LIKE A FLUTTERING SPARROW …
UNJUST CURSING IS LIKE A SWALLOW IN ITS FLYING
Sakkie Parsons
Translated from Afrikaans: “Soos die voëltjie wegfladder, soos die swaweltjie wegvlieg”
I got an email regarding whether someone could curse a child of God, or speak a curse on you, or place a bond of some kind on you.
I will use myself as an example and tell you how I understand and live it.
I can only feel sorry for the person who curses me or wants to place a curse or bondage of any kind on me, because see; I am God's property.
TIT 2:14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.
TIT 2:15 Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.
Another example:
1 PET 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
1 PET 2:10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
I think we do not always realize who and what we are in Christ Jesus.
We read:
ROM 8:16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
ROM 8:17 and if children, then heirs–heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
If you look at it this way, then what Jesus said makes a lot more sense:
MAT 5:44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
MAT 5:45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
You see – if someone is offensive or rude to me, he's actually doing such a stupid thing that if I do not pray for him, he will have problems, huge problems.
This is also, I believe, one of the reasons why we are commanded to pray for such people. For, it is not we that will be in trouble, but through their actions towards us, they will face enormous problems.
My Father does not just let go of what someone does to a fellow heir of Christ.
Now I must not think I can only keep quiet and the person will be punished.
If I do that, I'm playing right into the hands of satan, because then I'm disobedient.
Then I violate a direct command of Jesus.
LUK 6:27 "But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
LUK 6:28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.
Do you see the command?
It is not that if I feel like it I must love this person.
I have no choice. I'm given an instruction.
LUKE 6:27 "But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies …”
So, if someone does something awful to me, I gladly pray for that person – for it is wonderful to be obedient to our Lord and it is one of the easier things to be obedient to.
To summarize:
If anyone curses me, or places a bond on me, as he or she thinks, I am unconcerned except to pray for them because of the foolish thing they did. Solomon said in his great wisdom:
PRO 26:2 Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying, a curse that is causeless does not alight.
The Passion Translation reads:
PRO 26:2 An undeserved curse will be powerless to harm you.
It may flutter over you like a bird,
but it will find no place to land.
Greetings,
Sakkie