Searching for the Truth in the King James Bible;
Finding it, and passing it on to you.
EDITOR:
Steve
Van Nattan
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THE SPIRIT OF FEAR By
Steve Van Nattan
Matthew 10:28 (KJV) And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. The only one Jesus allows me to fear is God, for, if I am not in a relationship with him, through Jesus Christ, I DO have something to fear greatly. So, if I am not to fear men, who can only hurt me physically, what resources does God give me to put this into practice? You see, all of humanity around me is in fear much of the time, and my leaders, and the media, and some of you saints, are always trying to show me things to fear. I must confess, I give way to this far too easily, and I regret it later. I feel like I have totally wasted the moment if it was only about the wicked world and the perils that seem to be lurking there. The first fear tactic used on me was when I was in third grade in 79th Street School in Los Angeles. We had atomic bomb drills, similar to fire drills. When the siren went off, we were to jump under our desks, not look out the windows, and put our arms over our heads as we huddled there on our elbows and knees. A few years later, President Eisenhower and President Kennedy appeared on TV, side by side, and told Americans that they should all buy bomb shelters. I took it all very seriously, but it all turned out to be a big farce. It was based on fear of the USSR, which, as history finally showed, was ALWAYS ten steps behind the USA in killing power. A few years after this, I learned that none of the members of Congress has bomb shelters. Go figure. All my life my government, my friends, my neighbors, the news media, the schools, and preachers have been dishing out all manner of proofs that some new thing has come along to fear. Today, courtesy of 9/11, we are all jabbed from time to time with a terrorist threat, even if there is none. Homeland Security has the task of keeping America in a state of fear of terror. Bogie men are found, like Osama bin Laden, and there they are on TV and YouTube threatening America. It must be so-- I saw it on YouTube. Add to this the terror the media and government try to inspire in people of swine flu and pneumonia. It seems there are no end of fears out there. We older Americans have to listen to our doctors tell us that we are in grave danger if we reject flu vaccine and give big Pharma another chance to profit by us. Also, treacherous science has produced the most treasonous fear of them all-- high cholesterol. Your body will take your cholesterol where ever it should be to keep you alive and healthy. The problem is, cholesterol is the plaque in the arteries when someone gets arteriosclerosis, so the lie thrives. The point is, many researches have proven that cholesterol way over 300 will NOT accumulate on any blood vessel lining unless the blood vessel is inflamed. So, inflammation causes clogged arteries, and the medical profession has NO plan for avoiding inflammation. You have to find that information from alternative sources. But, this horrible fear which has saturated the Western World results in statin drugs being used by millions of perfectly well people. In the end, the statins produce the very thing they are meant to avoid-- arteriosclerosis ! Then we have Al Gore and his mob telling us the sky is falling, and the ice is melting, and the fish will die, and the sea will rise, and the fault will quake, and the train will wreck at any moment. When ANYONE tells you something that prompts you to fear, do any red lights go on in your brain, or do you suck up the propaganda and believe it and add it to your collection of dark expectations? Well, this ALL runs counter to what Jesus said in Matthew above. Paul later expanded on Jesus' instruction: 2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV) For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. So, I did something here that I hope helps you..........
Think about it-- what is the message of the Tea Party, the Republicans, Ron Paul, Glenn Beck, Alex Jones, Texe Marrs, and most Bible prophecy teachers? Answer: Terrible things are happening which Satan is orchestrating to arrive at the end of the world, the death of all Christians, starvation, Marxism, chaos, on and on and on......... When we feast on this information, we are denying that God is in control. In fact, while we wring our hands in terror and make our plans to survive, what is God doing? Psalms
2:1 (KJV) Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? What supreme irony. While we watch in terror as our leaders, and secret Hidden Hands, plot horrendous disruption of our lives, God is roaring with laughter. Derision-- that is the only emotion God has for them. What is YOUR emotion as the US Constitution is trashed? "Help, we are losing all our rights." Bah! You have no rights. You are a bondslave of Jesus Christ, and you are a ambassador to this alien worldly society. (II Corinthians 5:20) Since when do you need rights? Romans 8:31 (KJV) What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? We shall say, "Thank your Lord that you are in control." Then, we should sit back and have a good laugh at these creeps who think they can rule the world. This also mongrel spirit of fear also trashes our eschatology, the doctrine of End Times. Many Christians believe the Church goes through the Great Tribulation, as if God forgot to close the door of the ark before the flood came. Our panic attack flies in his face, for he has made it VERY clear that he does not vent his wrath on the righteous: 1
Thessalonians 5:6 (KJV) Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch
and be sober. If God does not appoint us to his wrath, then we will not go through ANY period of wrath in the future which is invented by God. If Satan plans for us to go through his wrath, God has ORDERED us not to fear him or his servants. Perhaps a word study will help. What does "a sound mind" mean in 2 Timothy 1:7? 2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV) For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. There are 20 Greek words used for "mind" as it is used in the New Testament of the King James Bible. The word in our text is sophronismos and is only used once. It means, "discipline" or "self-control." So, if we allow Satan and his imps to put us under fear, we will see our minds run to personal chaos, and our mind and mouth will run off with all sorts of stupid God dishonoring bombast, blather, Blarney, and bluster. Alas, and I see this in myself when I give way to this. I hate it in myself when I realize I have just had a feast of fear with you or someone else. Once we give place to fear, we end up taking a line of action that is totally irrational and pointless. If we decide to prepare for what we fear, we will waste our time and money on rubbish that God has no use for. If we join some group who are trying to fight the evil we perceive, the whole effort will be absolutely worthless for God and his use. Indeed, the best thing for us, in God's sovereign plan, may be for our world to come crashing down around us. He may want us to be the only sane people left after the crash so that we can minister to the ungodly better. In the end, we run the very real risk of coming into a mindset that will lead to anxiety and depression, and everyone around us will catch this from us, for it is terribly contagious. Fear spreads like wild fire. Simply witness how often conversations run to bad news. Read the headlines in the newspaper-- always horrors and violent crimes and pessimistic political confrontations. Now, someone may think they can entertain all the bad news, jabber about sinister things all day, and still be on top of life by sheer force of attitude. I have met people like this. The Internet seems to have some of them. I have watched Texe Marrs on video, and while he is telling us of the horrors of world disaster, and the conspiracies all around us, he is grinning like a stuck pig. What kind of sickness is this that makes a man act happy and delighted to be terrorizing the saints? These people must be possessed of devils. Oh my, you are thinking I am being too harsh on these grinning prophets of doom, right? There is just one problem-- God says it cannot be done: 1 John 4:18 (KJV) There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. You simply cannot do both at the same time. You are NOT some macho spiritual man who can thrash your soul with morbid thoughts all the time and still live a life of Christian love. You will, unknown to you, be a pain in the posterior to your Christian friends who have not taken the dive with you. In fact, if you want to "provoke" some other Christian, here is how God wants you to do it: Hebrews
10:22 (KJV) Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having
our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure
water. Have you provoked anyone to "love and good works" lately? Or do you provoke them to fear? You cannot have both alleged ministries. As to Christian warfare, the battle is not with wicked Satanic One Worlder men in the first place. That is SUPPOSED TO BE beneath our level of battle. Ephesians
6:10 (KJV) Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his
might. The Bilderburgers, the Trilateral Commission, the United Nations, the Liberal Democrats, the Council on Foreign Relations, the BATF, whoever, take your pick..... They are not our enemy. Your enemy is Satan himself, and his angels. 1
Peter 5:8 (KJV) Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a
roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Satan roars to make us fear. I grew up in Africa, and I am certainly a bit more than an arm chair expert of lions. The lions of Africa do not roar when they are hunting ordinarily. They are totally quiet and move slowly and smoothly as they stalk an animal. But, on some occasions, a lion will roar just as he jumps from cover to make the final rush. This causes maybe one of two seconds of time in which an antelope will freeze in terror, and then it will turn and run. But that one of two seconds makes all the difference in the world to the lion who may cover over 50 feet in two seconds. A cheetah certainly would. Satan roars as he stalks us because he wants us to freeze in fear and terror. He has people who come along and deliver his message to us every day. A Bible believer who is totally focused on the Word of God and under the power of the Holy Ghost will already be under power, living a life of love, and will think fast as Satan attacks, "whom resist stedfast." So, brethren, stop putting your family and your Christian friends into a state of fear. The devil's baptism is over. You pastors especially-- you are a wicked hireling if you lead a whole congregation into wide eyed fear from your pulpit. The world has severe laws to punish people who scream "FIRE" at public gatherings and in theaters, but some preachers yell "FIRE" every other Sunday. No wonder we have a lot of terrified sheep unable to respond to life in the Lord. I am not talking about teaching on hell and divine retribution-- I am talking about screaming "FIRE" in reference to evil reports from the affairs of humanity and the world at large.
CHAPTER
TWO The Bible speaks of operations: Here is the only place in the New Testament where the word "operation" is used Colossians 2:12 (KJV) Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
So, what is the "working" or "strength" or "effect" of fear? Answer: It causes people to perceive that there is something dangerous before them, and they crave one of two things--
So, where do Bible believers get reliable information to sustain their fears? Why, most certainly, from you and me. We do it to each other all the time. Why do we deliver information to our brother that will sustain his fears? Answer: We LOVE the power it gives us over that brother. If we manage to glean out only the most reliable reports of treachery in the world, which our brother later learns are correct, he will come back for more. We own that brother. Christ has lost him, at least his peace of mind. And we, in keeping him fearful, are serving Satan who gives us (and our brother through us) "the spirit of fear." Here is the mind of a true man of God, David: Psalms
119:73 (KJV) JOD. Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding,
that I may learn thy commandments. Verse 74 is strong meat my friend: "They that fear thee will be glad when they see me; because I have hoped in thy word." Add verse 79: "Let those that fear thee turn unto me, and those that have known thy testimonies." Now, if you want to be the magnet of all those who fear the darkness and wicked men, then simply flip the word "thee" out of those two verses. Go ahead, read them without the "thee," and see how the meaning changes. When I read that, I was very convicted, for I have been guilty of this myself. It feels VERY good to the old nature to have a group of people around me who are fearful and NEED me to provide them with the latest fresh helping of fearful information. This is because our old nature is perverse, and we slip into self-exaltation so quickly. The forbidden fruit is "good to make one wise." As in, "Here, my brother, have another helping of terror to feed your panic party. Trust me-- I have an inside connection to the Bilderbergers, Washington DC, and the Vatican." You see, David did NOT want to have fearful people around him. He wanted people to come to him who were under the presuppositional assumption that God is 100% in control and they FEAR HIM alone. Read that again please. Why did David only want these sort of people around him? Well, I cannot speak for David, but I know Steve Van Nattan pretty well after over 60 years of watching his ways. If I am in the company of fearful people, I cannot restrain myself-- I start feeding new and more terrifying information into the conversation. My ego craves to bring in the most powerful bits of terror possible. This causes people to stop talking, if I am doing my wicked job well in the nature of fallen Adam, and I eventually have the floor all to myself. So, I NEED to find the company of men who fear God so much that they do NOT push my button and turn on my old nature. I am weak. I am sure you are infinitely strong and can resist this temptation and calmly dish out terror in a humble and contrite manner, but not Steve Van Nattan. Push my button, and I am full of evil reports. I am a man of the world (I don't mean worldly) in that I have lived many places in the world, and I am addicted to gathering news and information from all places. God has allowed me to learn much about the ways of evil, which can be useful if it is under his control. So, I am loaded with potential ammunition for a fear conference. Finally, if you do not totally fear God ALONE, stay away from me please. I will only make you more fearful, and when we have parted, I will go sit in my big chair in my living room and feel awful that I have wasted all that time we were together. It is even physical in my case-- my blood pressure rises greatly, and it is already too high. I can just see myself one day, sitting at a church dinner, handing out some choice bit of terror I have learned, and BANG, the big stroke takes me nonstop to the presence of my Maker.
Bad idea. I must do something about this. Honest, I want to stop it, but the only way I can is to stay away from you fearful people. We will meet in heaven, after we are made like Christ, and I will look forward to your company. But, for now, go away-- you are bad for me. I am a weak man in that way. You are already sick, and I will only make your sicker. Psalms
101:4 (KJV) A froward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person.
I fall, I must confess, but my desire is to live in the King David club. Do me a favor-- "serve me" up some good news. I personally find it VERY hard to turn to an evil report when a man lays some good news on me. If you cannot think of anything better, just tell me a merry story of some sort-- a yarn about good people long ago etc. How about sending a link to some cute kids on YouTube doing something really clever and clean? Proverbs 17:22 (KJV) A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. And, you don't need a prescription to get some.
CHAPTER
THREE Almost all denominations and Fundamentalists have stopped preaching and teaching prophecy. I mean, ALL of Christendom has gone silent about the future of the saints. In about 1973 my wife and I were to speak at a Bible Church in Northridge, California. We went early so we could attend Sunday School also, and the teacher was in some book of prophecy in the Bible. In the course of his teaching, he made this statement, "I don't believe the Lord's return for his Church is very near." He went on to point out that every local church in America, during the 1970s, seemed to be teaching nothing but prophecy, and he used the following verse to make his point: Matthew
24:42 (KJV) Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. And the following: 1
Thessalonians 5:1 (KJV) But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no
need that I write unto you. It can be argued, and I think correctly, that the Matthew text is a warning to believing Jews in the Great Tribulation era, and the Thessalonians text is to the Church while still in the Age of Grace, or the Times of the Gentiles. But, the point is this-- pay attention please-- just as each economy or dispensation of God's work with man ends, it gets VERY dark and ominous in the world at large. This was also true of the world in Noah's day. He made no converts in 120 years of preaching except his own personal family. Meanwhile, he built an ark, which was a freak in his day. Today, instead of building arks, Bible believers are doing the same thing millions of ungodly sinners are doing-- getting ready for man made disaster. The Sunday School teacher startled me, but I had to agree with him. Everyone was talking about the return of Christ. Dear reader, it is NOW an hour in which the vast majority of Christendom refuses to think about the return of Jesus Christ. The Seeker Sensitive Movement, New Spirituality, Purpose Driven Church, the Charismatic Movement, and ALL Fundamentalists and Reformed Churches are NOT talking about prophecy. The vast majority of churches are trying to find ways to make the seeker feel comfortable and cozy. There are still pastors who preach and teach book studies from the Bible, but the book of Revelation is avoided like a plague. I must note that there are a very small handful of pastors still teaching prophecy. Guess what? They are ALL OLD MEN. They cut their teeth in the pulpit teaching Daniel, Amos, Joel, Jesus' prophecies, and the book of Revelation, and their instincts are to keep their mind on that BECAUSE it is so dark. But, these men are as rare as hen's teeth. I will show you that it is impossible to have an obedient response to prophecy in the Word of God and be in a state of terror and fear: Revelation
1:1 (KJV) The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto
his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified
it by his angel unto his servant John: God gave the Revelation to Jesus, and Jesus gave it to his angel, and the angel gave it to John. You may claim that the book of Revelation is too difficult to understand, or that if you teach it, there will be controversy. You are a wimp, preacher. There is NO way anyone can get confused up to verse 3 of chapter 1 unless they are brain dead. There is NO controvrsy in these verses. Furthermore; if you do not teach The Revelation, you are NOT one of the "blessed are these" sort of people. That should make a real Bible teacher nervous. Now, let us skip, for the time being, all the content of the book of Revelation, and let us go to the end of the book: Revelation
22:6 (KJV) And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord
God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which
must shortly be done. Again, there is no way any real Bible believer can complain that this is hard to understand. In this verse "keepeth" can easily be understood in the Greek, if you have a hard time understanding English. I take the following from Strong's Concordance:
"Keepeth" in Revelation 22:7 is not about possession, it is ALL about guarding, about preventing this teaching in The Revelation from being lost or neglected. If possession were the emphasis, a linguistic extension would have been added to the root word. Most of you are doing the opposite of "keeping" the sayings of The Revelation-- you are avoiding prophecy. You can quote more Alex Jones, Rush Limbaugh, and Glenn Beck than you can quote the book of Revelation. You have replaced the marriage feast of the Lamb with a feast of fear and gloom. After all, I saw it on Fox News. It must be true. Many pastors and churches actually have an ongoing understanding that eschatology (the doctrine of future things) will not be discussed or taught because it causes controversy and division. Well, big whup-- so clever of you. Preaching End Times doctrine is just what God wants. Truth separates the diligent from the diddlers-- it is inevitable. But, you have tossed about one full third of the Word of God from your pulpit to pander to the sensitivities of the milk aged milk drinkers. Strong meat is for seminary class rooms only, right? You who are so timid about prophecy are NOT understanding why is it given in the first place. It is there, certainly, so that one day the man of God can point back to it and tell sinners, "God predicted this long ago." But, what is prophecy good for while it remains in the future-- good for nothing? Blasphemy! Watch this, and repent: 2
Peter 1:19 (KJV) We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well
that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day
dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: Tell me, is the world a very "dark place" right now? Yes? Well, good for you-- you got that answer right. I certainly do not remember a darker time in my lifetime. You do NOT "do well" if you do not "take heed" to prophecy, according to verse 19 above. Can you explain to me how you can totally avoid teaching prophecy and still "do well?" Speak up please, you are mumbling. Please notice that this light that shines in very dark times is the ONLY light that is available. I say this because this light is on "until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts." The light of prophecy is the light at the end of the tunnel of human history, and that light is a person: Revelation 22:16 (KJV) I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. So, the darker it is, the more blessed that light is. The stars sine at night, not during the daylight. Strike a match in a well lit room, and no one will notice, but strike the smallest match you can find in a totally blacked out room, and EVERY EYE WILL BE ON THAT LIGHT. So, why are your eyes, and lips, preoccupied with how utterly dark it is? There you go again, mumbling-- speak up please. Titus
2:11 (KJV) For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
That Day Star of 2 Peter 1:19 above is our Blessed Hope, the "great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." When a train enters a long tunnel, anyone in the train who can see forward, and in all directions, looks one only way-- forward at the light at the end of the tunnel. It is instinctive. Did you ever hear someone say, "Let's go sit on the porch and watch the dark rise"? Duh! We watch the SUN rise, and the SUN set. We watch for the light. We keep the dark to our backs as long as possible. Well, in this dark day, are we keeping the dark behind us, or are we having a feast of fear and dark predictions and expectations? Prophecy is all about the Light of the world, Jesus Christ, appearing for his saints. Bible prophecy ALL points to that day. To make a gentlemen's agreement that teaching about the return of Jesus Christ for his Bride is too controversial is blasphemy. We are COMMANDED to be "looking for that blessed hope," not putting it away like some dangerous hand grenade. If you have an eschatology which has no hope, not light, and you have the Church headed straight into a train wreck instead of looking at the light at the end of the tunnel, you are WICKED. No wonder your men sit around and talk with wide eyed terror about the New World Order, the crash of the banks, the collapse of the dollar, and the concentration camps the BATF is getting ready for us. No wonder you cannot convince them to stop this morbid talk. They have NOTHING ELSE TO TALK ABOUT. Read that last paragraph again please. You either talk about the dark, which is everywhere at the very end of the Age of Grace, or you talk about, and watch for, the Light of the world, the Day Star himself. John
1:4 (KJV) In him was life; and the life was the light of men. John 1:9 (KJV) That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. You will NEVER bring yourself, your family, and your local church to live in hope and enthusiasm for the future until you teach them into the future from the prophecies in the Word of God. There is NO OTHER LIGHT BUT THAT LIGHT. If you refuse to take a position on the End Times, and TEACH it, you will have a morbid miserable life, and your wife and kids will as well. You preachers who avoid prophecy will NEVER bring the Lord's Church to maturity because mature saints have their heads up, eager, and anticipating Christ's return. If anything, these dark days should make us seem like freaks to the world because of our Godly optimism. Don't have any do you? Just your Eternal Security, like God is out to lunch, but he has you on the list. So, when the world trashes you, and your have died of starvation, or rotted away in some dungeon, you will die a horrible death, and GLORY, GLORY, God will grab you off the brink of eternal damnation in Hell just in the nick of time. THAT IS A BLESSED HOPE? I think not. How utterly stupid, for you could be living daily in complete joy and peace, standing right in the center of light as it shines only on YOU and the saints. You are supposed to be the only one in the light. Does anyone notice how you respond to the light? Or, are you busy getting all the facts, out of the darkness, on the wicked and their plans for the world and for you? David had only a fraction of the prophetic hope which you and I have in the whole Bible, but look at his world view: Psalms
31:9 (KJV) Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed
with grief, yea, my soul and my belly. Verse 13-- "I have heard the slander of many: fear was on every side" was not the ongoing mindset of David: Verse
15 My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from
them that persecute me. David looked at the same light you and I look to, and asked God to shine his face on him. Here is Moses, many years before David talking about the same thing: Numbers
6:22 (KJV) And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, The Lord has made his face to shine upon you. Or, did you notice lately? 1
Thessalonians 5:1 (KJV) But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no
need that I write unto you. Verse 5 says we are children of light. Since we "know perfectly" that the day of the Lord cometh as a thief in the night, that is, secretly and by stealth, AND, since we know that sudden destruction comes to the wicked, AND, we have the "hope of salvation" and know that we are not the ones "appointed unto wrath," what is our message to the fearful saint sitting in front of us with a look of terror on his face? Answer-- Comfort. Sorry for the run on sentence above, but I needed to force you to put it ALL together. If YOU have hope, and if YOU know who you are, and if YOU know what is coming right at you is exciting beyond anyone's imagination, well then, may have ONLY ONE message to your brother-- comfort. There, another run on sentence. I think by now you may have gotten the point. We need to take a but of a detour down a short rabbit trail and lay one urban legend in its grave:
I trust someone who is stumbling around in uncertainty benefited from that diversion. A pastor friend of mine was telling us just yesterday that a Christian brother who was a tax rebel and A-millennialist, came to see him recently. The man is known as a soul winner and can give a good confession unto salvation. But, he has been in a state of panic about the wicked world and men in high places for probably 40 years. He came to see this pastor, and he started in with wide eyed terror tales of the horrendous calamity about to descend on us all. My pastor friend took him to the above Bible passage. It is not highly specific as to the Great Tribulation or even the Millennial Kingdom of Christ, but it IS a text that tells us the we are NOT to receive wrath from God, and we ARE to be comforted at the end of the age. When my friend tried to comfort this man, the man turned without saying good-bye, and he walked away insulted. He passed away a few weeks later. Worldly shrinks will tell you that you can severely shorten your life by being fearful and pessimistic. If the world knows this, why, oh why, do so many us Bible believers not take the above text to heart? Philippians
2:1 (KJV) If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love,
if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, The "If's" in verse 1 are possibly the most powerful example of rhetorical sarcasm in the whole Bible. Read it again, and apply the obvious conclusion. LINK:
WHERE DID WE COME FROM,
WHERE ARE WE GOING?
CHAPTER
FOUR First, let us get the right perspective regarding the flesh and the spirit:
Christ did not come to salvage good things from our flesh. Our flesh is totally captive to the old nature before we are born again. The flesh, the former way of thinking, is at enmity with the spiritual person Christ wants to prevail in us. Ephesians
2:14 (KJV) For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the
middle wall of partition between us; The law, being our schoolmaster, was always at war with out mind via the conscience God gave us in Adam. This war does not go away after we are born again, but, by the power of Christ, we start having victory after victory over the flesh. Eventually, instead of the flesh crowding the spirit out, the spirit of life in Christ Jesus crowds out the flesh. The Institute of Creation Research quote above mentions Romans 6:19 and the issue of yielding. This is an active, NOT a passive, exercise. In the same chapter is the following solution: Romans 6:13 (KJV) Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. The mind is the primal member of the human constitution. From our mind comes cravings, both good and evil. We crave attention or we crave humility, we crave excessive food, or we crave a slim trim body. We crave sexual gratification, or we crave a feeling that we are one only with our spouse. In terms our our ongoing study here, with our mind we crave fear, or we crave peace. One or the other will take control. There is NO way to live in a vacuum and just coast along. YIELD! It is a thing we do on purpose, and it is up to us which wins, the flesh, or the spirit of life in Christ Jesus. So, victory will come in this battle only if we view it as war, which is exactly what it is according to the Apostle James. This is a long passage, but it speaks directly to the fear factor and how to win over it: James
4:1 (KJV) From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence,
even of your lusts that war in your members? The first cause of fear is the fear of losing toys and security. We believe that "my God shall supply all your needs," but our old nature cannot believe that, especially when we hear news from worldly sources telling us someone is trying to take our toys and life resources away from us. When we give place to fear, and feast on it, feed it, and pass it on to other people, we are boldly denying that Christ will be our supplier. Verse 6 above tells us that God is actually resisting us at that point. He may even give us what we fear, or what we lust for, in order to force us to turn to him in desperation. How much more peaceful life would be if we were "casting all your care upon him." So, "they," whoever they may be, are planning to take our alleged rights away from us. Are these rights which God gave to us? NO! They are rights defined by men, and men have a habit of taking away what they give. Whether our rights or our toys or our source of income, verse 8 above tells us to "draw near to God, and he will draw near to you." It is impossible to draw near to God if we do not expect him to care for us. Verse 11 commands us to not speak evil one of another. It is one thing to "..... mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them." (Romans 16:17) But it is quite another to have a feast of rage and evil reports, piled higher and higher, as we compete with one another to demonize some saint or sinner. If we identify a wicked saint or sinner, the next step is "avoid them." So, why do we get obsessed with the wicked and their schemes? Why are we consumed with evil reports? Answer: We are yielding to the old nature, the flesh, in feeding our fallen morbid nature which hates peace. You disagree? Well, tell me, when powerful world leaders see a small nation where there is no peace, and where the people are being tormented by their leaders, what does some great world power, like the USA, do next? They go to war against that nation "to restore peace." We have this morbid notion, in our fallen state, that peace and safety must be secured by war. So, the Apostle James was right I see. Well, if that is the only way fallen men can solve their problems, then so be it. But, the Bible believer has a resource which is not available to the lost world-- "the spirit of life in Christ Jesus." So, in my mind, in my home, in my acre, and in my local church fellowship, I MUST believe this, and I must yield to it, and I must do this-- Hebrews 10:24 (KJV) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: I must consciously watch, expect, and look for alternatives to fear. It is a battle, admittedly. But, it can be done. Let us take the example of Jesus Christ. There are many things that Jesus never did, and they are almost as important as the things he DID do. Jesus never sat and fretted and speculated about what the Pharisees, Scribes, Herod, and Pilate might be dreaming up to do to him. He knew very well how his life would end, but if you pay attention as you read, you will notice that not one Gospel tells of one instance where Jesus entered into discussions of how wicked his adversaries were. He marked (Romans 16:17) the Pharisees as an exemple of what not to do, but the teaching to his disciples was that they beware of doing the same evil things. It was quite enough, for the Glory of God, that Jesus was ready to answer the Pharisees when they came to challenge him. Otherwise, he spent his time teaching, healing, and encouraging those who stayed close to him. You will just NOT read of Jesus and the disciples having a gripe session telling each other story after story of what nasty things the Pharisees did. Let us apply this in a few ways: 1. When we hear that the BATF is preparing to put us all away in concentration camps, we need to ask when this has happened. Never. We need to develop a massive skeptical view of such rumors. The history of dire reports goes back to the earliest history of man. Nehemiah
6:10 (KJV) Afterward I came unto the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the
son of Mehetabeel, who was shut up; and he said, Let us meet together in the house
of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple: for they will
come to slay thee; yea, in the night will they come to slay thee. Ask yourself, the next time you hear an evil report from a sinner of an alleged saint, "Did God send this person to me to lay this evil report on me?" If you cannot find a rational answer to that question, then the answer is NO. The other question to ask is, "Does this person have a solution to this evil report upon which I may act upon, and does their solution fit with the example of Jesus and the teachings in the Word of God?" If the solution is off the wall, and violates your ongoing dependence on Christ for your supply of all things in life, then the bearer of evil news is wicked. You need to shuck them off at once, or rebuke them to their face, and tell them to keep their morbid nose out of your face. 2. Are you struggling with physical issues? Most of us are. Well, you can let it consume you. You can read all about it, surf the web looking for any way to survive it, and spend lots of money trying to overcome it. You might get some relief, but if fear is the driving force in your survival experience, then I can PROMISE YOU one thing-- you are not getting out with people enough. People who socialize with other people regularly, whether they are in good health or bad, have been found in research studies to live 14% longer. Self centered fearful people are found to live 16% shorter lives. There is a 30% spread there between the total spread between the raging optimists and the raging pessimists. Tell me, what good is it to obsessively prepare to survive the coming crash, whatever it is, if you end up living 30% fewer years to serve the Lord and bless your family and friends? What good is a pile of gold to a man being carried to that final hole in the ground by six of his best friends? 3. People are bad. People are wrong, People are naughty. People will let you down. Well, so will YOU. James 3:2 (KJV) For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body. So, some preacher, some saint, someone in your family, or one of your kids does or says something wicked. Do you go into a detective mode trying to develop a big plot of vast wickedness in that person, or do you seek their good? Acts 20:28 (KJV) Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. I will tell you how to deal with people who let you down. Get in line ahead of them, and do a detective study on YOU. Only after you pass muster are you ready to do something about this person who has let you down or offended in some way. Galatians 6:1 (KJV) Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. To go anywhere but in this above direction will cause you to fear that person and start looking for more offense. Much of America has seen US President Obama make an offense of himself. I have noticed that if I learn to expect more offenses from him, bless his fallen nature, he will do it again. I then have another juicy story to tell someone who missed the news. I also can speculate in a masterful way and prophesy what he will do next. Our family have both Dutch and German roots, and these Saxons are master speculators. All we leave out of a good rollicking speculation session is the stein of beer and the Dutch Masters. What do you expect from your spouse, your kids, your Christian friends, and the world at large? The curious things is, what you expect, you will most likely get. And, you cannot hide it-- people who know you will figure you out. They will begin to avoid you because they know they themselves are human and will do or say something stupid, and YOU will catch them every time. How do you like that? They now fear YOU. So, let us end this part of our discussion on fear by agreeing with the Word of God-- our job is to find every possible way, by the Word of God, and by finding good company, to crowd the flesh out by feeding the spirit good things. This will simply cause fear to go up in smoke now instead of at the judgment of our works in heaven. 1 Corinthians 15:33 (KJV) Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. The ultimate solution, the most positive solution to fear, follows in the conclusion of this study.
CHAPTER
FIVE It seems to me that virtually all of our fears are answered in Psalm 23. Let us do a brief study of this priceless poem of promises: Now, to list each thought and the fear it answers:
Now, tell me which of your fears is not covered in the list above? There is not much left to fear after all, is there?
CONCLUSION: I return, and conclude this discussion, by returning to the theme in Chapter Three. It is so simple it is pathetic that the vast majority of Christendom has missed it...... 1 Corinthians 15:19 (KJV) If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. He IS our future! Reading and relishing the prophecies of the Word of God, about our future, IS the light. It is the ONLY light because it is a person. To set it aside for even a short period of time will result in anxiety, depression, terror, morbid conversations, AND sin in our life. 1
John 3:1 (KJV) Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that
we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because
it knew him not. A local church without an eschatological view, a forward look expecting Christ at any moment, which is eagerly and often taught, will become a dirty sinful church. You cannot convince saints to keep themselves from sin if they, as the ten virgins who were ready for the bridegroom, are not eagerly watching the Light at the end of the tunnel of this dark age. There is one last practical question that I need to address: If I decide that this day is a landmark in my life-- that I intend, even if I fall, to get up and walk away from fear mongering and telling horror stories and entertaining them-- what shall I do about my friends who have no intention of following my example? Answer: There is a saying in Texas, "The best thing you can do to make some people happy is to stay away from them." This means I will have to quietly walk away from some very good people so that I don't have to interrupt their favorite talk topics and ask them to change the subject. There is usually a price to pay to live free of fear.
LINKS:
EXAMPLE OF THE MEDIA'S "ULTIMATE NIGHTMARE" MESSAGE I
need to introduce this video carefully. This is the ONLY time on my journal when
I have sent my readers to a Muslim Imam for information. But, the point he makes,
listen for "anyone can be demonized," is 100% correct. If you let the
world out there define the world in your mind, you have been demonized. Check
the Statistics on EVERY News Story before you believe it.
POST SCRIPT You may hate me by now. Fine, go away please. But, if you are feeling uneasy and troubled, and if you wonder where to start, let me make a suggestion: Open the Bible to a prophetic book like Daniel, or The Revelation to John, and just read it through without getting into the fine details. If your soul is not refreshed, and your mind is not stimulated, then you need to examine yourself. You may not even be born again. In which case, you should start at the beginning of the Christian experience here. If you again see the light at the end of the tunnel, then start digging into prophetic teachings-- you probably have been drinking milk too much, and it is time for strong meat from the prophets. And, I promise you this-- the morbid darkness, and evil reports flying about, will fade slowly into small dust compared to the gold you will find in the Word of God. Buy gold-- from John, Jesus, Daniel, Peter, and all those other gold mines in the Word of God. Enjoy.
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