Yes ...Thor I understand your position and in part i agree. Although God
gave specific punishments to display His justice I believe that all sin
from Gods perspective requires the punishment of death. The reason is
because God is the only one who knows pure justice.This is why God
established the curses because He does not see justice as if the person
was responsible in the way we establish justice on this earth. Gods
justice from the beginning of time to the end of time is proven right
because He sees sin as a form of communication that establishes
relationships in the present, connected to the communication that goes
all the way back to the first sin. This is why I focus on the potential
that we were created with instead of the reasons for our guilt that was
imputed to us from the first sin. The curses give me a view that Gods
actions toward sin and corruption are far worse than our definition of
justice in responding to these sinful actions. And so Gods blessing is
far greater than we could imagine concerning our potential as created
beings.
Every thing that God created was for His purpose.
Nothing that He created was identical. So in this sense God does not
view unity as equaling similarities of things and people. Rather God
speaks in such a way that He orders all things to work out for His
goodness and pleasure. So everybodies potential is the perfect view of
God that He has spoken in His word. This perfect description is applied
through His covenants and decrees. These covenants are Gods absolute
promise to act according to His word. We have the way God recreates and
not the details of how He accomplishes creating all things.
Not
only has God described everything perfectly in His word but He has
gifted us with metaphysical qualities that are descriptions of our
perfect identity. Our perfect identity is God establishing through us by
communicating perfect unity of body and soul. God has gifted us with
desires that are formed to recreate our world. These desires are Gods
perfect expression of the perfect Man. We find this emotional
description in the book of Psalms. This perfect Man who is limited to
His time and space controls all nations and things of the world. Gods
word goes out in His gifts of desires to recreate all things for His
purpose and glory. I believe we touch eternity when we express the
desire as Christ has expressed it seeing although He did not sin , He
came as close to sin in His struggle as if He identified with us in our
struggle in His perfect expression in the Psalms. And in this since we
can rise up to control all things in this perfect reflection in our
emotional life as in a small way that Christ experienced His desires on
this earth.
cont
The apostle extended the curses in Galatians. 3 10 For all who rely on
the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is
everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of
the Law.”[e] 11 Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before
God, because “the righteous will live by faith.”[f] 12 The law is not
based on faith; on the contrary, it says, “The person who does these
things will live by them.”[g] 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of
the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is
everyone who is hung on a pole.”[h] 14 He redeemed us in order that the
blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ
Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
He
distinguishes the elect from the reprobate according to the Abrahamic
covenant. Those who are in a covenant relationship with God are not
under the curse because they live according to faith because they are
given a foreign righteousness. In the ot God established His
righteousness by acting as a substitute for the elect. God provided an
animal sacrifice as the remedy to those who violated His law. The elect
enjoyed freedom from the law by believing that the sacrifice of the
coming Redeemer brought them into a relationship with God that was one
sided. God established the relationship by giving them all that they
possessed. Not just those things that pertain to saving faith but all
the things in this life. God removed judgement and provided them with
rewards both temporary and future. The covenant with Abraham provided
them with Gods covenant of redemption. Under this covenant every thing
that opposes the elect will be destroyed so the elect will be completely
delivered. Every circumstance the elect go through is Gods display of
His salvation. The elect are no longer under the curse.
But
those who are not in this covenant relationship look to the law to be
righteous. They are under the curse. In the ot economy the gospel was
propagated by Israel and went out to the nations. But in the new
covenant the gospel is propagated through all nations. The apostle uses
universal language to describe the extent of the success of Gods
salvation in His saving or electing men from every tribe, nation, etc.
The apostles ministry extended to the ends of the earth beyond the old
covenant that God established with Israel. And you see the apostle
making this universal curse in Galatians.1 8 But even if we or an angel
from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to
you, let them be under God’s curse! 9 As we have already said, so now I
say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you
accepted, let them be under God’s curse! He repeats it twice for
emphasis.
You will find the apostle applying this in the context
of salvation and deliverance in those who oppose Gods people..Romans 16
20" The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet." He has
this same attitude in 2 Timothy 4 14 "Alexander the metalworker did me a
great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done." The
Apostle reasons that if Alexander has success he will destroy a lot of
peoples lives. It is like the ot wish in the curse. Then he goes on to
say that the Lord will deliver him completely and reward him. 2 Tim 4 16
At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted
me. May it not be held against them.- (As a faithful Israelite in the ot
sense ..the christian context) 17 "But the Lord stood at my side and
gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully
proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from
the lion’s mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack
and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for
ever and ever. Amen." You see this same attitude displayed in the
apostle.
cont How can the curses end if the consequences of those who break them who
are outside of the covenant is death? If the curse ended then God would
have overlooked Adams sin. Seeing that sin was added because of the
transgression. And every man had the sin of Adam imputed to their
account. The result of the transgression was that every man died. The
apostle teaches this throughout his epistles. Man was cursed with
spiritual and physical death.
In the OT the curses were treated
individually attached to the violation of a law. There was a temporary
solution through the OT priest. They acted as a mediator between Jehovah
and His covenant people. I do not believe the curses were as effective
before the cross as they are after the cross. The curses were used
randomly and within the parameters of war. But in the nt the apostle
expanded the authority of the curses as far as the gospel went to the
ends of the earth. Ill get back to this.
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