Mind control counter-weapons (many links)
https://freemindconfession.wordpress.com/2014/05/06/mind-wellness-links/
Know how to detect and counter mind-control
Tag: mental health
December Squares -the time of a poet
A time to move on, Elin, he says, and they set sail to England.
The poet sighs as the two slowly walk,
Down a memory lane hand in hand they talk.
Now I am thirty-five and you not younger,
raising a farm family of a boy and two girls.
Tis time to sell all: Derry farm at New England,
this 30-acre farm with pasture land,
green fields, woodlands, orchard, gentle fall,
hen coops, livestock, apple and pear trees all.
Yes, we seem to have lived here all our lives,
Winter, spring, summer and fall foliage drives.
I always liked to sit up all hours of the night,
Sitting by a bush in broad sunlight,
Planning, crafting, formulating the star-splitter,
Going for water an old man’s winter night.
Bumping into two tramps in mud time,
Near stampede by lone gleeful cow flying in apple time.
Hearing a bird singing in its sleep,
Chirping we must leave and sail across the vast blue deep.
Looking for a sunset bird in winter,
Never again would birds’ song be the same or matter.
In a poem I could give all to time,
To England the old country here we come.
Note: I admit this is a rather primitive and ‘impromptu’ attempt made as I imagine how the poet Robert Frost had contemplated when he decided to leave New Hampshire and sail to England. The decision paid off. His poems were published and given recognition. He left America an unknown writer and returned to be hailed a leader of “the new era in American poetry”. The discerning fans of the poet may note that the above attempt included some titles of the poet’s poems.
This months photo challenge in square format from Becky is #timesquare
more words to reflect on: identity
i found this at random from the internet. i marvel at the use of words like identity, name, seed and step. The definition is coined for programmer and it reflects a meaning deeper than its intention!
Quote:”Definition (Identity Columns in TSQL*)
An identity column has a name, initial seed and step. When a row is inserted into a table the column will take the value of the current seed incremented by the step.” Unquote.
“As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” (Proverbs 23:7)
When I plant a word (seed) in my heart (mind), I can see an image of me. That image of me will produce an identify of the “me” I see in my own thought image.
what word seed am i planting in my heart today? this moment?
what current seed incremented by my thought step?
Jesus said in Matthew 15:18 “But the words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you.”
a man’s identity can be defiled by what he thinks he is.
Romans 3:22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.
Romans 5:9 And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation.
Romans 5:11 So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.
Galatians 2:20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 3:26 For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 3:27 And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes.
Galatians 3:28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*Note:Transact-SQL is Microsoft’s and Sybase’s proprietary extension to the SQL used to interact with relational databases.
A dictionary for navigators on spiritual rough waters 38: more words for hard times
This traveler continues this journey on spiritual rough waters with a positive word. Not smooth but it’s worth it.
F= FIRST
‘First’ is a word commonly associated with performance superiority. Where an individual considers a thing of positive value to him, he wants to be first, to gain an advantageous position, and it means acting before all others. In a competitive environment he wants to be the winning one when compared to others in the same arena. The competition may be real or imagined on the part of the person who is required to perform, often with a stated corporate goal (with his own personal agenda) within stated corporate parameters. In a modern competitive economy based on scarce and limited resources, there is no way anyone who wants a reasonable and sustainable living without being measured by parameters set for performance in a corporate society.
In summary, often we (earth dwellers) want to be first only when there is a competition for scarce resources. There is a finite limit no matter how advanced we may currently are in ‘creative’ technology and science. The resources of the earth are finite. Parameters set by human and enforced by those with authority and power can restrain mankind from harmful ‘excessive consumption’ within the known and predicted limits of time and space and power. Increasingly the ‘war’ to control resources will intensify in quantity and frequency.
Enough for the discussion of physical natural ‘doom’. How can Christians be hopeful for exemption from this inevitable natural constraint for all earth-bound mankind? For the spiritual (supernatural) Christian, the word ‘first’ could mean quite opposite in the spiritual dictionary. The focus makes a paradigm shift to a set of limitless parameters. Parameters not bound by scarcity of resources. Let us read some positive meanings of ‘first’:
First thing first: Whom we believe (limitless and preeminent -above all)
and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus.
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
[ The Last Enemy Destroyed ] But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,
saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,”
I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.”
Christian’s strategy in a physical world:
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things (physical and other things to meet all your needs) shall be added to you.
The hardworking farmer must be first to partake of the crops.
So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”
Matthew 20:26-28 6 Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. 27 And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.
Revelation 2:5
Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works,
“I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and as for your works, the last are more than the first.
We love Him because He first loved us.
For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
Hebrews 12:22-24 2 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, 23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24 to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.
Two role models who scored ‘first’ in faith in action:
[ Mary Magdalene Sees the Risen Lord ] Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.
Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed.
———————————–
Warning:
For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?
(to the church) Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.
a gathering of eyes: a haiku
From this side of lair
soaking view with different eye
dunking pint of ale
WHEN THE SKY WEEPS
Sometimes we take the sky for granted. We do not look up unless it looks like it’s going to rain. When it rains we pay more attention to the wetness of the water-soaked ground or the forgotten laundry in the backyard. We do not look at the sky or the rain. We look at things affected by the wetness. We also think about the inconvenience like the expected traffic jam on our way home after work or after school when all cars slow down due to the slippery roads or due to other more trivial reasons.
We look at our watches. We think about the possible lateness in appointment, the potential missed opportunity of pleasing someone dear or important to us, the probable mishap that might occur due to the delay, pros and cons of profits and losses in terms of resources spent or not-spent due to the delay in the traffic jam etc.
We think of loved ones waiting with disappointments and perhaps anxieties.
We think of the cold dishes we would have to force ourselves to eat when we eventually reach home. We think of the shower we badly need. We think of the bed…
It could be unpleasant to be caught in a traffic jam in heavy rain.
On the other hand there are a few who feel comforted by the rain. They look at the weeping sky. They see things that others do not see. They see an opening of the storehouses of water. Unseen hands unlocking and pouring. Unseen faces smeared with tears. Unseen eyes swollen with crying…with them as they cry in the cars or at the windows somewhere away from home or having none to return to.
There are also a few who like being in the rain. To them, walking in the rain is like taking a nice, cool, long shower. They enjoy the touch of the water droplets on their faces. They love the music of the wind and rain orchestra. They stroll leisurely and unhurriedly. They watch the others stuck in the cars, anxious and bored faces watching them in return. Sometimes they sing and dance along with the raindrops.
The sky is neutral. We put labels on it whenever it suits us. The sky weeps. The sky smiles. The sky is friendly. The sky is hostile. The sky is foreboding. The sky is welcoming…labels.
Today when you happen to be near the sky look up and see what you want to see.
“A dictionary for navigators on spiritual rough waters” 35: the paradox of “picture’
The word ‘picture’ for a photograph is another word of paradox. When we first see it we would imagine a copy representing a real thing. Yet when we compare the physical with the image, we realize that the copy is not a copy.
How can that be? A ‘photographic picture’ may give the connotation of ‘copy’ or ‘duplicate’ or ‘print’ or ‘reflection’ or whatever you like to call it. But there are lots of variables. Assuming all other variables (including especially the qualities of the camera and the photographer) are perfect and stand at perfect constant, time still change everything. No moment ever stands still or remains the same as the moment just passed.
How shall we call a picture then? A mere print of a momentary impression by the camera and the camera man/woman. The word ‘impression’ may be a more apt substitute for the word ‘picture’. Impression implies the subjective input we infuse into each work of our individual human hand. Aside from the hardware (cameras, computers, mobile phones which double up as cameras, printers etc.), our technique, skills, and technical experiences, our thoughts, attitudes, feelings, emotions, moods, perspectives, values, judgements, morals, religions, beliefs, five senses, likes and dislikes, preferences, priorities, affiliations, social and peer sentiments, relationships, statuses and phases of life, financial means and stability, physiological and psychological factors…(just fill in whatever that influence you) are all subjective but pertinent variable factors that affect our input and output.
What is the use of a picture or impression to an onlooker then? Should a photographer simply keep all the photos in his or her own private albums? But at some points of life everyone wishes to share a bit. The good news is that you don’t have to keep everything in your closets. Why? Because many share subjective variable factors at certain phases of lives. Some can even identify and empathize with you for the impression you have displayed which has also spoken to them.
Hence, it is alright to use the word ‘picture’ to describe a photograph just as you may describe a drawing or a painting. For that matter, a photograph becomes an art because of your subjective input which gives a glimpse of your life that someone somewhere may identify and share.
~~~~~You may be surprised, we (human) are pictures/images too. We are created by God in His likeness, with all His honor and glory intended originally.
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
[ From Adam to Noah ] This is the written account of Adam’s family line. When God created mankind, he made them in the likeness of God.
When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image; and he named him Seth.
James 3:8-10 New International Version (NIV) 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.
a dog’s life: lonely not distressed
ahead still long wait
good pal not in sight as yet
lonely not distressed
traveler’s mirror reflects: backyard home haiku
Thriving lush green plants
in someone’s backyard transform
wilderness to home
—————–
Living in Paris in my lone studio many years ago, I used to keep a tiny potted African violet at my kitchen window to remind myself that it was my home.
It was a wonderful year for me, Spring, Summer, and Autumn. (In Winter I waved goodbye to the flower and moved on to London).
Certainty in life is important to mental (as well as physical) health and we can overcome uncertainty in our mind by a deliberate change in the paradigm we are in at any particular time and place.
Traveler’s mirror reflects: story and heart haiku
There’s no life story
too hard to share sad to bare
to soft gentle soul
traveler’s mirror reflects: a road of hope (a haiku with explanatory notes)
a road of hope, son
brings us to a bright future
compassion and love
————————–
Hope, compassion and love which are essential healing ingredients may be Clichés to many, for many people these are the heart-felt cries of men, women and children…even the ground and the creatures and plants.
Traveler’s mirror reflects: a wooden bridge (two haiku)
I can fast forward
excel in cutting edge tracks
precipitate fame
~~~
I beg to differ
hearing a different drum beat
lofty sublime call
Traveler’s mirror reflects: new woman in town (a haiku)
She speaks life daily
sparks spurs stirs vivifies hearts
transforms city face
Traveler’s mirror reflects: always a good hair day (a haiku)
Regardless her looks
she stands proudly in the light
always good hair day!
Traveler’s mirror reflects: a haiku on light
A light within light
lights a fire in the soul
ablazed with fresh hope
Traveler’s mirror reflects: positive and negative (two haiku )
~a study on blues~
Looking through this mist
Snared bird caught in soul despair
Wings clipped visions dimmed
~a study on dawn sky ~
Awake, my love, rise
Passion knocking on my shell
A golden life line
~~~
“For He will rescue you from every trap
And protect you from deadly disease.”
(Psalm 91:3)
traveller’s mirror reflects: a haiku on Day One (with notes)
~a haiku on Day One~
somewhere before time
existence took sight and life
day one began here.
_____________________
Spiritual explanatory notes for the two latest haiku on the subject of ‘royalty’ and ‘day one’. I am a spiritual blogger and write mostly from spiritual perspectives. The royal color does not refer to the colors we normally see and associate with in the physical world. Race and skins mean nothing in the spiritual. God sees spirits (which we refer to as ‘hearts’). When we are born again in our spirit we become royal -as the children of God. We are who we are not because of our external physical presentations. We are created to bear the image of God (our Father in heaven). Our brief journey on earth is a journey home.
Genesis 1:1 New Life Version (NLV)
The Beginning
1 In the beginning God made from nothing the heavens and the earth.
And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.”
John 3:5-7 New King James Version (NKJV)5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’
traveler’s mirror reflects: a royal haiku
~ a haiku for being royal (day one)~
no pigmentation
cast dye paint stain tint or wash
erases day one.
______________Read together with the next haiku with explanatory notes:
traveler’s thoughts: does being real matter?
For a long time, the traveler travels. He (or she) sees life, tastes life, lives life. Sometimes he mirrors life. Sometimes he evades life. Often he sits around at an invisible corner and watches life.
He likes a story named, Velveteen Rabbit. Here are quotes that impact his young life.
“Real isn’t how you are made,’ said the Skin Horse. ‘It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.’
‘Does it hurt?’ asked the Rabbit.
‘Sometimes,’ said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. ‘When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.’
‘Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,’ he asked, ‘or bit by bit?’
‘It doesn’t happen all at once,’ said the Skin Horse. ‘You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”
― Margery Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit
Does being real matter? Being hurt. Being worn out. Being very ‘shabby looking’ to those who do not understand the meaning of being real. The traveler once asked (when he was very young and tender).
The traveler traveled for a long time to many foreign lands and sat at the corner of many different events, sights, sounds, colors, purposes, missions, programs, activities, chores, causes, systems, worlds.
He wanted to find being real. Has he found it?
The answer remains his secret.
http://archive.org/stream/thevelveteenrabb11757gut/11757.txt
Excerpts from the above :
And he found that he actually had hind legs! Instead of dingy velveteen he had brown fur, soft and shiny, his ears twitched by themselves, and his whiskers were so long that they brushed the grass.
He gave one leap and the joy of using those hind legs was so great that he went springing about the turf on them, jumping sideways and whirling round as the others did, and he grew so excited that when at last he did stop to look for the Fairy she had gone.
He was a Real Rabbit at last, at home with the other rabbits.
At Last! At Last!
Autumn passed and Winter, and in the Spring, when the days grew warm and sunny, the Boy went out to play in the wood behind the house. And while he was playing, two rabbits crept out from the bracken and peeped at him. One of them was brown all over, but the other had strange markings under his fur, as though long ago he had been spotted, and the spots still showed through. And about his little soft nose and his round black eyes there was something familiar, so that the Boy thought to himself:
“Why, he looks just like my old Bunny that was lost when I had scarlet fever!”
But he never knew that it really was his own Bunny, come back to look at the child who had first helped him to be Real.
~~~~~~~~~~~~(Note from the traveler: The real rabbit is not shabby looking. He is beautiful.)
“A dictionary for navigators on spiritual rough waters” chapter 33: ‘conform or transform’
- Conform takes human effort. The paradox of ‘conform’: Over recent history, the word ‘conform’ has been associated with ‘prohibitive’ words like, ‘bondage’, ‘oppressive’, ‘totalitarian’, ‘subservient’, and has become a unwelcomed negative behavioral word among the proclaimed ‘individualistic’ young people. Yet unknowingly, while rebelling against their parents’ or grandparents’ moral values, they practice conformation among their global peers in copying the patterns set by popular trends and icons at the period. The adults are just as paradoxical. Whilst claiming under grace (and thereby not under law) and rejecting the solid foundation of the eternally unchangeable moral value of the holy God in the Bible, they practice conformation to the worldly values that point to only one way, the way of eventual destruction (physical, mental and spiritual).
- Transform is a supernatural process. The refreshing empowerment of ‘transform’: God has actually given this key word to believers living a successful and wonderful abundant life. Unlike what many people think, and indeed what many human power system practitioners practice, God does not want conformation to dead letters.
Not all believers are equally wise or highly educated or trained and qualified in the world or having the same resources at disposal.
Therefore, when God issues a command He makes sure His believers can apply easily. Otherwise He would not be good and just.
When we are required to do something we need the following prerequisites:
- willingness;
- ability;
- capacity;
- all other circumstantial and environmental variables being favorable.
The average believers of Jesus know and are normally willing to please God by applying the Biblical principles in our lives. The problem is often we are stuck at the rest of the prerequisites. God of course knows this very well. He sees what we are and what we actually do (including our thoughts and our spoken words). He knows that when left on own, we cannot practice his words like what He commanded Joshua to do:
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” (Joshua 1:8)
The answer is how does God do it? Empowering. He empowers us. How does He empower? Empowerment is a transforming process.
- He gives every believer His Spirit that gives birth to us as a new creation. A mark that we belong to Him. The spiritual power within to do the impossible that God expects of us.
- He gives every believer His words. The truth and spirit that set us free from the bondages and oppressions of sins from the enemy of God. The ingredients for everything we need to live the abundant godly life that Jesus has promised.
- He gives us every spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. All the richness of God for us to live as His glorious inheritance.
- He gives us the faith of God. The key to access the above. The faith to move mountains.
- He gives us the resources needed to live a godly life and partake His own holy divine nature.
- He gives us the divine life of Jesus Christ (as He is so are we in this world).
- He gives us eternal life with Him.
How do we take hold of them? Just believe and by faith take them. This whole list of good gifts are freely given by God to everyone who believes. The words of God are guarantees. The Holy Spirit enables them to come into physical existence in this realm. This changes the physical environment too. We receive God’s favor. It makes the key difference.
How does the word ‘transform’ work? It works with the Holy Spirit and the words of God. It works on our mind as we are being renewed by God’s words and the might of God (the Holy Spirit). The good news is God gives to all who believe and ask by faith. He has no favoritism.
Romans 12:2 New King James Version (NKJV)
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
“A dictionary for navigators on spiritual rough waters” chapter 23 – don’t worry
Today’s word is “worry”. This word is tied to a lot of negative words and consequences both physical and mental (and emotional). Whether it is spiritual or physical the word worry is not what anyone would like to be with. Why do people still worry? Let us look at the other words that accompany this word and find our answers.
first reason why we worry : a spirit of lack – fear of having not enough of basic materials like food, drink, clothing, mainly external things that make us feel comfortable and secure for survival in this world.
Bible verses: “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ (Matthew 6:24-26; Matthew 6:27-29; Matthew 6:30-32)
second reason: a spirit of uncertainty. we tend to fear the uncertainty of things and events that might impact our surviving and comfortable living in this world. Some fear the uncertainty of the next world if any.
Bible verse “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. Matthew 6:33-34
third reason: a spirit of control. We also tend to scrutinize others’ living and want to control their lives too. But the bigger problem of lack of control or rather lack of self control is in us and not in others. The Holy Spirit will give us self control.
Bible verse “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? Matthew 7:2-4
fourth reason: a spirit of fear of man (instead of God). Wrong focus. We tend to look at man as the final judge and authority that will have a final say on our fate on earth or beyond. Actually the deciding authority is in the spiritual realm, God has the final say. He will even lead you to say the right words with His power (the Holy Spirit)!
Bible verses: When you are arrested, don’t worry about how to respond or what to say. God will give you the right words at the right time. But when you are arrested and stand trial, don’t worry in advance about what to say. Just say what God tells you at that time, for it is not you who will be speaking, but the Holy Spirit. “And when you are brought to trial in the synagogues and before rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how to defend yourself or what to say, Matthew 10:18-20; Mark 13:10-12; Luke 12:10-12
fifth reason: a spirit of smallness. we tend to fuss about small matters as if they are our only life issues. Jesus warned His disciples not to do that. We are created for the bigger matters, higher calling. so let us not be distracted by the small things in daily living.
Bible verse: And if worry can’t accomplish a little thing like that, what’s the use of worrying over bigger things? Luke 12:25-27
Conclusion: worrying accomplishes nothing. Apostle Paul has a better way for us when confronted with daily living big and small.
Bible verse: Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Philippians 4:5-7
Continue with the battlefield in the mind: our weapons
The divine breakthrough has finally when the words of truth is being obeyed and applied in our daily lives in Christ. The mindman has discovered.
The revelation: Why are souls so easily held in captivity by the enemy from the spiritual realm? Because the mind is idle and embraces anything that does not require mind function.
It started with TV program. There is no requirement of the mind to be involved. A variety of ‘entertainments’ has become easily accessible and readily available at any point of time. Unlike books or even newspapers, there is no effort on the part of the viewers.
Now the screen is at hand in the form of mobile phone or similar digital smart pads/tablets. One can access to anything which does not require mind work at any point of time at anywhere!
The limits of time and space have been overcome. A false sense of…
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My real life (10): Beware of the mind’s languages
In the previous post, the mindman realizes that there are many old variables in his mind that merely need cleaning up. But what to clean and how to clean them? This are the issues he is addressing here.
When he looks into his mind, he finds that the only substance is made up of words -mainly words in languages that he has acquired many years ago as a toddler. Amazing. The languages he learned as a toddler have remained after all these years. He is an adult now of course. Many languages have been added over the years. He learned them from family, schools, work places, churches, social groups, the streets, the markets, and the various forms (including multimedia) of reading, watching and listening materials and people too. They did not necessarily give him new languages or new words, but they persuaded his mind to accept values and interpretations, repeatedly until he thought the attachments to those languages or words were part of his belief or him.
Languages alone do not mean a thing. They are neither beneficial nor harmful. The meanings or intents rather, behind the languages are the stuff that give value (merit) or devalue (demerit) to a language.
Yes, just check the language you have in mind and you will agree. Your intent is the driving force behind the language.
When you have an evil intent, your language becomes evil. You may speak the same sentence of the same words, but you may mean two opposite outcomes when you say them at different times to different audiences. You can speak one sentence with faith (that it will happen). You can also say the same sentence with doubt (not believing that what you say will happen). You became what you thought!
This is very common in prayers. You pray but you receive what you know you actually is saying in your heart (your mind). Jesus reads thoughts (mind). God watches the heart (the mind). The Holy Spirit searches the hearts.
The serious questions are: What shall we do with such double-mindedness? What can we do to get rid of bad values or intents attached to the languages in our minds?
The mindman has found his answers in the words of God.
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Be single-minded. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways and he will not receive anything from the Lord. (James 1:5-8) Why is one double-minded? Because one lacks heavenly wisdom. The Bible said that we can ask God in faith. (James 1:6) The key is to ask God and ask in faith.
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Put off the old man with the bad values in his mind. Put on the new man with the good values in his mind. This is easy said than done, someone may say. How can it be carried out?
Here are the practical steps according to the words of God: Ephesians 4 (read whole chapter)
Summary of Practice: Walk worthy of the calling with you were called. Ephesians 4:1b There are three steps involved:
“that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,” (22)
you no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles (unbelieving) walk, in the futility of their mind, (understanding darkened, alienated from God’s life, ignorance and blindness in their mind, past feeling, given to lewdness to work all uncleanness with greediness) (17-19)
“and be renewed in the spirit of your mind,” (23)
“and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” (24)
The things to put away: lying, sin in anger, steal, corrupt words proceeding from your mouth – bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking. All these grieve the Holy Spirit. (4:25-31)
More things to put off (chapter 5): fornication, uncleanness, and covetousness. Filthiness, foolish talking, coarse jesting.
How? You have not so learned Christ! 4:20)
Read chapter five of Ephesians:
The things to put on: be imitators of God as dear children – kind, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, walk in love as Christ also has loved us…now you are light in the Lord, walk as children of light. Manifest fruit of the Spirit (goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. Walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time…understand what the will of the Lord is…be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Finally, what does all this mean and how can it be achieved? “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might…for we do not wrestle against flesh and blood…therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
The battle in the mind rages whether we like it or not. By grace and truth which already came through Jesus Christ, God has given every believer faith, His words and the Holy Spirit. These are more than sufficient in the spiritual realm for our mind renewal. The Holy Spirit enables us to walk according to the will of God. Just as Jesus had promised to all who want to follow Him, “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)
For the mindman, thus, it is just a matter of learning and un-learning. Learning Christ means we need to read the Bible. We need to listen to the Holy Spirit. Un-learning evil thoughts means we substitute them with thoughts of Christ. He has found that God has indeed given the resources in the spiritual realm, and all we do is just believe and appropriate them in our daily walk with Christ.
How long is this renewing process? Well, for the mindman it is a life time walk.
The apostle Paul has very encouraging words for all who are in the same process:
“Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.” (Philippians 4:12)
My real life (9): the mind is not a store for old variables
In the previous post I talked about the mind not being a fix condition. You can come out of any condition if you know the truth about it.
Then I mentioned my personal experience, that is, I have departed from the conditions set in my life. Not that they no longer exist. The change is that I do not allow my mind be bound to them, mainly a lot of ‘must-haves’. I also stated that I have lived well without the conditions. The obsessed mind is not me or anyone when the mind is bound to a ‘must-have’.
Why such a drastic action? The action is not really drastic in the physical sense. I continue to enjoy using some of the amenities and daily necessities. The reason is drastic in the spiritual and soul realm. The mind is set free. You no longer are held in bondage by stuff. You can live on even a minimum of physical stuff if need be,
When the missionary goes to a relatively undeveloped place he cannot afford any modern amenities or they just do not exist. What does he do? He makes do with whatever he has. Life is well and comfortable when he is led by the Spirit of God. Of course I am not referring to those who continue to be bound by the physical elements of this modern world.
Having been engaged in an international corporate world for the major part of his working life, the mindman had been conditioned to live in modern cities, sleep and eat in international hotels, travel by air, work in air-conditioned offices, frequent company’s corporate doctors, associate (even socialize) with corporate clients, suppliers and competitors and so on. He reached a point when he could not differentiate what was mere conditioning and what was real in his life.
However, when he encountered the truth of spiritual reality he marveled how little he valued those amenities. They had left no permanent marks. He could pack an overnight bag at any time and walked away.
How do you apply this wonderful freedom? Well, for a start, appreciate the local food and living environment. Of course you need to train and unwind all your mind’s habits. One good way of ridding old habits is to learn and practice new ones -build a foundation of your new way of life, fit to accommodate new variables in life.
For example, start sleeping and even working in non-airconditioned rooms. Where weather permits go outdoor and adapt to the outdoor air when working or resting. Be a traveler. Like a perpetual travel. That means you are not bound to any form of transport, any language groups, any food, any drink, any bed, any room, any sofa, any washroom/toilet, any TV program, any cafe, any bar, any smell, any taste…etc. O, yes, you need to be exposed to insects and their bites at times. Be prepared in your mind. Be used to sticky heat too, in humid weather that makes you sweat and feel sticky a lot. Be really prepared (through practical weaning) for internet-lessness and mobile-phone-lessness and the effect thereof…
There were many new things for Abraham, the Father of faith, to learn as he walked on according to God’s direction. The mind is a battlefield and he won the battle from the very moment he listened and obeyed the Spirit of the Lord. For the mindman this same key applies. Really, when he thinks about life serioiusly he realizes that there are many old variables in his mind that merely need cleaning up.
Apostle Paul gave very good advice on this subject of adaptation of your mind:
“Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content; I know how to be abased, and I know how to be abound….I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:11-13). “Now godliness and contentment is great gain…and having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.” (1 Timothy 6:6-8)
Jesus Himself declared this state of divine freedom: “the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” (Matthew 8:20b)
Psychology vs. Christianity
A personal note: As my second ‘career’ (voluntary and not paid), I studied wellness promotion and community health administration including Health Psychology in my post graduate academic pursuit. One interesting aspect was the focus on health behavior modification. The tools I acquired were practical in the physical realm and of some use in helping a person to at least focus on and exercise self control over dysfunctional behavior. I ‘practiced’ the tools as a voluntary ‘worker’ and worked with a medical professional. However, we soon found that the main roots of the ‘problems’ were deep within the persons and the rooting out of such deep set stuff needs supernatural means! True enough we use the words of God to help the persons go back to normal functioning for awhile. But in the cases we encountered often they reverted to their old way once they went back to traditional churches which have not yet encountered the power of the Holy Spirit. Even in Charismatic churches when worldly systems are being relied upon and taught, the persons had not been taught or motivated to read the words of God consistently in big chunks, and soon relapsed to old ways.
Healing is really not a physical or mental/emotional matter. It is spiritually rooted and needs spiritual means. The power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God are the only two sustainable means to transform a person and give him or her a new life (and life more abundant)!
________________________________Psychology vs. Christianity
By Andrew Wommack
Psychology has its roots in ancient philosophers like Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato. None of these men were worshipers of the true and living God. At best, they believed in a god that was not involved in the affairs of men, and at worse they worshiped multiple pagan gods.Modern psychology was brought to the forefront by Sigmund Freud in the late nineteenth century. Freud certainly wasn’t a godly man. He was obsessed with sex and linked every problem of man to the sexual drive. This man had serious problems, even his most devoted followers admitted that.Here is the point: If the root is bad, then the tree has to be bad. Jesus said this very plainly in Matthew 7:17-18:“Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.”The root of psychology is bad, and therefore, the fruit cannot be good. I’m amazed at the acceptance of psychology in our society and especially in the church. Many churches and ministries have resident psychiatrists on staff. This isn’t the approach Jesus took. He met the needs, all the needs of the people through the power of the Holy Spirit, and I believe He intends His church to do the same. They don’t have to depart and go to the world to get their emotional needs met. They should bring them to Jesus (Matt. 14:16-18).I know many Christians are appalled at these statements. Aren’t there Christian psychologists? Certainly there are. I have some friends who are very successful psychologists. But they will be the first to admit that psychology and Christianity do not offer the same answers to our problems. They use their position to bring the truths of the Gospel to people who would never come to the church for help. If the people will receive the truths of God’s Word, they don’t need any other help. If they won’t receive the Gospel, then in some cases, psychology is better than what they have.Christianity and psychology have some things in common: They both state that our actions are the product of inner processes. But in describing what those processes are and how to change them, Christianity and psychology take the opposite approach. For one thing, the very word “psychology” reveals an anti-god approach.The word “psychology” comes from the Greek word “psycho”, which is a derivative of the Greek word “psyche” meaning “soul.” Psychology looks no deeper than the soul of man for answers. It totally ignores the spirit realm: our spirits, God’s Holy Spirit, and demonic spirits. The Word of God is replete with teachings and examples of the influence of God, demons, and our spirits on our actions. Any “answer” that doesn’t take the spirit realm into account isn’t going to the root of the problem. The Greek word “psyche” was also the name of the Greek god of the soul. “eros” and “psyche” were lovers in Greek mythology. Who wants that?Here are four major tenants of psychology that I believe are incompatible with biblical Christianity:1) We are products of our environment.2) Therefore, we are not responsible or accountable for our actions.3) This leads to placing blame for our actions on anything else but on us, making us victims.4) Self-esteem is paramount.Let’s look at these areas in the light of Scripture.First, environment is not the determining factor in who we are and what we do. Proverbs 23:7 says,“For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.”The Word of God shows us that OUR thoughts are what make us the way we are. Environment has some influence on your thoughts, but it is totally wrong to say you’re the way you are because of what has happened to you. If that were true, then everyone who has been through the same negative experiences would have the same problems. That’s not so. You can find siblings with the same genetic make-up and environment who respond totally different to the same situation. We always have the choice of becoming bitter or better. God gave us that choice. Deuteronomy 30:19 says,“I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.”God said the choice is ours, and what a simple one: life or death. A “no-brainer.” But just in case anyone isn’t sure which to choose, the Lord gave the answer to this quiz. “Choose life,” He said.We are not doomed to be victims because of past experiences. We can be born again and become brand-new people through the power of Christ. Psychology doesn’t offer that.Second, since our conditions are a product of how we chose to react to our environment, we can’t blame others for our problems. Taking responsibility for our actions is the big difference between true Christianity and psychology. Psychology has influenced our society to such a degree that no one is held accountable for their actions. Even murderers are being acquitted because it’s “not their fault”; they were abused as children or whatever. That’s stupid. Some of us have had problems that others haven’t, but God still holds us accountable for our own actions, regardless of what has happened to us.The night before Jesus was crucified, He told His disciples not to let their hearts be troubled but to be of good cheer (John 14:1 and 16:33). Those who hold to the belief that our environment is the determining factor in our emotions and actions would criticize Jesus for telling His disciples to do something they were incapable of doing. But they had a choice. The Lord told us to rejoice in the Lord always (Phil. 4:4). We can choose to go against the pressures of our environment. In John 16:33, Jesus told His disciples,“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”In this passage, Jesus told His disciples that they would have tribulation. What an understatement! They would see Jesus crucified in just a matter of hours. Their hopes would be dashed. Sadness and confusion would overwhelm them. Fear would cause them to live behind locked doors for the next three days. Yet, Jesus told them to be of good cheer. That wasn’t unreasonable; it was doable. And we can do it too if we don’t listen to the psychobabble of today.There is much, much more to Harnessing Your Emotions. I simply ran out of room to share it all in this article. I drew some illustrations of these truths and made an outline of some of the major differences between Christianity and psychology. I firmly believe that psychology undermines true Christianity, and these differences need to be pointed out. Psychology has crept into nearly every aspect of our lives, and most of us don’t know it.Harnessing Your Emotions
We all have emotions, but do they rule us or do we rule them? Psychologists and Christians alike agree that actions are the result of inner thoughts and feelings, emotions. But that is where the agreement ends. The Word says that sin is conceived in our emotions. If that is true, then the Word must also give us a way to harness our emotions. Andrew’s teaching will present you with a new perspective on emotions.
http://www.awmi.net/extra/audio/1005
My Real Life (8): my mind is not a bundle of pre-conditioning!
Today the spiritual mindman deals with the ‘scientific’ way of the natural formation of the mind. Good news and bad news for a nonspiritual mindman.
Good news: you will know how your mind has been formed or is being formed.
Bad news: you will not be able to dematerialize such conditions unless you transform your mind.
First, we define what it means by being scientific (for the nonspiritual realm). Scientific is not a monster or a mystery. It is just a way to explain stuff.
Form a ‘statement’ about something of your concern. Like, (1) this human is obese; and (2) obesity is bad for human. Define your first statement. What do you mean by being obese? Use generally and commonly acceptable standards: predominantly medical in this age. So you use term of measurement like BMI. BMI above … is considered overweight. BMI above … is obese! Gather all relevant information to justify your statement. Measure that particular human and ascertain his or her BMI. Define your second statement: (a) What do you mean by being bad? Use same concept as above. Define your second statement: (b) What do you mean by ‘obesity being bad’? Do as above… until you justify the statement.
Good news for the spiritual human beings: you are free from the above. So don’t bother to carry the above steps in this article.
How does the mind form itself?
By conditioning. This word is both art and science. The rulers (in spirits) of this age use mind conditioning as its method of influence, controlling practically every field of human living: science (medical) and art (including psychology) philosophies use it to explain and operate things (including how people should live their lives from birth to death); the commercial world is expert in using it to influence the whole world to buy and sell products and services and lifestyle and values ; the territorial physical rulers (political and power system) in the nations use it to subdue and ensure loyalty and obedience for their own indefinite reign; the education system uses it to ensure its own survival from generation to generation; the religious and cultural system uses it to enforce perpetuity of the common belief and practice of a group of people… the usage list is practically inexhaustible.
If you read the descriptions of official documents, articles and reports written and formulated with careful (not wanting to be accused of being bias or personal) wordings, you will note that the word ‘condition’ is frequently used to substitute a lot of ‘unmentionable’ but ‘real’ (physical) words.
Minds are formed by conditions. Conditioning by the above varieties of influences start the moment one is born into this world. You may think it is you. It is not. You are not a bundle of conditioning! Conditioning of the mind is like making a cake: put in the specified ingredients, mix them, bake them for a specified time. You have your cake. Did the cake make itself? No. Someone else decides what a cake should consist of, and how it should be conditioned.
Did your mind make itself? No. Someone else did it for you.
A really mind boggling and frightening thought that one’s mind is controlled (often manipulated) by another mind(s)! The mindman shuddered to think that the more one reads or watches or is exposed to the products (‘wisdom/philosophies’ of this age) of others’ minds the more his mind will be subject to conditioning by others, including the dead. The godless. The damned. The perished. Many Christians are not aware of this fact. This is what God meant by His chosen people (who should be led by the Holy Spirit) committing adultery when the Israel mingled, followed and adopted the ways of the pagans (controlled by other spirits).
Can you come out of the pre-conditioning? Yes. You can. By the Spirit of God. Yes, be conditioned by the Spirit of God.
Has the mindman applied this? Yes. For example, through living by the Spirit, he has been set free from a lot of ‘must-haves’: air-conditioning; water heater; regular three or five meals a day; special fixed diets; regular fixed hours of sleep; vitamin and nutrition; fixed daily physical exercises; medicine; insurance; using of motor transport; entertainment; regular ( to him, it means excessive) multimedia communication (books, magazines, journals, newspapers, TV, radio, YouTube, telephone, reading any form of written stuff, even operating manuals, any forms of mind influences and manipulations from the conditioning systems as described above.
One may ask, how does the mindman live on then without the above ‘amenities’ or ‘necessities’ ? Of course he lives comfortably and well. The difference of a free mindman and a bound mindman is that the free one is no longer bound by ‘must haves’ or he does not make self-condemning statements like ‘if I don’t have them I will die!” The obsessed mind is not you.
This question is for non-spiritual Christians especially, “How will you survive when the Revelation prophecy comes to pass?”
Bible verses ________________
However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew,..the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit…that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
These things we also speak…which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
But the natural man does not believe the things of the Spirit of God.
But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself if rightly judged by no one.
But we have the mind of Christ.
(Quoted from: 1 Corinthians Chapter Two. Please read the whole chapter.)
Beware of a humanistic view of things
The Believer’s Authority
By Andrew Wommack
Is there someone in your life who just rubs you the wrong way? If there is, it may surprise you to learn that it’s not really that person who is creating the rub. There is someone else at work—your real Enemy—and he may be using them in an attempt to gain an inroad to your life. There is a spiritual war going on, and as a believer, you must be aware of it.
Many Christians have adopted a humanistic view of things. They do not realize the spiritual implication behind what is going on in their lives. What I mean by humanistic is that they only look at things on a surface level. They think most everything they encounter on a daily basis is either physical or natural.
The truth is, there is a battle raging every single day in the spiritual realm. That battle is for your heart and the hearts of every other person on earth. God is trying to influence people and draw them toward righteousness and toward Himself, to live consistent with Him so that His blessings can manifest in their lives.
Satan, on the other hand, is waging all-out war trying to steal the hearts of people away from God. He wants to fill their hearts with his trash and corruption. And honestly, although most Christians recognize this to a degree, I don’t think they realize how intense the warfare really is and how much their actions are contributing to it.
If I could sit and talk with each of you reading this, I would find that many of you aren’t aware of the spiritual significance behind what’s going on in your lives. You attribute much of what is happening to circumstances and therefore passively accept what comes your way. When you do that, you’re ignoring the intense battle that is being waged for your heart every single day.
The choices you make, the things you say, the actions you take, and what you believe about what is happening around you determines whether God or Satan dominates in your life. Satan cannot control you outside of your will. He cannot do anything without your cooperation and consent. But you need to recognize that you’re in a battle.
Many people choose not to believe that, but whether they do or not, the fact is that it’s taking place. Your unwillingness to engage in battle doesn’t mean that the battle isn’t raging; it just means you’re going to lose. But once you realize the battle is real, you can then learn to recognize what’s going on and take the proper action to improve your situation. You can resist the devil.
James 4:7 says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
Ephesians 6:10-12 reads,
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
This is referring to demonic powers. There’s a chain of command, an authority structure in the demonic realm, and this is listing these different levels. But notice that it says you are not wrestling against flesh and blood. Much that goes on in your life is not just human.
I’m not going to get into this thing about, “Are people possessed, oppressed, or depressed?” I believe it’s useless to debate that. In the Greek, where the Bible says a person was demon possessed, the word literally means “demonized.” It just means they were under the control of the devil. Christianity has tried to make something out of possessed, oppressed, or depressed. But it’s not in Scripture.
The fact is that people are being influenced and controlled and used by the devil—they really are. This needs to be said because there are a lot of people who honestly believe that all the demons are in Africa.
It’s not the person sitting next to you at work, it’s not your neighbor, and it’s certainly not your husband or your wife that’s the problem. Anyone who is not paying attention can be influenced and inspired and used of Satan to come against you. If you were to recognize that, it would make a huge difference in the way you respond to them.
For instance, I get a lot of hate mail. There was a time when I took what was said personally. But I’ve come to realize that Satan uses these in an attempt to get my attention off of what God has told me to do. Now I look beyond the person, recognizing that Satan is just using them. That allows me to keep it in the right perspective.
I’ve had good friends come against me and do some pretty mean things. And you know what? I was able to look right past what they did and forgive them. I could see that Satan was taking advantage of them to hurt me through some weak area in their lives. When you finally see that, you don’t get angry or bitter with the person, and you are able to walk in forgiveness. Then, when they do turn around, the relationship can be reestablished.
There are also times when you have to engage the Enemy directly, even if the Enemy is using a friend. That’s exactly what Jesus did when He rebuked Peter, saying, “Get behind me, Satan.” That was the same day Jesus asked Peter, “Who do you say I am?” And Peter, inspired by the Holy Spirit, said, “You are the CHRIST, the Son of the living God.”
In Matthew 16:15-17, it says,
He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
After this, Jesus began to talk about what was going to happen to Him: “They’re going to take Me, they’re going to kill Me, and I will rise again on the third day.” And this same Peter, who had been inspired and controlled by the Holy Spirit just moments before, began to rebuke Jesus, saying, “Be it far from You, Lord. This will never happen to You. I’m going to stand here, and the rest of us will defend You. But we are not going to allow this to happen to You.”
Then Jesus turned and spoke these words to Peter: “Get behind me, Satan.” I’m sure Peter was shocked, but Jesus wasn’t really talking to him;He was talking about Satan to Satan, the one who was controlling Peter. Peter’s words were not coming from God; they were inconsistent with the will of God. Peter was being inspired and controlled by the devil in the things he said.
Now, that’s a pretty strong statement, and a lot of people honestly think this is a little over the top. They think they don’t need to respond to people this way. But I can guarantee you that there are times when Satan is speaking directly to you through people. He is using people to get at you. Whether you recognize it or not, this goes on much more than you know. You are in a spiritual war.
I tell you there is a supernatural war waging today for your heart and mind. In fact, for some of you right now, the devil is trying to oppose the words you are reading in this letter. He wants to discredit them and cause you to ignore or reject them. The Holy Spirit, on the other hand, is bearing witness in your heart and trying to get you to open up and receive these words. It’s spiritual warfare.
To win in this war, you must know who you are and the authority you have as a believer. To help, I have a teaching series called The Believer’s Authority. Don’t go another day without understanding how to defeat the real Enemy. You have the power and authority to do it, and now it’s time to use it.
http://www.awmi.net/store/usa/dvd_albums/1045_d
- Week 1 – We’re In A Spiritual War
- Week 2 – Who Made Satan?
- Week 3 – Who Made Satan? / With Authority Comes Responsibility – Part 1
- Week 4 – With Authority Comes Responsibility – Part 2 / Law Enforcement
- Week 5 – Law Enforcement / The War is in Your Mind
My real life: beware of the mind’s secret agenda!
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mind’s secret agenda It is obvious that every mind has his own agenda. This makes a Bible ‘teacher”s teaching life challenging. Although we all agree that we should be led by the Holy Spirit, who is our real teacher, when it comes to interpreting the Bible, every mind comes forth with its own agenda. Does this mean the interpretation becomes distorted and not aligned with the original God’s words? Often it does distort the intent of the words of God.
- We need to be alert against spiritual influences from the enemy’s spirits. For example, a brother in Christ has encountered depressive thoughts because of his sudden Spirit-filled changes which his not-yet-Spirit-filled wife could not accept. Nor can his own not-yet-Spirit-filled church accept him and support him in terms of his renewed discipleship life. For about seven months he alone went through his new life in Christ filled with enthusiasm and zeal for God’s words and God’s kingdom.
- The depressive thoughts hit too. The more he is on fire for Jesus, the more the ‘enemies’ pour cold water on him. As he read through the whole Bible, he found identification with the suffering Christ and all verses about suffering. When his church invited speakers he listened to and was touched by testimonies of intense sufferings often from totalitarian regimes (political persecutions), and severe illnesses.
His predisposed mind’s agenda of identification with suffering has preconditioned him to see justification in his personal suffering, and that it glorifies God, justifying his weak position adopted in his family, as changing from it to that of the head of the family is more difficult and he is not prepared for the battle.
How should we view this biased interpretation of the Bible? Do all sufferings identify with the sufferings of Christ? The answer is in the Bible. Since it involves Christ’s suffering, the only right way is to see what Christ’s suffering means in actual Bible verses (not in emotion or feeling or even what we think).
Here are some basic Biblical principles and applications:
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The Bible has to be read as a whole (not once but many times and on ongoing basis).
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The Bible verses must be read in chunks (whole book, whole chapter, chapters before and after, and all related Bible books and verses in other books of the Bible).
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The clear focus is on the Almighty God the Father who is also the Creator, not man. On Jesus who is the Christ, the Son of God, not any other name. On the Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of Christ (God). On the redemption plan of God.
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God is Spirit. We read to understand on His spiritual terms, not on the terms of our human senses (physiological/mental/emotional).
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The Holy Spirit is the only way to understanding God’s words.
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The Bible does not give allowance or cover up personal weaknesses that contradict the stated commands of God.
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Jesus Christ has given more than sufficient resources in the supernatural realm to each believer to live the full victorious life in total obedience to all the commands written in the Bible. Compliance to one command does not contradict another command. No command nullifies all that Jesus has accomplished on the cross and given to every believer in Christ in the heavenly places.
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Power and authority are required to live the superabundant life Jesus has required of His disciples and Jesus has already given them to all who believe.
- Jesus Himself only did what He saw the Father did and spoke accordingly. The sufferings he bore were two-fold in the following Bible verses:
A. OVERCOMING SIN: “For He (God) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (Christ).” 2 Corinthians 5:21
How did he do it? “And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death on the cross.” Philippians 2:8
B. OVERCOMING DISEASES: “Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness- by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:24-25
JESUS HAD OFFERED HIMSELF ONCE FOR ALL IN HIS SUFFERING, AS THE ONLY ACCEPTABLE SACRIFICE. HE HAD FULFILLED THE HOLY AND RIGHTEOUSNESS REQUIREMENT OF GOD, AS REVEALED IN THE BOOKS OF LAW OF MOSES AND THE PROPHETS.
“Then He (Jesus) said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.’” “By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Hebrews 10:9a-10.
Reading on from Hebrews 10:12-24, we can know that according to the will of God, Jesus had opened our way to God by His blood (the blood of the covenant) and His flesh (body). The Holy Spirit of grace has witnessed this to us.
Jesus’ suffering was part and parcel of the above supernatural salvation package and it had been done. No amount of our own suffering could add to this accomplishment. Jesus’ sacrifice brought glory to the Father as He obeyed and did the will of God.
Coming back to the case of the brother who is being oppressed under the evil spirits of Jezebel and Ahab, is the suffering in accordance to the will of God? What did Elijah (the prophet at that time) do to such spirits? He did not allow himself to suffer under them. He glorified God by obeying God’s Spirit. He was given instructions and protections by the Spirit of the Lord. He did not suffer a bit. later when the spirit of fear followed by the spirit of depression came upon him, the Lord sent His angel to minister to Elijah, who recovered and went on to his next season of ministry.
Was the brother obeying the words of God and was he led by the Holy Spirit? Ephesians 5:22 and Colossians 3:18 clearly stated that Christians wives are to submit to Christian husbands. Like Elijah’s case, he needs to take up the spiritual authority of Jesus Christ and deals with the evil spirits of Jezebel and Ahab.
Was he in obedience to the command of the Lord when he sought to know the will of God and was filled with the Holy Spirit? Ephesians 5:17-18 has the answer. What did Jesus tell His disciples? Luke 10:1-11 details His instructions to the seventy He sent out to ‘harvest’ for the kingdom of God.
Lesson learned: beware of mind agenda influenced by the enemy’s spirits.
On the case of a Christian who suddenly became very sick (with vital organs failing) for forty days in the hospital and recovered despite the doctors’ finding no cause nor treatments to cure him, was the case glorifying God? Which part of the Bible say that such a case of suffering (apparently from spiritual enemies) give glory to God?
What Jesus did over such cases of human being attacked by the evil spirits was very simple. He merely spoke a word and cast them out and stopped the sufferings. He had never spoken a positive word to allow the afflictions to continue. He stated His mission on earth clearly the day He started His earth ministry:
Luke 4:18-19 (ESV)
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Jesus did exactly just that as He had proclaimed, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” Luke 4:21
Ephesians 5:1 “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.”
My real life: the mind is a habit
Daily Practice makes a habit
It takes time and patience to experience a renewal of your mind if you try to use your own efforts. The mindman has discovered. The mind is a habit forming thing. It has taken on years of practices to accumulate a lot of stuff which, unlike physical stuff, cannot be cleaned out by mere physical spring cleaning.
Try as you may, you will still find cobwebs and junks in the forms of thoughts, attitudes, patterns and ways of: perceptions, approaching issues, assessing, valuing, and functioning. All these hamper your decision making.
The modern society has developed clever commercial ways out. Trends and styles and fads. constant changes and increase in varieties and variations have deceived a mind to think that this is renewal or worse, new creation.
Looking behind every change in fashion and fad will see clearly the empty and vain hope without any real substance and depth in terms of change.
Why? Because human mind is just human. The fickleness of the mind has made commercial marketing a thriving viable profession.
The real change does not lie in the commercials.
The real pool of deep water with stagnant stuff needs to be cleaned out and needs deep ‘surgery’ beyond the human mind.
Where? The mindman has discovered that the real change starts deep within, in one’s spirit.
When your spirit is reborn, you become new. The habits in the mind can be removed by the constant washing of water by the Word of God. The habits are of the natural human man and cannot stand the Word which is of the power of the supernatural God. Real transformational power is from God. He is the Creator. He can recreate and form new creation in anything, including all life forms. Life is from God.
Thus, God’s words are life and spirit, just as Jesus had declared. Those who believe can read His words and be transformed by the renewing of the mind, even in areas of deep set habits.
What are mere human habits compared to the creation of many universes? God spoke and they came into being.
“By faith we understand the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” (Hebrews 11:3)
Read Philippians 4:8 [Full Chapter]
[ Meditate on These Things ] Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
My real life: the first battle in the ‘mindfield’
The mindfield which is in the unseen realm is much much more perilous and deadly than the minefield in human physical realm. The mindman has discovered.
Why? In the physical realm everything physical however tightly concealed will be uncovered. Nothing hidden will not be revealed. There is nowhere to hide, really. How can you hide darkness? You cannot. How can you hide death? You cannot. Foul rotten smell of death will soon seep through the layers of covers and permeate the air that you breathe.
How can you hide light? You cannot. Light seeps through every crevice and swallows up everything dark. But the mind can stop light and hide darkness for a time. It has become the ‘nurture bed’ for spiritual attack (in the forms of mental/emotional/mood illnesses or dysfunctions).
As long as the mindfield is filled with dark thoughts, lies and deceptions from the spiritual enemy, human (flesh and blood) is no match to them. No human ways in healing can heal the mind and restore it to complete wellness as it has been originally designed by the supernatural Creator God.
How to become more than conquerors in the mindfield battle?
The mindman has discovered the truth from the Word of God, which is the Power of God. The winning factor in the mindfield battle is ‘POWER’. Whose power? God’s power.
Belief in God and the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who is the Word of God gives us the power to overcome even the mind battle. How did Jesus Himself cast out demons and heal the sick (including those tormented in their minds)? By speaking God’s words as the Son of God. Today we are called to be sons of God. We have the authority to speak His words and do exactly as He did.
Firstly we must know the good gifts that God has given freely to all: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” James 1:17. “Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” Ephesians 1:3.
- Who qualifies to receive the good and perfect gifts (including the power to overcome)? Those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:2 “But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.
- What are the power gifts for the mindfield battle? “that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge” 1 Corinthians 1:5. “But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God-and righteousness and sanctification and redemption-” 1 Corinthians1:30. “But we have the mind of Christ” 2:16.
- Why does God want to give you such good gifts? God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. “so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,” 1:7
Secondly we must know and believe how this great power of God in us work and how may we know.
- “For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power. 1Corinthians 4:20
- “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places…” Ephesians 1:17-20 “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us” Ephesians 3:20
- “Now we have received…the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. 1 Corinthians 2:12 “But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him“1 Corinthians 6:17.
- “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” Romans 8:14.
- “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil” 1 John 3:8b.
- “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” 1 John 5:4-5
In practice, the battle is won through reading the whole Bible, meditating on the words of God, speaking and praying the words, and allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth, just as Jesus has commanded and promised. One caution word: read whole Bible and not be deceived by evil spirit using verses out of context.
The Holy Spirit is always ahead and has warned the watchman many times without fail beforehand to be alert and discerning in the spiritual realm where the real battle is. (Ephesians 6:12; 2 Corinthians 10:3)
Indeed, Jesus’ advice that we watch and pray means we watch our mind and pray in the Spirit (one spirit with the Lord) and in His words.
Action today for those who believe:
Pray through the Bible. For example, take the first chapter of 1 Corinthians and pray, asking for those good and prefect gifts from God to manifest in you.
My Real Life: When words are eradicated from the mind, no truth exists.
One exists 100% when one lives the truth. Otherwise one lives not his own life but others. Truth involves words. When words are eradicated, no truth exists.
The mindman discovers that a reality check on truth is for everyone with a mind to complete. Every thought ought to be a reflection of the truth about oneself. Here is the mindman’s confession.
At one time I was convinced that the mind itself was the truth.
I was very sure that I had the truth and my mind controlled the truth. After all, who could have known me better than my mind knows myself? Surely my mind knows best where I am concerned.
If the mind is loyal to its master, then it would have functioned 100% for my benefits, for my good, for my well being. The ‘me’ or ‘my’ or ‘self’ is very big in the dictionary of the mindman, indeed the whole world to a person who thinks he exists because he thinks.
If the above is true, then everyone (body, soul, and spirit) should be happy. But in real life this is not so. Instead, the mind is subject to deceptions and mental attacks. Why? Because not one mind is perfect or altruistic. Who sets the standards for the mind to function? Who really knows oneself? If the mind sets its own standards of performance then it merely sets those for its own convenience and benefits. It would not bother with anything concerning the well being of the other parts of the body or the soul. (One who exists by his mind does not know about his spirit, so there is no point mentioning his spirit).
As previously written the mind is habit. Habit is a convenience. Which mind would not prefer convenience? In another word, idleness.
The commercial society knows this preference best. It comes up with a lot of commercial conveniences. The mind does not need to do any hard work. It can always pick and choose the decision that offers the easiest and requires least physical and mental effort. Forget about moral. Ignore others well being. Self love, self promotion, and self preservation are the utmost priority.
If there is a reality check on the mind, most significant and common finding will be the atrophy of the brain cells that recall facts and make decision. Signs? Who cares about mental mathematics calculation these days when every mobile phone has a calculator? Who cares to remember phone numbers or addresses or even faces with names when every one has a mobile phone with ease of access to each person’s data so openly stored on the internet? Symbols (including short utterances concocted by the modern digital community) are so easily available and of such rich variety, so why bother to remember words or languages?
Thoughts with no words. Mind with no thoughts. The mindman shudders when he has a glimpse of the inevitable future of human ‘mind’.
Worse, minds with untruth about oneself and others. How will human decision be made? When lies and deceptions become the ruler of the minds, the world’s end will surely arrive. There will be no need for any other form of war. The minds self-destruct itself by a gradual process of atrophy.
Worst, empty minds think themselves powerful.
________________
For Christians to ponder: What can you do when you become wordless?
The Lord Jesus had warned the churches: “…and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works.” Revelation 2:23
A positive and powerful way of the mind:
Romans 8:4-6 Amplified Bible (AMP)
4 So that the righteous and just requirement of the Law might be fully met in us who live and move not in the ways of the flesh but in the ways of the Spirit [our lives governed not by the standards and according to the dictates of the flesh, but controlled by the Holy Spirit].
5 For those who are according to the flesh and are controlled by its unholy desires set their minds on and pursue those things which gratify the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit and are controlled by the desires of the Spirit set their minds on and seek those things which gratify the [Holy] Spirit.
6 Now the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death [death that comprises all the miseries arising from sin, both here and hereafter]. But the mind of the [Holy] Spirit is life and [soul] peace [both now and forever].
How to deal with untruth in our mind?
How To Overcome Doubt
By Andrew Wommack
audio teaching on this topic at: http://www.awmi.net/extra/audio/1046
No one is immune to doubt. It can and does happen to us all. You’ve just got to know how to handle it when it comes. Even the greatest men and women of God recorded in the Bible had to deal with doubt. Jesus said of John the Baptist,
“Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist” (Matt. 11:11).
That means John was greater in the sight of Jesus than Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, or any Old Testament character you can name. Yet John doubted the most important thing of all by questioning whether Jesus was really the Christ.
John the Baptist had been cast into prison for criticizing Herod about marrying his brother’s wife, an incestuous relationship. He had been there sometime between six months and two years and became so discouraged that he asked two of his disciples to go to Jesus and ask Him if He really was the Christ. It’s easy to read that and not think much about it, but the truth is, it was nothing but unbelief on the part of John the Baptist.
Think about who John was. He was separated unto God and filled with the Holy Spirit while he was still in the womb. Even Jesus wasn’t filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb. It is believed he lived in the desert near the Dead Sea with the Essens, the writers of the Dead Sea Scrolls. They were a people who were super-legalistic who dogmatically practiced many rituals of self denial. He certainly had not lived what we would call an easy life. John was separated and focused on his purpose.
His entire life was committed to preparing the way for the Christ. He spent thirty years preparing for a ministry that would only last six short months. John is the one who saw Jesus and said, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world”(John 1:29). The anointing on his life had to be exceptionally powerful because his ministry defied logic. Thousands of people from many nations came to the middle of nowhere to hear this man preach, “Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And God had revealed to him that through a visible sign from heaven he would know who the Christ was. He would see the Spirit of God descending upon the Messiah in bodily shape as a dove. That came to pass when John baptized Jesus in the Jordan River.
At that time, John was absolutely certain that Jesus was the Christ. He had zero doubt. He was so adamant about it that he said “I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God” in John 1:34. In Luke 3:16 he said, “One mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose.” And in John 3:30 he said, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
However, after being imprisoned for a period of time, he began to doubt. This says a number of things, but an important one is the fact that anyone can doubt. How did Jesus respond to John’s doubt? Well, He certainly didn’t respond the way most of us do. He told John’s disciples to go back and tell him of the miracles they had witnessed and that John would be blessed if he would just believe. That’s it. Jesus didn’t try and make John feel better by letting him know He understood his pain or by making a few complimentary comments. Jesus reserved those comments till after John’s disciples left (Luke 7:24-28).
This puzzled me for many years. Why didn’t Jesus say these things about John the Baptist in the hearing of John’s disciples so they could have brought him that word? It seemed to me like that would have helped John more than just telling him to look at the miracles, and he’ll be blessed if he believes.
Years after I first had these questions, I was reading from Isaiah 35 and came across the passage that says,
“Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert” (Is. 35:5-6).
It suddenly struck me that this was exactly the answer that Jesus gave to John’s messengers. Look at what Jesus said in Matthew 11:4-6:
“Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.”
Jesus performed all the miracles Isaiah prophesied He would do, and threw in the healing of a leper and raising someone from the dead just for good measure. What Jesus did was He perfectly fulfilled the prophecy about Himself, and then referred John the Baptist back to that word. Jesus reminded John of the scriptures, to deal with his doubts. That’s Jesus’ method of dealing with our doubts.
Many of us have Bibles lying around gathering dust. Some of us even carry one. But when we’re struggling with unbelief, we don’t want a scripture; we want something tangible, something emotional that we can feel. We would rather have Jesus just put His arm around us and say something about how everything will be all right. That would make us feel better. But overcoming doubt isn’t just about feeling better; it’s about getting back into faith that only comes from the Word of God (Rom. 10:17).
Jesus sent the Word back with John’s disciples. He knew this would stir up John’s spirit to overcome the doubt. Peter understood this about faith when he wrote about it in 2 Peter 1:12-15, which says,
“Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance; Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me. Moreover I will endeavor that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.”
Peter was stating how important it was for his words to be received, as they were, in truth, the Word of God (1 Thess. 2:13). To prove to them that these were not just fables he made up, Peter refers to the time they were with Jesus on the mountain. They saw Jesus shine as the brightness of the sun. The Shekinah glory cloud of God overshadowed them all, and they heard an audible voice out of heaven say, “This is my beloved Son: hear him” (Mark 9:7). They also saw Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus. That is pretty impressive!
But Peter went on to say in 2 Peter 1:19, “We have also a more sure word of prophecy.” What could possibly be more sure than all these supernatural signs? Peter gives that answer in the next verse when he talks about the Scriptures (2 Pet. 1:20). The Scriptures are more sure and more faith building and doubt destroying than seeing Jesus transfigured or hearing an audible voice from heaven. Hallelujah!
The only sure way to overcome doubt is to place your faith in the Word of God and depend on that more sure word of prophecy. Don’t allow your five senses to dominate your thinking. You must come to a place to where God’s Word is more real to you than anything you can see, taste, hear, smell, or feel. When you’re in doubt, refer back to the Word of God just the way Jesus told John the Baptist to do. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word.
There are only two times recorded in the Bible when Jesus marveled at anything. Once He marveled at the people’s great unbelief (Mark 6:6), and in Matthew 8:10 He marveled at a Gentile soldier’s great faith. A faith that made Jesus marvel is worth examining. What was different about it? The number one difference was what the centurion said,
“But speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.” (Matt. 8:8-9)
The centurion had a faith that was in God’s Word alone. He didn’t have to have Jesus come to his house and wave His hand over the sick servant. If Jesus would just give him a word, that was all he needed.
Contrast this centurion’s faith with the little faith of Thomas, who was one of Jesus’ twelve disciples. The first time the risen Christ appeared to His disciples, Thomas wasn’t present. The other ten disciples told Thomas that Jesus was resurrected, but it was eight more days before Jesus appeared to His disciples with Thomas present.
“But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.” (John 20:25)
Jesus walked up to Thomas and told him to put his finger into the print of the nails and thrust his hand into Jesus’ side and to not be faithless but believing. Thomas fell on his knees and confessed Jesus as his Lord and God.
“Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” (John 20:29)
Jesus placed a greater blessing on those who believe without seeing than those who believe because they have seen. In other words, there is a greater anointing on believing the Word than believing signs and wonders. Don’t get me wrong. I believe in signs and wonders. Jesus used them like a bell to draw people unto Himself and so should we. But the ultimate, the more sure word of prophecy, is the written Word of God. There is a greater blessing on just believing God’s Word than there is on believing because of supernatural circumstances. Those who are looking for circumstances to confirm their faith will fail when the strong battles of unbelief come. We have to get our faith so rooted in God’s Word alone that we can withstand a hurricane.
The reason Jesus didn’t try to make John feel better with a few kind words, an emotional touch, was not because He didn’t care. He cared for John so much that He gave John His best — the written Word of God. That’s how Jesus dealt with own His temptations (Matt. 4), and that was and still is God’s best way for us to deal with our temptations to not believe.
Maybe there’s a reason the Lord hasn’t used an emotional touch to deliver you from unbelief. Maybe it’s because He loves you so much that He’s trying to help you operate in the highest form of faith — faith that takes Him at His Word. If the least of the saints today are greater than John the Baptist was then (Matt. 11:11), surely the Lord is wanting us to operate on at least the same level in which He dealt with John’s unbelief.
My Real Life – confession of a transformed mind
The mindman discovered that we exist by the mind of God.
The mindman found this in his old draft. He updated and completed the post on this day of 5-27-2013. This is a confession of a transformed mind.
______________________________On the first day of this last month of 2012, the mindman thought of existence.
He has realized for quite sometime that he could not exist by thinking, although some philosophies preach that one thinks therefore one exists or one exists therefore one thinks.
The mindman’s mind has been renewed by a major spiritual transformation. It was not a natural event. It could not be explained in words. He then started to be aware that his existence goes beyond the soul (mind and emotion). Here is an excerpted account in the mindman’s journal.
______________”My existence”. (a rather self-focus narration here)
To be real is very important to me. I used to think that being real means I can think for myself. But now I know thoughts can be deceptive. Only the motives (intents) behind the thoughts reveal what the truth is. What I think does not necessarily mean it is real. No matter how much I think or how intensive I think, the thoughts could not make me real.
What is my real life? Where is this real life? Where does it come from? How should I find it?
When I argued over my case as a human existence, I ran out of words. Not that I had no more vocabularies, the words came out as mere sounds, without any substance. I knew they were unreal. There was no basis for thoughts to claim any existence unless they were backed by something more authoritative. What could be the authority from whom I could assure of my reality in thoughts 100%?
None. None in the human natural realm.
Medical (including physiological/psychological/mental) science could not prove my existence except certain agreed discernible signs that are used universally by the profession for their practice. Spiritual realm is not accounted for when such signs that can be discerned by our human senses are used to measure life.
I have no human answer. I cannot ignore the truth that my answer is in the supernatural and spiritual realm, where a reality of my existence exists.
_______________________________
In real life experience of the mindman, human natural way cannot give account to how a dead man can be raised to life after being certified dead six hours ago after fervent prayers by loved ones and friends. In another case of a brain dead man, he also woke six hours later after fervent prayers by his wife and a group of Christians who happened to be around attending a worship service. He was up and about totally without damage and lived on with his wife and four little children like any other healthy man. One elderly vegetable seller woke and regained everything she had lost mentally and physically after she lost all memory and was bed ridden for months. She was completely restored because someone gave her husband a CD on divine healing by Jesus and played to her day and night. Both the lady and her husband became Christians after that. She was not only made well she was given big bonus in her mind and spirit. She read the whole Bible six times within a year.
The list of supernatural mind recovery and restoration is endless. in a small limited circle the mindman has already encountered many minds being healed and some even being given supernatural upgrading!
As part of his quest since young teen to study and understand the matters of the mind, the mindman has spent his recent years observing and noting the increase in frequency of such unnatural occurrences. One thing he has learned and has also practiced is effective prayer. He has found that his prayers get increasingly answered.
He has reached the point of believing that all the words of the Bible are truth and spoken by God. He believes that “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own free will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of His creatures.” (James 1:17-18)
Thus he is drawn to practice living the life of the new creation. In real life. He knew the verse about new creation in 2 Corinthians 5:17 more than 30 years ago. But he did not know then how to live the new life. Now he knows. What has caused the change? The transformation started when he began to believe and encounter the reality of the spiritual realm. He has had the true renewal of his mind through believing and opening to the transformational power of the Holy Spirit. He has started to believe that all the words of God are truth and can be practiced in the physical and mental realm.
______________the transformational verses: Romans 12:1-2
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
1 Corinthians 2:16 “But we have the mind of Christ.”
What Generation are you in?
Today’s Bible word is GENERATION. The spiritual question is: What generation are you in? There are only two to choose from. Either you are in one or you are in the other. As all are in “this generation”, this question must be answered by all. Tip: choose number 31!
- Matthew 11:16
“But to what shall I liken this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions,
- Matthew 12:39
But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
- Matthew 12:41
The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.
- Matthew 12:42
The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.
- Matthew 12:45
Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”
- Matthew 16:4
A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” And He left them and departed.
- Matthew 17:17
Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.”
- Matthew 23:36
Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.
- Matthew 24:34
Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.
- Mark 8:12
But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”
- Mark 8:38
For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
- Mark 9:19
He answered him and said, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.”
- Mark 13:30
Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.
- Luke 1:50
And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation.
- Luke 7:31
And the Lord said, “To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like?
- Luke 9:41
Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.”
- Luke 11:29
[ Seeking a Sign ] And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, “This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.
- Luke 11:30
For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.
- Luke 11:31
The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.
- Luke 11:32
The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.
- Luke 11:50
that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation,
- Luke 11:51
from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.
- Luke 16:8
So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.
- Luke 17:25
But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
- Luke 21:32
Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place.
- Acts 2:40
[ A Vital Church Grows ] And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.”
- Acts 8:33
In His humiliation His justice was taken away, And who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.”
- Acts 13:36
“For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption;
- Philippians 2:15
that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
- Hebrews 3:10
Therefore I was angry with that generation, And said, ‘They always go astray in their heart, And they have not known My ways.’
- 1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
“A dictionary for navigators on spiritual rough waters” background explained
Why does the spiritual mindman start this new journey to read God’s words? Because he has navigated the uncharted waters previously and known how tough it is to sail without a pilot or a navigation guide. So in this dictionary he records everything he perceives in his spirit to share with his spiritual novice friends and brethren. This is not a conventional Bible words dictionary. It is a compilation of his spiritual notes while reading the Bible.
Here are the Bible verses as his solid foundation and plumb line for his notes and for all readers who have purposed in their hearts (spirit) to read the Bible afresh and be led by the Holy Spirit.
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1 Corinthians 2
English Standard Version (ESV)
Proclaiming Christ Crucified
2 And I, when I came to you, brothers,did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
Wisdom from the Spirit
6 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. 7 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But, as it is written,
“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”—
10 these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. 13 And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.
14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. 15 The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. 16 “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
“A dictionary for navigators on spiritual rough waters” chapter 2 more gems – freedom
The mindman cannot keep still. The words of God burn. The words keep coming like an avalanche, with little time or space (in the mind) for any other thought. He has been praying for the ‘mind of Christ’ taking over his mind completely recently, more intensely. Here are some of the answers.
(1 Corinthians 2:16 “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.)
__________________Words of God as understood in the spirit (led by the Holy Spirit). Today we focus on ‘paradox’ in God’s dictionary.
Freedom: This means ‘not free’ in human or natural terms. A very difficult word for the human natural mind. How to be free and yet not free? Yet in the supernatural (spiritual realm, this is real freedom!)
Romans 6:21-23 (ESV)
21 But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Great: Again, this means not great in human or natural terms. But in the supernatural (God’s dictionary) realm, this is real greatness!
Matthew 18:3-5 (ESV)
3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me,
Matthew 20:26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,
Luke 6:22-24 (ESV)
22 “Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! 23 Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.
Hardness: This word ties with another word, love. The heart, which is a spiritual state, can be hardened by lovelessness. The cold sets in and ice forms like crust. All these happen not in the unseen but real realm. This word also ties with the word unbelief. Again, this is a spiritual state. It means you do not believe in the spiritual reality of God. How to remove this spiritual crust? Spiritual love of God.
- Matthew 19:8
He said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.
- Mark 3:5
And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.
- Mark 16:14
[ The Great Commission ] Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen.
I: This is a paradox word. The ‘I’ must die so that another ‘I’ may live. No death, no life. Who am “I”? It is not what I think I am. It is what God thinks “I am”. What God thinks will qualify you to enter His kingdom. Jesus said, “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” (John 3:5)
Galatians 2:20-21 (NKJV)
20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”
Romans 8:13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
John 3:6-7 (NKJV)
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’
Jesus (Yeshua): This word is defined by each believer of Jesus. No one can force you to use a definition which means nothing to you. What you believe is what you get.
Matthew 7:23 (NKJV)
23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
King: There are only two kings. The one to whom you give your full trust and loyalty is your king. Your king issues decrees and since you are his subject you will need to follow. Royal decrees cannot be changed or broken. Your king has absolute right and authority over you. When you end up in the place where the real King assigns you, you will know which king (King) you have submitted to all your earthly lives.
Here are some examples of the outcome when you disobey your real King (the Son of God, Jesus):
- Matthew 8:12
But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
- Matthew 13:42
and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
- Matthew 13:50
and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
- Matthew 22:13
Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
- Matthew 24:51
and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
- Matthew 25:30
And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
A dictionary for navigators on spiritual rough waters1 : anger, bravery, consider and many more
There is a new dictionary which is not exactly new. It has been hidden to many who do not venture into the spiritual realm. The mindman has discovered this new way of reading words, really important words, the words of God. So he begins his real journey on the rough uncharted waters.
Here are some of the new meanings of words or phrases he has found on the way. Enjoy your own navigation through the spiritual mind journey!
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Anger: it means murder when you think anger in your mind concerning your fellow Christians.
Matthew 5:21-23 (NKJV) Murder Begins in the Heart 21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire. 23 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
Bravery: If you think of men and fear them and do what they like you to do, you are a coward. Only when you mind the matters of God and do the will of God regardless what men may say or do to you, you are considered brave, Jesus is the best example of bravery. Peter is a typical example of the opposite.
(Matthew 16:23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” Matthew 16:22-24 (in Context) Matthew 16 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations )
Consider: means accounting action. Many think this is just a matter of thinking in your mind. But in the new dictionary it means real action. For example, it is same as the word count or account. When you consider something in your mind your account in heaven starts updating with debits and credits being input into it!
Romans 6:11 (EXB) | In Context | Whole Chapter 11 In the same way, you should ·see [count; consider] yourselves as being dead to ·the power of sin [L sin] and alive ·with [to; with reference to] God ·through [or in; in union with] Christ Jesus.
Defile: it means even your thoughts are action words. Mark 7:20-23 (ESV) 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
Excellence: come in two forms: the power of God (the Holy Spirit); your spiritual knowledge of God.
- 2 Corinthians 4:7 [ Cast Down but Unconquered ] But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.
- Philippians 3:8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ.
sound mind journal 