Today I was talking to a friend who brought up generational curses. The conversation made me want to learn more about it. I have heard this term many times, but never fully researched. I always thought it meant a negative trend in your family. Like teen pregnancy, adultery, poverty or mental illness. I wanted to know how they start and how do you break the curse.
“Generational Curse” is a term used to describe the overall effect on us today of things our ancestors did, believed or practiced in the past. It is the consequence of an ancestor’s actions, beliefs and sins being passed down through each generation to the next.
Some Christian counseling manuals now advocate determining if generational curses are causing a person’s problems. Some of these manuals give specific problems which they feel are signs that a curse is at work in a person. The list includes but is not limited to mental and emotional breakdowns, breakdowns in marriage, recurring or serious illness, financial needs, lack of success in business, poverty, barrenness, oppression, depression, and rebellious children.
This type of curse is the pronouncement of a curse upon a person, place, or thing. The Bible has no incidences of anyone being able to place a real curse on anyone else, except when they were pronouncing a curse directly from God. Each curse was a result of God judging sin. All true curses and all true blessings come from God. Each time anyone pronounced a real curse they spoke on behalf of God and used His power.
The term “generational curse” is not used in the Bible. God handing down judgment on one generation for the sins of the prior generation is a biblical principle. The things your ancestors did can affect you. For instance, statistics show that children of broken homes are much more likely to have their marriages end in divorce. Children who grow up physically abused are much more likely to abuse their children.
Who does the curse effect? The Old Testament applies the curse of the law only to those who have sinned and walked away from God. The curse continues onto the next generation only when a person continues in the same idolatry or rebellion their father did. In this way God places an ever increasing pressure on them to repent. If the next generation believes and follows God the curse is removed. In neither the Old, nor New Testament does the “curse” apply to believers.
“Generational Curse” is a term used to describe the overall effect on us today of things our ancestors did, believed or practiced in the past. It is the consequence of an ancestor’s actions, beliefs and sins being passed down through each generation to the next.
Some Christian counseling manuals now advocate determining if generational curses are causing a person’s problems. Some of these manuals give specific problems which they feel are signs that a curse is at work in a person. The list includes but is not limited to mental and emotional breakdowns, breakdowns in marriage, recurring or serious illness, financial needs, lack of success in business, poverty, barrenness, oppression, depression, and rebellious children.
This type of curse is the pronouncement of a curse upon a person, place, or thing. The Bible has no incidences of anyone being able to place a real curse on anyone else, except when they were pronouncing a curse directly from God. Each curse was a result of God judging sin. All true curses and all true blessings come from God. Each time anyone pronounced a real curse they spoke on behalf of God and used His power.
The term “generational curse” is not used in the Bible. God handing down judgment on one generation for the sins of the prior generation is a biblical principle. The things your ancestors did can affect you. For instance, statistics show that children of broken homes are much more likely to have their marriages end in divorce. Children who grow up physically abused are much more likely to abuse their children.
Who does the curse effect? The Old Testament applies the curse of the law only to those who have sinned and walked away from God. The curse continues onto the next generation only when a person continues in the same idolatry or rebellion their father did. In this way God places an ever increasing pressure on them to repent. If the next generation believes and follows God the curse is removed. In neither the Old, nor New Testament does the “curse” apply to believers.
Comments