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As we continue in our Spiritual Soldier Series about spiritual warfare we come to a battlefield training on generational curses. We’ve just talked about territorial spirits, and many who talk about them talk about generational curses.
Maybe you have a lot of questions about them and want to know more like I did. In five questions I’ll give you the lay of the land on generational curses and an approach to guide you as a Spiritual Soldier as you fight spiritual battles for Christ. Let’s dive in!
What are generational curses?
Most definitions I have seen for generational curses say that a generational curse is passed down from your ancestors to your family as a vice or sinful habit that you continue because you grow up in that environment and become bound up in it.
Like many other Christians, I struggle with the word “curse” for several reasons. First, a person may get the impression that God is the one cursing the family. This is not the case. As we will discuss below God wants to bless you, not curse you.
Second, a generational curse becomes problematic for Christians because Jesus has set you free from anything that would bind you. And third, “curse” does not describe what most people who talk about generational curses mean.
Past the definition people give for generational curses are the behaviors we are ingrained in, behaviors we learn from our parents and family. They become more about the things we don’t even realize are sinful until we become Christians.
As we continue to flesh out this idea of “generational curses” I will further explain better ways to label what we’re talking about. You learn a lot from your family, your parents and grandparents, and your siblings. The things we learn not always beneficial or make us successful in life.
We do not have to be bound by these sinful habits and practices we learn from our ancestors. People often find themselves involved in breaking these curses with certain prayers and declarations. But you don’t need all of that.
What does the Bible say about generational curses?
People get the idea of generational curses from God’s declarations that he punishes sin in the family to the third and fourth generations (Exodus 20:5; 34:7; Numbers 14:18; Deuteronomy 5:9). This sounds like a lot of evidence that God curses people. Let’s look at the context.
When you look at the verses above the first thing you will see is God’s promise to curse the children that follow their father’s example of sinful habits. But look right below these verses and you will notice the blessing that comes from loving God and staying true to Him (Exodus 20:6, for example).
God shows his steadfast love to those who love Him and keep His commandments.. These verses look familiar because they explain how God reacts to idolaters. The sin of idolatry is key here. God visits the sins of the fathers on to the children for generations because the fathers are teaching their children idolatry.
People expand the idea of generational cursing to all kinds of sins passed on from parents to children but in the Bible God visits the sins of the fathers to the children for generations because of idolatry, because they hate God and choose idols.
God doesn’t say anything about cursing generation after generation. He says that He will “visit the iniquity of fathers to their children.” If you learned how to worship other gods from your father, barring other influences in your life you will continue to do what he did.
The same consequences of worshiping idols your father faced, you will face. But you also reap the consequences (I’d rather say rewards or blessings) of showing love to God by obeying His commandments. Your choice to either hate God or love Him brings the results of “curses” or blessing.
The Bible doesn’t talk about cursing families. It shows the consequences of the choices fathers make and teach their children. You teach your children whatever you live. You must realize that children watch their parents as the authorities in their lives.
You set the example for your children. You don’t always have to speak to them about your values and the way you live. Children are very observant of everything their parents and those around them are doing. And they will pick up what you are doing and become just like you.
There is a great song, “Cat’s in the Cradle” that shows how the son becomes like his father. Then at the end of his life when he wants to spend time with his son, the sun has no time because he is too busy for his family like the father was.
With every example in the Old and New Testaments and every biblical person we see this principle. Children pick up some of the sins of their fathers. Isaac lies about his wife (calling her his sister in dangerous situations) just as Abraham does with Sarah (Genesis 12:13; 26:7). David’s sin with Bathsheba as he lusted after her on his rooftop is repeated by his son who sleeps with his wives as he flees Jerusalem for his life (2 Samuel 11; 16:22).
As we have seen, God does not curse families and generations. But the results or consequences of sin extend through parental teaching and family environment to the next generation. Although I can offer examples throughout the Bible that go against the idea of generational curses I want to focus on a strong passage that proclaims the opposite.
Ezekiel 18 teaches that God deals with the individual person, not generations (Ezekiel 18:1-20). God doesn’t punish children for their father’s sins. Ezekiel 18:20 says this outright. Each person is responsible for his or her own sin.
No one can claim that someone else is at fault for their own sin. Each of us must stand before God here or at the judgment for the sins we commit. That’s why God’s grace and forgiveness is so amazing!
Does God curse people, families, and generations?
I am disheartened when Christians talk about curses in their family line or genealogies. Is it true that families can have sinful characteristics or activities in the past? Absolutely. God’s grace and the salvation he affords us is greater than any curse of the past.
When I look at the Bible I don’t see a God who curses people. When God created Adam and Eve he blessed them with prosperity (Genesis 1:28-30). God gives us every good and perfect gift from heaven (James 1:17).
We have already dealt with the passages where God says he will visit iniquity to the third and fourth generation above. But what about in Genesis 3 where God brings the curse as the result of sin?
God speaks of the consequences of Adam and Eve’s choice to rebel against Him and sin (Genesis 3:14-19). But God does not say, “I curse you serpent, woman, or Adam.” All of the verbs that deal with the curse are passive. The curse comes as the result of sin, not God’s judgment through His cursing of creation.
The grammar and way that God talks about the curse are very important. God is not the agent of the cursing. The curse is the result of sin. Just as sin causes death it also causes the curse to come upon all of creation from animals (the serpent) to humans (Adam and Eve) even to the ground.
God does not curse anyone in the Bible. Even the blessings and curses found in Deuteronomy 28 are the result of Israel’s violation of or fidelity to God’s covenant with them. Curses in the Bible are the consequences and results of unfaithfulness and sin. They are not given by God. They are written into the sin and wrong choices of humanity.
Blessings from God are a result of His grace and our faithfulness to Him. These benefits of his blessings we enjoy when we live in right relationship with God and progress as we walk with Jesus. Our salvation affords us freedom from any curse we may have been under.
Paul teaches that Jesus became a curse for us, taking on the curse of the law when He died on the Cross (Galatians 3:13). His blood covers over all our sins and has the power to set us free. Jesus says that the person the Son sets free is free indeed (John 8:36).
Through salvation, you have been set free from everything in your past, and I mean everything. Jesus’ salvation is complete and far-reaching. If there was a generational curse in your past at any point, it is washed away by Jesus’ blood.
How do generational strongholds affect me?
Since God does not curse people I prefer to call these generational strongholds, as my mentor, Pastor Marvin Nimitz, calls them. These may be fortified strongholds your family needs to deal with. But since you are a child of God you are not cursed, and no curse can stand against you.
However, everyone in your family, your friends, close relatives, and anyone else who lives in the same environment is still affected by generational strongholds. These are the people you live with, work with, have relationships with. So a generational stronghold will still affect you externally.
You will be in the same environment. You will still have relationships with these people and they may still talk the same way and do the same things you used to do. But this is the place where your light for Jesus can shine the most.
People will notice that you are no longer bound by these strongholds. They will be curious what has changed. It’s an open door to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with them. Now that you have been set free from these generational strongholds you can help others come to freedom through your testimony.
You show them a different way. Your lifestyle shows how Jesus has demolished generational strongholds from your life. You show them the path to freedom in Christ.
How do I break a generational stronghold?
Once again, if you are a Christian know generational stronghold can stand against you. You have been freed by Jesus through salvation. The first step to breaking a generational stronghold starts with you. Decide the stronghold stops with you.
Stand under your salvation in Christ. Don’t allow anyone to speak these generational strongholds over you. Act as a child of God, countercultural in your behavior, and doing the opposite of your former nature. When people show you hate and anger, show them the love of Christ and His gentleness.
Next, walk in the repentance and forgiveness of God for anything you have done in the past connected with generational strongholds. Continue a life of repentance for any sin you may commit. Declare that you are blessed, free, healed, and whole. You receive everything God has for you.
The next step after repentance is recognition of the truth about your family (Leviticus 26:40-42). Look at the cycles in the past and refused to repeat them in your own family. Discipline yourself to not slip into these former behaviors.
As a Spiritual Soldier for Christ you have the ability to tear down every stronghold (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). You have weapons of spiritual warfare that can break down mental strongholds and everything that opposes Christ. Say with Joshua, “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).
Wrapping Up
Generational curses are footholds the enemy wanted to use against your family and you. But because of the blood of Jesus Christ and your salvation in Him generational curses cannot touch you. You are a free child of God.
You can deal with generational curses and strongholds by addressing them head-on and refusing to repeat the cycles of the past. Pray for your family and witness to them about Jesus and his life-changing transformation. Demonstrate it through your lifestyle. What else have you learned about generational strongholds?
Up Next
Now that we have talked about territorial spirits and generational curses, covering the wide range of the enemies on the spiritual battlefield and some of their tactics we turn to look at the site we are on and see Jesus as our spiritual Victor and Leader in spiritual battles.
Some “deliverance ministries” and Charismatic groups teach the existence of hereditary spirits, also called generational spirits or familial spirits. These entities are thought to be evil spirits that attach themselves to a particular family and harass them through multiple generations. They are demons inherited from one’s ancestors.
Those who teach the existence of hereditary spirits consider them the source of various sins such as pride, lust, perversion, anger, rebellion, fear, and addiction. Generational or hereditary spirits are blamed for “generational curses” that result in poverty, sickness, disease, confusion, failure, and even death. According to the concept of generational spirits, a man struggles with anger issues because he’s being influenced by an “anger demon”—the same demon who provoked his father and grandfather to anger. A woman who struggles with depression is being oppressed by a “depression demon” that was invited into the family by the sin of an ancestor—one who practiced witchcraft, perhaps. Once attached to the family, the demon causes trouble down the lineage.
Usually, deliverance ministries recommend that a person renounce the generational spirits and all the curses his or her family is under, “binding” and “rebuking” all the demons, ordering sickness away, etc. (This must be done out loud, so the demons can hear the rebuke.) The idea is that one must cast out all the demons and break all pacts with the devil made by ancestors. Only then is one free to grow spiritually in Christ.
The idea of hereditary spirits or generational spirits has more in common with paganism than it does with the Bible. Neo-pagans and Wiccans readily admit a belief in generational curses, demons that attach themselves to a certain family, and the idea that occult power can be passed down through one’s family line. In paganism, breaking a generational curse often involves working with one’s (dead) ancestors.
The teaching of generational spirits has no biblical foundation. Some try to defend a belief in generational spirits by pointing to passages such as Deuteronomy 5:9, “I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.” However, it’s important to note that this passage (and others such as Exodus 20:5 and Numbers 14:18) does not mention any spirits. We might call God’s punishment here a “generational curse,” but the text references no generational or hereditary spirit. God was disciplining the rebellious in Israel, but demons are not said to be involved.
The effects of sin (specifically idolatry in Deuteronomy 5) are naturally passed down from one generation to the next. God’s punishment of someone’s children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren has nothing to do with familial demons and everything to do with the consequence of bad choices that affect others in the family. Any type of sinful choice can possibly impact several generations of one’s offspring and cause much suffering.
Further, when a father has a sinful lifestyle, his children are likely to practice the same sinful lifestyle. Implied in the warning of Exodus 20:5 is the fact that children will choose to repeat the sins of their fathers. God promises to punish sin to the third or fourth generation because those generations are committing the same sins their fathers did. But nothing in the Mosaic Law suggests a demon attaching itself to a family.
Also of note, God’s warning to visit iniquity on future generations is part of the Old Testament Law, not New Testament grace. A generational curse was a consequence experienced by a specific nation (Israel) for a specific sin (idolatry). The history books of the Old Testament (especially Judges) contain the record of this divine punishment meted out.
The idea that every sin or problem today can be blamed on a generational curse is unbiblical. The idea of a generational spirit is even less biblical. It is unfortunate that some today are deceived by various notions borrowed from pagan practices, bundled with biblical truth and presented as proper for Christians.
For someone worried about a generational curse or a hereditary spirit, the answer is salvation in Jesus Christ. A Christian is a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). How can a child of God be under God’s curse (Romans 8:1)? Why should one redeemed by God and indwelt by the Holy Spirit fear any demon? “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
Yes, God promised to visit Israel’s sin upon the third and fourth generations, but we need to keep reading. In the very next verse, He promised that He would show “love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments” (Exodus 20:6). In other words, God’s grace lasts a thousand times longer than His wrath.
Dennis Edwards: I am inclined to believe we should use the term generational influences, not curses or demons. God promises to bless a person that loves God with a blessing on his children to a thousand generations. In other words, if we take 4 generations for a 100 years, a thousand generations would be 25,000 years. So if you had one person who loved God in your family a thousand generations ago or equivalent to 25,000 years you would be living under a "generational blessing." That blessing would almost eliminate any possibility of a generational curse.
Remember the curse God put on the Israelites who had seen God’s miracles and had been given His word was specifically to them that hate Him to the third or fourth generation or between 75-100 years. God’s blessing was to a thousand generations. 1,000 times 25 years equals 25,000 years. If the Bible chronological record is true, mankind hasn't lived on earth for that long. We can pray against any negative influences of our parents, but I believe the term "generational curses" is not Biblically accurate. It seems to indicate that the demonic spirits that opposed your parents have attached themselves to you and your descendants to the 3rd or 4th generation.
The verses in Deuteronomy 5:9-10 in the KJV don't actually say "a thousand generations," like I thought, but rather, "And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments." So my analogy, though convincing, may not be correct. I did find "a thousand generations" used in some other translations. However in Ezekiel 18:20 God says, "The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him." In other words, no generational curse. Of course the sins of the fathers do affect their children, but I would call them generational influences, behavioural influences, and not generational curses.
Jesus has freed us from any and all curses. If we walk in newness of life, the Holy Spirit gives us power over our temptation to sin. "Whom the Son has freed, is free indeed." John 8:36. The Old Testament says, "Cursed in the man who trusts in man and who has made flesh his arm, whose HEART has departed from the Lord." Jeremiah 17:5. When we depart from the Lord and trust in ourselves, we in a sense "curse" ourselves. But when we repent and come back to the Lord his mercies are renewed like the morning.
Deuteronomy 7:9. "Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keeps covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations." I thought I had read a blessing to a thousand generations. Maybe that analogy is not wrong after all.
Dennis Edwards: An interesting study by Dr. Missler. Dr. Missler is saying that before the final attempted invasion of Israel of Ezekiel 38 & 49, Israel may have defeated their enemies, as predicted in Psalm 83. I agree with his idea that Ezekiel 38/39 is post rapture as it's the same event found in Revelation 19, the Battle of Armageddon, which takes place at the end of the 75 days of wrath.
Tracy grew up in the church, but when her identification as queer contradicted her Evangelical upbringing, she decided she no longer fit within that tradition. Through the teachings of Richard Rohr, she found a spiritual home with the practice of contemplative spirituality. Tracy’s experience mirrors that of many millennial ex-Evangelicals who have discovered a spiritual mentor and teacher in the Franciscan priest, author, and founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC), Richard Rohr.
The CAC website describes Rohr as “a globally recognized ecumenical teacher bearing witness to the universal awakening within Christian mysticism and the Perennial Tradition.” Rohr’s teachings are gaining influence, especially among millennials who grew up in the Evangelical church. He is particularly influential in the progressive Christian movement and is referred to as a spiritual father, hero, and mentor by well-known progressive voices. He is endorsed by progressive leaders like Rob Bell, Jen Hatmaker, William Paul Young, Michael Gungor, and Brian McLaren, to name just a few. As Rohr gains popularity, it becomes increasingly more important for church leaders to be aware of his teachings and their widespread influence. In this article, I’ll take a look at Rohr’s view of the Bible, the cross, and the gospel.
Richard Rohr’s view of the Bible
Historically, Christians have believed that the Bible is the inspired and authoritative Word of God. Following Jesus’ own example, Christians have affirmed over the centuries that the Scriptures are internally coherent, without error, and infallible. However, Rohr holds a much different view of the Bible: The Jewish Scriptures, which are full of anecdotes of destiny, failure, sin and grace, offer almost no self-evident philosophical or theological conclusions that are always true. . . . We even have four, often conflicting versions of the life of Jesus in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. There is no one clear theology of God, Jesus, or history presented, despite our attempt to pretend there is.
Rohr interprets the Scriptures using what he calls the “Jesus Hermeneutic.” He writes:
…The text moves inexorably toward inclusivity, mercy, unconditional love, and forgiveness. I call it the “Jesus Hermeneutic.” Just interpret Scripture the way Jesus did! He ignores, denies, or openly opposes his own Scriptures whenever they are imperialistic, punitive, exclusionary, or tribal. Contrary to what Rohr teaches, Jesus never ignored, denied, or openly opposed the Old Testament Scriptures. In fact, as I argue in this paper, Richard Rohr’s “Jesus Hermeneutic” not only fails to offer any legitimate Scriptural support, but taken as a whole, the biblical data gives us an entirely opposite view of how Jesus handled the Scriptures. The truth is Jesus never once declared or implied that the Scriptures were anything but fully truthful and to be obeyed. Jesus affirmed the Old Testament to be the inspired, authoritative, historically reliable, inerrant, infallible, imperishable Word of God—and that it was all about himself.
Richard Rohr’s view of the cross
Historically, Christians have believed Jesus died on the cross for our sins, taking our deserved punishment upon himself. This is not only affirmed in Scripture, and taught by Jesus himself, but it goes back to the earliest creed in Christianity, which pre-dates the New Testament by about twenty years. However, according to Rohr, the idea of a God who would require the blood sacrifice of his son is “problem-oriented.” Of the atonement, Rohr writes:
I believe that Jesus’ death on the cross is a revelation of the infinite and participatory love of God, not some bloody payment required by God’s offended justice to rectify the problem of sin. Such a story line is way too small and problem-oriented.
According to Rohr, Jesus didn’t need to die on the cross. It’s your “false self” that needs to die, not someone else. He refers to substitutionary atonement as a “strange idea” that leads to a “transactional” theology. Contrary to Rohr, Scripture teaches substitutionary atonement, Jesus affirmed it, along with early Christians.
Richard Rohr’s view of the gospel
Historically, the Christian gospel is the proclamation of the good news of salvation. This has been understood through the lens of God’s redemptive acts throughout history. It began with the creation of the universe and mankind. After sin was introduced into the world by the rebellion of Adam and Eve, God provided a means of redemption and reconciliation through the atoning work of Jesus on the cross. Those who accept this provision of salvation will be given eternal life with God. But for those who reject this gift of grace, the Bible describes their eternal punishment separated from God's love and goodness.
However, according to Rohr, the idea of a God who “doles out punishment” is unhealthy, cheap, and toxic. He does believe Jesus died, was buried, and was resurrected. However, he separates Jesus and Christ into two separate entities, with Jesus being nothing more than a “model and exemplar” of the human and divine united in one human body. And in Rohr’s view, Christ is a cosmic reality that is found “whenever the material and the divine co-exist—which is always and everywhere.” He implicitly denies the deity of Jesus. He writes: “We spent a great deal of time worshiping the messenger and trying to get other people to do the same. . . . [Jesus] did ask us several times to follow him, and never once to worship him.” This “Cosmic Christ” is a New Age idea that Rohr is promoting as “Christian.”
Rohr also believes all religions share the same core truth and are all paths to truth (perennialism). He openly affirms panentheism, a view of the nature of God that teaches God is in all, all is in God, but God also transcends the world. This carries troubling implications for his view of the Trinity and the nature of Christ. He said: "The Universe is the body of God….yes, it’s the second person of the Trinity in material form."
Through his books and his highly popular teachings on the Enneagram, Richard Rohr is rapidly gaining influence in the Christian church. But church leaders would do well to be aware of what Rohr actually teaches about the Bible, the cross, and the gospel. Faithful Christians should avoid his teachings at all costs.
