Monday, August 21, 2023

Those Who Are Cursed

Those who are cursed are cut off from the blessings of God and marked for destruction. God's covenant of law promised blessings to those who obey and curses to those who disobey (Deuteronomy 28:15-24). The cursed are cut off from the blessings of God. We have all disobeyed God (Romans 3:23). Only Christ can set us free from the curse.

Martin Luther taught that Christ died for the curse of our sins. "He voluntarily fulfilled all righteousness, living under the law without spot or blemish, bore our sins, became a curse for us, and offered himself as a sacrifice for the sins of the world. This is the atoning, reconciling work of Christ."

Those who are cursed are controlled by a spirit of disobedience (Ephesians 2:1-3). They are under the dominion of sin and the curse of the law. The only hope of salvation is in the sacrifice of Christ alone.  As Luther said, Christ "became a curse for us, and offered himself as a sacrifice for the sins of the world."

We are set free from the curse by faith in Christ as our sacrifice! Luther taught that Christ in the atonement "became a curse for us" at the cross (Gal. 3:13). He wrote, "This is the atoning, reconciling work of Christ." That means by grace through faith in the gospel of Christ, we are free from the curse!