One of the least understood and most controversial areas of bondage is related to the sins that are repeated generationally in families. When these sins are not acknowledged and forgiven by God, they produce judgment or consequences, resulting in generational devastation. We have all witnessed the repetition of certain sins in various families, be they abuse, alcoholism, divorce, etc., with their consequent judgments or “curses,” such as the abused becoming the abuser, children of alcoholics becoming alcohol dependent or damaged emotionally, insecure people who do not know how to have a good marriage, etc.

There can be numerous reasons for these sins to continue generationally, one of which is the modeling of destructive behavior, setting up an expectation for repetition. Another might be a genetic propensity toward something such as an addiction to alcohol. We cannot rule out a spiritual component to sins continuing down through the generations either.

Most Bible students are aware of God’s Old Covenant warning that he will visit the sins of the fathers on the third and fourth generation of those who hate him.

...I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6  but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. Exodus 20:5-6 (ESV)  

The concept of generational curses or judgments being able to continue in the families of born-again believers because of the sins of their ancestors is highly controversial in light of what Christ accomplished through his death and resurrection.

Our Lord Jesus broke the power of sin, guilt, condemnation, death, disease, and everything else that seeks to hold us in bondage; yet, I also have seen generational sins repeat even in families whose members love the Lord. What gives? Is there a way to prevent this from happening? Can we tap into Christ’s finished work in a way that will stop these generational family sins from afflicting succeeding generations? I believe the answer is an authoritative “Yes!”

My purpose in writing is to help people like us experience the fullness of what Jesus died and rose to win for us. Isaiah prophesied that in the coming days, God’s followers would rebuild what was previously destroyed and ruined, which he identified as being generational desolation or devastation.

Then they will rebuild the ancient ruins, They will raise up the former devastations; And they will repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations. Isaiah 61:4 (NASB)

Followers of Christ who have been set free from the power of sin, have been given the enormous privilege and responsibility to help others experience freedom in Christ. Rebuilding what sin has devastated over generations can be hard work and requires tremendous courage and perseverance. Our Lord has already done the “heavy lifting” through his death and resurrection, but we have a part to play, just as those who witnessed Lazarus’ resurrection were told to “unbind him and let him go.” (John 11:44)

What Is a Biblical Curse?

A Pronouncement of God’s Judgment

Because the word “curse” is often used quite differently today, it is important for us to understand the biblical meaning.

In the Old Testament, a curse was a pronouncement of judgment by God on those who violated covenant stipulations.

When a covenant was made or “cut,” an animal was sacrificed and cut in two. The covenant makers would walk between the pieces of the dead animal, invoking a curse upon themselves should they violate the covenant terms. The following is an example of the curse or pronounced judgment attached to would be covenant violators.

“Therefore, thus says the LORD: You have not obeyed me by proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and to his neighbor; behold, I proclaim to you liberty to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, declares the LORD. I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. 18  And the men who transgressed my covenant and did not keep the terms of the covenant that they made before me, I will make them like the calf that they cut in two and passed between its parts— Jeremiah 34:17-18 (ESV) 

 A Revelation of God’s Justice

The curse or pronouncement of judgment was a revelation of God’s justice that provided a warning of punishment for disloyalty to God.

Adam and Eve betrayed God when they chose self-rule over his loving lordship. They valued and believed the serpent’s words more than God’s. The judgment upon their sin was the pronouncement of God’s justice in the form of a curse.

The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. 15  I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring;he shall bruise your head,and you shall bruise his heel.”16  To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;in pain you shall bring forth children.Your desire shall be for your husband,and he shall rule over you.”17  And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you,‘You shall not eat of it,’cursed is the ground because of you;in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;18  thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field.19  By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,till you return to the ground,for out of it you were taken;for you are dust,and to dust you shall return.” Genesis 3:14-19 (ESV) 

The curse contained the following components, including a messianic promise.

• The serpent would be cursed or judged more than any other animal.
• He (Satan) ultimately would be crushed by the coming Messiah.
• The woman would suffer great pain in birthing children.
• The relationship between the husband and wife would be strained.
• The entire earth (creation) would be cursed, making life much more difficult for people and animals.
• The final aspect of the curse was the penalty of death.

It should be clear to us that, as descendants of Adam, we experience this curse. The effects of the curse were passed down to succeeding generations.

Accumulated Looming Judgment

Below is a New Testament example of a “curse” pronounced by Jesus over the residents of Jerusalem, who were about to reject and crucify him, the Messiah, the ultimate act of covenant disloyalty.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, 30  saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31  Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32  Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. 33  You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? 34  Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, 35  so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. 36  Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. Matthew 23:29-36 (ESV) 

Jesus understood that succeeding generations inherit the judgment earned by their ancestors. We are far more connected generationally than we may realize.

We see in Jesus’ words the principle that unconfessed and unforgiven sin accumulates judgment that looms over living descendants.

Jesus linked the generation to whom he was speaking with their forefathers’ sins. The unrepentant innocent blood shed by their ancestors still cried out to heaven for vengeance (Genesis 4:10), which God had been storing up to release on a future day.

God held (holds) successive generations corporately responsible for the sins of their fathers, especially if they chose (choose) to participate in those sins and reject his generous offer of forgiveness in the gospel.

To the modern Westerner this seems very strange and maybe even unjust. To the New Covenant theologian, it also seems to violate the Law’s pronouncement that children will not die for the sins of their fathers.

Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin. Deuteronomy 24:16 (NIV) 

Surely Jesus knew about that law; yet, he made the pronouncement quoted above. There is something going on here that deserves further thought and a better explanation. The answer will help us grasp what is the nature of generational sin, curses, and the consequent devastation.

Lessons from DNA

Western society is intensely individualistic. That we might be held corporately responsible and subject to punishment for sins committed by others in our family lineage or political group chafes against our individualistic Greek world view. Old Testament people, however, saw things differently. We all know that people often suffer because of the sins of others. For example, if a father commits a crime and goes to prison, the entire family suffers, which likely will impact future generations. When children do not have a father present, it causes damage. Grandchildren may suffer from a lack of proper fathering because their own Dad did not get fathered as God would have intended. This is a clear example of the sin of a father being passed down in unexpected ways.

Old Covenant people understood and believed that they were linked to the blessings and the sins of their ancestors and their nation.

We can see clearly in a variety of passages that Old Testament leaders understood generational accountability. Below I list a few in which various leaders and prophets confessed their own, their forefathers’, and the nation’s sin to God.

Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the wickedness of their fathers. Nehemiah 9:2 (NIV) 
O LORD, we acknowledge our wickedness and the guilt of our fathers; we have indeed sinned against you. Jeremiah 14:20 (NIV) 

O Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our fathers have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us. 17  "Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary.  Daniel 9:16-17 (NIV)  

Is this merely an Old Covenant concept that was done away with in Christ, or do we have the same sort of corporate responsibility before God today?

We like to inherit blessings from previous generations but not curses.

“May He also give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your descendants with you, that you may possess the land of your sojournings, which God gave to Abraham.”  Genesis 28:4 (NASB95)

We must realize that the New Covenant would not “work” were it not for inheriting blessings generationally. We only participate in Christ’s blessings because we are born into God’s family.

There is a very interesting passage in the Letter to the Hebrews that has a lot to say about generational sins, guilt, judgments, and devastation.

One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, 10  for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchizedek met him. Hebrews 7:9-10 (ESV) 

When Abraham paid tithes, all of his descendants paid tithes. This is a profound statement that should make us rethink things. Negatively, when Adam sinned, all his progeny sinned.

For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.  Romans 5:19 (NASB95)

On the positive side, when Jesus rose from the dead, all his spiritual descendants through the new birth rose from the dead.

even when we were dead in our transgressions, [God] made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,  Ephesians 2:5–6 (NASB95)

In the natural world, a similar process works in our bodies that is based on DNA. Physically, all of us are the sum of the DNA inherited from all our ancestors. Each male inherits Y-DNA from his father going all the way back to Adam. Males and females inherit mitochondrial DNA from their mothers going all the way back to Eve. The rest of our genome comes from others in our line. If we go back to our great-great grandparents, we have a total of sixteen people contributing to our makeup.

God uses the properties of inheritance through the genome to reveal to us a spiritual principle called identification.

This means that, in a real way, we were “in” those sixteen individuals and their forefathers when they lived their lives here on the earth as they were obeying, disobeying, or simply ignoring God. This is quite sobering. Have their sins ever been confessed and forgiven in Christ or do they still cry out for judgment?

Identification means we are “identified” with our ancestors when it come to our natural inheritance. This is how we potentially are connected to generational curses. On the bright side, the New Covenant also works through identification.

Theologically, the principle of identification means that our identity is connected to Christ in a very real way.

Paul called this being “in” Christ. What was and is true for him, excepting his divinity, is now ours through our unity or identification with him.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,  Ephesians 1:3 (NASB95)

Christianity would not provide a way for us to overcome sin, Satan, death, and disease if we were not identified with Christ. It is not enough to be merely forgiven through Christ’s dying as our substitute.

True victory lies in his life experienced in and through us via the Holy Spirit.

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.  Galatians 2:20 (NASB95)

We are forgiven because he paid the penalty for our sins. We are justified because we have been given (in Christ) his actual right standing before God. We are children of God through the new birth which provides us with God’s “spiritual DNA,” so to speak. We can live for God because he lives in and through us.

Simply put, if not for identification, we would not be saved.

But identification also was the cause of our needing salvation. Before we are born again, our identities are linked to fallen Adam. Just as surely as we were “in Christ” when he walked the earth in complete harmony with and obedience to the Father and in reliance upon the Holy Spirit, did miracles, died a sacrificial death, and rose again in glory; so, we were in Adam when he betrayed God in the garden. We cannot have it only one way. Either both are true or neither is true. Thankfully, both are real!

This forces us to conclude that the guilt-justification paradigm for understanding what Christ did for us on the cross is inadequate. His dying as our substitute, taking our guilt and punishment upon himself, does not tell the whole story. In a very real way, our salvation is more about “Who’s your Daddy?” than anything else. From whom do we derive our life, our makeup, and our inheritance? Is it from Adam or God the Father through the new birth?

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4  to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 1 Peter 1:3-4 (ESV)  

We inherited Adam’s inborn propensity to sin via our natural birth. Along with this spiritual inheritance comes a plethora of other things that are handed down regarding physical attributes, inclinations, giftings, etc., along with inherited guilt, since in Adam, we all sinned.

Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous. Romans 5:19 (NLT) 

Likewise, the new birth is what gives us new life in Christ and a wonderful spiritual inheritance.

So then, the idea of corporate guilt is not such a strange idea after all. Neither is the concept of corporate righteousness that we enjoy in Christ as the church. The bigger question, then, is how did Christ deal with this enormous weight of corporate guilt that infected all of humanity? Is there anything left for us to do?

The Law of Sowing and Reaping

God’s righteous judgment upon sin, which is called the curse of the Law, is part of the reaping attached to the sowing of sin. As Paul put it, “the wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23)

Sin has consequences, and all of them are bad.

Paul also wrote:

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. Galatians 6:7 (ESV)

Sowing and reaping works for good and for bad, which is reflected in God’s proclamation to Moses in Exodus.

The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7  keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.” Exodus 34:6-7 (ESV)

This passage brings into focus the generational or corporate nature of judgment.

Personal Sin Carries Corporate Consequences

The old saying that the evil I do in private only hurts me is simply not true. For example, in the time of Joshua, when Israel was in the process of conquering Canaan, God place a ban of destruction on the city of Jericho. He warned the Israelites that no one was to take any of the loot for themselves. It all belonged to God. Achan decided to secretly disobey God by stealing some silver, gold, and a Babylonian garment. In so doing he brought judgment upon the entire nation. (Joshua 7:1) When his sin was eventually exposed by God, he and his immediate family were sentenced to death by stoning.

Achan’s private sin brought terrible consequences upon others in his family. Furthermore, his disobedience resulted in many Israelites outside of his family being killed in battle. The entire nation suffered because of one man’s secret sin.

There is no lack of historical examples of corporate “reaping” for the “sins of the fathers.” The USA endured a horrible Civil War, which many believe was a form of judgment against the injustices connected to slavery. Many of those who suffered and died in the conflict never owned slaves or approved of the practice; nevertheless, they were caught up in the conflagration that engulfed the nation. Many citizens of Germany, most of them old men, women, and young children, including those who likely opposed the Nazis’ crimes, died in the horrific fire bombings inflicted by Allied bombers, as the horrible suffering inflicted on the rest of Europe returned upon Germany with a vengeance. Common people suffered greatly for the decisions and deeds of their leaders. The Israelites who lived in Babylon during the captivity never may have participated in idolatry, but they suffered the consequences of their forefathers’ disloyalty to God.

As Jeremiah wrote:

Our fathers sinned, and are no more; and we bear their iniquities. Lamentations 5:7 (ESV)

Need I go on? Can we agree that innocent people often reap judgment and experience the consequences of other people’s sins? Can we agree that innocent children sometimes suffer for a lifetime because of the sins of their parents or other adults? Alcoholism and sexual, emotional, verbal, and physical abuse inflict pain upon the immediate family that often reverberates for many generations. Abuse engenders abuse. Hurt people hurt people.

Sins usually produce negative consequences that extend generationally, unless their destructive effects are somehow neutralized.

Forgiveness and Prayer Do Not Necessarily Stop the Reaping Process

Imagine that a suicidal person climbs to the top of a bridge and, full of hopelessness, jumps. On the way down, in a flash of insight, he realizes that he made a big mistake and asks God to forgive him. In Christ, his forgiveness is instant, but it will not stop the sudden impact bringing about his sudden demise.

Forgiveness doesn’t necessarily undo the sowing and reaping process. God can take away the eternal consequences of our sin without removing the temporal ones.

Another example might be a murderer who asks for and receives forgiveness for his crime from family members, but this does not bring back the dead person or remove the loss from the grieving family. It also will not stop the wheels of justice from imposing a proper judgment against him in the court system.

We can be forgiven in heaven but reap judgment on earth.

I have witnessed praying mothers wringing their hands because their children repeated their own mistakes, despite their prayers. By itself, prayer does not have the power to undo the sowing and reaping principle. The same is true when it comes to weight loss or any number of health-related issues. We cannot break all the rules for maintaining healthy bodies and expect God to overrule the law of sowing and reaping just because we pray. What is true in the natural realm is also true spiritually.

Praying for a Crop Failure or a Crop Transformation?

I have a friend who prayed that God would bring about a “crop failure” with regard to what he had earlier sown in his life. We all laughed, but I think it was valid prayer request. We have a very encouraging verse to lean upon.

He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. 11  For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; 12  as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. 13  As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. Psalm 103:10-13 (ESV)  

If God returned “tit for tat” to us according to our sins, we would all be dead by now. I think it is altogether proper to pray for mercy when it comes to sowing and reaping; nevertheless, we must realistically face the fact that God has put this law into effect.

Notwithstanding, we do have a powerful weapon against this relentless law.

We can have complete confidence that Romans 8:28 promises that God will convert everything in our favor, even when we are reaping the consequences of our own foolishness and sin.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29  For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30  And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. Romans 8:28-30 (ESV) 

God can take what we reap because of sinful sowing and work it out for our ultimate good and his glory. Hallelujah!

When we praise God during whatever suffering or confusion we may be enduring, even if it is because of our own doing, it honors God and opens our hearts to see things from his perspective. It helps us grasp what he is doing in the midst of it all – how he is working it out for our benefit and his glory.

Praise during suffering is one of our greatest spiritual weapons. We may not be able to obtain a crop failure, but we can see God transform something painful into something beautiful and God honoring.

Nevertheless, we must be realistic, God’s working out our difficulties for good is not always easy or pretty. King David spent many years reaping the consequences of his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of her husband. He was forgiven, but the ongoing consequences were real, painful, and extremely costly for him, his family, and the nation of Israel. We do indeed reap what we sow.

The Awful Prospect of Looming Judgment

One of the great deceptions people fall for is a false sense of security gained from delayed judgment.

Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil. Ecclesiastes 8:11 (ESV) 

God’s judgment against unforgiven sins committed by our ancestors and our nation’s leaders and people may still be looming on the horizon, waiting for God’s timing to release it. Jesus, the Author of the New Covenant, proclaimed the following just before offering himself for our sins.

Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. 48  So you are witnesses and you consent to the deeds of your fathers, for they killed them, and you build their tombs. 49  Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’ 50  so that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation, 51  from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be required of this generation. Luke 11:47-51 (ESV) 

He knew that his coming death as God’s Lamb would provide forgiveness for sins, even the sin of putting him, the Messiah, to death, for those who would choose to repent and believe the Good News.

When we repent for our sins and those of our ancestors, we receive forgiveness and release from looming judgment.

Nevertheless, God’s justice would roll on for the unrepentant and unforgiven, which resulted in the smashing of the rebellious Jewish nation under the wheel of Roman might.

Jesus warned his followers to flee the city of Jerusalem when they saw God’s judgment at the door. If they failed to extricate themselves from the city, they would reap the consequences of covenant betrayal along with the unrepentant perpetrators. (Matthew 24:15-23) History tells us that the Christians heeded our Lord’s warning and escaped when the Roman army approached. They understood the nature of sowing and reaping.

The blood of over sixty million innocent babies slaughtered in government sanctioned abortion clinics cries out to God for justice. Will the prayers of those who oppose this practice undo the terrible law of sowing and reaping? Will the USA escape the judgment of God that looms? Discerning eyes can see storm clouds on the horizon. Our nation’s leaders have been leading us down a road to destruction for many years. Those who have participated in the crime of abortion may be personally forgiven by Christ, but judgment still looms over the nation, just as it did over Israel. God will not be mocked. What we have sown, that shall we also reap as a nation.

Until that judgment arrives, we still have hope for mercy, however. As followers of Christ, we can still cry out to God for mercy and ask him for crop failure. We can repent on behalf of the nation, asking God to turn the tide of injustice and immorality. We can plead with him to turn the nation to Jesus.

Just as we have a national identity, we also have a family identity.

The unconfessed sins of our forefathers may be looming over the family line. I believe it is our responsibility to confess and forsake these sins, as living representatives of the family, and thank God for releasing the family from any inherited judgments and claim God’s blessings that are ours in Christ.

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”— 14 in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.  Galatians 3:13–14 (NASB95)

Abraham stood in the gap for Sodom and Gomorrah and for his nephew’s family who lived there. In the end, only Lot and his daughters survived, but that was better than everyone perishing.

I wonder who will escape generational devastation because we stand in the gap?

In conclusion, generational sins and their attached judgments can affect not only the sinner but also his family, community, and nation. The law of sowing and reaping plays a big part in this process. As believers, we recognize that we are personally forgiven for our own sins in an eternal sense, but we may still reap negative consequences for what we have done. We can trust God to turn even the worst situations into something that will bring him glory and work for our good. (Romans 8:28)

We can also pray (proclaim, declare) for ourselves and our family to be free from any passed down family and corporate judgments (curses). (Galatians 3:13-14)

Overcoming by Repentance and Faith

Christ has already broken the power of the curse of the Law, but we must apply his victory to our lives by faith.

Paul wrote the following declaration of victory by our Lord.

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE"— 14  in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Galatians 3:13-14 (NASB) 

Jesus’ death by crucifixion proved biblically that he was under God’s curse in our behalf. The Jewish leaders regarded him as being cursed and thought that he deserved a blasphemer’s punishment, since he claimed to be the divine Son of Man prophesied in Daniel 7:13-14. (Matthew 26:64) Paul further explained the theological import of his becoming a curse on our behalf in his Second Letter to the Corinthians.

He [God the Father] made Him [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NASB) 

Jesus identified himself with our sin. It was as if he were personally guilty of committing all of our sins. The punishment for our accumulated guilt fell on him, which apparently included the experience of being separated from his heavenly Father. This is a mystery that we try to understand and explain as best we can, realizing that we no doubt fall short. But we need some sort of handle to grasp theologically, and Paul gave us one.

The amazing transaction that Father God provided through his Son’s death and resurrection was that Jesus took upon himself the guilt and punishment for our sin and provided us with his perfect and proven righteous standing with God.

He “became” us, so to speak, and now we who believe are joined to him in the Spirit and are “one” with him. (1 Corinthians 6:17)

He became “one” with our sin, and we become one with him and his glorious relationship with Abba!

For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!" 16  The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, Romans 8:15-16 (NASB) 

We joyfully accept this profound mystery. In fact, isn’t all of life a mystery? Even the most educated scientist, if he or she is honest, will admit that we still know very little about this thing called life. Even we who believe know little about eternal life, since we have only experienced a foretaste of it.

And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. 24 We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. 25 But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)  Romans 8:23–25 (NLT)

If Jesus took our sin, guilt, and punishment upon himself and provided us with his right standing with his heavenly Father, then why am I even writing a series of articles on how to deal with generational devastation? Hasn’t this already been handled by the Lord?

The Requirement of Standing by Faith

A careful reading of Isaiah 53 reveals that the same Hebrew verbs are used to describe how Jesus bore our sins and how he carried our sicknesses and diseases. If the first is true, then so is the second. If our sins are forgiven, then we are also healed. The logic is inescapable. This is confirmed in the New Covenant scriptures.

But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. Isaiah 53:5 (NASB) 

When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill. 17  This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “HE HIMSELF TOOK OUR INFIRMITIES AND CARRIED AWAY OUR DISEASES.” Matthew 8:16-17 (NASB)

I imagine you see where I am going with this. Even though Jesus already paid the price to provide for our healing, people still get sick, even Christians. When we do, we are instructed to pray for one another for healing.

Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; 15  and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. James 5:14-15 (NASB) 

If we used the thought process of those who deny the need to intervene in cases of experienced generational devastation, we would simply tell the sick person, “You don’t need prayer. You have already been healed.” This theology would lead us to disobey the clear biblical command to pray for the sick.

Any time our theology encourages us to disobey God, something is fundamentally wrong.

When we pray for the sick, we apply our faith in the finished work of Christ to the present need. When we pray for people experiencing generational devastation, we do the same.

We live in a world that is still largely afflicted with the curse of the Law associated with Adam’s first sin. Even though we have been rescued from eternal death and destruction, we still face physical death and sickness, despite what Christ has already won for us.

We live in a tension between what has already been done in Christ eternally and what remains to be completed in our experience. That is why we need faith.

Experiencing what Christ already has accomplished for us often comes with a battle. That is why it is called “overcoming.” If Satan cannot keep us from believing in Jesus, he will do his best to prevent us from being effective and fulfilled in our service to him.

Even though our “old man” has been crucified in Christ and sin no longer has dominion over us (Romans 6:6,14), we still must apply our faith in his finished work daily in our battle against sin.

Sin still has the power to tempt us, even though Christ’s victory is complete. The ongoing battle does not negate Christ’s victory. It is an  opportunity for us to demonstrate our faith in that victory.

When we encounter evidence of ongoing generational devastation in an individual or family which has confessed Christ as Lord and Savior, it is important first to teach that Christ has already conquered the curse of the Law. It is also necessary to show how to apply this truth in a practical way to experience the freedom Jesus died to give us.

To conclude, an ongoing struggle against sin does not negate Christ’s victory over sin. A battle against sickness does not mean Christ failed to defeat sickness and death.

Likewise, a fight against generational devastation is not an admission that the curse of the Law still has power over us. Instead, it is an opportunity to stand by faith in the finished work of Christ against that which seems to contradict his glorious victory. It is our fight of faith and our opportunity to overcome.

The Elephant in the Room: Ezekiel 18

Those who argue that there is no need to address generational devastation at all considering the efficacy of the New Covenant usually use Ezekiel 18 as a proof text.

"Yet you say, 'Why should the son not bear the punishment for the father's iniquity?' When the son has practiced justice and righteousness and has observed all My statutes and done them, he shall surely live. 20  "The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father's iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son's iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself. Ezekiel 18:19-20 (NASB)  

To understand Ezekiel 18’s impact on the subject of generational devastation, it is necessary to separate judicial judgment and sentencing from the law of sowing and reaping.

For example, if a father is a drug dealer and is apprehended by the law, his children will not go to jail with him. However, they will be negatively impacted by his incarceration. This is simple enough to grasp. The children will suffer the absence of their father in the home, with all that means – lack of income, lack of presence, lack of affirmation, lack of discipline, lack of wisdom and guidance, and lack of protection. The negative effects of the father’s imprisonment may last for a lifetime or even generations, especially if the sons in the family buy into the lie that their lot in life is to follow in their father’s footsteps. Or the daughters may accept the embedded lie that they are not loved and cannot depend on men. The poverty that will likely accompany the loss of their father may limit the children’s access to many things in life and may tempt them to try to better their situation illegally. Also, the absence of a father may contribute to the proliferation of the single mom household pattern, which is all too prevalent today. Many low-income communities are experiencing this type of generational devastation.

Children and others often suffer generationally; even though they are not judicially sentenced for their father’s crimes.

The mechanics of reaping generational devastation, as described above, consist largely of the planting of deeply embedded lies in the hearts and minds of children, which often persist in adulthood. In addition, it may include the creation of traumatic and painful wounds in the hearts of children, which, if left unhealed, can negatively influence decision making and behavior into adulthood. It may also involve demonization, since people, especially young children, may be tempted to befriend evil spirits posing as imaginary friends and “helpers.” This may sound strange, but it happens often and will be covered later.

But let us consider Ezekiel 18 from another angle. Even though God commands us not to punish children in courts of law for the crimes or sins of their fathers, God may do so in his heavenly court.

We have that from no less an authority than our Lord Jesus himself.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,30 and say, 'If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'31 "So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.32 "Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers.33 "You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell? 34 "Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city,35 so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.36 "Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.37 "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.38 "Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! Matthew 23:29-38 (NASB) 

Jesus wept over the children of Jerusalem, knowing that they would reap the whirlwind of God’s judgment, when it finally fell upon the nation in 70 AD at the hands of the Romans. Those children in his hearing would be somewhere around 37 years older when judgment arrived. They would be adults in positions of power and influence at that time of reckoning. Children who were not even yet born were “in” their fathers when their fathers sinned.

Children who were alive when their fathers sinned, as was the case with the children present when Jesus spoke the words above, still reaped the consequences for what their parents did – the judicial punishment for killing the Messiah.

The only way out was for them to repent and renounce the evil deed, which is exactly what happened on the first New Covenant Pentecost.

"Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified." 37  Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?" 38  Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 "For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself." 40  And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation!" 41  So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. Acts 2:36-41 (NASB)  

hose who responded in faith to the Gospel message, were released from the awful prospect of being judged by God for rejecting and killing the Messianic King, but they still lived in a land that was under God’s judgment, because the vast majority of the leadership and populace refused to acknowledge their awful sin.

Unrepentant sin, even that of long dead ancestors, demands that God’s justice and judgment be released. When a person dies, their guilt does not evaporate. It gets passed to succeeding generations, who often replicate and participate in the sins of their fathers.

When children do not renounce the sins of their fathers, according to Jesus, it puts them in agreement with their forefathers. It’s not enough for descendants merely to say, “I did not do it.” From God’s point of view, we did do it, indirectly, perhaps, in and through the actions of our fathers.

As I pointed out earlier, this is hard for a Westerner to swallow; yet, if we are to be biblical in our thinking, we must.

God requires repentance from us on behalf of our fathers, which is one of the first steps in undoing the effects of generational devastation.

The Bible gives us numerous examples of this very thing. (E.g. Nehemiah 9:2; Jeremiah 14:20; Daniel 9:16-21)

In addition to forgiving those who repented, Jesus warned his forgiven followers to flee Jerusalem when they saw God’s wrath in judgment approaching. (Matthew 24:16) As is usually the case, I suppose that there were some who did not heed Christ’s warning and were caught up in the destruction of Jerusalem. Those who did obey escaped. Lot’s rescue from Sodom and Gomorrah was a Old Covenant picture of this. Sometimes, however, descendants cannot escape. An entire nation may get caught in the trap of reaping the whirlwind of God’s judgment. I fear what may be ahead for the USA for the horrific sin of slaughtering over sixty million innocent babies! May God have mercy on us and turn this nation back to him!

Summary

In conclusion, Ezekiel 18 states a principle that human courts of law should not judicially sentence children for the sins or crimes of their parents. However, in God’s heavenly court, when it comes to the judgment due our sins and the sins of our ancestors going back to Adam, this is only true for those who come under the New Covenant through believing the Gospel message and declaring allegiance to the risen Lord Jesus. Jesus took our guilt and punishment upon himself.

Believing the Gospel, however, though it releases us from condemnation to the lake of fire, does not necessarily release us from reaping the consequences of parental and personal sins.

God’s judgment looms over unconfessed and unrenounced generational sin. If the people and leadership of the United States were to suddenly reverse course regarding legalized abortion, repenting, confessing, and renouncing that sin, would that be enough to avert judgment? Only God knows the answer, but it will surely go better for those who do, especially at the final judgment.

Ezekiel 18 does not absolve children from reaping the non-judicial consequences of their forefathers’ sins.

Suffering, embedded lies, traumatic pain, and demonization can devastate families for generations, unless someone decides to stand in the gap. God is raising up intercessors who will approach God’s throne on behalf of their families to ask forgiveness and release from any previous sins and looming judgments, and to pray for blessings to be released in keeping with God’s purposes in the New Covenant. Will you be one of those people?

"Those from among you will rebuild the ancient ruins; You will raise up the age-old foundations; And you will be called the repairer of the breach, The restorer of the streets in which to dwell. Isaiah 58:12 (NASB)

Practical Steps to Freedom

Here are some practical prayer steps we can take to experience freedom from long standing generational devastation.

1. Ask the Holy Spirit to help us identify and bring to the Lord any observed repeating generational devastation in our family line. This includes behaviors, beliefs, addictions, diseases, embedded lies, traumatic hurts, and demonization.
2. As a representative of our families and on behalf of our families, repent for any known ancestral sins and ask Jesus to release our families from any looming judgment associated with past unconfessed and unforgiven sins. (Note: We are not asking Jesus to forgive our ancestors personally. We are asking forgiveness on behalf of the family still alive, who may bear the brunt of judgment against those past sins.)

So those of you who may be left will rot away because of their iniquity in the lands of your enemies; and also because of the iniquities of their forefathers they will rot away with them. 40 ‘If they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their forefathers, in their unfaithfulness which they committed against Me, and also in their acting with hostility against Me— 41 I also was acting with hostility against them, to bring them into the land of their enemies—or if their uncircumcised heart becomes humbled so that they then make amends for their iniquity, 42 then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and I will remember also My covenant with Isaac, and My covenant with Abraham as well, and I will remember the land.  Leviticus 26:39–42 (NASB95)

3. Repent of any personal participation in those same sins.
4. Claim Christ’s victory over generational sins, judgments, and the resulting devastation for ourselves and our families. Remember: Jesus already won the victory at Calvary. (Galatians 3:13-14) We are tapping into that victory by faith. When our faith couples with God’s promises, God’s power is released.
5. Declare Christ’s victory over embedded lies and pray for truth to permeate the family, setting us free. (John 8:31)
6. Declare Christ’s victory over traumatic hurts and pray for his healing to touch every wounded area. (Note: This is covered next in this series.)
7. Declare Christ’s victory over every form of demonization and ask for specific deliverance over family members. (Note: I will cover this in detail later.)
8. Ask the Lord to bless us and our families in a way that directly contravenes the observed generational devastation. For example, if rage has been a problem, ask the Lord to make us gentle and patient. If poverty has been a generational problem, ask the Lord to prosper us and help us become generous givers.
9. Thank the Lord for setting us free, even before we may observe any behavioral change.

When I minister to people for deliverance from generational devastation, I try to go through these steps for every identifiable generational issue. Usually this process is outwardly uneventful, but occasionally the person receiving ministry may have an emotional response which indicates the presence of an embedded lie or traumatic wound. It is possible to encounter demonization when going through this process as well. We may not realize the extent of how Christ is setting us free until later, when we realize we do not react to triggering words or events as we had before. I have seen significant deliverance by praying in the way described above, and I encourage you to give it a try.

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This lesson will show how God helps us to remove deeply embedded lies that are the building blocks for powerful logical arguments that block us from knowing God or believing his promises. One of the major ways Jesus sets us free from bondage is by identifying and removing deeply embedded lies and replacing them with truth.

Once the darkness of the lie is exposed to the light of God’s truth, it loses its power to control us.

According to Paul, these “lie-based” strongholds are built upon sinful logic and reasoning that opposes the truth of God’s Word and tempts us to impugn God’s character.

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,  2 Corinthians 10:3–5 (NASB95)

Satanic lies are extremely deceptive, and often we do not even realize that we believe and serve them until the Holy Spirit shows us.

An important concept for us to grasp is that we can believe one thing in our minds and quite another thing at the heart level.

Lie-based strongholds are built upon stubbornly held internal arguments and conclusions (or speculations) which are based on our observations and experience of life. We may have good theology at an intellectual level but be practical idolators or atheists at the heart level. What we claim to believe may be betrayed by how we act or speak. If there is a disconnect between our words and actions, there may be embedded lies hidden deep in our hearts that must be identified and expelled.

If we react with negative emotions out of proportion to the provocation, this may point to the presence of a painful lie-based stronghold in our lives. What we do, say, and think when we are under pressure can reveal what we really believe down deep.

Unless we allow the Lord to reveal what these lies are and replace them with a revelation of himself and his truth, we likely will stay in bondage. Lie-based strongholds resist most attempts to remove them; so, simple debate is usually fruitless. We cannot reason with fear and unbelief. It takes divine intervention.

An Example of a Logical Stronghold Built on Lies

Over the years I have been privileged to work with many sexual abuse victims. Any person who has experienced the betrayal and traumatic pain associated with abuse as a child at the hands of people who should have protected him or her, will often have great difficulty trusting God for protection as an adult. I think this should be rather obvious.

The argument will probably sound like the following. God did not protect me from being abused when I was young; so, why should I trust him to do so now? Either he was not able to protect me or chose not to protect me then. What is different now? This logic seems to be impregnable because it is based on personal experience, which cannot be denied.

We must concede that God, since he is almighty and sovereign, did allow the abuse to happen. Logically, based on the interpretation of his or her personal experience, the person feels justified in concluding that God cannot be trusted. This argument can hold us tenaciously in its grip despite the Bible’s clear teaching that God is our loving and powerful defender and Keeper. (Psalm 121:7-8) This is a perfect example of a lie-based stronghold, one which I have seen God help several people to overcome.

The foundational lie of this stronghold is that God is not trustworthy. This is the same lie that Satan presented to Eve in the Garden. It is perhaps the most insidious of all lies, especially when we are presented with seemingly inescapable logical proof that it is so. Perhaps you know someone whose faith in God was derailed by such an argument. I do. Anyone captured by this satanic logic is in deep trouble, and without the help of the Holy Spirit, probably will stay enslaved by the lie.

How does God liberate us?

We tend to believe what we see and experience more than we believe God and his promises because deep down we are fiercely independent sinful beings.

When we are born again, we receive a new identity. Our reborn spirit is joined to and loves the Lord. (1 Corinthians 6:17 and 2 Corinthians 5:17). However, even though our spirits are reborn, we still have a connection to Adam’s sinful independence through our yet unresurrected bodies, which the Bible calls “the flesh” (Greek: sarx). We are beings who are a combination of a new creation spirit and an old creation not yet resurrected body. Our souls (mind, will and emotions – the personality) are conflicted as a result. (I have written about this extensively in my series, Living Free in the Spirit.) We have a sort of “split personality.”

For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, 23 but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members.  Romans 7:22–23 (NASB95)

Part of us loves God deeply and wants to serve him, but the “flesh” still wants to be an outlaw and live off God’s grid. The “flesh,” still insists on making its own decisions and evaluations instead of relying upon the Lord and trusting his words. The “flesh” never disappears, until the resurrection, and cannot be rehabilitated. According to Paul, the “flesh” was crucified with Christ and must be constantly put to death by us.

For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. 6 But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.  Romans 7:5–6 (NASB95)

Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.  Galatians 5:24–25 (NASB95)

The flesh wants to be able to provide for itself rather than trust the invisible God. It wants to protect itself, instead of relying on God to be its defender. This reveals that we still hold to a belief that we are better off on our own in life, which is exactly what prompted Adam and Eve to reject God and choose independence so long ago. They failed their test. God helps us to overcome this temptation to opt for a self-directed independence, which allows us to experience the freedom Christ died to give us.

Sinful logic has a very limited perspective and does not factor in God’s wisdom and understanding.

It is not built on any sort of revelation of God or faith in his promises. Think of how modern TV shows and movies are written and produced. Most of them present a version life in which God is never in the picture and people fend for themselves. Karl Marx called religion the “opiate of the masses,” a crutch for weak-minded people who cannot handle life on their own. The “flesh” laps up this sort of logic, which is one reason why so many fall for the lies behind Marxism and evolution, which are God-denying, man-glorifying approaches to life.

The Way Out

If a person who is captured by such a stronghold wishes to experience freedom, he or she must eventually reject their sinful logic and make a decision to rely on what the Bible says about God and his promises.

I can almost hear you thinking, “Yeah, right. That sounds pretty easy but actually is close to impossible.” Exactly! That is why we need God’s help. When we approach God in prayer, asking for his help, he will never let us down. He is more willing to help us to experience freedom than we are to seek it. Jesus already paid the price for our liberation.

The Holy Spirit is waiting for us to ask for his help.

Changing how we think about things is called repentance, which comes from the Greek word metanoeo and means literally to “change the mind.” Changing how we think precedes changing who and what we believe.

Repentance moves us from trusting in ourselves to trusting in God.

Repentance and faith are gifts from God. (Acts 5:31 and Ephesians 2:8) Unless God reveals himself to us in a personal way, we cannot repent or believe using only our own abilities. The Holy Spirit is always at work when people truly repent and trust in God from the heart. Bondage derives from sinful logic, but a heart that turns back to God in simple trust will experience freedom.

That is why it is vital for us to take any of our lie-based logical strongholds directly to the Lord in prayer and ask him to help us with them through his written Word and the Holy Spirit. Lie-based strongholds are always arrogant and proud obstacles that stand between us and knowing God. The only way to destroy such a stronghold is to confront it head on with repentance, humility, and a determination to move forward with faith in God and the truth of his Word. We cannot make it through this process without God’s direct help.

If we suspect the presence of such a stronghold, we can go directly to God in prayer. A good time to do this is when we feel the direct impact of any attached negative emotions, which are smoke indicating the presence of a fire, so to speak. We can ask the Lord why we feel these emotions. The next step is to listen, expecting him to speak to us. It’s a good idea to keep a journal of such prayer times where we record what we believe the Lord reveals to us. It is also a good idea to use a trusted friend or counselor as a “sounding board” to assess what we think we hear God speak to us.

Once we identify the lie, we can ask the Lord to speak his truth to us. The entrance of God’s truth turns on the light, driving out the darkness and setting us free.

The unfolding of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.  Psalm 119:130 (NASB95)

And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  John 8:32 (NLT)

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