How Does God Strengthen Us?
Over the past couple months the Lord and I have been working together to help me understand a few things. Yes, I pray and ask the Lord to help me understand things. I ask him to give me examples or I question him on how does he expect me to act on something if I don’t understand.
Yes, I believe God and his word – every jot and tittle of his word. One day I asked the Lord, why do I read one thing in your word and I try to do what you say, but I do not see the results you say?
I know I live by faith, not by sight. I know Jesus sets me free from the law.
When we first get saved we seem to strive to please God. We try not to sin in the flesh because we love the Lord and want to please him. We quickly learn the battle the apostle Paul was describing as our battle between our flesh and our spirit in Romans chapter 7:14-25 KJV.
After we have been saved for a while we should have some victories over areas in our life God has worked on with us. But what about the parts of God’s word that make promises to us but we don’t see the promises come to fruition yet?
We know for a fact, God can not lie Hebrews 6:18 ” That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:”
So we have to ask God, why haven’t I seen this promise in my life? Am I doing something wrong? And friends, this is one of the questions I have been asking the Lord over the past couple of months.
Yes, the Lord reminded me I walk by faith not by sight. Which told me, just because I have not seen a particular promise come to fruition in my life yet, does not mean it will not come to fruition. So the Lord explained it to me another way, from his word and that is what I want to share with you today.
1¶[[A Psalm of David.]] I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.
Two things God showed me again –
God has magnified his word ABOVE his name. And notice verse three.
When we cry unto the Lord, he answers us AND the Lord strengthens us ( How and Where?) The Lord strengthens us with strength in our soul.
We have several teachings on the spirit, soul and body in our archives for you to review. But God is telling us he strengthens us in our soul. Our soul is our mind, emotions and our will.
So the Lord uses his word to strengthen our mind, strengthens our will and strengthens our emotions. And by using his word to strengthen us he is in fact increasing our faith. Remember, faith is something we can not see.
Hebrews 11:1 “1¶Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
And to strengthen us, the Lord uses Paul to remind us of the heros of faith throughout Hebrews chapter 11.
Friends, no matter what the issues are in your life, God will use his word to strengthen and encourage you. He strengthens your soul. He strengthens your mind, your will and your emotions, if you will let him. But do not forget his method for doing this is through his word which he exalts above his name.
Until next time.

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Knowledge And The Soul
To understand life and living in this world, in the flesh, you have to go back to the beginning. God says he created everything. Man, animals, birds, God formed from the dirt of the earth. When we look at man, mankind, God says he created man in His image. So if man has a spirit, a soul, and a body, guess what God has?
When we look at God’s instructions to Adam keep in mind, God created Adam in his image. Look at Genesis 2: 15-23
” And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
16. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
17. But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
18. And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
19. And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.
20. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.
21. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
22. And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
23. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. ”
The only tree Adam could not eat of was a tree of “knowledge” . What area of human life does knowledge affect? Remember, we defined knowledge already in previous posts. Knowledge is not information, it is knowing that you know. So what part of the human body does knowing or knowledge affect? Yes, your mind. And your mind, your will and your emotions are the definition of your soul, not your body and not your spirit.
So when Adam took of the tree of knowledge, what area of Adam’s body would be affected? His mind. His soul.
So think about this. Before Adam sinned, his mind knew God, he communicated with God and God communicated with Adam. Adam thought like God thinks.
We know from scripture that God told Adam, if you take of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you will surely die. We know Adam and Eve took of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Did they die?
We know they did not die in their flesh, in their body. So what died? What part of them died?
Again, knowledge affects what part of the body? The mind. And the mind is part of what? Yes, the soul. So what part of Adam died? His soul. Adam’s soul was now dead unto God. Adam’s mind, his will and his emotions were now dead unto God.
So how could Adam know or operate in God’s will if Adam was now, in his mind, in his will and in his emotions, dead unto God? He can not. It is like Adam does not even have a clue what God tells him. Taking of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil messed up Adam and Eve’s mind. Not only did it mess up their mind but it also killed their soul towards God.
It is like putting on a blindfold and trying to walk through life not seeing, not hearing not knowing where to go and what to do. Not knowing your purpose. Not knowing why you are here. Not knowing what to do. And because God created all of us with his breath of life, deep in our spirit man, we know God is real. People struggle to find God, search out God, learn about God and why he created them. Why? Because when Adam sinned, it messed up his mind. He died towards God.
That is why all the shedding of blood in blood atonement sacrifices. God shed blood of an animal to cover Adam and Eve. Israel shed the blood of sheep and goats to cover Israel’s sin. It was not until God came in the flesh, in a fleshly body, in Jesus Christ, to shed his sinless blood, once and for all time, to pay Adam’s sin debt.
This is explained, by God, in the scriptures in Hebrews 9:6-28 ” Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God.
7. But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:
8. The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:
9. Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience;
10. Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.
11. But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;
12. Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
13. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:
14. How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
15. And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
16. For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.
17. For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.
18. Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood.
19. For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,
20. Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.
21. Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry.
22. And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
23. It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
24. For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:
25. Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;
26. For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
27. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
28. So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”
Not only did Jesus Christ pay man’s sin debt, but he also restored man’s relationship with God. We will pick it up from here next time, Lord willing. Until next time.
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What Happens After Death? Part 2
So mankind clearly has a spirit, a soul and a body. No, that does not mean there are three of you, it does mean your spirit, your soul and your body make up who you are as one person. Remember, God says he created mankind in “his” image.
Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
So if God made mankind (man) in his image and we have a spirit, soul and body, then God must have a Spirit, Soul and Body. Scripture says God is Spirit and we know scripture speaks of the mind of God. The mind, will and emotions is the soul by definition of the word soul. What about the body?
1 Timothy 3:16 tells us, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”
Jesus declared, I and my Father are one. God was made known to man in the flesh by Jesus Christ. So Jesus is God manifest in the flesh.
When God told Adam, do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or you will die – Adam ate of that tree and so did Eve, did they die? Physically in their body, no. Was God lying? No. So if they did not die in their flesh, their body, what did die? Their soul? Their spirit?
Remember before Adam sinned he and God spoke together? But after Adam sinned, Adam hid himself and God asked Adam, where are you? Our flesh can not speak. Our flesh is stimulated by what we see, hear, taste, touch and smell. Our five senses apply to our flesh.
Our soul is our mind, our will and our emotions. Our mind holds our memories, our affections, our reasoning, our imagination and our conscience. So when Adam sinned, his conscience bothered him and he was afraid.
Genesis 3:9,10 ” And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10. And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
Notice Adam now had knowledge of doing something wrong. He knew he did something God told him not to do. Now Adam was afraid of God. So was it Adam’s flesh, his mind or his spirit that sinned?
Our flesh can not act on its own. Our flesh does what our mind convinces us to do. Our spirit is our communion with God. It is our prayer, our faith, our worship, our reverence and our hope. It was not Adam’s spirit that sinned. Adam’s soul sinned by his mind telling him to do something God told him not to do. And God’s word says, the soul that sins must die.
Ezekiel 18:4 ” Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” See also the book of Romans.
So it was Adam’s soul that sinned. A thought was planted in to Adam’s mind and Adam decided to believe that thought. Did you ever ask yourself, where do all those crazy thoughts come from? You can sit quietly in your room and all of a sudden, all these thoughts start going through your mind. Where did the thoughts come from?
When Adam sinned, it was not his flesh that made that decision. It was not Adam’s spirit that made that decision but it was Adam’s soul that decided to believe the thought (even though the thought was a lie).
So what died? Scripture tells us. Adam’s communion or fellowship with God. Adam’s connection with God in his spirit man died. Now, Adam had a dead spirit man towards God. Adam no longer had that closeness with God. Now Adam was afraid of God and hid himself from God.
And because we are all created in Adam’s image, and Adam sinned before all of mankind was born, we are all born in to sin. We are all born with a sin nature. We can not help it, we all sin.
Psalm 51:3-5 ” For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.
4. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.
5. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. ”
When we are born, we are born with a sin nature. Our flesh desires to sin against God and our soul thinks about sinning against God. And there is nothing we can ever do that would make us sin free while we are in this flesh, in this body, in this world. And that is why God fixed the problem himself.
All the laws and rituals done by Israel could never take away their sin, it was always God deciding, by his mercy, to forgive man. So why give the laws and rituals? To show the people they could never keep all the laws and rituals. God fixed the problem by coming in the flesh, shedding his perfect blood to pay, once for all, the debt for all sin.
John 3:16,17 ” For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”
What was God saving? Our flesh? Our soul? Our spirit?
When Adam sinned, what died? Not his flesh. Not his soul. His spirit died towards God. Psalm 32:5 ” . I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah. ”
What is iniquity? The desire to sin. The wanting or want to, sin. So when a person “gets saved” or born again, it is the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ that atones for the soul. Leviticus 17:11 ” For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.”
1 Peter 1:9 “Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.”
When we ask God to forgive us of our sin and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ paying our sin debt with God, we ask the Lord Jesus Christ to come into our heart and save us. We are asking God to save our soul, not our flesh. And when we do this, with a genuine heart and motive, God does it, he saves us, he saves our soul. And we notice something changed inside us. Our spirit man is born again and is alive unto God. Now we can hear God speak to us. Now we hear God direct us.Jesus said, my sheep hear my voice.
We have to ask, so what happens to a person, when they die, if they are saved? What happens to a person if they are not saved when they die? We will look at that next time. Until next time.
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What Happens After Death?
What happens to your soul and your spirit when your body dies? What happens when you get born again?
Does getting born again change your soul? Your spirit? Your body?
Let’s consider one more question. When Adam and Eve sinned against God, was it their spirit that sinned? Was it their soul that sinned? Or was it their body, their flesh that sinned?
Genesis 2:7 KJV “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”
God created mankind with an earthly body made of dirt from this earth, this world. God breathed into man the breath of life “spirit” and man became a living soul. So God created mankind with three main parts, spirit, soul and body.
Proverbs 16 distinguishes not only man’s spirit, soul and body but also man’s thoughts, his heart and his tongue. Paul mentions man’s spirit, soul and body in 1 Thessalonians 5:23 ”
And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. ”
And look at Hebrews 4:12, we learn what the word of God does to mankind when God’s word is spoken and taught to mankind. ” For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. ”
So mankind clearly has a spirit, a soul and a body. No, that does not mean there are three of you, it does mean your spirit, your soul and your body make up who you are as one person.
When God told Adam, do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or you will die – Adam ate of that tree and so did Eve, did they die? Physically in their body, no. Was God lying? No. So if they did not die in their flesh, their body, what did die? Their soul? Their spirit?
We know, from scripture, our body is made of dirt. God sculptured our body from the earth, from dirt. So ask yourself, what affects your body? Your five senses, hear, taste, touch, smell and sight. These five senses teach your flesh, they work on your flesh.
We know, by definition of the word soul, our soul is our mind (what we think), our will and our emotions. What affects our soul? Our affections, our memories, our reasoning, our conscience and our imagination. Remember when mankind was building the tower of Babel? What did God say?
Genesis 11:5-7 ” And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.
6. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
7. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. ”
Notice – they imagined to do? They were building the tower to get to heaven using their soul, imagination was the conduit. Just because people imagine things and try to build what they imagined does not mean God approves of our inventions. Look at Psalm 99:8 ”
. Thou answeredst them, O LORD our God: thou wast a God that forgavest them, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions.”
We know Adam and Eve did not die in their flesh, their body. We also know they did not die in their mind, their will or their emotions so they did not die in their soul. They did not die in their heart, their heart did not quit.
Notice Adam was naked in the garden before he sinned and after he sinned, he had the knowledge he was naked. Genesis 3:9,10 “And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10. And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. ”
Why did God ask Adam, where are you?
We will pick it up from here next time.
Until next time.
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Who Are You – Your Mind
Your mind commands your flesh. Every action your flesh does is because your mind told your flesh to do the action.
Your flesh feels cold, you put on a jacket. Your flesh wants food, you eat. Your flesh wants to act on things in this world. When you consider it is your mind, your will and your emotions running your life, you realize you are limited in life by what you know. You are limited to the knowledge of your mind. You limit yourself to the world’s wisdom. And you are “soul living” .
And if you are not born again as described by Jesus in John chapter 3 verses one through thirteen, you are what the scriptures call a “natural man”.
1 Corinthians 2:11-16 KJV “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
14. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.
16. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. ”
What God says about mental illness and what the world teaches about mental illness are 180 degrees opposite each other.
By definition, as we said before, mental illness means illness of the mind. The mind is not functioning the way God designed the mind, it is sick, ill. The mind is one of three parts of the soul. Your soul is your mind, your will and your emotions.
Scripture shows us several examples of people with mind problems, aka mental illness. The thing you need to keep in mind is the world defines mental illness a variety of ways, including depression. But God defines mental illness quite differently. Some examples of mental illness in scripture include:
Luke 4:33-37 ” And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice,
34. Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.
35. And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.
36. And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.
37. And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about.”
Notice, this guy was in the synagogue or we might say, someone in church.
Look at Luke 8:26-39 “And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee.
27. And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs.
28. When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not.
29. (For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.)
30. And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him.
31. And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep.
32. And there was there an herd of many swine feeding on the mountain: and they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them. And he suffered them.
33. Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked.
34. When they that fed them saw what was done, they fled, and went and told it in the city and in the country.
35. Then they went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid.
36. They also which saw it told them by what means he that was possessed of the devils was healed.
37. Then the whole multitude of the country of the Gadarenes round about besought him to depart from them; for they were taken with great fear: and he went up into the ship, and returned back again.
38. Now the man out of whom the devils were departed besought him that he might be with him: but Jesus sent him away, saying,
39. Return to thine own house, and shew how great things God hath done unto thee. And he went his way, and published throughout the whole city how great things Jesus had done unto him. ”
Here is a disturbing example – this person had mind issues since they were a child.
Mark 9:16-29 ” And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them?
17. And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit;
18. And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
19. He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me.
20. And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
21. And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
22. And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
23. Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
24. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.
25. When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
26. And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
27. But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.
28. And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out?
29. And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting. ”
Then look at John 8:39 where Jesus tells people they are of their father the devil. Wait a minute, I thought everyone is a child of God! No, that is not true. That is what the world teaches but scripture straightens things out and speaks truth.
Even Peter says in 1 Peter 5:8 – 18 ” Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
9. Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.
10. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
11. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. ”
Believers have an enemy, the devil. The devil tries to destroy, depress, confuse and derail believers by attacking them and their family, attacking their job, attacking their “stuff” and attacking their health, just like he attacked Job.
Remember everyone told Job it was God causing his suffering? Even Job’s wife said curse God and die. Was it God causing Job’s suffering? No! Did Job suffer? Yes. We all have suffering in this world. Many people blame God for their troubles and they quit on God (like my neighbor). Some focus their mind on their suffering so much that they get depressed. That is not mental illness.
Mental illness is not a disease, it is an attack from a foul or unclean spirit. And if the person being attacked is not a believer, they will do “crazy” things. Believers have been given a sound mind according to scripture.
2 Timothy 1:7 – 10 ” For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
8. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;
9. Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
10. But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel: ”
Yes, the devil attacks believers, again, look at Job. But believers are suppose to be able to recognize our enemy the devil, recognize his attacks and know what devices the devil uses against us. Believers are suppose to know how to fight back. Sadly, most believers can not even recognize attacks from our enemy much less know how to fight back.
The way to cure mental illness is to replace what is in the person’s mind with the word of God. To pray over that person and declare God’s word and then fill their mind with the word if God.
Years ago people were medicated and put in insane asylums with padded walls. Today, they still medicate but then send them home to their family. The answer is call the elders of the church and have them lay hands in them and pray for them declaring God’s word over them. Then fill their mind with the word of God. Start with the gospel of salvation and Romans road. Until next time.
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Who Are You Part 5 Mental
Believers are to understand their flesh only does what their mind commands. Believers must understand their flesh wants things of the earth, things of this world. Why? Because the flesh is part of this world, not of heaven’s world. So the believer’s struggle, is to bring their flesh under subjection to God knowing perfectly well, their flesh is going to fight them all the way. Scripture says,
1 Corinthians 9:27 KJV “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”
So if it is the mind that commands the flesh, what commands the mind? How does the mind decide what someone should do or should not do? Mental illness is a mind issue. By definition, the person has illness of their mind. Their mind is ill, sick, does not operate the same way as God designed it.
Your mind is part of your soul. Remember, God made man like himself. God made man from the dust of the earth (giving man a body). God breathed into man’s nostrils the breath of life, ( giving man a spirit ) and man became a living soul. If you look soul up in the dictionary you find your soul is your mind, your will and your emotions.
Your body, your flesh, is commanded by your soul. Your mind tells your body to do things. But what tells your soul what to do, what to think, how to feel emotionally? Does God have a soul? According to Isaiah 1:14 KJV ” Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. ”
Psalm 11:5 ” The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth. ”
Yes, God has a soul and so do you.
Just like your flesh absorbs things through your five senses, your soul absorbs things too. Your soul is not made up of just your mind, your soul includes your will and your emotions. Your soul absorbs information. That information influences your imagination, your conscience, your memories, your reasoning and your affections. Let’s break it down more.
Your flesh hears some news or your eyes read a book or you try a new restaurant for dinner or you smell smoke coming from somewhere, your flesh absorbs this information. Then your soul, through reasoning, makes a judgment and acts. You chalk the whole thing up to experience.
Because your mind is part of your soul, people with so called “mental illness” have had information put into their mind that causes them to think or do “unnatural” things. Paul explains in 1 Corinthians chapter 2 the difference between the natural man and the spiritual man. Basically, the person who is truly saved, born again, is a spiritual man (man referencing mankind not one’s sex). The natural man is an unsaved person.
1 Corinthians 2: 11 “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
14. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.
16. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. ”
Once your flesh absorbs information through your five senses, (hear, taste, touch, see and smell) your soul processes that information. Your soul, your mind, will determine or reason with you to decide if you like or dislike what you taste, what you touch, what you hear, what you smell or what you see.
Children receive information from their parents as they grow up. And parents influence their children more than any other person unless the parents relinquish their duties to train up their children in the Lord, to government run schools. You can see why governments offer free primary school. If the government can get your children into a preschool, they can mold their mind into the world’s ways, not God’s ways. When a child starts in government run preschools, goes through twelve years of public schools and then may enter college, those students have been indoctrinated into government ways and the world’s systems. They have been taught there is no God. Many of the students believe in evolution, they reject the scriptures and they reject God.
From about three years old until about twenty two years old their mind has been filled with the world’s wisdom, not God’s wisdom. That is 19 years of indoctrination and that is all that child knows because parents tell their children to listen to and obey their teacher. When the child grows up, many parents wonder why their children argue with them over things of life or over scripture or right from wrong, or hard work. Children have been taught by government run schools and for listening to their teachings, the student gets a participation trophy.
When school prayer was abolished in government run schools and preschools and the Bible was thrown out in the 1950s and 1960s, the information absorbed through the five senses changed. The soul still processes the information though.
Now we have generations of children indoctrinated in socialism (a fancy appealing word that means communism – look the word up in the 1828 Webster dictionary ). Their minds have not just been taught the lie of socialism, their minds have been indoctrinated. That is why Home Schools started springing up. Parents saw the indoctrination through government run schools and pulled their children out. Some governments outlawed home schooling. Did you ever ask yourself why?
The old expression, if you tell a lie long enough, people will believe it to be true. Indoctrination is telling or teaching the same thing over and over and over again, for years. And in children in government run achools, for 19 years teaching the same things over and over again and they eventually believe what they were taught and reject any truth from God. The question is why will they not even listen to what God says and consider, what if God is right and I have been lied to by my teachers?
The same is true with biblical issues. Some denominations have indoctrinated their followers in to their denominational teachings. When people believe their church or their Bible teachers over what the scriptures teach, those people are no different than children educated in government run schools.
Now add in the spirit realm. Not only are their teachers in schools, but parents also teach their children and churches and synagogues teach their people. When your mind decides to believe your school teachers more than anyone else, or decide to believe your church’s or your denomination’s teaching over anyone or anything else, you put yourself in a danger zone in life. There needs to be a final authority who has the right answers to all of our questions. That final authority is the word of God because God is our Creator. He made us. He designed us. He gave us abilities.
So what about “mental illness”? In the early 1900s, and into the 1950s, 60s and early 70s, people with so called mental illness were put into Insane Asylums aka The Funny Farm. These people were put in to straight jackets and rooms with padded walls. Then they were medicated to make them docile and easy to manage.
Children who misbehaved or did not follow “society ” and the world’s ways were put in to reform schools. Many churches stepped in to try and help these troubled children. Was it mental illness? The scriptures have a lot to say about mental illness. What God says about mental illness and what the world teaches about mental illness are 180 degrees opposite each other. We will look at mental illness in our next post. Be sure to subscribe to our blog and if you would like to support our blog ministry, please make a donation or contact us at The HeavensRecord
Until next time.
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Who Are You Part 4
We said last time, our flesh – our body, is a shell made of dirt, made from the dust of the earth. Our body can do nothing on its own. Our flesh absorbs things through our five senses; hear, taste, touch, see and smell.
Our body absorbs odors through smell. It absorbs sounds through hearing. It absorbs visions through seeing, flavor through taste and sensations through touching. So why did the asostle Paul say our flesh “works” ? Glad you asked.
Paul explains in Galatians 5:19-21 KJV ” 19. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
20. Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
21. Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. ”
Paul lists 17 works of the flesh. For example, let’s pick one of the seventeen – hatred. How can flesh “work hatred” ? Remember, your flesh absorbs things through your five senses. So how does your flesh work hatred?
In the 1828 Webster Dictionary, there are “26” definitions of the word “work”. When we think about the word work, we often think of working to produce something. Most people think of manual labor. But in this case, our flesh “works” to produce hatred in our example.
It is not that our flesh alone can work at producing hatred, but our flesh obeys information and instructions from our “command center”, our soul. Our soul is our mind, will and emotions. Your mind tells your flesh what to do. Your mind tells your flesh I like this or I hate this.
Your mind tells you this smells good or bad. Your mind tells you this sound is pleasing or this sound is horrible. When you look at something, your eyes absorb what they see, but it is your mind that tells your flesh, this is beautiful or that is ugly. Your flesh tastes things, but it is your mind that tells your flesh, this tastes good or not. It is your mind that tells you if you touch something hot or cold, smooth or rough.
It is your mind that tells your flesh to work hatred. It is your mind that tells your flesh to commit adultry. It is your mind that tells your flesh to participate in witchcraft. It is your mind that tells your flesh to sow strife. When you understand it is your mind that commands your flesh to act on something, good or bad, you can understand how Jesus Christ could hang on a cross and say to the Father, ” forgive them, they know not what they do”.
When you understand a person’s mind is causing them to act the way they are acting, you can forgive people who wrong you.
Today, people are pushing chaos, hatred, strife and division. God hates it. Look at the six things God hates and the seventh thing is an abomination. Proverbs 6:16-19 KJV
” 16. These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
17. A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
18. An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
19. A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren. ”
Today, people will kill someone over a parking space. Some people will not work, but they will steal from those who do work. Even believers will sow strife and divisions with another believer because they do not agree with them. Not good. I am not saying drop doctrine. I am saying, no two people agree on everything so why would you want to have God angry with you just because you do not like or agree with another believer? Each of us are accountable for only our own walk, not your neighbor’s walk and not another believer’s walk.
People will try to destroy people because they do not agree with them. Some are asking, what is going on in this world? Has the world gone crazy? You already know the answer to those questions. The flesh works what the mind commands.
If the mind is focused on things of this world, the flesh will work things of this world. You will work to lay up your treasures in this world. But if you are a true believer, one who has really been born again, not from saying a prayer but from a true heart conversion to Jesus Christ, you want to obey God. You want to lay your treasures up, not on this earth but up in heaven where they will last forever.
Believers are to understand their flesh only does what their mind commands. Believers must understand their flesh wants things of the earth, things of this world. Why? Because the flesh is part of this world, not of heaven’s world. So the believer’s struggle is to bring their flesh under subjection to God knowing perfectly well, their flesh is going to fight them all the way. Scripture says,
1 Corinthians 9:27 KJV “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”
This is what Paul was saying when he says his mind wants to do one thing but his flesh/body wants to do something different.
Romans 7:14-25 KJV ” 14. For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
15. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
16. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.
17. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
18. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
19. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
20. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
21. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
22. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
23. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
24. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
25. I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. ”
Until next time.
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Who Are You – Your Body
Why did God create mankind?
Answer: Genesis 1:26 – 30 KJV
” And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
27. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
28. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
29. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
30. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. ”
How did God make man?
Answer: Genesis 2:7 KJV ” And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. ”
God gives man a spirit, a soul and a body, see 1 Thess. 5:23 KJV ” And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. ”
So God plants a garden and puts man in the garden to keep the garden. A description of what is in the garden is in Genesis 2:8-17. Then God makes Eve and we read how Satan deceives Eve. We know it is Satan because God calls him, that old serpent the devil.
Adam and Eve disobey God and take of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But notice after Adam and Eve sinned, they “heard the voice of God” walking in the garden.
God was walking in the garden and he calls Adam (Gen.3:9). God pronounces judgment on Satan, Eve and Adam for the sin. And notice what God tells Adam in Genesis 3:19 – ” In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. ”
You are going to sweat and toil working until you return unto the ground. You were made from the dirt/dust of the ground and you are going to return to dust. Adam’s body was made from dirt and so is your body and my body, made from dirt.
Today we have cemeteries but think back hundreds of years ago, thousands of years ago. All those people who lived before us for all the years before we were created, have returned to dirt. Did you ever think that when you take a walk in a park or dig your backyard garden, you are walking or digging where dead people returned to dirt? Maybe it is just the way my mind works.
God tells us, we came from dirt and our body/flesh will return to dirt. People spend millions of dollars pumping up and beautifying a fleshly body that is slowly dying. Until one day, 70, 80, 90 years down the road, their body/flesh dies and ” gives up the ghost/spirit”. Do you think they will get rewards for working and spending thousands of dollars on beautifying their dirt?
I am not saying people should not take care of themselves. Remember, we are discussing our spirit, soul and body.
Remember, God created us like himself and God created us with a spirit, soul and body. 1 Thess. 5:23 tells us we have a spirit, soul and body.
Our body/flesh is dirt that God gave life to, living dirt. Our body has five senses; hear, taste, touch, see and smell. These five senses are like gates to our flesh. These gates allow our flesh to receive sound, odors, vision, sensation and feeling.
There is no such thing as a sixth sense. There are only five senses – hear, taste, touch, smell and see. What people allude to as a “sixth” sense is not part of the flesh. It is part of the soul and spirit.
Through our five senses our body/flesh absorbs things like a sponge. Our flesh absorbs sounds, absorbs odors, absorbs what we see, what we touch and taste. But our flesh itself can not make distinctions or decisions, it only absorbs sounds, odors, what things feel like, and so forth.
If you look at a person who is in a coma, lying on a hospital bed, you see a fleshly body lying on a bed. Their flesh can do nothing but lay there until their “control center” tells their flesh to do something. But can their body still absorb sounds? Absorb odors? Absorb touching? Yes. Their body still absorbs but can not do anything until their control center tells their body to do something.
That may sound very simple but understanding your body is dirt that absorbs through your five senses is key to understanding Who You Are. It is crucial to understanding your spirit, soul and body.
So if a person is lying on a hospital bed, in a coma, does their body still operate with their five senses?
Remember, your five senses are like a sponge to your flesh. If the person is in a coma, they may not be seeing things in this world, in their hospital room, but they still can see. Look at 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 KJV.
Your flesh can not do anything on its own but absorb. Your flesh needs the command center to tell it what to do; lift your arm, sit up, clean yourself.
Remember, your flesh is made of dirt and God gave your dirt life. Your body absorbs things just like the earth absorbs smoke, chemicals, the sun, water, rain and so forth. Your body absorbs things through your five senses. Your body is living dirt that can not do anything on its own but absorb. It is your command center that tells your body what to do, whether good or evil. Until next time.
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Who Are You Part 2
We said last time –
Scientists are trying to clone life but they can not create life. So scientists take living cells from living animals and try to create a new life. They will never do it. They can not create a brand new life from nothing. They always need to take cells from something living.
My son and I were discussing the mind this morning and how the world operates on a system of what mankind thinks. Mankind’s thoughts. When mankind gets an idea, they try to make their idea come to life. So we veered into discussing life. I reminded my son about cloning and how scientists can not create life. I said, everything on this planet has life because God is life and created this planet with life. Everything is alive.
So my son asked me about mashed potatoes. I said yes, they are alive and that is why, if you take one potato and put it on your counter, after a period of time, it will sprout. If you cut the potato into wedges with each wedge having a sprout and then plant the wedges outside, in the ground, you will get potatoes. If you put mashed potatoes in the refrigerator, mold will form.
I explained it is like the whole earth is breathing. Trees are living, grass and flowers are living, everything is alive. God created everything alive, living. The only difference is, God created mankind like himself. He created the earth with life.
Man has realized he can not create life from nothing like God can. This man discovered through attempts at cloning. So now, man is creating AI ( Artificial Intelligence ).
Artificial is defined as not natural, fictitious. Another words, fake. AI is fake intelligence. In our computer age, information from volumes of books is fed into a mainframe. The information is stored and the computer sifts through the information in lightening speed and produces the answer. The answer is based on the information that was programmed into the mainframe. Did God put the information in to the mainframe? Is the world programming God’s answers in to the mainframe? No! AI is based on man’s understanding and man’s knowledge. Based on man’s information and leaves God out.
Which brings me to one of the keys for this series, the soul – the mind. After God formed man from the dust of the ground giving man a body, then breathed his breath into man giving him life ( a spirit ), man became a living soul.
Imagine forming someone in the dirt. Then breath into their nostrils. Nothing happens. But God is the Creator of all and after telling us how he created the earth and the heavens, he tells us how he created mankind – like himself.
Consider this. You die. Your spirit and soul leave your earthly body. Where do they go? What do they look like? Lord willing, we will pick it up from here next time. Until next time.
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