The Aaron Papers  www.the-aaron-papers.net 

-THE CHRISTIAN’S GUIDE-     

CHAPTER II

-A SEARCH FOR THE ROOT OF OUR PROBLEMS-

aaron-THE Lord, through the previous study of our nature in CHAPTER I, has impressed upon me the need for us to better understand this internal battle that is being waged within each and every one of us—that battle between the flesh and the spirit.  He has also impressed upon me, the need for us to better understand the relationship between our various mental faculties and these battles that we frequently encounter.  We must understand the importance of learning how to manage our inner faculties.  That is, bringing these faculties into subjection and conforming them to the will of God: That they be used to build up and strengthen our inner man, conforming us into the image of Christ.

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-WE MUST GUARD OUR CONFESSIONS-

What do we mean by confession? 

A most common confession is that confession made by a person when accepting the responsibility for any given situation.  Such as, "I confess, I did it!"  This type of confession is after the fact.  The confession that we are examining first, is the confession that is made before the fact and its profound affect upon us.  Some would say "We are what we confess", pointing to the necessity of a positive attitude when approaching any given situation that might challenge our ability.  An example of this would be: "You can do it if you set your mind to it" or, “All things are possible.”  Just as a negative confession would influence our attitudes completely opposite—casting doubt upon all of our efforts.

***Negative confessions have an eroding affect upon our total being.

We can plainly see on the surface of these situations how important our confessions are, but we believe that the confessions that we make are even more critical than we could ever have imagined.

This examination is an attempt to understand how our confessions might influence our inner being.  

The human creature is not just a physical being, but they also have an inner life force that is called the soul.  The soul is that quantity of a person, the inner man or person, which is the occupied space of the conscience, the minds and emotions, the heart, and the spirit.

Now to begin this portion, I would like to make this observation: The affect of a negative confession upon the psyche (the human soul, the mind, the spirit) of an individual, might be compared to the affect that cancer has on the human body.  As cancer cells ravage the flesh of man, so also do negative confessions destroy the spirit of man.  Consequently, these negatives should be identified as such: negative thoughts and confessions are a CANCER of the mind.  If any negatives are allowed to remain within us, they have the potential of growing manifestly stronger and stronger in both control and influence.

Conscience defined [Webster's]: A knowledge or feeling of right and wrong, with a strong compulsion to do right: Mental judgment that prohibits or opposes the violation of a previously recognized ethical principle.

  Greek [Strong's]: Suneidesis: Co-perception or knowledge, [moral consciousness].  Jn.8:9-The conscience convicts us.; Rom.2:15-The conscience witnesses to the contents of our hearts.

***These scriptural insights reveal the conscience as the inner defense system that must influence our outer actions and attitudes.

The mind is where all of our decisions are made, and the conscience sets the parameters for making those decisions. 

So where does this ability come from? 

"(Those, not having the law, do the things contained in the law), who show the works of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness; and between themselves, their thoughts, accusing or else excusing them." (Rom.2:14-15)               

It is God who has written His law within our hearts, and it is God who speaks to us through our conscience.  He attempts to guide us through the sensitivity of our conscience toward making the right decision.  The accusing and excusing described in this passage, represent the actions of the ongoing battle between the thoughts within the mind of the flesh and the thoughts within the mind of the spirit: Which is the constant battle that is being fought within each and every one of us.  When we refuse to listen to and obey our conscience, we surely quench and grieve the Holy Spirit of God.

The defiled: 1Tim.4:1 and 2-Are those who depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron. 

Tit.1:15-The defiled and unbelievers mind and conscience are defiled.

The conscience is our guidance and defense system: And this guidance and defense system is under constant attack from outside and inside forces.  A simple example of this would be any situation we might encounter, that is contrary to what we believe, which we might act upon.  Also termed, being tempted. 

Jas.1:14 speaks of this internal influence: "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed."  

Jas.4:1-"Where do wars and fightings come from among you?  Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members."

***We may conclude that the major internal influence upon the temptations we encounter, comes from our own lusts for pleasure.

The process of being drawn into temptation is a central point of this examination: And, that, through some practical situation evaluations, we might come to a better understanding of the possible affects that our confessions might have upon us. 

Jas.1:15 implies - the ramifications of a confession may not be immediate but has a growing process: "Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death."

Probably the most common, and a very dangerous confession is "I do not like that!" or, "I am not happy with that!"  This type of negative confession begins to undermine our ability to succeed in any given situation—from the simplest task to the more complex. 

Example, if we say we dislike a certain thing—we are not going to like that thing. And if, every time we encounter this certain thing, we repeat our confession of dislike—we will naturally dislike it more and more.  In the above situation, the negative confession would most assuredly cause a decline in our ability to achieve a successful conclusion: thus leading to a high probability of failure.  This condition could be applicable to many varied situations; school, work, marriage, relationships, even life itself.

***We must understand how critical our confessions are to any and all of life’s situations.           

When we introduce a negative confession, such as "I am sorry I ever got married!” or, "You are not the person I married!" into the marriage relationship, a seed of dissatisfaction has been sown.  Then if that negative is allowed to remain, it has the potential of growing into an unbearable situation—leading to a high probability of divorce.  It is not clear how much, if any, negative confession a situation can endure and still be successful. 

Negative confessions might be called seeds of discontent: Which, when planted, grow into roots of bitterness—producing nothing but confusion and trouble. Consequently, negative confessions seem to very slowly take away our defense system, which can ultimately undermine our peace, joy, and contentment.

Another aspect of our confession that must be more thoroughly examined, is our confession of a desire for material or physical things—LUST.  Here again, we have our God given inner defense system that protects us from temptation.  But when we confess a need or desire, we weaken our defense system and diminish our ability to resist.  Again, there appears to be a growing process to these situations.  Each and every time a need or desire is confessed, that need or desire becomes stronger and stronger—until our ability to resist is no longer strong enough to stop the doing.  The hook is set.

***Overall, the doing involves the exercising of the works of the flesh.  The "doing" that is in view in these comments, is initially mental actions.  This is a thought process that works within our minds that is negative in nature, and serves to undermine our own positive thought process.  The origin of these negatives can be internal or external, but once the process is initiated, it appears to become self-induced with increasing intensity. 

We can block out and control these negatives for short periods of time, but they seem to have a power within themselves to re-occur at random with greater and greater intensity.  Examples of these negatives would be any one of the many addictions that our nature is frequently governed by: Such as our eating, drinking, gambling, wanting material things (buying, stealing), drugs, pornography, illicit sex, lying, cheating: The list goes on to include the practicing of any one of the works of the flesh.

-PREOCCUPATION-

Jealousy and lusts are two examples of negatives with great destructive capability.  Both of these emotions, and many others as well, have the potential of overwhelming the mind of an individual to the point of consuming most of their thoughts.  This is that internal power of the negatives that is generated by the mind of the flesh.  The Word of God tells us that jealousy is more cruel than the grave. (S.of S.8:6)  This is a fact.  It is when the seed of jealousy has been sown within us, and then allowed to remain and grow unmolested, that its power becomes uncontrollable.  It has an insatiable appetite to prove its suspicions—pushing its captive deeper and deeper into its world of mistrust.  It is difficult to describe the degree of mental anguish that an individual is subjected to, when they are caught in the trap of jealousy.   

A major problem that sometimes comes from an encounter with "jealousy", is that of pushing these painful experiences off to the side.  That is, stuffing them down deep into our psyche, as one would stuff various items into a bag.  Because of the pain that is naturally involved in these experiences, we are not capable of dealing with these painful situations at all.  We are never able to reach any sort of closure.

BAG STUFFER defined: An individual who, because of their inability to reach closure on painful life experiences, places these experiences in a state of limbo within their own sub-conscious.

THE BAG STUFFER described: The depressive attention that a bag stuffer is required to give to their assorted experiences, is very debilitating in every respect.  When one is forced to reexamine these negative life experiences again and again, the results are most devastating.  Just think about it!  How terrible it is, when one is periodically forced to methodically empty out this mythical bag that contains these negative life experiences.  You are forced to slowly sort through them one by one—it is almost as if you are able to pick up these pieces of your life and literally hold them in your hands.  You are able to painfully examine each individual life experience detail by detail, again and again and again and again...!  You wonder—how obsessive can an experience be? 

There are also some additional problems that BAG STUFFERS encounter: Those problems associated with the extraneous experiences that may find their way into this mythical bag.  These experiences are generally true, but tend to be negatively redefined in an exaggerated state. 

Then these experiences are generally found to be irrelevant with respect to the root problem.  Because these extraneous problems are generally symptomatic and not problematic, they only serve to confuse the issue: They only serve to divert our attention away from the real problems that we must confront.

This discussion on BAG STUFFING is certainly an addendum to the main body of this work here in CHAPTER II.  It has also been subsequently positioned to jealousy for maximum impact.  It is when the seed of jealousy has been sown within us and allowed to grow, that we can see that its power truly becomes uncontrollable. 

We are then able to observe here, a commonality between the two; a common thread that runs through them both.

Overall, there are three primary elements involved in the commonality of these two conditions:

In the first place, it is a fact that both of these conditions are subordinate to the imagination. 

(a) The imagination is indeed the warehouse for the negatives of our lives, where our negatives are stored and even cultivated. 

(b) The imagination could also be called the theater of the mind, where our life experiences are often played out again and again in dramatic fashion.

In the second place, these conditions can have an absolute controlling influence upon the lives of the individuals involved.  The reason for this vast influence is because this influence, in the natural, is limited only to the far-reaching expanse of our own imagination.

Then in the third place, that these two conditions have a power within themselves to occur at random.  And within these random occurrences, they have almost a torturous affect upon each individual.

One must conclude that closure is an absolute necessity for any escape from these mental entrapments.  If anyone should find himself or herself entrapped by either of these two conditions, they should not hesitate in seeking some sort of outside help.

But we will find that lust is probably our greatest adversary because of its diversification.  It attacks us in different areas, and from many different directions.  According to Eph.4:22, the natural side of us is corrupted by the deceitfulness of lust.  2Tim.3:6 confirms the diversities of lust.  1Pe.2:11 tells us that our fleshly lusts war against our soul.  1Jn.2:16 tells us what the things of the world represent: The lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eye, and the pride of life.  And Rom.1:24 tells us that within the natural man, there is a heart corrupted by lust.  In the natural: (a)Lusts are deceitful.  (b)Lusts are divers. (c)There are fleshly lusts.  (d)There are lusts of the eye.  and/ (e)The heart is corrupted by lust.

If we look again at Jas.1:15, we can be instructed on the process: "Lust, when it has conceived."   When we confess a need or desire, whether only mental or verbal, this is the probable time of conception.  If that need or desire is allowed to remain and grow, it can bear sin.  Sin then, is the result of lust that has been acted upon. Lust is an attribute of our nature: The misunderstood factor that makes this battle so difficult.  Lust is a powerful part of our physical (of our nature), and lust has a presence all of the time that we are in this body of death.

The apostle Paul writes in Rom.7:25b- "So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin."   Here, Paul reflects on the ongoing battle and implies that the flesh will always continue to gravitate toward sin. 

Again, Paul writes in Rom.7:23- "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."  

We are further enlightened on the area of our nature that propagates the negative elements:

Rom.8:6a- The mind of the flesh is death.;  Rom.8:7a-The mind of the flesh is enmity against God.;

Eph.4:17-We are not to walk in the vanity of our minds.;

Eph.2:3-We once did the desires of the flesh and the mind.  As well as many other Scriptures similarly point to the mind as the location of our battlefield. 

For unbelievers:

2Cor.4:4-The god of this world has blinded the mind of the unbelievers.;

Col.1:21-You once were alienated and enemies in your mind.; and

Col.2:18- The deceived are vainly puffed up by their fleshly minds.

***This battle then, between the flesh and the spirit, is waged within the mind of each and every individual: And only on the Spiritual level can we ever hope to achieve any victory over the powers of darkness.  Sadly, the children, physical and Spiritual, are clearly the most vulnerable group with respect to the powers of darkness: Where a greater attempt must be made to equip them to be vigilant, and to resist the attacks made upon the children of God. (Ref. Eph.6:13-18)  We read in Eph.6:12- "For we do not (struggle) against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."

***IT IS SPIRITUAL WARFARE! 

We must conclude that every person has, what might best be described as, a split personality. Now these two personalities constantly battle for control.  The mind of the flesh battles for control over the mind of the spirit, and the mind of the spirit battles for control over the mind of the flesh: For these two are contrary (opposed in nature) the one to the other. (Ref. Rom.8:6, and Gal.5:16-17)

Jas.1:8 confirms this condition: "A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways."  

Also, Jas.4:7b and 8- "Resist the devil and he will flee from you.  Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded."

Double-minded defined: (Webster's) Vacillating. (Strong's Greek) (dipsuchos) Two-souled, or two-minded.

This battle then, between the flesh and the spirit, is literally played out as a spiritual mind game in the lives of every believer and non-believer alike.  The thoughts, the imaginations, the fantasies, which move through a person's mind, represent the good seed and the bad seed that have been planted.  And at times, it would seem to most of us, that no matter how hard we try, the bad seed—which is clearly a product of our own sinful nature, becomes a constant reminder of the natural desires within our bodies: Even drawing us into the occasional submission. So it is paramount that we understand the location of this battle and the forces that are presently at work.

***IT IS AN INTERNAL BATTLE!     

God, through the apostle Paul, has given us a solution to this battle. 

2Cor.10:3-5  "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.  For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (fleshly) but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down (imaginations) and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, (and) bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ."   We have, within this Scripture, been given some insight into this battle we are presently in.  We see that the only weapons that are suitable for this battle, are the mighty weapons of God: Spiritual weapons.   We also see the enemy clearly pictured: (a) Strongholds; (1) Imaginations, and (2) Every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God.  (b) The bringing of "every thought" into captivity to the obedience of Christ is the true victory.  It is exactly as we are told in Heb.4:12: The Word of God is living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword.  A divider of soul and spirit, and a (quick) discerner of the [thoughts] and intents of the heart.

STRONGHOLD-Question: Considering this Scripture, 2Cor.10:3-5: What is a stronghold?  And what are the things that are exalted?  We are, through the Holy Spirit, struck by the profoundness of this Scripture as it applies to our every day lives.  The children are still the most vulnerable because of the multiplicity of the strongholds, as our imaginations that exalt themselves in our minds are so natural.

RANDOM DISRUPTERS-These strongholds, working through our imaginations, can become RANDOM DISRUPTERS that can adversely control our ability to concentrate on any given situation.  We become captive to these strongholds within our own minds.  They not only exalt themselves above the knowledge of God, they exalt themselves above family, relationships, job, Math, English, History; They exalt themselves above EVERYTHING!

Actually, these strongholds are fairly easy to identify.  We will normally find I (self; ego) right in the center.  They work off from our own needs and desires, whether real or imagined, and they can become very manipulative.  The children are, as are the adults in this generation, greatly deceived by this self-centeredness of our nature.

We must learn to resist the random thoughts that move in and out of our minds:

(a)   Identify them. 

(b)   Understand them. 

(c)   Rebuke them. and/ 

(d)   Give them no place or attention.

The problem in understanding the operation of the strongholds and the exalted things that are against the knowledge of God is in their multiplicity.  They not only apply to the obvious things seen outwardly in our lives, but they also apply to the vast realm of the intangible.  They run deep into our thoughts and emotions, which may be more critical than the obvious outward battles.  Those things that can only be touched by our minds: Things like anger, resentment, hatred, jealousy, mistrust, pride, lusts, covetousness, and many others: Those hidden things of our hearts that charm and deceive us and bring us into bondage.  Building themselves into hidden strongholds, which surely present additional problems for us: In that we cannot always tell how strong the strongholds have become. 

Strongholds that become obvious are usually given different names: We might have our pet peeves, or shortcomings, or weaknesses, or tendencies, or illnesses, or we just cannot help ourselves.  This, sad to say, is only another deception devised by our nature to protect the strongholds.  Our nature will always give us the necessary justification for us to continue doing the things we are doing, or feeling the way we are feeling about something or someone.    

STRONGHOLD defined: Any fixation operating within our nature that has a stronghold over us, and we have become captive to its control (will).  In this condition, all peoples are in spiritual opposition to themselves: Having lost their ability to use their good sense of reasoning, as they have fallen into the snare of the devil and have been taken captive by him to do his will.

The fiery darts of the evil one are like broad-head hunting arrows: Once they get in, they have a very strong hold in their prey. (Ref. 2Tim.2:25-26, and Eph.6:16) 

A stronghold could be any one of the works of the flesh, that is rooted in our minds deeply enough to cause considerable preoccupation and probable predisposition.

***We must understand that our nature will always want to do the works of the flesh!

IMAGINATION defined:

(a)   The act or power of forming mental images of what is not actually present. 

(b)   The act or power of creating mental images of what has never been experienced, or of creating new images or ideas by combining previous experiences. The imagination is often regarded as the more seriously and deeply creative faculty. (Webster's)

It would appear, that the imagination is the faculty within each of us where the negatives of our lives are stored and cultivated. 

The imagination would also be the area that generates the disrupting thoughts and visualizations that strengthen the strongholds of these stored negatives. 

The lost: Lu.1:51-God scattered the proud in the (imaginations) of their hearts.

Rom.1:21-The lost become vain in their reasonings (imaginations). And

Acts.4:25-26-The people imagined foolish things.

-ACTIONS AND REACTIONS-

We must attempt to gain more insight into our emotions or feelings, in order to better understand exactly what we are reacting to. I would ask this question concerning our reacting to these various situations: are we reacting to factual reality or are we reacting to fictional reality?  And then understanding this difficult truth, that what we may individually perceive as reality, may not necessarily always be factually correct.

1) Factual reality defined: That which is real and true with respect to a given situation.

2) Fictional reality defined: That which only appears, or what we may even believe, to be true with respect to a given situation.

These separate conditions can exist because our own emotions can affect our perception of reality.  And because of this, we all, from time to time, require an unbiased reality check. 

One primary capacity of the imagination is to fantasies. (To create a mental image: especially a disordered image; an illusion.)

Then one major problem we encounter within these emotions of ours, is our frequent inability to discriminate between the real and the unreal.  It is because of our nature that we tend to gravitate toward the unreal, which naturally leads us into excess; Excessive worry or excessive anticipation: Which can naturally lead us to a state of high anxiety.

So when we see words like imagination and fantasy, we must understand that these nouns refer to the power of the mind to form images of things not immediately present to the senses, or even necessarily within the actual experience of the person involved.

Our investigation has examined the power of the imagination to conjure up thoughts that are nothing more than false exaggerations of the situation.  This is especially true when we are dealing with stressful situations of life.  For some unknown reason, we generally think that the situation is always much worse than it really is.  Our imagination, working independently inside of us, is often the causes of our choosing the extreme position. 

"Fantasy is applied principally to the product of an imagination that has been given free reign: especially to elaborate mental representations having little similarity to the real situation."  (Encyclopedia)

Note: Evidence for this hypothesis regarding the involvement of the imagination in the internal problems experienced today, can be seen in much of the current television programming: Nearly everything is imaginative.  These external influences that bombard our youth constantly, represent a major factor in the development of their value system.     

-DESENSITIZATION- 

An additional aspect that increases the difficulty factor in understanding our faculties, is that factor of the good attributes of our faculties.  We must not conclude that all confessions are inherently bad, because good confessions can and will serve to strengthen us in the inner man.

-SPIRITUAL CONDITIONING-

Our defense system can only be strengthened and directed by the Word of God, and guided by the Holy Spirit.

Ps.119:11- Your Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against You.

Ps.119:105- Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my way.

Ps.119:97- Oh how I love Your law, it is my meditation all the day....

The use of the Word of righteousness exercises our senses to properly discern both good and evil. (Ref. Heb.5:13-14)

We are also admonished by Scriptures like:

1Pe.1:13-To gird up the loins of our minds.  Eph.4:23-That the spirit of our minds be renewed.  

Rom.12:2-We are not to be fashioned according to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our minds. 

Then Mat.22:37/Mk.12:30/Lu.10:27-We are to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, and with all our souls, and with all our minds. 

Finally, beloved, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything (worthy of praise)— meditate on these things. (Phil.4:8)   -AMEN-

Add:

Some confessions lead us to believe that we have needs that we actually may not have.

e.g. I cannot stand to be alone!

If I do not have this or that, I will just die!