Breaking Curses From The Enemy
Even today, in many cultures, witch doctors or shamans put curses on people through demonic powers. In some cultures, for example, voodoo is practiced. This includes such practices as sticking pins in a doll made in the image of a person, usually with some of that persons hair, fingernail clippings, and so forth incorporated into the doll. Hateful words are projected as the doll is stabbed over and over. There also are more gruesome practices used. However, with all evil witchcraft rituals, it is the hatred and evil projected from these people that is aimed at the targeted person that causes the harm. The curses spoken over that doll do not come to pass because of the doll or the pins. There is no power in those inanimate objects. They come to pass because of the demonic power operating through the person speaking forth the curses.
In many cultures, other than Western Societies, people have no problem understanding these curses and blessings, because the presence of demonic beings is very real to them. In fact, in many places, they leave offerings to appease evil spirits, for the purpose of warding them off so they will leave them alone.
If you have been affected by a curse such as listed above, we have good news for you. By accepting Jesus, you can be free from demonic oppression and actually have authority over the devil and his curses instead of his spirits having power over you or your family.
Can A Curse Affect A Christian?
Jesus Took The Curse For Us
Clean Up Your Speech: The Bible Makes It Clear
Paul also gave us positive advice on how to use our wordsnot to cursebut to bless others. He wrote in Ephesians 4:29-30: Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to the needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
The meaning of unwholesome talk is rather obvious. One of the purposes of our talk is to build others upaccording to their needs. This implies that we know what their needs are. They may need comfort, guidance, encouragement, acceptance, approval or even loving rebukes. Can you imagine what our homes would be like if nothing but wholesome talk came out of our mouths?
When all is said and done the Bible makes it very clear that we should clean up our speech. Why? Because Jesus teaches that unclean words come from a dirty heart. Our light to the world is extinguished and no one sees Jesus in us .
Jesus also says that our unclean words lead us into depravity and sin. Our Christian purity is flushed down the toilet.
So what should we do when it comes to cursing and swearing? We read the Bible often. Gods Words are like Ivory soap. They purify your heart and uplift your thoughts.
We filter our mouths and think and say wholesome and positive things.
We follow Pauls advice, and experience peace and blessing.
Well, David, thanks for asking such a timely and relevant question.
Love, Roger
The Growth Of Cursing
For centuries, vulgarity was used primarily by the unlearned those who never learned to read or who had little or no education. They picked up such words from other unlearned people, some of them in the backwoods areas of our country. Those who did have the privilege of an education did not use such language at least not in public. Originally, the media would not reproduce curse words in print. There was the danger that women and children would see or hear such words and be made vile because of them.
This appears to have been a fear that was justified. Today, many women and children think they are more socially acceptable when they use every vile word they can think of. Children are applauded by other children on the streets of our cities when they come up with a lewd reference to sex.
The mass media newspapers, radio, motion pictures made themselves slowly available to spread filthy language across the world. Until 1938, moviegoers were not subjected to vulgarity it all began as they shockingly discovered with the movie Gone With the Wind, in which Clark Gable cursed in the presence of Vivian Leigh. That started a snowballing effect in the use of profanity in movies now, the situation is hopeless. Even movies suggested for general audiences contain vile and lewd words.
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Out Of The Mouth Flows The Heart
There are several reasons to not cuss that should be observed, but before I go any further, lets knock down any religiosity that goes along with not cussing. We as Christians can become very pious and religious in things that we do, yet not know why we do them.
I dont write this blog to condemn those who do cuss, swear, or cursewhichever word you are inclined to use, nor do I write to condemn those who take a religious pride in not cussing, it is instead to bring truth to this fuzzy topic.
That being said, the first and perhaps the biggest reason to not cuss is in the fact that it has much to do with the state of your heart.
The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Luke 6:45
Many modern-day pastors, or what some call, hipster Christians, are breaking the mold, they are breaking away from traditional Christianity that many would describe as stuffy and religious. One of the many ways that this is being done is by cussing.
Cussing is seen as a way to break the chains that make you fit into that old mold of Christianity. I have talked to many who have explained their reasoning, some say to relate to unbelievers and bring them to Christ, others claim the scripture in 1 Corinthians 8 as the basis for cussing, and still, others who have places of influence in music or preaching, etc. state they desire to be real.
‘curses’ In The Bible
And in the words which the Lord had given him he said, From Aram Balak has sent for me, the king of Moab from the mountains of the East: come, put curses on Jacob for me and be angry with Israel.
But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:
Moreover all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee:
The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven.
Keep an eye on Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim who is with you. He uttered malicious curses against me the day I went to Mahanaim. But he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, and I swore to him by the Lord: I will never kill you with the sword.
Finally the Lord could no longer endure your wicked deeds and the disgusting things you did. That is why your land has become the desolate, uninhabited ruin that it is today. That is why it has become a proverbial example used in curses.
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Word Curses: What The Bible Says About Breaking Curses
Today, we think of cursing as someone using foul language, profanity, or perhaps, even blasphemous words against God. Our definition usually is synonymous with swearing. This is a form of cursing, but it is only a small portion of what curses mean in the Bible. Cursing in the Bible is not only speaking evil of someone, but evil coming upon someone. If a person is under a curse, according to the Bible, evil has come upon them in some way. Sickness, tragedy, or bad circumstances are occurring in their lives.
Please Note: This does not mean that every difficult circumstance that we go through is a curse. Sometimes God leads us through circumstances to stretch our faith. This is for our own good, as it is helping us to grow stronger and identify ourselves with Him. However, He is not bringing anything upon us, but rather leading us through a circumstance so that we might experience His overcoming power. For the duration of this article, we are referring to an evil curse that comes not from the hand of God, but from the enemy.
Principles To Keep In Mindabout Our Language
1. Dining with unsaved tax collectors because you want to witness to them, as Jesus did, is not the same as using the filthy language of an unsaved tax collector.
2. Grace engages the culture all of the time but grace is not a good excuse for using profane language and christian cussing. Crawling around in the cultural gutter is not good strategy for Christians.
Will you allow God to clean up your speech?
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4. Talking dirty doesn’t encourage people to repent of sin and trust Christ. Modeling hypocrisy is not biblical evangelism.
5. We do not need to talk dirty to be culturally relevant.
6. Christians are not chameleons, changing colors to blend with the culture. We are to be lights for Christ in a dark and sinful world, noticed and set apart because our actions and words are different.
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Examples Of Alleged Vulgar Languagein The Bible
Are you famous for your dirty mouth?
What We Should Speak Instead
Ultimately, our language should be used to glorify God and bring encouragement to others. We should speak truth, love, grace, and mercy. Ask God for help living out Ephesians 4:29.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29
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Why Is It Considered Foul
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines foul language as offensive or vulgar language. Typically, Americans feel this means profanity . However, foul language encompasses far more than the four-letter words especially when it comes to Christianity. As words have evolved, it is important to note that many of the profane terms in todays dictionary were not used when Jesus walked the earth.
Therefore, when you apply what the Bible says to the definition of offensive or vulgar language, it becomes more relevant to how we speak today. The Bible makes it clear that we should guard what comes out of our mouths. While the Bible does not specify todays four-letter words, it does take a strong stance against words that are offensive or vulgar, which many find offensive.
Additionally, the Bible tells believers to avoid words that insult others or are used to gossip. So, even if you are not using swear words, you can still be using words that bring harm. We can manipulate seemingly innocent words and use them maliciously, which is just as bad.
Commandments Are Created Equal
Christians have a tendency to classify certain commands its more important than others. Actually, it is our duty as Christians to obey all that is commanded . We also sometimes wrongly classify sins in terms of what we would never do and those that God understands we will sometimes do.
For many Christians, cursing is one of those understandable sins. They would be surprised to realize that God banned this practice in the context of prohibiting child sacrifices and just before forbidding homosexuality and bestiality . In the mind of God, these things were serious enough to cause him to cast out the pagan nations which at that time inhabited the Promised Land.
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Is Freaking A Bad Word
Having said that, lets answer the question. No, freaking is not a bad word. If you dont know already, it is a replacement for the the F- word.The F-word is bad because it is a vulgar reference to the act of sex. The Bible does say something about this:
Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of placeEphesians 5:4
Now, heres where things get dicey for the overly zealous naughty word monitor. Some might say, if the F-word is bad and freakin,frick, or fudge are put in its place, isnt that just as bad? The answer is NO! No its not just as bad. In fact, the person using this word should be applauded for replacing a vulgar word with a word that actually has no meaning.
Bible Verses About Bad Language
For the land is full of adulterers For the land mourns because of the curse.The pastures of the wilderness have dried up.Their course also is evilAnd their might is not right.
With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way.Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water?read more.Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh.
The one who desires life, to love and see good days,Must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.
But now I come to You and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.I have given them Your word and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.read more.They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
With worthless oaths they make covenants And judgment sprouts like poisonous weeds in the furrows of the field.
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Putting Crap Back In The Bible
Although many liberal scholars and non-Christians believe the Bible is full of crap,16 theres actually only one place where the word occurs, though it is often scooped up or covered over by modern English translations.
In Philippians 3:8 Paul tells his readers that all the things of religious value in his former life are regarded to him now as skuvbalon , that is, crap. While liberals, neo-orthodox, post-liberals, feminists, historians, Methodists, and other heretics may feel obliged to remove crap from the Bible by flushing it away with euphemisms such as rubbish or refuse evangelicals who believe every word is inspired by God should refuse to flush. Instead, we should embrace a translation that conveys the rhetorical effect intended by the author, as crass and base as it may seem to our perhaps overly-pious ears .
The King James Version had no qualms about translating skuvbalon with a more suitablethough emotively sub-standarddung.17 Only Luther had the guts to translate the noun with Kot in his landmark German translation.18 The problem with translations like refuse and rubbish in todays idiom is that the recent movement by earth-worshippers, tree-huggers, witches, Democrats, and other pagans towards recycling implies that almost all refuse or rubbish has some value. Likewise, even dung could be construed as having usefulness at least as fertilizer. Only a harsher term like crap would indicate the utter uselessness that Paul had in mind.
Christian Cussingwhat Does The Bible Say
Christian cussing – Why do Christians cuss and use the same dirty words unsaved people use, what some refer to as christian cussing? Christians cuss because they are trying to fit in with the world or because they have dirty hearts full of sin, anger and bitterness. According to Jesus, cuss words that come from your mouth originate in your heart.
Jesus said:“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth that which is good and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45, American KJV
Paul said:“the poison of asps is under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness“ Romans 3:14, American KJV
To help clean up your dirty mouth, stop watching TV and movies which contain cuss words. Stop listening to “music” which contains cuss words. If you fill your ears and mind with cuss words or read books full of cuss words, then filth will pour from your mouth. Garbage in, garbage out.
Instead of garbage, fill your heart, mind, eyes, ears and mouth with scripture. Form the habit of reading scripture aloud to yourself and others, Nehemiah 8:8, Proverbs 1:20-23, 1 Thessalonians 5:27. When your heart and mind are full of scripture your mouth will stop your christian cussing.
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