If forgiveness can heal sickness, why not curses?

God’s forgiveness does not remove curses because of the iniquity, just as He forgave David for committing murder and adultery, yet He made his own son, Absalom to sleep with his wives fulfilling the curse to it’s very word. However, we see the sick healed when Jesus forgives them. If Christ’s forgiveness can heal sickness on many people, why not God’s forgiveness removes curses? Sickness through curses referred here are from forefather’s sins and curses inherited from them. Let’s investigate this topic from Scriptures.

Christ forgives their sins, not their forefather’s

There are only two reasons why someone will become sick. Either it is for sins or for God’s glory. We will not be discussing about sickness due to God’s glory for He will reveal His works on the sick in His own time.

Isa 33:24 And the inhabitant will not say, “I am sick”; The people who dwell in it will be forgiven their iniquity.

The Scripture is very clear that the sickness is primarily due to our iniquity.

Mark 2:5 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” … (9-12) “Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Arise, take up your bed and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”–He said to the paralytic, I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.” Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

Jesus, after seeing their faith, forgives the sins of the paralytic and he gets healed. The sick gets healed when their sins are forgiven by God.

Mark 2:17 When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

Luke 24:46-47 Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

Jesus compares Himself to be a physician and sinners as those who are sick, and His purpose is to call sinners to repentance for remission of their sins. In situations where Christ healed the sick by forgiving them, the sins were always a punishment for their own sins and not an inherited curse. For instance, Jesus during several occasions clearly mentioned (e.g., Matt 9:2) that the sick person’s sins were forgiven and the sick immediately gets healed.

Christ heals when suffering was long enough

John 5:5-6 A certain man was there, who had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had been sick for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to be made well?” … (13-14) But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place. Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, “Behold, you are made well. Sin no more, so that nothing worse happens to you.”

While the specifics of the sin done by the man suffering thirty eight years of sickness was not mentioned, Jesus does clearly warn him not to sin again and have a worse thing come upon him.

It is also important to note that the gospels reveals the following:

  • The sick man neither asked God for forgiveness nor repented for his sins
  • Jesus never said anything about forgiving the sick man’s sins.
  • The sick man never had any faith in Jesus.
  • The sick man does not even know Jesus.

The above passage by no means suggests that Christ will come to every sinner and cure their sickness without they seeking Him or having faith in Him or not knowing Him. But rather, this event shows that the man had suffered “long enough” for his sins by being sick for thirty eight years, implying his due was over or suffered enough for the sins he had done.

Did Jesus heal sickness due to inherited curses?

While Jesus cured several diseases and sickness, there is no reference of any healing of sickness through curses. Sickness through curses referred here are from forefather’s sins and curses. This doesn’t mean He can’t heal but rather, such details were not explicitly mentioned. In order to identify a sickness from an inherited curse, it must be from birth. There is only one reference of a healing that involves a man born blind and the way Jesus cured was completely different.

John 9:1-5 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him. I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

What works was Jesus referring to?

John 9:6-7 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And He said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.

Gen 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Jesus is creating his eyes with mud, just as God created Adam with mud in the beginning. Through this work, He is showing that He is the same God who created Adam in the beginning in the same way. Apart from this healing, there are no miracles that involve someone born with disease or sickness.

John 9:32 “Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind.

The above verse clearly reveals that no other miracle of Jesus which He opened the eyes were born blind except the one mentioned above.

Matt 9:28-30 And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. And Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.” Then He touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith let it be to you.” And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, “See that no one knows it.”

For those who are not born blind, Jesus simply touches their eyes and heals them.

Exod 4:11 So the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the LORD?

Jesus did not heal anyone born with sickness except the man born blind in John 9 is because, people born with some sickness are specifically from God as He spoke to Moses in the above verse. In the case of man born blind whom Jesus cured, this was also from God but to reveal His work in Christ. Hence, Christ did not heal anyone with sickness due to inherited curse, i.e., born with sickness.

Rev 21:4 “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” … (22:3) And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him.

In the new heavens and new earth, the following things will cease to exist:

  1. Death
  2. Sorrow
  3. Crying
  4. Pain
  5. Curse

The above things are not removed by Christ’s death and resurrection. As long as we are in this heaven and earth, death, sorrow, crying, pain and curse will exist. Christ did not remove death but through His death, He provided a way to eternal life when we die. Christ also never said there will not be any sorrow, crying, pain or curse in this heaven and earth. Interestingly, sickness isn’t one of them that ceases in new heaven and earth, even though sickness can cause death, sorrow, crying, pain and it can occur due to a curse. This doesn’t mean sickness will exist in new heavens and earth, but on the contrary, we don’t have to wait until the new heaven and new earth for it to get ceased.

Luke 9:1 Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

When Jesus called the twelve and sent them out to preach His kingdom, He gave authority over all demons, to cure diseases and heal the sick. If we have the kingdom of heaven within us, there will not be any sickness in us.

Conclusion

Christ forgave the sins of many and healed their sickness because of their own sins. He cast out demons and healed their sickness caused by them. However, we cannot find any birth-related sickness due to inherited curses for forefather’s sins. It is important to note that we had discussed only the curses that cause sickness and not other curses in descendants. The only person born blind was healed not by touching or speaking a word but by mud, showing the work of God to be revealed in Him that He is creating the eyes just like God created man in the beginning from dust. Scripture clearly says that birth related sicknesses are from God and Christ is not going against it. All curses including death will not end as long as we are in this heaven and earth. Until the new heavens and earth, let us be careful in not doing iniquity which brings curses upon our descendants.

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