You wouldn’t even think of it. Just the thought is ludicrous. The man’s job is done as soon as he delivers the package. “Drop it here and go!”
When God was about to “dwell” in the midst of his people, he asked for a contribution only from those whose hearts moved them to contribute (Exodus 25:2b). The contribution would be used to construct a dwelling place for God to “move in” and dwell with the people. This was not a tax that was demanded from all the people. It was to be received only “from every man whose heart moved him.”
For many, God was just like a “delivery man” who brings a package. The people get what they needed and they let the person go since he is no longer needed. But God wanted to dwell with his people. That’s why the contribution was asked only if those whose hearts were moved.
When Jesus came he wanted a deeper relationship. He said “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me and I in him” (John 6:56). For many, Jesus was like a delivery man who delivers things you order. But Jesus wants a deeper relationship.
Do you want him? Or, do you just want the package? Your choice.

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    Retaliation is the first thought in our minds when we think of this phrase. We think of getting back at others for what they’ve done to us. Our society has inserted its own meaning into it as well. But the original meaning and purpose were far from it.
    The people of Israel were coming out of 400 years of slavery. They were treated brutally without any human value. After several generations of this, imagine their condition. Consider how they would have treated each other. 
In such violent conditions and generations of brutal oppression, their behavior towards each other would not be pleasant. They would become angry, revengeful, and violent towards each other as well.
    This law was intended to limit punishment to a value equal to the crime. For example, someone who steals bread should not lose his hand as punishment. The punishment should be equivalent to a loaf of bread rather than something extreme. 

“But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.” (Exodus 21:23-25)

 

Inner healing is an important and major task in our lives. But it is important to build up some important things in our lives for our ongoing health. Healing is a one time event as well as a process.
Here are some instructions to follow:
The Lordship of Jesus must be central in our lives.

• Jesus must have the rightful place in every area of our lives.
• If we think, say or do things that cannot be shared with Jesus, you are on dangerous ground, giving Satan a foothold.

Continuously be filled with the Holy Spirit.

• We receive the Holy Spirit when we are saved, but we need a constant filling and anointing (Ephesians 5:18).

Read the word of God daily and allow it to minister to you.

• The Bible contains everything we need for godly living.
• Spend Time Alone With God daily.

Wear the armor of God at all times.

• This armor is for our defense and protection.
• During the day, if there are moments of failure, immediately confess, ask for forgiveness, and receive his forgiveness.
• Repair the armor. (Ephesians 6:10-18)

Be on guard against counter attacks.

• If we have taken ground from the enemy through healing and deliverance, be sure Satan will try to gain back that ground he has lost.

Be in good fellowship with others.

• You will benefit from the ministry of others.
• God will use you to minister to others.
• Take part in a caring small group every week.

Allow the Holy Spirit to produce the fruit of the Spirit in your life. (Galatians 5:22)

• Fruit takes time to grow, so be patient with yourself.
• Make sure to “work” the soil to allow for better growth of fruit.

Walk continuously in forgiveness.

• Look for opportunities to forgive people – not opportunities to be offended.
• Develop a mindset of forgiveness.

Praise God in all circumstances.

• Praise is vital for Christian living.
• Whatever happens in your life, continue praising God.

Keep the right company.

• Find people living a godly life.
• Keep relationship with such people.
• Until you are strong enough, cut relationships with those who are going in the wrong direction.

This post is a part of a series of posts regarding Inner Healing. Click here to access the Introduction to Inner Healing and the entire list of topics in the Inner Healing series. 

An ungodly belief system is any system of belief that bypasses and worships anything or anyone other than the creator God. Such worship is in essence denying the one who created us and may be one of the greatest offenses against God. Satan takes advantage of this and devices ways to get people hooked on to such belief systems and into demonic bondage.
One main channel through which demons gain access to humanity is the occult. Man by nature has a longing to make contact with the spiritual world. It was God who placed this longing within us, but Satan has devised ways to divert the seekers into deceptive, evil systems that bring them into bondage to himself. These deceptive systems can take countless forms (ranging from reading a weekly horoscope in magazines to seeking help from a witch doctor); but the generic form for them all is the occult.
The word  occult is derived from a Latin word that means “concealed” or “covered over.” The power operating through occult practices or systems derives from Satan and is evil. Many people caught up in them do not know this. They have been enticed of labels or claims that make them appear highly desirable.
Two main branches of the Occult
The two main branches of the occult are identified in the scripture as divination and sorcery.
Divination
Divination provides knowledge through supernatural means about people, events and situations. Frequently it predicts future events. Examples are fortune-telling  and extrasensory perception (ESP).
A clear example is offered by the slave girl in Acts 16:16-18, who was said to be “possessed with a spirit of divination” (NKJV). She was the first person in Philippi to discern the identity of Paul and Silas.  “These men are the servants of the Most High God”, she cried, “who proclaim to us the way of salvation” (v. 17).  Everything she said was true, yet her knowledge came from a demon. When the demon was expelled, she lost the ability to tell fortunes.

• This is what makes fortune-telling so deceptive and dangerous. The measure of truth is the bait on Satan’s hook by which he seeks to capture and enslave his victims. Fortune-telling (divination) is truly hidden (occult). It conceals the satanic source of power. Among those who seek to know the future are highly placed political leaders – even professing Christians. Yet that contact inevitably exposes them to demons.
• Another snare which poses as a game, is the Ouija (VJ) Board. The use of Ouija Board and other occult practices like “Coin call”, Yoga has now permeated many branches of our school systems. Another way many people are exposed to divination is through horoscopes. It may be noted that even casual scanning through “your” horoscope in the newspaper with an unguarded mind can expose you to the demonic influence. Here again many Christians are deceived. They consider such activities harmless, not recognizing the snare.
• Another potential door-opener for demons is involvement in martial arts like karate, judo, etc. We need to bear in mind that the martial arts originated in cultures permeated with idolatry and demonic activity.

Sorcery and Witchcraft

• The other channel through which the occult operates is sorcery. Sorcery uses various means to make an impact on physical senses. Some of its tool are drugs, potions, charms, amulets, spells, incantations and various forms of music. Often addiction to drugs opens door to these evils. Some contemporary forms of music such as acid rock falls into the same category and are used as channels of supernatural satanic power.

In Deuteronomy 18:10-12 the Lord declares his attitude towards various forms of occult involvement. “Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or is a medium or a spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord…..”. All such people are said to be detestable to the Lord. The word translated “detestable” is the strongest word in the Hebrew language for what the Lord hates and rejects. Note, too, that God places such people in the same category as those who sacrifice their children to a pagan deity.

• The other main category mentioned above, in addition to divination  and sorcery is witchcraft. There are many different forms of witchcraft ranging from open worship of Satan, evil forms of rock music to new age cults, religions and practices.
• Closely related to occult is false religion. Examples are idol worship, Freemasonry, Mormonism, Jehovah’s witness, false mediators (saints), etc.

Wrong Beliefs

• Any wrong beliefs (about God, about self, about others), heretical beliefs, wrong attitude towards scriptures, etc is a potential target for demonic deception. So is any religious practice that becomes more important than God himself and the relationship one has with God.

The Way Out

• Anyone who has been involved in occult or false religion needs to repent of it, confess it as sin and seek Christ for forgiveness, cleansing and release. In addition, any books or other objects connected with the occult or false religion should be destroyed.

This post is a part of a series of posts regarding Inner Healing. Click here to access the Introduction to Inner Healing and the entire list of topics in the Inner Healing series. 

Introduction

• Trauma and accidents are part of life’s experiences. Even Christians are not exempt from occasional crisis and problems. We live in a fallen world of which Satan is god (2 Cor. 4:4). The moments of great trauma or a major accident could be times of great spiritual sensitivity and Satan may use those very moments to gain advantage. Thus such things as accidents, abortion, miscarriage, death of a close relative, abuse and fear could become entry points for the demonic.
• In the physical world, when we fall and are injured, where our skin is cut open, there is a danger of germs infecting that wound, similarly, during moments of shock and trauma, we are open to being infected by demons. A road accident, for example, can give the demonic a prime opportunity to take advantage of the traumatized state the accident victims often experience.
• Fear is a gift from God. It keeps us from doing things that would be harmful to us. Without godly fear very few people would survive childhood, such are the risks we all face day by day.  But as with every good gift of God, Satan will seek to distort the truth and hold us into the bondage of error. When we have a frightening experience, Satan will try to hold us into the trauma of that experience by using it as an entrance gate for the demonic. Fear is invariably an entry point for demons when people are going through traumatized experience.
• When someone is controlled by irrational fear, there is always a demonic stronghold behind the manifesting behavior.  Examples – Fear of the devil, Fear of darkness, Fear of death, Fear of society, Fear of tradition, Fear of future, Various phobias (spider, lizard, snake, closed spaces, traveling in vehicles, etc).
• Death of a close relative/loved one causes trauma of being bereaved without warning. It affects people so deeply, that emotionally they are wide open to demonic attack. This is especially relevant in the case of sudden deaths.
• Expressing grief over a death is natural. Without the expression of grief, there cannot be full healing from the bereavement. But sometimes a demon will ride on the emotional trauma, and then the person never seems to recover from the bereavement. If after three months or so, there is no marked change in the person’s condition following the grief of bereavement, it is not unreasonable to suspect that there may be spirits of grief operating.
• Another common form of demonization is what is called a “familial spirit”. This is a demon that has taken the characteristics of the deceased person and may try to attach itself to the bereaved one. This familial spirit, who knew the deceased extremely well, and is able to deceive with an amazing degree of cunning and accuracy, leads people into false beliefs about the nature of life after death and into the deceptions of spiritualism. By casting out the familial spirit, significant things may happen in the person’s life, as healing from conditions and symptoms that has passed down through the generational line.

The loss of a job may be very devastating especially to those who have many responsibilities upon them. The expectation and the pressure for some is so bad, that many give in to suicide and mass killing of families. Someone may go out to work one day, full of expectation, return later that same day devastated by the news of getting fired. The trauma of such an experience can open wide the gateway to rejection, leaving the person unable to cope up with life, believing that he is unwanted. The spirit of rejection makes him turn in on himself and lose heart and hope.

• The trauma of physical attack, mental abuse, and rape can be very devastating. The physical pain may be great, but it is inconsequential when compared to the long-term emotional and spiritual damage done as a result.
• Any behavior that seeks to take away the godly free will of another is abusive behavior and can lead to problems of varying degrees. Domination and manipulation is sin, irrespective of whether the victim is a young child, an old man, or one’s husband/wife, son/daughter, friend, associate, colleague, etc.

Dealing with shock and trauma

• Re-visit that incident of shock and trauma. Invite Jesus to be with you as you do this. And all the associated feelings of fear, loss, shock, abandonment, etc., you can give it over to Him. Ask Him to heal you and you will definitely know His presence there. Jesus does an amazing work here.  In effect, we ask the Holy Spirit to take away all the pain and a pain healing and restoration is done.
• Forgive the person(s) who abused or assaulted you (physically/sexually/mentally) or who caused the accident, etc. In some cases we may have to ‘forgive’ God for all that we think He has done to us.
• Ask God for forgiveness, especially in cases of abortion, sexual abuse, etc. In cases of rape, we ask God to restore parts of us lost to the abuser and to return parts of the abuser invested in us by the devil. This has to be done for all sexual transactions.
• Renounce every ungodly use of your body whether it was done to you or willingly done by you. Renounce every occasion the Lord brings to your mind. Break every ungodly soul-tie that may have been established (e.g., sexual abuse, deaths).

This post is a part of a series of posts regarding Inner Healing. Click here to access the Introduction to Inner Healing and the entire list of topics in the Inner Healing series. 

God’s design and purpose

• God designed sexual relationship as a means of procreating the human race and for the enjoyment of the married couple. God has instituted this act under the “covering” of a marriage relationship.
• Any use of this activity outside of God’s parameters makes the persons vulnerable in the spiritual realm. Demonic forces have the free reign in such instances and take advantage of the situation. They create ungodly soul-ties that permit further demonic activity within the lives of the individuals.

Ungodly soul-ties

• Sexual activity that is against the original plan of God establishes ungodly soul-ties with the other person. These ungodly soul-ties become a prime entry point for the demonic. Usually, when there has been ungodly sexual activity, it is safe to assume that soul-ties have been established in that person. Satan uses these soul-ties to hold people in bondage throughout their lives. But when people get this part of their lives cleared and cleansed by God, lots of healing and deliverance can take place.

Outside marriage

• Sexual activity outside marriage can include sexual activity between two unmarried persons, between a married person and an unmarried person, or between a married person and another person’s spouse. All of these are perversions of God’s original plan for human sexuality. These are all opportunities for ungodly soul-ties to develop, opening the doors for the demonic.

Perversions

• The various perversions of God’s plan for sexual activity can include: sexual abuse, rape, bestiality, homosexuality and lesbianism, or any other form of sexual activity outside of God’s design. These unnatural and ungodly activities are all a deviation from God’s original plan for sexuality.  These are all sure opportunities for the demonic to enter by way of ungodly soul-ties.

Fantasies

• Fantasizing sexual relations with others creates an opening in the mind of the person by which demonic forces enter and develop further sexual bondage. Often connected with these fantasies are pornography through magazines, videos, Internet, or any other means for stimulating the mind of the person toward sexual arousal.

Sexual Abuse
“Sexual abuse involves any contact or interaction whereby a vulnerable person (usually a child or an adolescent) is used for the sexual stimulation of an older, stronger or more influential person. Sexual abuse is much broader than forced or stimulated intercourse. It includes any touching, rubbing or patting that is meant to arouse sexual pleasure in the offender.”

• Sexual abuse is a national plague. Research suggests that by the age of 18, a large percentage of women are victims of sexually abusive contact. Abuse of young boys by women is not unknown, and the abuse of young boys by older men in homosexual abuse is also very common. Men are even more reluctant than women to admit abuse. Like women, however, male victims are haunted by unjustified but disturbing questions about their own sexually.

Martial abuse – where sexual demands and practices go beyond the rightful physical relationship which God planned and purposed for men and women.
Incest – sexual contact of any degree with a member of one’s own family.

• Research suggests that the figure may be as high as 33% among men. In many cases, abusers were themselves victimized by parents, grandparents, relatives, etc. Abuse has been passing from one generation to another. As long as it would be kept a “family secret.” The abused becomes the abuser.

Damage of sexual abuse

• Victims of sexual abuse often wonder how past events can still be so damaging today. The damage of the past is not erased by time. Time may diminish memories, but it will not heal the wound.
• The feeling of powerlessness

• The question “why could I not stop the abuse?” lingers like a festering sore. “If I had only been smarter, stronger or braver, maybe it would not have occurred.” Nothing could be further from the truth! but begin told that it was not your fault, though 100% true, it does not usually help for long. in most cases the offender is much older than the abused, thus leaving the abused with the sense of being powerless.

Feelings of betrayal

• Sexual abuse is a tragic betrayal of trust. In most cases the offender is either a relative or a person known to the victim. The betrayal of being set-up and used by a loved one is profound. Such betrayal affects victims in at least two ways. They develop a hatred for their own God-given desire for intimacy and become suspicious of anyone who offers them love.
• Sexually abused victims find it difficult to trust other people even those who are obviously trustworthy. The abused will often view others with some degree of suspicion. In other words, sexual abuse makes it very difficult for a man or woman to believe that God has uniquely built and equipped them to love and be loved by others and by God.

Consequences of sexual abuse:

• Rebellion. (refusal to conform or cooperate, irrational anger)
• Secretive lifestyle.
• Guilt.
• Inability to respond to love. (sometimes does not become obvious until after marriage when the sexual side of the relationship disintegrates through apparent frigidity)
• Promiscuity. (some abused people respond to their premature sexual maturity by living in a promiscuous lifestyle)

Dealing with sexual temptations

• Sexual strongholds are the dark dead-end of sexual temptation, sexual sin, and impure habit patterns. You may know about God’s plan of sexual purity and even agree with it, but try as you might, you can’t conform to it. It is likely that you are trapped.
• If we are going to take the way of escape from sexual bondage that God has provided for us, we must avail ourselves of God’s provision and change how we respond to every sexual temptation. (“You can’t stop birds flying over your head, but you can stop them building a nest”)
• Sexual sin has a certain pleasure and kick related to it as do any other addiction. We should be ready to renounce those pleasures which are highly momentary and more destructive. Looking to the cross and the high price that Jesus paid for our licentious behavior could help us choose once and for all.
• Ask Jesus to satisfy us, to fill us up with His love to an extent that these momentary destructive pleasures becomes worthless. There is nothing as intoxicating and satisfying as God’s love for us.

We must take those first thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ. I can’t change the way I feel if I don’t change the way I think. If I want to feel right, I must think right. How we think controls how we feel. Scripture does tell us to control our thinking. “Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults.” (1 Cor. 14:20). Our feelings are primarily a product of our thought life. If you want to feel right, you must think right. If our minds have been programmed wrongly, they can be reprogrammed. If we learned something the wrong way, we can learn it the right way.

• “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.” The answer is in 1 Col 3:16. Merely trying to stop thinking bad thoughts won’t work, we must fill our minds with the word of God. God has no alternative plans. We overcome the father of lies by choosing the truth. Paul says we are to presently and continuously take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ (2 Cor. 10:5). We are not called to dispel darkness, we are called to turn on the light.

Sexual sin is a direct attack against the Holy Spirit in you. 1 Corinthians 6:13-20 says, “The body is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite himself with a prostitute? Never. Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body?for it is said, the two will become one flesh. But he who unites himself with the Lord is one with him in spirit. Flee from sexual immorality. All other sin a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own. You were brought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
Steps to freedom

• Ask God to forgive you for your sin.
• Forgive and let go of the person with whom you were involved sexually. Cut off all ungodly soul-ties with the person you are or were involved with.
• Renounce every pleasure received from the encounters and the relationship. Each relationship may have to be dealt with separately, if we require a complete cleansing.
• Covenant never to defile our bodies again. Ask God to restore back to you whatever you have lost to your partner and vice-versa.
• Ask God to restore lost sexual purity, innocence, chastity, and integrity.

This post is a part of a series of posts regarding Inner Healing. Click here to access the Introduction to Inner Healing and the entire list of topics in the Inner Healing series.