But it shall come about, if you do not obey the Lord your God, to be careful to follow all His commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you. (v. 15)

And the Lord will bring you back to Egypt in ships, by the way about which I said to you, ‘You will never see it again!’ And there you will offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but there will be no buyer. (v. 68)

Jesus said to her, “Believe Me, woman, that a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, because salvation is from the Jews. But a time is coming, and even now has arrived, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:21-24)

The chapter tells us that blessings from God are promised upon a condition. If blessings are based on a condition, they are not true blessings. Rather, they are curses because we cannot meet the condition. We cannot keep the law perfectly. This does not mean we need someone to meet the condition for us. Many theologians and ministers say that Christ kept the law perfectly to meet the condition. They are wrong. The law requires us to be just like God. Christ fulfilled this requirement of the law by making us one with God. Therefore, the cross of Christ is our salvation and righteousness, not the perfect keeping of the written code. The word ‘fulfill’ is not the same as ‘keep’. Christ did not become a man to keep or abolish the law but to fulfill.

Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. (Matthew 5:17)

What Christ teaches us in John 4 and many other places in the Bible is that He became a man to be the mediator of the new covenant. The old covenant and the new covenant are different. But they are not different because the old exists for the new. Both covenants are based on God’s self-sacrificing love. The whole Bible teaches us how we become one with God and become like Him through Jesus Christ. However, we must remember that the new covenant is not the extension of the old. The old is bound to the written code and therefore, curses. Jesus Christ crucified the curse of the old covenant.

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written: “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE” (Galatians 3:13)

Sadly, I see many people wanting to go back to the old covenant. Starting from theologians and ministers, they all go back to Egypt. But this is also God’s doing because He saves only the elect people. We, the elect people of God, understand the difference between the old and the new covenant.

And no one pours new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one, after drinking old wine wants new; for he says, ‘The old is fine.’ (Luke 5:37-39)

Adam and Eve were slaves and not children of God as we are now. Even though we sin, we are not cast out like Adam and Eve were from the garden of Eden. God teaches and leads us. We are children of God through Jesus Christ. He bought us with the price of His own blood. He changed our status from slaves to children of God. He is the head of the new creation. The Holy Spirit dwells in us. We are one with God.

These things I have spoken to you in figures of speech; an hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech, but will tell you plainly about the Father. On that day you will ask in My name, and I am not saying to you that I will request of the Father on your behalf; for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came forth from the Father. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and going to the Father. (John 16:25-28)

For you have been bought for a price: therefore glorify God in your body. (1 Corinthians 6:20)

If anyone boasts that he or she is a child of God and pursues immorality, we know that the end of the person will be worse than unbelievers on the last day. Immorality is connected to spiritual idolatry. If one commits adultery, he or she commits other sins because they all are from the evil heart. God sometimes lets us sin and taste the bitterness of our sinfulness as in the case of king David. From his case, we learn that there are consequences of our sins. God disciplines His children. Fearing God is the beginning of wisdom.

FOR WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE PUNISHES EVERY SON WHOM HE ACCEPTS. (Hebrews 12:6)

Now I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed someone, has the power to throw that person into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him! (Luke 12:4-5)