneously be under a curse. Well,
first of all, let's figure this out. Why
does God not mention us being under a
curse after the cross? Well, what does
the word curse mean? Now, if you go to
the Old Testament, there's you can look
up a word that says to be cursed just
means to curse someone. But what it
doesn't tell us what it means, but there
is one passage where God explains to us
about someone about Israel being cursed.
And that word just simply means to be
esteemed lightly, to be thought little
of, to be loathed, disliked, and also
not just to be loathed, but to be
treated that way. It's not to say that
there's no such thing as a curse. There
are curses.
But a believer being under a
generational curse or trying to explain
a curse that would arise to figuring out
why a person is still suffering familial
why a person is suffering with poverty
or something genetic or well that's not
a generational curse. As a matter of
fact there is one place where you can
see some semblance of a generational
curse nothing like what people are
talking about. In other words, my father
went to jail, I went to jail, my kid is
doomed to go to jail. Or uh my great
grandma got pregnant early, then my
grandma got pregnant early, my that's
not No, no, no. These might be some
cycles or some consequence that have
shown up repeatedly in generations, but
that's not a curse. In other words,
there's no one that's making these
things happening. There's no devil, by
the way. There's no place in the Bible
where a devil, a demon, is behind a
generational curse. So what about God?
Well, let's figure out there is one
place where he speaks about something
happening generationally.
But again, it's not like what we're
talking about. So let's go to a couple
passages. One, Ezekiel 18, started here.
Then the word of the Lord came to me
saying, "What do you mean by using this
proverb concerning the land of Israel,
saying, now notice what it's saying
concerning the land of Israel?" There
was a proverb where someone is being
affected by what a forefather or a
parent has done. The fathers have eaten
sour grapes, but the children's teeth
are set on it. So the children are
suffering for what what the fathers have
done. Are you with me? So that part is
important. So let's go back to it. It
says verse three, as I live, because
this is a true proverb. It's actually
happening. As I live, declares the Lord,
you are surely not going to use this
proverb where in Israel anymore, looking
towards the future. Behold, all souls
are mine. the souls of the fathers as
well as the soul of the son is mine. The
soul who sins will surely die. So he's
saying in the future it's going to be
that you will be accountable for your
own sins, for your own unrighteousness
and your own righteousness. Look what he
says in verse 5. But if a man is
righteous and practice justice and
righteousness and does not eat at the
mountain shrines or lift up his eyes to
the idols of the house of Israel or
defile his neighbor's wife or approach
uh a woman during her mental period. So
it goes through these different things.
This person is going to be considered to
be right. Now I'm not going to God is
saying I'm not going to hold these
things against you of what your fathers
did. We see this also in Jeremiah 31.
Remember he said in the future this
proverb won't be true. Won't be true
where concerning Israel. So if you want
to say that there's anyone that has to
deal with a a spiritual not a spiritual
but a generational curse so to speak,
you could probably point to Israel and
say that that's them. Look what he says
though. Jeremiah 31:27.
He says, "Behold, days are coming,
declares the Lord, when I will sow the
house of Israel and the house of Judah
with the seed of man and with the seed
of beasts. As I have watched over them
to pluck up, to break down, to
overthrow, to destroy, and to bring
disaster, so I will watch over them to
build up, and to plant, declares the
Lord. In those days, look what he says
here. In those days, they will not say
again, the fathers have eaten sour
grapes," which is what we saw in Ezekiel
18. So in those days, which days?
Looking forward. So when Jeremiah writes
this, this is looking forward into the
future. And the children's teeth are set
on edge. But everyone will die for his
own iniquity. Each man who who eats the
sour grapes, his teeth will be set on
edge. Behold, days are coming, declares
the Lord. So we can figure out when this
is going to be, declares the Lord, when
I will make a covenant, a new covenant
with the house of Israel and the house
of Judah, not like the covenant which I
made with their fathers in the day I
took them out by hand out of the land of
Egypt, my covenant which they broke. So
the reason why they're having to deal
with these lasting consequences for
their fathers is because of this
breaking the covenant. Well, why do you
say though, Cory, though, that there
still can be some sort of semblance of a
curse? Well,
God says this in Isaiah 6:9. He says to
uh to the prophet, "Go and tell the
people, keep on listening, but do not
perceive. You're not going to perceive.
Keep on looking, but you're not going to
understand. Render the hearts of this
people insensitive, their ears dull, and
their eyes dim. Otherwise, they might
see with their eyes, hear with their
ears, understand with their hearts, and
return and be healed." So God is placing
a hardening on their hearts on the
people of Israel because why? Because of
what their forefathers done. Now by the
way, the same thing is happening that
they're still rejecting um God even at
this point. And so God is saying that
I'm going to reject you or I'm going to
put this hardening over you. Now this
hardening is not a complete hardening
and it's not happening to everyone in
Israel, but it's a partial hardening.
And so we see Paul addressing this
because he's complaining and lamenting
of the fact that the Jews are not coming
to Christ at the time that he's writing
the book of book the book of Romans. And
so look what he says. He says, "I do not
want you, brethren, to be uninformed or
ignorant of this mystery so that you
will not be wise in your own
estimation." Look what he says that a
partial hardening has happened to Israel
until how long? Until the fullness of
gent of the Gentiles has come in. And in
this way all Israel will be saved. So
he'll fulfill what he spoke about in
Jeremiah 31. So there is no generational
curse per se because in order for it to
be generational, it would have to affect
all. This is a partial hardening. So
some Jews are being affected. And if you
want to say silk, I think it still might
fit the definition because most Jews are
still affected by this. I don't have a
problem with that. But we're talking
about a believer though. Can a Christian
be under a generational curse? Well, the
Bible talks about in the New Testament
people being under a curse. But look who
it is that's under cur a curse in in
Galatians 3 10. Look what it says. For
as many are of the works of the law. So
if you're under the works of the law, if
you hold yourself under the works of the
law, if you want to commit yourself to
the law, he says that person is under a
curse. For it is written, cursse is
everyone who does not abide by all
things written in the book of the law.
So why would you be under curse if you
are of the works of the law? Because you
can't keep all of the law. So therefore,
if you are trying to keep the law, you
are automatically going to be under the
curse. What does a curse mean? To be
loathed, to be thought of lightly, and
to be treated this way. Well, who's the
one that's cursing you? Not me. I can
curse whoever I want to. It's not going
to do anything. It's not going to make
you either better or worse. I don't have
the power to I guess I could curse
someone and then carry it out, but it's
not truly the definition. But we're
speaking about someone who's cursed by
God. And so God is going to loathe you,
esteemly esteem you lightly, look down
on you, and then treat you that way.
Why? because you decided to forego what
Christ has done and instead um try to
earn or keep your salvation so to speak
by you keeping the law where you're
under a curse because you are going to
fail. No one is justified by the law
which is evident the just shall live by
faith. Jesus Christ though is going to
be esteemed lightly or loathed on the
cross because he's going to take on all
of the the penalties for mankind for
their sin. He's going to bear their sin,
but you wouldn't consider that obviously
as a generational curse, right? But he's
cursed for all generations, but that's
for a time to pay the debt that we
cannot pay. So there's a couple passages
that we can look to to see that no one
talks about these generational curses
for good reason. There is no such thing
as a Christian being under a curse. For
one, we can go to Romans chapter 8 verse
one. Look what it says. Therefore, there
is now no condemnation for those who are
in Christ Jesus. You cannot be under a
curse being condemned. If you are in
Christ, that part should be clear. Paul
says in 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore,
if anyone that's a believer is in
Christ, he is a new creature. Old things
have passed away. Behold, all things
become new. Now, all things are from
God, who reconciled us to himself
through Christ and gave us that very
same ministry, the ministry of
reconciliation. He says, namely, here's
the point I want you to see. Namely,
that God was in Christ reconciling the
world to himself, not counting their
trespasses against them. But you're
going to tell me I'm under a
generational curse because my
grandfather or great-grandfather did
something and it's going to cause me
harm. He's not holding my sins against
me, but he's holding my grandfather's
sins against me or my great great
great-grandfather's sins or great
great-grandmother's sins against me.
He's holding someone else's sins against
me. Well, that goes against what he says
in Jeremiah. From now on, you will be
accountable for your own
sins.
So therefore, there could not be. And by
the way, just so you might in case you
want more, the Bible says, "Blessed be
the God and father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who has blessed us, who the
believers, with every spiritual
blessings."
[snorts]
So he's not coming against us. He's not
loathing us. We are not cursed. What he
is doing though instead, like he says
going further in Romans 8 as well as
further in Ephesians 1, is that we are
being conformed into the image of his
son. You can't be conformed to the image
of his son if you are also under a
curse. When someone says that you are a
believer and can be under a curse, a
generational curse by God, that's a
person that's not reading the scriptures
and you ought to reject that person
because it goes counter to what Christ
is doing. Jesus, Paul, I mean John says
about Jesus in John 8:36, whom the son
has set free is free indeed. that word
indeed ontos thoroughly freely without
question. Seriously, you're really free.
Jesus comes to set the captives free. If
he didn't and you're under a curse, then
he didn't he didn't set you free. So
don't let people distort what Christ has
done. That is to make you free and that
you can walk in the liberty of Christ
because of what he's done. Not that you
can still be under a curse or if you
were ever under a curse. That is prepos
preposterous and absurd. Do not listen
to anyone who would say otherwise. Amen.
[music]
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