Understanding emotions and controlling them is very important for young people, because more than anything, emotions can become a weak spot for the devil by which he can destroy young lives. That’s why the Bible cautions:
“Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” (Prov.4:23).
In other words, God wants every young man to make it a priority to guard his/her heart above anything else. “Heart”, in the Bible, is the seat of thoughts, emotions, and decisions, and is the most vulnerable part of the human soul. Therefore, God wants us to protect it. We cannot protect it physically, but only by the power of the Spirit.
A person who is overcome by emotions can become an easy prey for the devil. For instance, if a man gives in to anger, he gives the devil a foothold.
“In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. (Eph 4:26,27 )
A foothold is a secure place to stand upon. In other words, the devil very securely stands and finds a firm foothold on unforgiven anger. Anger opens the door for the devil to get in.
Similarly so with fear, worry, discouragement, frustration, and such negative emotions that contradict the fruit of the Spirit.
Three-fold Human Personality
To understand emotions, it is important to first understand the human personality. Man is made up of spirit, soul, and body (1Thess.5:23). Some people think that the soul and the spirit are the same, but the Bible tells us that the soul is as different from the body as the joints are from marrow.
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Heb 4:12)
The Body of Man has three functions: Sensation (senses), Instinct, Stimulus-response
The Soul of Man has three functions: Intellect(Mind), Emotions, Volition (Will)
The Spirit of Man has three functions: Conscience, Intuition, Communion
Through Body (Greek, Soma) we have world consciousness
Through Soul (Gk, Psuche) we have self consciousness
Through Spirit (Gk, Pneuma) we have God consciousness
Similarly, there are three kinds of lives:
Bios is physical life (which even the animals have)
Psuche is psychological life in which one has experience of memory, education, reasoning, feeling, and determination
Zoe (in the Bible) is spiritual life and zoe is always used when talking of eternal life.
A person who is controlled by bodily appetite and cravings is a carnal person.
“for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?” (1Cor 3:3 )
A person who is controlled by emotions, feelings, and pride is a soulish person.
“But the natural (psuchikos) man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1Cor 2:14 )
A person who is controlled by the Spirit of God is a spiritual person.
“Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. (Gal 5:16)
God wants us to be spiritually minded, or else we end up becoming enemies of God; for those who are not spiritual are enemies of God in their mind, even if they don’t realize it. They will be doing things that oppose God.
“Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. (Rom 8:7)
“And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled… (Col 1:21)
The Place of Emotions
Emotions have a very important role in human life. They make life exciting and full of enthusiasm and vigor. Can you imagine an emotionless life??
However, emotions that are not according to the Spirit can be very destructive. Some examples of destructive emotions are:
Fear
Anxiety
Discouragement
Anger
Sorrow
Suspicion
Frustration
Hatred
The Spirit controlled person has the fruit of the Spirit:
Love
Joy
Peace
Longsuffering
Gentleness
Goodness
Faith
Meekness
Temperance
The Spirit controlled person is one whose volition (power of decision) is directed by the Holy Spirit; therefore, such person can be temperate, patient, and longsuffering. He has gentleness, meekness, and abounds in goodness and faith.
“He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. (Prov 16:32)
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2Tim 1:7)
In modern times, a new terminology has emerged: Emotional Intelligence Quotient (EQ). EQ is considered more important now than IQ. Because, there are many who can be intellectually strong, but emotionally weak. In business and any human endeavor, EQ is very important. Job interviewers try to check the emotional aspect of a candidate’s behavior because bad emotions can damage the functioning of teams and companies.
Emotion and Personality
Tim Lahaye talks of four kinds of personalities in his book, Spirit-controlled Temperament:
Sanguine – These people are usually very optimistic and cheerful. They have a happy face always. They like to talk with people and be in groups.
Choleric – These people get angry very quickly, but then their anger goes down as quicker as well. They are very passionate and speak out things without thinking much.
Phlegmatic – These people seem like having no emotions at all. They may not laugh at jokes, not cry when watching an emotional drama, and seem to be very calm in all situations.
Melancholic – These people usually appear to be serious and sad most of the time. They like to be alone and are introvert. They can be very philosophical. If they get angry, that anger can remain inside for a long time. Many Biblical personalities like Moses and Elijah seem to have been melancholic in personality.
People can have combined personalities like Sanguine-Choleric, or Melancholic-Phlegmatic, etc.
It is very important that no matter what our “natural” temperament is, we must bring our temperament under the reshaping hammer of the Holy Spirit to be transformed into the image of Christ.
“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.(Rom 12:2 )
“and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. (Eph 4:23,24)
Some Characteristics of Emotions-Dominated Life (1Cor.13)
1. Is Impatient
2. Is Unkind
3. Is Envious
4. Is Boastful
5. Is Over-Confident and Has Vain Self-Esteem (Thinks of Own Self as Better than Others)
6. Is Rude in Behavior
7. Is Self-Seeking
8. Is Easily Irritated, Provoked, Seduced, Inflated
9. Is Insensitive to Others
10. Is Not Sad About Sin
11. Enjoys False Stories and Jokes
12. Has Intolerance and Wants things to Be Its Way
13. Is Suspicious
14. Is Discouraged and Frustrated
15. Loses Patience and Control
Some Characteristics of Spirit-Controlled Life
The Spirit-controlled life is a Love-controlled Life
1. Love endures long and is patient and kind;
2. Love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy,
3. Is not boastful or vainglorious,
4. Does not display itself haughtily.
5. It is not conceited (arrogant and inflated with pride);
6. It is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly.
7. Love (God's love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking;
8. It is not touchy or fretful or resentful;
9. It takes no account of the evil done to it [it pays no attention to a suffered wrong].
10. It does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness,
11. But rejoices when right and truth prevail.
12. Love bears up under anything and everything that comes,
13. Is ever ready to believe the best of every person,
14. Its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances,
15. And it endures everything [without weakening]. (1Cor.13:4-7, Amplified Bible)
Being Filled With The Spirit and Having and Emotional Healthy Praise Life
Therefore do not be vague and thoughtless and foolish, but understanding and firmly grasping what the will of the Lord is.
And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but ever be filled and stimulated with the [Holy] Spirit.
Speak out to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, offering praise with voices [and instruments] and making melody with all your heart to the Lord, At all times and for everything giving thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father. (Eph.5:17-20)
Showing posts with label Emotions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Emotions. Show all posts
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Monday, February 8, 2010
Spirit-Ruled Affections
Spirit-Ruled Affections
1 Jn. 2: 14-17
30 March 2007
Domenic Marbaniang
Horace W: ‘The world is a comedy for those who think but a tragedy for those who feel.’
Men are powerfully ruled by their affections.
Antiphanes: ‘Only two things a man cannot hide: that he is drunk and that he’s in love.’
1. AFFECTIONS DEFINE IDENTITY: What we love is what we become like. Our affections mirror our inner self. Who are we?
a. In Pedigree: We are Children of God (1Jn. 4:7; 3:1). You have divine nature.
b. As Possession: We are Sheep of God (Jn. 10: 27-29). You have divine allegiance.
c. In Position: We are Disciples of Xt (Jn. 13:35). You have a divine commission.
How do you look at the world & how does the world look at you?
‘The depth of Christian experience can be measured by the intensity of horror one senses on hearing the word ‘world’.’
Christ described a Christian’s relationship with the world in two ways:
a. He is unattached to the things of the world – Lk. 9: 23-27
b. He is hated by the world – Jn. 15:18,19. i.e., despised and rejected.
‘The world loves its own.’ Affections reflect our identity.
It is not what we were but what we are at present that’s imp. Jewish Prov. ‘man not judged by past but by present.’
To the Ephesian Church: You’ve left ur 1st love: laid aside, yielded up. Given it up for some other love.
Jer. 2:13: forsook me and hewn other cisterns. Those who did so lost their position in the covenant relationship and were designated enemies of God.
2. AFFECTIONS AFFECT DESTINY: What u love is what u’r led by. Three things:
a. Spectacles of Wind: Lust of Eyes
b. Sensations of Sin: Lust of Flesh
c. Subversion of Will: Pride of Life
#1 SPECTACLES OF WIND: Eccl. 2:10, 11; 2:17 – chasing after the wind – Pr. 23:5: Riches take wings: Don’t last.
This extends even to one’s theological constructions or reconstructions.
I don’t criticize the concept of a material heaven; I’m against have a materialistic reason for going to heaven.
Golden streets, Super-star mansions & bungalows, parks of delight and rapturous music. Someone even said, I don’t like going to such a heaven; I’d rather be amidst flowers, streams, mountains, and waterfalls, than in a golden cage of gold. The lust of eyes governs our feelings of where we wish to be. The Kingdom of heaven is beyond this-worldly analogy. The lustrous world is only passing by. We wait for the invisible country which will never fade away.
In any sight desired, at least two things are sought: beauty and intricacy or marvel. These both are desired for they stimulate affections. And this isn’t bad; for instance in the song: How great Thou art: I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power thruout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul my Savior God to thee, How great thou art.
However, it becomes evil when sought for the sake of stimulus alone. In such a case, the eyes suffer the terrible disorder of dissatisfaction. The ancient and modern madness after newer idols, refined imageries, and maga edifices reflect such a predicament of human dissatisfaction. Men desires to produce whatever he is capable of imagining.
It is no wonder that the words ‘images’ and ‘imagination’ are connected and Gen. 6 says ‘the imaginations of the thoughts of man’s heart was evil continually.’ Napoleon Bonaparte said that ‘Men of imagination rule the world.’ The modern situation goes a step beyond that, the world is not ruled by men of imagination, it is men who are ruled by a world of imagination. We have built a kingdom of virtual reality.
The modern era can be rightly termed the AGE OF IMAGES. From pencil wrappers to computer games, from movie theatres to T.V. screens, from billboard ads to a youth’s bedroom wallposters, from metropolitan stadia to the village pan shop, it’s the rule of images. We live in the empire of images.
Under the camouflage of the freedom of expression, behind the shield unrestraint liberty prowls the menacing figure of lust. All that the world has built is only a castle in the wind. Solomon: I did all and found out it’s chasing the wind.
IT’s therefore important to control what we see and how we see. The wise man has eyes on head (Eccl. 2:14).
Publius Syrus: The eyes do not go wrong if the mind rules the eyes. The mind must be suffused with God’s Word.
#2 SENSATIONS OF SIN: Rom. 7:5 – passions of flesh; Jas. 1:15 – lust produces sin.
Freud: Man is ruled by the drive of pleasure
Sartre: Man is a bundle of passions
The truth: Man ruled by passion is worse than the beast; for beasts are governed by instinct and man is to be governed by the truth that he learns. To give in to passion is to go beyond instinct. This is what Paul calls being ‘unnatural’ or being ‘against nature’ or ‘leaving the natural use’ Rom. 1:26,27.
Lawrence J. Crabb Jr.
2 Basic Needs
Significance – Power-drive (megalomania) – violence
Security – Pleasure-drive (erotomania) – immorality
DC Talk:
It took so long for me to see, that I’m a victim of the nature in me;
Left to myself I realize, I am the maker of my own demise.
The ocean of life looks calm on the surface; but there are strong undercurrents of destruction beneath.
A recognition of the monstrous passion within is important. Malcolm Muggeridge tells the story o fhow once on the banks of an Indian river he saw a woman bathing at a distance. His passions enflamed, he began swimming in that direction, all the while imagining the sensationalism of sinful extrusion he was soon to experience, until he got within her proximity only to be shocked and bewildered by what he saw; he was looking at the body of a leper. Muggeridge said: it took some time for him to realize that it wasn’t her body that was leprous as much as was his own heart.
The OT permitted not a bit of leaven in worship. Do we still cherish some secret, hidden sin?
The world is a factory of carnal wish-fulfillment. The modern age of computers makes it possible to experience in virtual reality what is legally forbidden. There is a menu of immoralities from which humans can now choose.
From Ice-cream cones to Ice-capped mountain trekking, from gizmo-drives to outer-space travel, from video games to the wrestling ring, from bed room TV to theatres, from the dark cell of the heart to the raging rantings of the journalist, if the Nithari killings and the Mumbai blasts are shocking now, they may not be a decade later for the soft skin of human conscience turns into a rough hide with every shock it experiences. James ask: From where do they all come: it is the ravings and rantings of inner passions within that is destroying humanity.
Where do you stand as a burning light of God? Are you ruled by the lusts of the world or by Christ-like love; by the immoral desires of sin or by Christ’s zeal for righteousness. What u love is what will lead you on.
#3 SUBVERSION OF WILL – PRIDE OF LIFE.
Bible states categorically: pride goes before destruction
Jas 4:6 – God resists the proud
Rom. 1: Unthankful, ungrateful, not glorifying God, willful suppression of Truth
Involves
1. Evil Resolution of Will : I will
2. Total Dissolution of Spirit : Death of Conscience
GEHAZI – 2 Kgs. 5:20
Fear of God is the beginning of Wisdom
ISLAM – Submission to God: Religious quest to come back to God: failure
XT in Gathsamane
If Christ is not your Lord He can’t be your Savior’
CONCLUSION
Let the invisible kingdom of God be before your eyes.
Let the divine passion for righteousness and truth consume your being.
Let your will be yielded up to the Lordship of XT.
1 Jn. 2: 14-17
30 March 2007
Domenic Marbaniang
Horace W: ‘The world is a comedy for those who think but a tragedy for those who feel.’
Men are powerfully ruled by their affections.
Antiphanes: ‘Only two things a man cannot hide: that he is drunk and that he’s in love.’
1. AFFECTIONS DEFINE IDENTITY: What we love is what we become like. Our affections mirror our inner self. Who are we?
a. In Pedigree: We are Children of God (1Jn. 4:7; 3:1). You have divine nature.
b. As Possession: We are Sheep of God (Jn. 10: 27-29). You have divine allegiance.
c. In Position: We are Disciples of Xt (Jn. 13:35). You have a divine commission.
How do you look at the world & how does the world look at you?
‘The depth of Christian experience can be measured by the intensity of horror one senses on hearing the word ‘world’.’
Christ described a Christian’s relationship with the world in two ways:
a. He is unattached to the things of the world – Lk. 9: 23-27
b. He is hated by the world – Jn. 15:18,19. i.e., despised and rejected.
‘The world loves its own.’ Affections reflect our identity.
It is not what we were but what we are at present that’s imp. Jewish Prov. ‘man not judged by past but by present.’
To the Ephesian Church: You’ve left ur 1st love: laid aside, yielded up. Given it up for some other love.
Jer. 2:13: forsook me and hewn other cisterns. Those who did so lost their position in the covenant relationship and were designated enemies of God.
2. AFFECTIONS AFFECT DESTINY: What u love is what u’r led by. Three things:
a. Spectacles of Wind: Lust of Eyes
b. Sensations of Sin: Lust of Flesh
c. Subversion of Will: Pride of Life
#1 SPECTACLES OF WIND: Eccl. 2:10, 11; 2:17 – chasing after the wind – Pr. 23:5: Riches take wings: Don’t last.
This extends even to one’s theological constructions or reconstructions.
I don’t criticize the concept of a material heaven; I’m against have a materialistic reason for going to heaven.
Golden streets, Super-star mansions & bungalows, parks of delight and rapturous music. Someone even said, I don’t like going to such a heaven; I’d rather be amidst flowers, streams, mountains, and waterfalls, than in a golden cage of gold. The lust of eyes governs our feelings of where we wish to be. The Kingdom of heaven is beyond this-worldly analogy. The lustrous world is only passing by. We wait for the invisible country which will never fade away.
In any sight desired, at least two things are sought: beauty and intricacy or marvel. These both are desired for they stimulate affections. And this isn’t bad; for instance in the song: How great Thou art: I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power thruout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul my Savior God to thee, How great thou art.
However, it becomes evil when sought for the sake of stimulus alone. In such a case, the eyes suffer the terrible disorder of dissatisfaction. The ancient and modern madness after newer idols, refined imageries, and maga edifices reflect such a predicament of human dissatisfaction. Men desires to produce whatever he is capable of imagining.
It is no wonder that the words ‘images’ and ‘imagination’ are connected and Gen. 6 says ‘the imaginations of the thoughts of man’s heart was evil continually.’ Napoleon Bonaparte said that ‘Men of imagination rule the world.’ The modern situation goes a step beyond that, the world is not ruled by men of imagination, it is men who are ruled by a world of imagination. We have built a kingdom of virtual reality.
The modern era can be rightly termed the AGE OF IMAGES. From pencil wrappers to computer games, from movie theatres to T.V. screens, from billboard ads to a youth’s bedroom wallposters, from metropolitan stadia to the village pan shop, it’s the rule of images. We live in the empire of images.
Under the camouflage of the freedom of expression, behind the shield unrestraint liberty prowls the menacing figure of lust. All that the world has built is only a castle in the wind. Solomon: I did all and found out it’s chasing the wind.
IT’s therefore important to control what we see and how we see. The wise man has eyes on head (Eccl. 2:14).
Publius Syrus: The eyes do not go wrong if the mind rules the eyes. The mind must be suffused with God’s Word.
#2 SENSATIONS OF SIN: Rom. 7:5 – passions of flesh; Jas. 1:15 – lust produces sin.
Freud: Man is ruled by the drive of pleasure
Sartre: Man is a bundle of passions
The truth: Man ruled by passion is worse than the beast; for beasts are governed by instinct and man is to be governed by the truth that he learns. To give in to passion is to go beyond instinct. This is what Paul calls being ‘unnatural’ or being ‘against nature’ or ‘leaving the natural use’ Rom. 1:26,27.
Lawrence J. Crabb Jr.
2 Basic Needs
Significance – Power-drive (megalomania) – violence
Security – Pleasure-drive (erotomania) – immorality
DC Talk:
It took so long for me to see, that I’m a victim of the nature in me;
Left to myself I realize, I am the maker of my own demise.
The ocean of life looks calm on the surface; but there are strong undercurrents of destruction beneath.
A recognition of the monstrous passion within is important. Malcolm Muggeridge tells the story o fhow once on the banks of an Indian river he saw a woman bathing at a distance. His passions enflamed, he began swimming in that direction, all the while imagining the sensationalism of sinful extrusion he was soon to experience, until he got within her proximity only to be shocked and bewildered by what he saw; he was looking at the body of a leper. Muggeridge said: it took some time for him to realize that it wasn’t her body that was leprous as much as was his own heart.
The OT permitted not a bit of leaven in worship. Do we still cherish some secret, hidden sin?
The world is a factory of carnal wish-fulfillment. The modern age of computers makes it possible to experience in virtual reality what is legally forbidden. There is a menu of immoralities from which humans can now choose.
From Ice-cream cones to Ice-capped mountain trekking, from gizmo-drives to outer-space travel, from video games to the wrestling ring, from bed room TV to theatres, from the dark cell of the heart to the raging rantings of the journalist, if the Nithari killings and the Mumbai blasts are shocking now, they may not be a decade later for the soft skin of human conscience turns into a rough hide with every shock it experiences. James ask: From where do they all come: it is the ravings and rantings of inner passions within that is destroying humanity.
Where do you stand as a burning light of God? Are you ruled by the lusts of the world or by Christ-like love; by the immoral desires of sin or by Christ’s zeal for righteousness. What u love is what will lead you on.
#3 SUBVERSION OF WILL – PRIDE OF LIFE.
Bible states categorically: pride goes before destruction
Jas 4:6 – God resists the proud
Rom. 1: Unthankful, ungrateful, not glorifying God, willful suppression of Truth
Involves
1. Evil Resolution of Will : I will
2. Total Dissolution of Spirit : Death of Conscience
GEHAZI – 2 Kgs. 5:20
Fear of God is the beginning of Wisdom
ISLAM – Submission to God: Religious quest to come back to God: failure
XT in Gathsamane
If Christ is not your Lord He can’t be your Savior’
CONCLUSION
Let the invisible kingdom of God be before your eyes.
Let the divine passion for righteousness and truth consume your being.
Let your will be yielded up to the Lordship of XT.
Spirit-Ruled Affections
Spirit-Ruled Affections
1 Jn. 2: 14-17
30 March 2007
Domenic Marbaniang
Horace W: ‘The world is a comedy for those who think but a tragedy for those who feel.’
Men are powerfully ruled by their affections.
Antiphanes: ‘Only two things a man cannot hide: that he is drunk and that he’s in love.’
1. AFFECTIONS DEFINE IDENTITY: What we love is what we become like. Our affections mirror our inner self. Who are we?
a. In Pedigree: We are Children of God (1Jn. 4:7; 3:1). You have divine nature.
b. As Possession: We are Sheep of God (Jn. 10: 27-29). You have divine allegiance.
c. In Position: We are Disciples of Xt (Jn. 13:35). You have a divine commission.
How do you look at the world & how does the world look at you?
‘The depth of Christian experience can be measured by the intensity of horror one senses on hearing the word ‘world’.’
Christ described a Christian’s relationship with the world in two ways:
a. He is unattached to the things of the world – Lk. 9: 23-27
b. He is hated by the world – Jn. 15:18,19. i.e., despised and rejected.
‘The world loves its own.’ Affections reflect our identity.
It is not what we were but what we are at present that’s imp. Jewish Prov. ‘man not judged by past but by present.’
To the Ephesian Church: You’ve left ur 1st love: laid aside, yielded up. Given it up for some other love.
Jer. 2:13: forsook me and hewn other cisterns. Those who did so lost their position in the covenant relationship and were designated enemies of God.
2. AFFECTIONS AFFECT DESTINY: What u love is what u’r led by. Three things:
a. Spectacles of Wind: Lust of Eyes
b. Sensations of Sin: Lust of Flesh
c. Subversion of Will: Pride of Life
#1 SPECTACLES OF WIND: Eccl. 2:10, 11; 2:17 – chasing after the wind – Pr. 23:5: Riches take wings: Don’t last.
This extends even to one’s theological constructions or reconstructions.
I don’t criticize the concept of a material heaven; I’m against have a materialistic reason for going to heaven.
Golden streets, Super-star mansions & bungalows, parks of delight and rapturous music. Someone even said, I don’t like going to such a heaven; I’d rather be amidst flowers, streams, mountains, and waterfalls, than in a golden cage of gold. The lust of eyes governs our feelings of where we wish to be. The Kingdom of heaven is beyond this-worldly analogy. The lustrous world is only passing by. We wait for the invisible country which will never fade away.
In any sight desired, at least two things are sought: beauty and intricacy or marvel. These both are desired for they stimulate affections. And this isn’t bad; for instance in the song: How great Thou art: I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power thruout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul my Savior God to thee, How great thou art.
However, it becomes evil when sought for the sake of stimulus alone. In such a case, the eyes suffer the terrible disorder of dissatisfaction. The ancient and modern madness after newer idols, refined imageries, and maga edifices reflect such a predicament of human dissatisfaction. Men desires to produce whatever he is capable of imagining.
It is no wonder that the words ‘images’ and ‘imagination’ are connected and Gen. 6 says ‘the imaginations of the thoughts of man’s heart was evil continually.’ Napoleon Bonaparte said that ‘Men of imagination rule the world.’ The modern situation goes a step beyond that, the world is not ruled by men of imagination, it is men who are ruled by a world of imagination. We have built a kingdom of virtual reality.
The modern era can be rightly termed the AGE OF IMAGES. From pencil wrappers to computer games, from movie theatres to T.V. screens, from billboard ads to a youth’s bedroom wallposters, from metropolitan stadia to the village pan shop, it’s the rule of images. We live in the empire of images.
Under the camouflage of the freedom of expression, behind the shield unrestraint liberty prowls the menacing figure of lust. All that the world has built is only a castle in the wind. Solomon: I did all and found out it’s chasing the wind.
IT’s therefore important to control what we see and how we see. The wise man has eyes on head (Eccl. 2:14).
Publius Syrus: The eyes do not go wrong if the mind rules the eyes. The mind must be suffused with God’s Word.
#2 SENSATIONS OF SIN: Rom. 7:5 – passions of flesh; Jas. 1:15 – lust produces sin.
Freud: Man is ruled by the drive of pleasure
Sartre: Man is a bundle of passions
The truth: Man ruled by passion is worse than the beast; for beasts are governed by instinct and man is to be governed by the truth that he learns. To give in to passion is to go beyond instinct. This is what Paul calls being ‘unnatural’ or being ‘against nature’ or ‘leaving the natural use’ Rom. 1:26,27.
Lawrence J. Crabb Jr.
2 Basic Needs
Significance – Power-drive (megalomania) – violence
Security – Pleasure-drive (erotomania) – immorality
DC Talk:
It took so long for me to see, that I’m a victim of the nature in me;
Left to myself I realize, I am the maker of my own demise.
The ocean of life looks calm on the surface; but there are strong undercurrents of destruction beneath.
A recognition of the monstrous passion within is important. Malcolm Muggeridge tells the story o fhow once on the banks of an Indian river he saw a woman bathing at a distance. His passions enflamed, he began swimming in that direction, all the while imagining the sensationalism of sinful extrusion he was soon to experience, until he got within her proximity only to be shocked and bewildered by what he saw; he was looking at the body of a leper. Muggeridge said: it took some time for him to realize that it wasn’t her body that was leprous as much as was his own heart.
The OT permitted not a bit of leaven in worship. Do we still cherish some secret, hidden sin?
The world is a factory of carnal wish-fulfillment. The modern age of computers makes it possible to experience in virtual reality what is legally forbidden. There is a menu of immoralities from which humans can now choose.
From Ice-cream cones to Ice-capped mountain trekking, from gizmo-drives to outer-space travel, from video games to the wrestling ring, from bed room TV to theatres, from the dark cell of the heart to the raging rantings of the journalist, if the Nithari killings and the Mumbai blasts are shocking now, they may not be a decade later for the soft skin of human conscience turns into a rough hide with every shock it experiences. James ask: From where do they all come: it is the ravings and rantings of inner passions within that is destroying humanity.
Where do you stand as a burning light of God? Are you ruled by the lusts of the world or by Christ-like love; by the immoral desires of sin or by Christ’s zeal for righteousness. What u love is what will lead you on.
#3 SUBVERSION OF WILL – PRIDE OF LIFE.
Bible states categorically: pride goes before destruction
Jas 4:6 – God resists the proud
Rom. 1: Unthankful, ungrateful, not glorifying God, willful suppression of Truth
Involves
1. Evil Resolution of Will : I will
2. Total Dissolution of Spirit : Death of Conscience
GEHAZI – 2 Kgs. 5:20
Fear of God is the beginning of Wisdom
ISLAM – Submission to God: Religious quest to come back to God: failure
XT in Gathsamane
If Christ is not your Lord He can’t be your Savior’
CONCLUSION
Let the invisible kingdom of God be before your eyes.
Let the divine passion for righteousness and truth consume your being.
Let your will be yielded up to the Lordship of XT.
1 Jn. 2: 14-17
30 March 2007
Domenic Marbaniang
Horace W: ‘The world is a comedy for those who think but a tragedy for those who feel.’
Men are powerfully ruled by their affections.
Antiphanes: ‘Only two things a man cannot hide: that he is drunk and that he’s in love.’
1. AFFECTIONS DEFINE IDENTITY: What we love is what we become like. Our affections mirror our inner self. Who are we?
a. In Pedigree: We are Children of God (1Jn. 4:7; 3:1). You have divine nature.
b. As Possession: We are Sheep of God (Jn. 10: 27-29). You have divine allegiance.
c. In Position: We are Disciples of Xt (Jn. 13:35). You have a divine commission.
How do you look at the world & how does the world look at you?
‘The depth of Christian experience can be measured by the intensity of horror one senses on hearing the word ‘world’.’
Christ described a Christian’s relationship with the world in two ways:
a. He is unattached to the things of the world – Lk. 9: 23-27
b. He is hated by the world – Jn. 15:18,19. i.e., despised and rejected.
‘The world loves its own.’ Affections reflect our identity.
It is not what we were but what we are at present that’s imp. Jewish Prov. ‘man not judged by past but by present.’
To the Ephesian Church: You’ve left ur 1st love: laid aside, yielded up. Given it up for some other love.
Jer. 2:13: forsook me and hewn other cisterns. Those who did so lost their position in the covenant relationship and were designated enemies of God.
2. AFFECTIONS AFFECT DESTINY: What u love is what u’r led by. Three things:
a. Spectacles of Wind: Lust of Eyes
b. Sensations of Sin: Lust of Flesh
c. Subversion of Will: Pride of Life
#1 SPECTACLES OF WIND: Eccl. 2:10, 11; 2:17 – chasing after the wind – Pr. 23:5: Riches take wings: Don’t last.
This extends even to one’s theological constructions or reconstructions.
I don’t criticize the concept of a material heaven; I’m against have a materialistic reason for going to heaven.
Golden streets, Super-star mansions & bungalows, parks of delight and rapturous music. Someone even said, I don’t like going to such a heaven; I’d rather be amidst flowers, streams, mountains, and waterfalls, than in a golden cage of gold. The lust of eyes governs our feelings of where we wish to be. The Kingdom of heaven is beyond this-worldly analogy. The lustrous world is only passing by. We wait for the invisible country which will never fade away.
In any sight desired, at least two things are sought: beauty and intricacy or marvel. These both are desired for they stimulate affections. And this isn’t bad; for instance in the song: How great Thou art: I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power thruout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul my Savior God to thee, How great thou art.
However, it becomes evil when sought for the sake of stimulus alone. In such a case, the eyes suffer the terrible disorder of dissatisfaction. The ancient and modern madness after newer idols, refined imageries, and maga edifices reflect such a predicament of human dissatisfaction. Men desires to produce whatever he is capable of imagining.
It is no wonder that the words ‘images’ and ‘imagination’ are connected and Gen. 6 says ‘the imaginations of the thoughts of man’s heart was evil continually.’ Napoleon Bonaparte said that ‘Men of imagination rule the world.’ The modern situation goes a step beyond that, the world is not ruled by men of imagination, it is men who are ruled by a world of imagination. We have built a kingdom of virtual reality.
The modern era can be rightly termed the AGE OF IMAGES. From pencil wrappers to computer games, from movie theatres to T.V. screens, from billboard ads to a youth’s bedroom wallposters, from metropolitan stadia to the village pan shop, it’s the rule of images. We live in the empire of images.
Under the camouflage of the freedom of expression, behind the shield unrestraint liberty prowls the menacing figure of lust. All that the world has built is only a castle in the wind. Solomon: I did all and found out it’s chasing the wind.
IT’s therefore important to control what we see and how we see. The wise man has eyes on head (Eccl. 2:14).
Publius Syrus: The eyes do not go wrong if the mind rules the eyes. The mind must be suffused with God’s Word.
#2 SENSATIONS OF SIN: Rom. 7:5 – passions of flesh; Jas. 1:15 – lust produces sin.
Freud: Man is ruled by the drive of pleasure
Sartre: Man is a bundle of passions
The truth: Man ruled by passion is worse than the beast; for beasts are governed by instinct and man is to be governed by the truth that he learns. To give in to passion is to go beyond instinct. This is what Paul calls being ‘unnatural’ or being ‘against nature’ or ‘leaving the natural use’ Rom. 1:26,27.
Lawrence J. Crabb Jr.
2 Basic Needs
Significance – Power-drive (megalomania) – violence
Security – Pleasure-drive (erotomania) – immorality
DC Talk:
It took so long for me to see, that I’m a victim of the nature in me;
Left to myself I realize, I am the maker of my own demise.
The ocean of life looks calm on the surface; but there are strong undercurrents of destruction beneath.
A recognition of the monstrous passion within is important. Malcolm Muggeridge tells the story o fhow once on the banks of an Indian river he saw a woman bathing at a distance. His passions enflamed, he began swimming in that direction, all the while imagining the sensationalism of sinful extrusion he was soon to experience, until he got within her proximity only to be shocked and bewildered by what he saw; he was looking at the body of a leper. Muggeridge said: it took some time for him to realize that it wasn’t her body that was leprous as much as was his own heart.
The OT permitted not a bit of leaven in worship. Do we still cherish some secret, hidden sin?
The world is a factory of carnal wish-fulfillment. The modern age of computers makes it possible to experience in virtual reality what is legally forbidden. There is a menu of immoralities from which humans can now choose.
From Ice-cream cones to Ice-capped mountain trekking, from gizmo-drives to outer-space travel, from video games to the wrestling ring, from bed room TV to theatres, from the dark cell of the heart to the raging rantings of the journalist, if the Nithari killings and the Mumbai blasts are shocking now, they may not be a decade later for the soft skin of human conscience turns into a rough hide with every shock it experiences. James ask: From where do they all come: it is the ravings and rantings of inner passions within that is destroying humanity.
Where do you stand as a burning light of God? Are you ruled by the lusts of the world or by Christ-like love; by the immoral desires of sin or by Christ’s zeal for righteousness. What u love is what will lead you on.
#3 SUBVERSION OF WILL – PRIDE OF LIFE.
Bible states categorically: pride goes before destruction
Jas 4:6 – God resists the proud
Rom. 1: Unthankful, ungrateful, not glorifying God, willful suppression of Truth
Involves
1. Evil Resolution of Will : I will
2. Total Dissolution of Spirit : Death of Conscience
GEHAZI – 2 Kgs. 5:20
Fear of God is the beginning of Wisdom
ISLAM – Submission to God: Religious quest to come back to God: failure
XT in Gathsamane
If Christ is not your Lord He can’t be your Savior’
CONCLUSION
Let the invisible kingdom of God be before your eyes.
Let the divine passion for righteousness and truth consume your being.
Let your will be yielded up to the Lordship of XT.
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