This email debate about generational curses is a result of a woman in distress because of demonic manifestations in her life after a few incidents involving a certain woman.
Initial message:
Just a little bit of background information about me and the problem I am facing at this moment:
In the past, God has imparted knowledge in my heart during REM sleep just before waking up in the morning. The experiences were amazing and ALWAYS confirmed by scripture.
God was giving me recurring dreams for about four years regarding my husband. These dreams were intensely emotional and I would wake up and cry because it felt so real. In March of 2016, I woke up from a dream around 6 in the morning, followed a knowledge in my heart to look something up a certain way and found the proof that what I had been dreaming about all of that time was actually the truth. I had no idea! My husband and I now have a new marriage of oneness after a long healing journey after this experience.
I have had some very interesting things happen to me these last few days and nights. I know that God has me on a journey, but I am still figuring it all out.
He recently led me to see that I needed to forgive someone that I thought I had genuinely forgiven..he guided me through it with some eye and heart opening experiences. Now mind you, God had confirmed about 6 years ago or so to me that this person, I supposedly hadn’t forgiven yet, was dealing with a demon (or more) out to get me.
I had asked God to show me by having the Demon make a noise through her towards me as we walked past each other at work. Sure enough, that day, this exact thing happened! Just as she walked past me, she made a sound of disgust towards me. For some time, I felt that I was possibly dealing with the Jezebel spirit. Crazy, I know.
So moving forward to Saturday night, after sending this person (who tormented me for years), a message of forgiveness (I had not seen nor spoken to in 5 years+), I instantly received a text message saying – “Medea glared hatefully”. My husband got a message on his phone from the same spammer regarding the same thing but said “parents please respect”. I instantly got the heebie jeebies, if you know what I mean…
I decided to look up this “Medea” to see what it was all about. What I found shocked me. Not only was this person a priestess witch/sorceress who killed people in revenge and to get what she wanted, she is listed as a goddess in the occult. To say the least, I was simply looking at another demonic entity. Creepy, I know.
Moving forward, I had thought that maybe this person had this demon attachment that I needed to pray about, so the next morning, I prayed to command all unclean spirits from her.
Now fast forward a few days later and at about 3:30 am I wake up out of a dead sleep and something tells me that I need to pray any unclean spirits from my soul (not a possession, but maybe oppression? I know that the kingdom of God lives within my spirit! I took heed and immediately started praying and commanding them out in the name of Jesus.
After about an hour, I was exhausted and still laying in bed. I was then told to do this same thing for this woman who I had just recently forgiven. I listened and began to pray and cast out. After about an hour I started to dose off. With what seemed like seconds, I would get a poke that would instantly wake me up and I would then resume praying. I dosed again, then I would get a tickle that quickly work me up and I would resume praying.
This routine continued for two more hours, where I was being awakened by blinking lights in my eyes, pokes, jolts, noises and even a voice that said “Jesus no more!”. But each and every time I would quickly awaken, then I would resume praying and casting out. YES, I KNOW, CRAZY AGAIN!!
Now, moving on to last night. I went to sleep around 10am and my husband laid next me watching TV. I was in a deep sleep (and cannot remember what the dream was about as far as what I saw) and I suddenly smelled this HORRIBLE stench like the worst fart I had ever smelled in my life! It jolted me out of sleep, at which I accused my husband who laid there innocently wondering why. I smelled everywhere around me, under the blankets etc., and then nothing. The smell was completely gone. He swore up and down that he didn’t pass gas. He typically has no issue with admitting these things (lol). This was probably around 11:30 pm. Then it happened AGAIN! I jolted up, blamed my husband, who swore up and down that he didn’t do it. Once again, the smell was completely gone.
After reading the info from the link I posted here (see below), I just now took note that I have been seeking ways to find better health naturally using herbs and vitamins. It made me wonder if this unclean spirit was somehow attached to me?
I am a born again Christian. I follow the teaching of Jesus Christ. At the time I thought that I seeking healing from eating right, supplementing right, etc., was a good idea that God would promote. Maybe what I was missing was the deep seeking of his healing help, which them allowed a stronghold of the alternative way to give legal right to the unclean spirit to torment me?
PLEASE HELP!
Jana Womack
First reply from ASR Martins:
Hi Jana,
Thanks for your email. Because of limited time I need to be right to the point. You are not supposed to be involved with demonic spirits in the way that you described. Yes we drive them out of people and we chase them away from people but you are not supposed to experience what you described. It appears that you are not victorious over the demonic spirits as you are supposed to be. They are not supposed to manifest the way they are.
I generally receive quite a number of email messages similar to yours from people. Most of these people were usually very active in terms of spiritual warfare and the breaking of generational curses at the time that they contacted me. This is because of them unknowingly opening doors for demonic spirits to oppress them due to ignorance in terms of spiritual warfare and of course on generational curses.
People have been taught a lot of false teachings regarding both these subjects and depending on how deeply they got involved with wrong practices and to what degree they have been deceived, the more they experience manifestations of demons in their lives. Spiritual warfare is a reality but most people do not deal with it correctly.
So what I want to know from you is the following: Are you involved in spiritual warfare and do you believe in generational curses and do you break curses in your life and in other people’s lives?
If your answer is yes to these questions I will be able to help you. If it is no then I will have to ask you some more questions to get to the bottom of this problem.
Blessings in Chris
ASR Martins
Second message from Jana Womack:
So I’m not supposed to pray for unclean spirits to leave me in the name of Jesus, nor pray for anyone else? This is all I have done as far as involvement.
I certainly believe in generational curses, as my moms side of the family suffers from this. Evident by their severe mental illnesses. I’ve read in scripture how they can be passed to the 3rd and 4th generations. I also believe that certain sins like witchcraft, etc., bring on these curses which give legal right to the demonic. I personally am not sure if the woman I prayed for was under generational curse, but I know that she had many unclean spirits. Not only was it obvious, but it was revealed to me as I was praying for her. I do feel however, that she may have been or is currently surrendering to the occult, possibly witchcraft? Just a sense I have.
She was my coworker for over ten years and tormented me. I now understand that the battle isn’t between her and I, but whatever dark authority she’s carrying within her that’s waging war against me. I also believe that Jesus fights the battle, but through our prayers, which work as a conduit. He flows through to do his work.
Could it be that because I’ve recognized this and have started praying, it has stirred them up? I know that they cannot touch me. I have on the armor of God and his authority covers me.
I just know that it’s during my sleep that God speaks to me, so maybe I’m just more sensitive to the spiritual realm during this time.
What could the stench in my sleep state mean? This part confuses me. I looked at it as a revelation of their presence, and though I know they are there, they can do nothing to me.
Jana Womack
Second reply from ASR Martins:
Hi Jana,
Of course you need to set people free from demonic spirits. You are the ambassador of God and Jesus commanded us to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.
So the instruction from God to the church is to set people free. We do it by healing the sick, cleansing the lepers, raising the dead and casting out (and taking away) demons. Not fighting evil spirits. I need to give you a bit of information which caused the erroneous foundation and false principles and false doctrines that influenced people in a very bad way when it comes to dealing with evil in peoples lives. It started with false doctrines regarding generational curses which led to the false variant of spiritual warfare. These false doctrines caused havoc in the church. Many pastors and people in the church continuously ignore clear and very prominent Scriptures in this regard and they just keep on preaching these false doctrines. Let me explain it from a Biblical perspective:
“And God said…
In those days people will no longer say, The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge. Instead, everyone will die for their own sin; whoever eats sour grapes – their own teeth will be set on edge.
And God said…
What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge? As I live, saith the Lord God, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel.”
Did you know that there is absolutely no Scriptures that state or indicate that Christians are or can be punished because of the sins of their ancestors? Jews yes, but not Christians. Did you also know that there is actually Scriptures that clearly state that the sons WILL NOT carry the sins of their fathers (ancestors) and that the fathers (ancestors) WILL NOT carry the sins of the sons? Still people believe in generational curses. Did you know that the only reference to generational curses was made only to heathen nations and people (Jews or Israelites) who hate God? Did you know that there are Scriptures that state that God even took generational curses away from heathen people and unbelievers?
This implies that since the cross, even unbelievers and people who hate God do not have to carry the sins of their ancestors. Did you know that there is not even one Scripture in the whole Bible that says that we must repent of the sins of our ancestors? Did you know that there is not one Scripture in the whole Bible that says that we must break generational curses? Did you know that there actually are a number of Scriptures that say that we must only repent of our own sins? Did you know that there actually are Scriptures that say that the sins of the one who committed that sin will be on him and on him alone? Did you know that there are actually Scriptures that say that the righteousness of a person can only save him alone? That implies that nobody can be made righteous by their ancestors just as nobody can be made unrighteous by their ancestors. There are Scriptures for all the statements I made here. I will include all those Scriptures in this post.
About two years ago a friend of mine announced that he is returning to his old support group in order to change the bad circumstances that he experienced in his life at that time. This support group pursued a very distinct goal which is their official “trademark”. This trademark is of course the relentless breaking of curses and the subsequent spiritual warfare that always form part of these rituals. He mentioned to me that he also decided to do so because he missed their fellowship and their support particularly with regards to this aspect.
I was visibly appalled by this decision. My friend again stepped into the trap of looking for the causes of his personal and spiritual failures and dismays at a wrong place. He was really going through a tough time but not because of generational curses or the lack of spiritual warfare or demonic attacks or special strategies that evil spirits embarked upon to make his life miserable. Something else was to blame and I was about to tell my friend what it was. According to the people in the group that he wanted to join, all or most negative and bad things in people’s lives are either caused by generational curses or evil spirits and demonic attacks.
When I asked my friend for the opportunity to discuss this matter with him before he joins this group again he reluctantly agreed. I again took him through the Scriptures that so clearly proves that generational curses was a reality early in the Old Testament but not since the time of Ezekiel. I showed him the Scriptures which proves that God joined the debate about generational curses at that time and how He once and for all publicly announced through his prophet how He feels about generational curses, and why He feels that way. I showed him clearly what God’s stand on generational curses is, since the days of Ezekiel until now.
“If the doctrine of generational curses was really the truth, is it not then a thing that takes a few minutes and then you do not have to deal with it ever again in your life?”, I asked him.
“I mean, you confess the sins of all your forefathers and then you break all the curses and then it’s done. Unless they sin again but of course that cannot happen. They are all dead. They cannot sin anymore. So why must you go back now and confess all their sins again and again and again? How can generational curse be responsible for your current misfortunes if you did confess their sins over and over again in the past already? I do understand that we must confess our sins again and again if we sin again and again but our ancestors are dead. And if your mother or father or grandparents are still alive, how do you know if and when they have sinned? Are we not supposed to move on and forget about generational curses and the breaking of curses once we have done it? Did the blood of Jesus not take away our sins for good? Did He not become a curse so that we do not have to be cursed ever again?”
Of course all these questions I asked and the statements I made I did with the assumption that the generational curses doctrine is the truth which of course it is not. God very clearly stated that it is not the truth himself. He did it very clearly in so many words.
Well my friend did not listen to my arguments at all and he did in fact join this group again. No, his circumstances did not change at all. It got worse!
Needless to say, I gave him all those Scriptures but he ignored all of them. They are still breaking curses and they are still confessing the sins of their forefathers on a daily basis but nothing has changed. As I said, some situations even got worse. They are constantly busy with spiritual warfare. One moment they are fighting water spirits and the next moment some strong demon, a principality of some sort. This whole process just goes on and on. They are fighting relentlessly and the war is never over. This of course is totally different from what Jesus and the disciples did.
Every word that ever came out of the mouth of Jesus was very significant. It was always anointed, it always did what it was sent out to do and it was said in order to teach us the will and the ways of God. Each and every action that Jesus performed was also very significant. It was done to show us the will and the ways of God. Jesus himself said, “I only do what I see my Father doing.” He in fact never did anything and never said anything that the Father did not do or say.
John 5:19-20 (KJV)
Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.
John 5:19-20 (NIV)
Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed.
John 12:49
For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.
This is very important. Jesus Said, “Verily, verily, these also doeth the Son likewise.”. If the Son of God regarded it very important to do exactly what the Father did and to say exactly what the Father did, how much more should we do the same. He even said that if you saw the Son then you saw the Father. Why did He say that? Because He was exactly like the Father. In words and in deeds. Ho chose to be like the Father. He chose to only do and only say what he sees and what He hears his Father does and says. He closely looked at the Father. He closely observed the Father and He became exactly like the Father.
Jesus’ time on earth was absolutely focused on teaching us the will and the ways of the Father. He did it by doing and saying what the Father does and says. His whole ministry was a process of equipping us (the church). He taught the disciples and the disciples taught other disciples. They made converts and they made disciples in turn. A disciple is a person who follows Jesus. He showed them how to live in the kingdom of God. It is therefore very important what Jesus did and what He said. The disciples observed him very closely. They knew exactly what He said and what He did.
John 28:18-20
And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
If you study this aspect in the Bible you will find a remarkable thing. You will find that if you watch Jesus Christ in action you will know exactly what God the Father would have said and would have done if He was walking the earth. But that is not all. You will also find that the disciples did exactly what Jesus did and they said exactly what Jesus said. They followed his ways and his actions to the letter. They did not even once deviated from this. They never ever even once did something or said something that Jesus did not say or did not do. This is very significant. It means that even the disciples did and said what God the Father would have done and said if He was walking the earth.
I specifically carried out a thorough investigation about this. I specifically looked for something different or any sort of deviation about this aspect but I could not find any contradictions or any additions. I dare you, study the Bible and see if Peter, John, James, Paul or any other disciple ever did or ever said something that Jesus did not do or say. In fact, Jesus told them to go out and to teach people the words that He taught the disciples. Jesus specifically referred to his own words and He asked the disciples to teach other people those words. He was actually asking the disciples to carry on what He started and that is to teach people to do what the Father does and to say what the Father says. Make disciples means to make followers.
However, the problem in the church today is that people have deviated from this instruction. Through the years a lot of new things and new ways emerged in the church. People started doing things and saying thinks that is not in the Bible. Take a look at the following and take note that these things are nowhere to be found in the Bible. The Father, Jesus Christ and the disciples did not carry out these things, they did not use these words and they never instructed anyone to do these things:
In the Name of Jesus I break all curses in my life.
I cut off each and every curse.
In the Name of Jesus I bind you satan.
Lord, I confess the sins of my father, my mother and all my ancestors. Please forgive me for their sins.
In the Name of Jesus I cast down any evil stronghold in my life.
I break every plan that the enemy orchestrated in my life.
Satan, I break all your works. I come against you in the Name of Jesus.
All these commands and decrees sound spiritual but are in fact worthless words uttered in ignorance. Why do we use these words? Where does it come from? It is not in the Bible. Have you noticed that Christians in New Testament times never ever did any of this? Have you noticed that Christians in New Testament times never ever discussed generational curses? Nowhere in the Bible did God, Jesus or the disciples instruct us to break curses. Nobody in the Bible broke any curses. Nowhere in the Bible did God, Jesus or the disciples instruct us to confess the sins of our ancestors. In fact, there are numerous Scriptures in the Bible that instruct us to confess and repent only of our own sins. Nowhere in the Bible did God, Jesus or the disciples bind satan.
John 8:28
Jesus therefore said, ‘When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me…
If Jesus said that He does nothing of himself or on his own initiative, why did we start using words that is not in the Bible? Why did we start doing things of ourselves. Why did we start anointing windows and doors and vehicles with oil? Why did we start all these “house cleaning” rituals? Did Jesus Christ or the disciples ever anoint houses and windows and vehicles? Did Jesus or the disciples ever carried out house cleaning rituals or did they ever instruct us to do so? If these things were authentic and important, why didn’t Jesus or the disciples ever instruct us to break generational curses? Why didn’t they instruct us to confess the sins of our ancestors? Why didn’t they instruct us to anoint our property and belongings with oil? By the way, the only thing that I do concerning “house cleaning” is the following: I make sure that I do not have any objects related to idols like Buddha statues in my house. I make sure that I do not have sinful or sin inducing material in my house like pornography or really bad music and so on and then I am done. Nothing else. Anything more than this is just another soulish or religious ritual implemented in the church by people who believe in generational curses and the erroneous counterpart of the spiritual warfare doctrine.
Why then do we carry out these things? We carry it out because we know not the word of God. We believed false doctrines like generational curses and the erroneous teachings of spiritual warfare, the transferal of spirits and all sorts of doctrines of devils. Yes there is a thing called spiritual warfare but it is totally different from the very popular teachings we have been taught through the years. Most of the decrees that I mentioned are the battle cries of the fake or ignorant spiritual warriors created by false teachers. It is the actions and the words of the ignorant. It is the actions of people who do not know there position of authority in Christ.
That position of authority is not on the battle field. It is from a position of rest. They are resting in the love of Christ from where they plug into all the resources that He made available to them through the cross. He gave them divine provision, divine protection, divine authority and divine maintenance through his redemptive work on the cross. As kings in the kingdom of God they learned to trust God, to believe God and his word, to be obedient to God and his word and to take up their inheritance through faith. They take what is theirs by faith. They take it by force. They live by every word that comes out of the mouth of God.
Matthews 11:12
And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.
They do not accuse the enemy of causing all sorts of negative and bad things in their lives. They know that bad things exist only because they failed to take up their inheritance. They know that the devil and the kingdom of darkness can cause them absolutely no harm unless they allow them to do so. Through obedience and through faith they live victorious lives. They call good things into existence and they destroy bad things by the word of their testimony. They fear nothing. They know that their battle is not against evil forces directly but against evil forces destroying their faith (temptation and lies). They know it is a battle of faith. They abstain from sin and they do not believe the lies of the enemy. They give evil no foothold in their lives.
They resist evil by not giving in to temptation and lies. They know that evil can only attack on one front; through lies and deceit. Evil cannot change their circumstances. Evil cannot damage their belongings. Evil cannot damage or injure their bodies. Evil cannot kill them. Evil cannot take away anything from them. Yes, evil cannot steal from them. Evil forces are absolutely defenseless and powerless against these true warriors. There is absolutely no way that they can penetrate that armored shields of protection that surround these warriors every second of their lives. It is like the armor that God had put around Job:
Job 1:10-11
Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
The devil just could not penetrate this hedge that God made around Job. He tried from every side. He could do Job no harm at all. He was absolutely helpless, powerless and hopeless against this man of God. Just to make a point, satan had to ask God to take away that hedge of protection so that he can touch Job and his belongings. As you can see in the above Scripture that Job was blessed and that he enjoyed divine protection, divine provision and divine maintenance. And let me tell you right now, Job did not break any curses and he did not engage in spiritual warfare. In fact, nowhere in the Bible do we see anybody getting involved in spiritual warfare according to the ways that the church has been taught. Why not? People like Job rested in God through obedience and through faith.
When there is chaos and havoc and lack in a man of God’s life, only one person is to blame; not God, not satan, not circumstances, not your wife, not your husband, not your friends, not your boss at work but only yourself. Evil just cannot cause you any harm whatsoever. They cannot break your vacuum cleaner. They cannot break your car. They cannot make you sick. They cannot cause an accident in your life. They cannot steal from you. They cannot take your job from you. They cannot do anything at all. You are protected like Job was. There is a hedge of divine protection surrounding you and your house and your belongings if you made it part of your life through obedience and faith. This hedge is kept in place by faith. It is not there automatically just because you accepted Christ Jesus as your Savior. It is only there if you serve God with all your heart and all your soul and all your power in spirit and in truth. It is only there if you actively believe his promises without any doubt. Remember, it is impossible to please God without faith. It is impossible to please God if you are not obedient.
Hebrews 11:6
But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
1 John 3:22
And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
The problem is that people do not have faith and they are not obedient to God and his word. It is exactly then when they experience all sorts of problems in their lives. You can see it by the way they live. They trust in many things. They have alarm systems installed in their houses. They take out insurance on their belongings. They take out medical insurance. They trust in gates and electric fences and walls. They loan money from banks and other people. They are stingy. They go to church but they get involved in all sorts of sinful acts. They get sexually involved with people outside of marriage. Their lives sometimes do not differ much from unsaved people. No wonder things fall apart in their lives.
It is then that they start accusing the devil of all sorts of attacks on their lives and then they start breaking curses and engaging in spiritual warfare and fighting demons and water spirits and so forth. Needless to say that these actions are a worthless waste of time and it does not bring change. They are obviously not addressing the real problem and that is why things do not change. We need to find the truth and we need to be obedient to God. That is the bottom line.
Did the disciples ever take part in Jewish holidays and festivals after the resurrection? Did they ever blow shofars and carry flags and banners around? Did they ever wore Jewish prayer shawls when they prayed or interceded for other people? Did they ever take part in Christmas? Did they take part in the Passover after the resurrection? The answer to all these questions is “no”. They did not nor did they instruct us to do so. In fact, the Christian faith is the only faith that has no holy days, no holy places, no holy buildings and no holy rituals.
People do all these things and they are under the false impression that it is Christian whilst it is in fact Jewish or Pagan and wrong. They do it because the church teaches them to do these things. No, it is not God’s festivals. It was festivals God gave the Jewish nation to keep. It is not our sabbath. It was the Jewish sabbath. Not anymore though because Judaism became obsolete when it was replaced by Christianity. Today Judaism is nothing but a false religion just like Islam. In fact, Paul warned the church about the danger of Christianizing Judaism.
The same can be said for incorporating all sorts of pagan festivals and uses. Christmas has absolutely nothing to do with Christ or the church. It is a pagan festival. There is absolutely no instruction in Scriptures that we as Christians should do all these things. The church moved away from the teachings of Christ and the teachings of the apostles. They ran after false teachings and false doctrines. Paul warned the church about the false prophets that will come to cause division, apostasy and doctrines of devils to be embraced in the body of Christ.
Well these things have consequences. Whilst the so called spiritual warfare warriors are fighting evil spirits they fail to take up their inheritance. They fail to find rest in the love of Christ. They fail to put their attention on the important things. They fail to focus on their calling and on their real purpose in Christ. They are kept busy fighting one group of evil spirits whilst another group is burning down the city. They are occupied by evil whilst they were supposed to be occupied by Christ.
They experience false anointings, false emotions and false victories. Many people mistake their emotions with the anointing of the Spirit of God on a daily basis. Sometimes they do experience the true and authentic anointing of God and then they make the mistake by assuming that the anointing is the approval of God. I have seen many times that God does work when people act in faith even if it is not the way He wants them to act. He is God and He does come to our rescue even if we are not acting like we should. He is a God of grace and He will help us in times of trouble and in times of need even when the methods we use are wrong. This does not mean that He is happy with us and that He approves what are doing.
This brings me to a very important principle in the church that every Christian should know and understand: Never assume that the anointing is a sign of God’s approval. The anointing is a sign that God is at work. Also, never assume that when a man of God has an anointing on his life or an anointing to minister unto people that his doctrines and teachings are sound and beyond reproach. The anointing only proves that God is working through such a person. The anointing can never support doctrines. Our emotions cannot support doctrines. Personal observations cannot support doctrines. There is absolutely one thing only that can support doctrines and that is the word of God. If you ignore this principle the enemy will use your emotions and your personal observations to deceive you. You must ignore your emotions and you must ignore your personal observations. Both cannot be trusted at all. You must even ignore true anointing in this sense. Only the word of God can be trusted when it comes to supporting doctrines and teachings.
Scriptures on generational curses:
Jeremiah 31:29-30
In those days people will no longer say, The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge. Instead, everyone will die for their own sin; whoever eats sour grapes – their own teeth will be set on edge.
This was a proverb in Israel referring to the law given them by God in Deuteronomy 5:7-10 (for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me). However, in Jeremiah 5 God referred to a time in the future when this saying will not be used anymore. By this statement God promised Israel that there will be a time in future that the children will not be punished for the sins of their ancestors anymore and that everybody will be responsible and accountable for their own sins only.
That time came very soon after these promises were made. Even in the days of Ezekiel the laws (about generational curses) were already abolished.
For some reason the nation of Israel did not know this and that is why God intervened in order to help them understand his view and his will regarding generational curses.
First I need to give you some background on why these Scriptures on generational curses came into existence in the Bible: The Israelites did not really understand the concept of generational curses and so a lot of misunderstanding and a lot of myths came into being in Israel in the time of the prophet Ezekiel. They also did not know that God abolished the old laws regarding generational curses. There was actually quite a debate among the Israelites on this subject. They knew that something of this nature was written in the book of Deuteronomy but that was about all most of them knew about the subject. Remember that those days the Old-Testament was not available to the common man resulting in a lot of speculation about the word of God.
God saw all the misunderstandings and He heard all the speculations so He decided to get involved in this debate with the sole purpose to set things straight. We read all about this in Ezekiel 18:1-32.
Scripture: The son will not carry the sins of the father and the father will not carry the sins of the son:
Ezekiel 18:17
That hath taken off his hand from the poor, that hath not received usury nor increase, hath executed my judgments, hath walked in my statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live.
Ezekiel 18:19
Yet say ye, Why? doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all my statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live.
Ezekiel 18:20
The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
Scripture: Even heathen nations and heathen people do not have to be punished for other people’s sin:
John 1:29
The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
The Greek word for world in this Scripture is “кόσμος” which means the “whole world and all its residents”. This means that Jesus Christ was punished in our place. Even the sinner does not have to be punished today. This is called the “time of grace”. From the moment that Jesus died and got punished for the world on the cross, nobody is punished until of course an unbeliever dies without Christ. At that moment, when he dies, the curse of the law hits him with full force. That means that the moment a person dies without Christ he has to carry his own punishment. This is clearly stated in Isaiah 65:20.
Isaiah 65:20
There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.
This Scripture pointed to the time of Christ, the good and acceptable year, the “time of grace” when even sinners will live a full and a long life. However when his time of grace runs out, he will be cursed and he will pay the penalties for his sins.
Galatians 3:13-14
Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Ezekiel 18:20
The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
Scripture: Repent only of your own sin:
Ezekiel 18:21-23
But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed,and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right,he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways,and live?
Ezekiel 18:26
When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die.
Ezekiel 18:27-28
Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right,he shall save his soul alive. Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
Ezekiel 18:30-32
Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel,every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.
Scripture: People will be punished only for their own sin:
Ezekiel 18:4
Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine:the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
Ezekiel 18:18
As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, spoiled his brother by violence, and did that which is not good among his people, lo,even he shall die in his iniquity.
Ezekiel 18:20
The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
Deuteronomy 24:16
The fathers shall not be put to death for the children,neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers:every man shall be put to death for his own sin.
Scripture: The sins of a person cannot make another person unrighteous:
Ezekiel 18:13-17
13 Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase: shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him.
14 Now, lo, if he beget a son, that seeth all his father’s sins which he hath done, and considereth, handset not such like,
15 That hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, hath not defiled his neighbour’s wife,
16 Neither hath oppressed any, hath not withholden the pledge, neither hath spoiled by violence, but hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment,
17 That hath taken off his hand from the poor, that hath not received usury nor increase, hath executed my judgments, hath walked in my statutes;he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live.
Scripture: The righteousness of a person cannot make another person righteous:
Ezekiel 18:9-13
9 Hath walked in my statutes, and hath kept my judgments, to deal truly; he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord GOD.
10 If he beget a son that is a robber, a shedder of blood, and that doeth the like to any one of these things,
11 And that doeth not any of those duties, but even hath eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbour’s wife,
12 Hath oppressed the poor and needy, hath spoiled by violence, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination,
13 Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase:shall he then live?he shall not live:he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely die;his blood shall be upon him.
God really wanted to kill this false doctrine in its tracks. If you read the whole chapter of Ezekiel 18 you will see that God purposely covered all scenarios and all aspects from all angles in order to make it as clear as daylight. There is no such things as generational curses because everybody pays for his own sin. Because everybody pays for his own sin everybody must repent of his own sin. The accountability of sin is respectively upon each individual. God says a number of times in this chapter that the soul that sins,that soul must die. Even in Deuteronomy 24:16 he said that the son cannot be punished for the father’s sin and the father cannot be punished for the son’s sin. The Bible just cannot be more clear on this subject than this.
Now there is absolutely no Scriptures that states the contrary. So what did the deceivers do to counter this problem? They made a lot of statements that contradict these Scriptures. They even attempted to use some Scriptures out of context to support all these statements.
Here are some of these Scriptures that were taken out of context:
Deuteronomy 5:7-10
7 Thou shalt have none other gods before me.
8 Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth:
9 Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,
10 And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.
Now this portion of Scripture has nothing to do with the church and nothing to do with believers. It has everything to do with people that HATE God. Verse 10 can be related to us though because we are people who LOVE God. It is however quite interesting to note that verse 10 says the same thing as Galatians 3:20. It also says that we are blessed and not cursed. This was God’s way of telling Israel, whom He is about to make a covenant with, how He feels about heathen nations who hate Him. Verse 9 can only be related to people who HATE God. Unbelievers could have been brought into the equation here was it not for Ezekiel 18 which clearly states that the one (son or father) SHALL NOT help to carry the sins and iniquities of the other (son or father). This portion of Scripture does NOT support generational curses in a Christians life because it was at that time only applicable to nations and people who HATED God. It also does NOT support generational curses in an unbelievers life because of Ezekiel 18:20 which clearly states that the one who sins must carry his own punishment and that the son will not carry the father’s iniquities.
Lamentations 5:7
Our fathers have sinned, and are not; and we have borne their iniquities.
This Scripture has nothing to do with generational curses. It has everything to do with the nation of Israel. Just as we today as an “Afrikaner” nation have to carry the results or burdens of “apartheid” because of the decisions our nation’s forefathers made. “Apartheid” was a sin. The Israelites had to carry the burdens of the mistakes and sins of their forefathers. Many nations all across the world were burdened and are still burdened because of the sins of their forefathers. Germany and Japan are classic examples of this. Adolf Hitler and the German nation as well as the Japanese nation committed serious atrocities during world war two. Both these nations were severely punished for this in terms of war-penalties and discrimination through the years. The culprits were long dead while their descendants were still paying for their iniquities. This is what this Scripture in Lamentations is all about. It has nothing to do with visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. It has nothing to do with family or generational curses.
Nehemiah 1:1-6
1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,
2 That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.
3 And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.
4 And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept,and mourned certain days,and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,
5 And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments:
6 Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee:both I and my father’s house have sinned.
Again this portion of Scripture is all about the nation of Israel. Nehemiah fasted and prayed for the nation of Israel that was taken into captivity. He mourned over the walls of Jerusalem that were broken and the gates that were burnt. It has nothing to do with generational curses. Nehemiah also mentioned that he himself and His father’s house also sinned against God. This was all about the judgment of God that came upon the nation of Israel.
Blessings in Christ
ASR Martins
Email Debate: Generational Curses Part 2
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