The Blessing and Curse of Mission


Sermon by Ed Hartman on February 21, 2021 Galatians 3:8-14

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I invite you to take your Bible and turn with me to Galatians chapter 3. Most of you know that my family and I moved to Eastern Europe, to the country of Romania, where we launched a church planting team with Mission to the World. I remember during our first year of living in that country where we did not yet speak that language and we were learning to understand that culture, a young man who was very active in the community organized an event and asked me to speak. And he told me that he would arrange for a translator. And so I preached on Galatians chapter 3 to a surprisingly large audience who had no idea who I was, but did know who he was. He was involved in one of the political parties of that region. So I preached on Galatians 3:8-14, he translated, and when I finished the sermon I prayed, and like a good Presbyterian, I sat down! Well he looked at me with surprise on his face and he jumped up and he said, “That was an awesome picture of what Jesus came to do! He became a curse for us so that we could become the blessing! He exchanged our sin for His righteousness. Who would like to receive that as their own? Stand up if you want to receive that!” And he did an altar call! And to my surprise, four people stood up – two men and two women – and he led them in prayer and they prayed to receive Christ on that day.

We discipled those four and the two men in particular we met with them every Tuesday morning at 6am for seven years. And those two men launched the first Romanian speaking church plant alongside our team and then were used to launch a university ministry and to begin a center that trained other church planters across the country of Romania. And even this day, Sunday, those two men are preaching and leading in worship and training in evangelism for people all across that country.

Now here’s the question. Why would we be so surprised that God would actually do what He’s promised to do in His Word – to exchange the curse for His eternal blessing; our sin for His righteousness. And when we see that happening, why are we so surprised? I’d like you to hold that question in your mind because that’s what lies at the core of mission. We look around the sanctuary and see the flags from so many different countries hanging along the walls of the balcony, realizing that these are the places to which we have sent church planters, missionaries, campus ministers. Today, and every day this week, they are ministering the Gospel to people who have not yet heard or have heard and have been unmoved by that message.

I want us to think about why we do mission and I want us to think about it from the perspective of the blessing and the curse of mission. Let’s pray together, and then we’ll read the passage.

Father, we come before You asking that by Your grace You would minister to us. Cause our hearts to be filled with wonder and with joy and with passion as we are reminded afresh of the wonder of the Gospel, the beauty of the Gospel – that it is ours and that You have condescended not just to make us to be Yours but to use us to invite others into the family. Would You help us to see more clearly than ever before the beauty of Jesus, the glory of the Gospel, and the joy of the mission that You have set before us. We ask in Jesus’ name, amen.

Galatians chapter 3, verses 8 through 14. Paul writes:

“And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be blessed.’ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.’ Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’ But the law is not of faith, rather ‘The one who does them shall live by them.’ Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us – for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’ – so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.”

This is God’s Word. May He drive it deep into our hearts this evening.

One way of presenting the Gospel in thinking about the mission is to see Jesus as the one who was cursed in order to bless, not just to bless us, but to bless the nations. That’s what mission is centered around. But to see Jesus that way – the one who was cursed in order to bless – you have to first understand what the Bible means by cursing and blessing. And to help us see that more clearly, and in that, to help us see mission more clearly, I want us to use an Old Testament illustration. It’s a familiar story; one I suspect you have already heard. It’s of a historical event that took place roughly 4,000 years ago. It’s recorded for us in Genesis 27. If you have your Bible open you can turn back to there. We’ll come back in just a moment to Galatians chapter 3.

But I’d like to tell you the story of Isaac and his wife, Rebekah. You remember Isaac; he was the son, the only son of Abraham, the patriarch, the one who is spoken of in Galatians 3. Isaac grew up in Abraham’s family; a wealthy but rather conflicted home. Isaac was married to a very beautiful woman, Rebekah. They had a happy marriage, mostly happy, except for the pain of infertility. You see, Rebekah was barren. For twenty years they pleaded with God for a child. And the pain of that infertility was particularly intense because God has promised them what He had also promised Isaac’s father, Abraham – that they would have children and children’s children; more than could be counted. As a matter of fact, in Genesis 26:4, God says to Isaac, “I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands. And in your offspring, in your offspring, Isaac, all the nations on the earth will be blessed.” But no baby. Year after year. Month after month, every month another reminder – no baby, no pregnancy. For twenty years. Until God answered and Rebekah became pregnant. And she discovered that it wasn’t just one child she was carrying but twins! Amazing! God promised and He delivered, not just one child but two.

And with that fulfillment God made a mysterious promise – Genesis 25:23. He said, “You have two children growing within you and the older will serve the younger.” Now that was unheard of in that ancient near eastern world because in that world the firstborn was always the blessed one. He inherited the double portion of everything that belonged to his father. He was the one with authority. He was the one with the birthright. He was the one who ruled all those who would follow him. He would be the next patriarch. But God said to Rebekah, to her in particular, “The older, the firstborn, will serve the younger. It is through the younger that My promise will be fulfilled, and it is through the younger that all the nations on earth will be blessed.”

Well the twins were born and they grew up and Genesis 25 tells us that this is what they became. Verse 27, “When the boys grew up, Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field, while Jacob was a quiet man dwelling in tents. Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah, Rebekah loved Jacob.” And it was she who remembered God’s mysterious words to her, “The older will serve the younger.”

Well the years passed quickly until Isaac awakened to find himself an old man, not just frail, feeble, but now blind. Here’s where Genesis 27 begins. “When Isaac was old and his eyes were dim so that he could not see, he called Esau his older son and said to him, ‘My son, behold, I am old. I do not know the day of my death. Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me and prepare for me food, delicious food, such as you know I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat that my soul may bless you before I die.’” Now slow down for a moment. You may not understand all that is meant in this blessing that Isaac is preparing to give to his son as soon as he goes out and kills a deer, skins it, prepares a meal and grills him roasted meat for him to eat so that his soul may bless Esau, the firstborn.

The blessing in that ancient near eastern context, blessing wasn’t just words of wishful thinking – “God bless you. I hope things go well for you. May God be good to you and merciful to you.” There wasn’t any “maybe” in the blessing. The blessing of that ancient near eastern world was words of power, words of power that declared worth, established identity and status and authority; words that gave special access to God and His favor. The blessing declared the true identity of the firstborn as prized and treasured. The blessing decreed a future of fullness and wholeness. The blessing, in short, was life changing and future shaping. That was the power of that blessing. And you see how powerful it was when you discover, later in the chapter, what happened when Esau learned that he wasn’t going to get it; how grief filled he was and how furious he became at his brother and how determined he was to kill him because the blessing had slipped through his fingers. More on that later.

So having heard his father’s instructions, Esau leaves his father, weapons in hand, to go hunting. But as the firstborn heads to the woods, Rebekah, Isaac’s wife, goes in search of the second born. Why? Because while Isaac was speaking to the firstborn, Rebekah’s ear was pressed to the wall of the tent and she overheard that conversation. Her favorite, not his, was the one to be the blessed one. “The older shall serve the younger,” God had said it, and her husband was not going to undo that. So she took matters into her own hands and she found Jacob and she said to him, “There’s no time to lose. We have to get ahead of this. I just heard your father planning to give your brother the firstborn blessing that God has promised to you. It’s not going to happen. We are going to circumvent this plan.” So she told Jacob to go out to the flocks and slaughter two prime young goats and bring them to her. She would prepare them to perfection, just the way she knew her husband loved. Then, he would bless Jacob thinking he was Esau.

But Jacob was terrified at that plan. He told his mother, “What if I’m caught? He’s blind but he’s not stupid! Even if I don’t say a word, he’s bound to touch me, and if instead of feeling the hairy son that he loves” – Esau was born hairy, hairy all his life – “instead of feeling the hairy son he loves he feels my smooth skin, he’ll know I’m deceiving him.” And here are Jacob’s words in Genesis 27:12, “And then I shall seem to be mocking him and bring a curse upon myself and not a blessing.” And Rebekah’s words in response to Jacob’s terror are stunning. Let these words ring in your mind. She said, “Let the curse fall on me so that you may receive the blessing.” “Let the curse fall on me so that you may receive the blessing.” What Jacob was most terrified of – being cursed – his mother said, “Let it fall on me. This is how important it is that you receive the blessing.”

So the deception unfolded. Jacob did as his mother instructed and she set to work in desperation. As the meal was being prepared, she gathered up Esau’s unwashed clothes and dressed Jacob in them. She knew Isaac couldn’t see the clothes so he would rely on his sense of smell. She knew he would rely on his sense of touch, so she took some of the skins from the just now slaughtered goats that were still soft and tied them around Jacob’s hands and his forearms and his neck so that when Isaac pulled him close to kiss him and hug him, he would feel the furry skin on the back of his neck and he would feel the furry skin on his forearms and on his hands that brought to him the meal so that when the second born entered the tent of his father, smelling like the firstborn, wrapped in skins that felt like the firstborn, carrying in his arms a meal of imitation wild game that tasted like the meal prepared by the firstborn, the second born would steal the firstborn blessing.

Let me read to you how it unfolded straight out of Genesis 27 verse 18. “So Jacob went into his father and said, ‘My father,’ and Isaac said, ‘Here I am. Who are you, my son?’” – or better, “‘Which of you is it?’ Jacob said to his father, ‘I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Now sit up and eat of my game that your soul may bless me!’ But Isaac said to his son, ‘How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?’” The answer, “‘Because the Lord your God granted me success.’ Then Isaac said to Jacob, ‘Please come near that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.’” You can imagine the hesitation. Verse 22, “So Jacob went near to Isaac his father who felt him and said, ‘The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands, the hands are the hands of Esau.’ And he did not recognize him because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands. So he blessed him and said, ‘Are you really my son, Esau?’ And Jacob answered, ‘I am.’ And Isaac said, ‘Bring it, bring the food near to me that I may eat of my son’s game and bless you.’ So he brought it near to him and he ate and he brought him wine and he drank. Then his father Isaac said to him, ‘Come near and kiss me, my son.’ So Jacob came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said, ‘See,’” – this is the man who is blind. He said, “‘See, the smell of my son is the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed!’” He smells like wet dirt! And then the words of blessing, the life changing, future shaping words of blessing – “May God give you of the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth and the plenty of grain and wine. Let peoples serve you and nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you and blessed be everyone who blesses you.” And it was done. The blessing, the life changing, future shaping blessing was declared. His life was changed irrevocably. Only it wasn’t the son that Isaac intended. It was his younger son, the son that God had intended. The older would in fact serve the younger.

Now we’ll leave for another day the aftermath – the anger of Esau, the betrayal, the sense of betrayal of Isaac, the alienation between Isaac and his wife who deceived him, the fury and rage of Esau at his younger brother Jacob who swindled him again, the threat of murder, the loss of relationship, the banishment of Jacob. Jacob never saw his mother alive again after that. She never saw him. Jacob spent the next decades without relationship with his father or brother or mother. That’s for another day.

But I want to come back to the earlier question that grows out of Galatians 3. What does all this have to do with mission? And how does understanding the ancient near eastern blessing equip us and embolden us for mission? Well let me read to you again Galatians 3, verses 8 through 14, and I want you to listen for the words of blessing and cursing, because “blessing,” you’ll read about three times, “cursing” five times. But listen to these words with the ancient near eastern understanding of what the blessing really is – the life changing, future shaping understanding of this blessing of God Himself. Galatians 3:8:

“And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be blessed.’ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.’

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us – for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’ – so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.”

Do you remember what Rebekah said to her younger son at his reluctance to go forward with her plan? Do you remember her words? “Let the curse fall on me so that you may receive the blessing.” I want you to think about Jesus in light of those words, because Jesus, the true firstborn – the Bible speaks of Him as the firstborn of all creation. The book of Revelation speaks of Him as the firstborn from the dead. Jesus, the true firstborn, on the cross becomes the true Rebekah. Because on the cross as the sins of all those for whom He died fall upon Him, Jesus spreads His arms wide and He uses Rebekah’s words and says, “Let the curse fall on me so that you may receive the blessing. So that in Me, all the nations of the earth may be blessed. So that in Me, the blessing of Abraham would go to all the peoples, all the nations, all the Gentiles.” Christ, Galatians 3:13, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.” He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to us. It all points to Christ. In Christ Jesus shall all the nations be blessed.

We’re right back to the Gospel, aren’t we? As we look at all these flags and all the nations, the peoples that they represent, including our own flag and our own nation, our own state and our own city and our own neighborhoods. This is what is most needed and this is what mission centers upon. We go on mission to places and people under the curse, still bearing the effects of the curse, with the invitation of Jesus, the true Rebekah, who says, “Let your curse fall on me. Let me be treated as your curse deserves so that you may receive my blessing, my life changing, future shaping blessing with its new identity, its new status, its new access, unhindered access to the Father, and all the joy, the freedom, the authority, the beauty that comes with this unhindered access to the one from whom you have been separated because of that curse. Let that curse fall on Me,” Jesus says. That’s the message of the Gospel, and this is why we do mission – so that men and women, boys and girls in places under the curse, including this city, your place, your neighborhood, would make this exchange – their curse going to Jesus; Him being treated the way our curse deserves. That’s the cross. And in exchange, we receive that blessing – life changing, future shaping, irrevocable eternal blessing of God. This is why we do mission.

So two questions in closing. One, have you made that exchange? Or are you still living under the curse? Do you feel the effects of the curse still upon you? And you can see them – the guilt, the shame, the fear, the dressing up in other people’s clothes, the need to prove yourself, the need to try to earn an identity, to seek the approval of the people whom you admire, the outsiderness that so many of us feel. Have you made that exchange and are you living in light of that exchange? The curse falling upon Jesus so that His righteousness, His blessing becomes yours, irrevocably and eternally.

And if you have made that exchange and are living in that exchange then the second question to you is, “Is this your passion?” That this invitation of Jesus, “Let the curse fall on me that My eternal blessing would become yours,” is that your message to the people among whom you live? Is it your passion to see that message go to peoples living in places all across the world represented by these flags and flags yet to be hung in this building? Is that your passion?

I want you to see that they are inextricably linked. The two go together, so much so that Charles Spurgeon has once said that, “I will not believe that you have tasted the honey of this Gospel if you are content to eat it by yourself.” If you truly understand this invitation of Jesus, “Let the curse fall on Me that the blessing may become yours,” if you understand the significance, the life changing, future shaping, irrevocable power and promise in this Gospel, then it will become your passion to see that beauty and that freedom be embraced by those whom you love, those in your family, those alongside of who you live and work, and those to whom we are sending missionaries, church planters, and campus ministers. That’s the mission and this is our privilege for which we will celebrate the worth of the Lamb for all eternity. Let’s bow together in prayer.

Our Father, Your Word says that we know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that, though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor, He became cursed so that we, through His poverty, might become eternally rich and inherit the indescribable riches of this blessing, not only for our sakes but that this Gospel and this blessing might go to all the nations and all the peoples. Make this our joy. Make this our confidence. Make this our passion. For Jesus’ sake and for our eternal good. We pray in His name, amen.

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