-Bringing GodSense to Common sense
Cursed or Not isn’t the Issue
By Michael James Stone
Haiti is in Crisis, we say Haiti to mean all the people that were there when a 7. Earthquake hit. The fact is people are suffering, people are dying, people are in need.
Some say what does that have to do with me?
What does the suffering of people in a ‘natural’ disaster have to do with me? What if like Pat Robertson said, it is a curse of God on the land for choosing Voo Doo? Doesn’t ‘cursed people’ mean I don’t have to care?
Some people say they don’t have to look, so they don’t have to act.
Jesus understood these reactions to the plight of people every day he was alive on earth. His family was illegal aliens in Egypt when running for his life, Joseph took Mary and Jesus and became displaced refugee’s in Egypt. Not much is said about those days, not much need be. Rome was in control so all obeyed Roman Law, but Egypt was no safe haven, Jesus was a refugee.
Growing up living in oppression. Jesus knew many of his people felt like slaves. Political parties vied for control of the puppet government, Terrorist (Zealots) sought to kill enough Romans to cause even Caesar to treat the land as unmanageable.
Conservatism religious expression became political. Poor people were taxed enormously. Bankers made money and speculators used all sides to move into power. This was in Jesus Day, not ours, though some would say it looks a lot like today.
Jesus had a rather interesting comment about a catastrophe in His Day:
1There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
2And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?
3I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
4Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?
5I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
The Tower of Siloam was a Big Deal. Poor labor by itinerant Galileans, often despised for being manual laborers, they had been farmers and fishermen, religious, but some drank, some worked as day laborers. Every country has them….,
Old Testament warnings contained a blessing and a curse about mixed mortar and those who use shoddy means for construction, it warns, if you do, destruction will follow.
Haitian Construction is shoddy. Of course, not much stands at 7.0 and almost on top of Epic Center. The fact is construction fell. The fact, like a floor that fell in Israel at a wedding party when overloaded and killed many Jews, death does occur.
It occurs when you least expect it.
And God knows when.
Since He knows when, some say he plans it.
I say He plans for salvation. He plans to save life before death occurs. He often gives warnings to that effect.
Jesus apparently knew the heart of people to judge and make snap decisions on things they could not see. He knew, living in Galilee, that Galileans were treated worse than second class citizens. It was a common dialogue to treat Galileans as less sophisticated and those from Nazareth as just no good. Especially since Roman cities were so “near" to each.
Jesus, since he died and rose again, took upon himself “the sting of death” but also, the ‘curse of the law’. He took it. He took all curses and all plagues, all the misconceptions about life and eternity and said. It is accomplished. It is finished.
Curses of mankind? Accomplished. Curses of damnation? Finished. All that man had for a reason to not find God, know God, seek God and have a relationship with God, was removed and opportunity to “hear God” was opened to all by Jesus dying.
Jesus did it to remove the curse that had us far from God.
The Haitian Issue was brought up by Jesus Freaks and Randy Stonehill back in the 70’s. Many Missionaries went back then to Haiti and started much of what lasted even to this day. They went because it was where people did things to people and get away with it because of the poverty of the people.
The people were used as pawns for wealthy, a lot like Thailand, or other Far Eastern locations people don’t talk about what they do. Vegas is nothing compared to the world at large and the “real what happens there, nobody cares” places you can ‘buy what you want’. People, murder, slavery, babies, sex, drugs, labor, you name it, it can be done there.
Jesus sees.
Jesus cares about Haiti back then and he does today in crisis. And tomorrow in construction. He sees our reactions and will Bless America for it. Like blessing Israel, we as THE Christian nation, among others, will help now. Some of will keep helping, we will suffer alongside.
We will be there in crisis and need, but like Christians who already went because it is the poorest in the West, we Christians will be there after the crisis is over and rebuild without the cameras and popular support.
Those are good for a quick fix but not lasting change. It takes God and it takes Christians.
We will be there because it is opportunity to show the reality of Jesus. The real Jesus that like all persecuted people, he is acquainted with grief and has borne sorrows. He lived it. He talked about it. He gave his life that we might meet all people as they are where they are.
He never left them, nor did he forsake them, or you.
Who cares who is cursed?
You were, I was, we still are if not for Jesus.
But for Jesus sake, and in the name of his Father in Heaven, we go.
Suppose ye that these Galilaeans (Haitians) were sinners above all the (Haitians) Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?
NO.
