S SEKOU ABODUNRIN
The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. Ps 19:7
The Christian is quick to claim the benefits of redemption where bodily healing and financial increase is concerned and rightly so but the genius of redemption reaches into the soul of man also. For the most part however, it seems that we shy away from exposing the soul to the light of God’s word. We prefer to see this as part of being “human”.
According to the bible the law of the Lord is perfect restoring the soul. There are three thoughts I want you to hold in your mind – The fact that this is called a law, the fact that the soul needs to be restored and the truth that God’s word is the perfect recipe for restoring the soul. This means that the word of God is the perfect law for dealing with our emotions.
Consider the fact that in handling the emotions of man, God restores the soul or our emotions using a law. This can only mean that the emotion of man follows definite laws and patterns. This confirms the fact that your emotion is not following some haphazard principle. There are laws that set in motion this powerful essence called the emotion and the forces that it unleashes in our every-day world.
Since this is presented as a law, it must mean that it is not some hit and miss affair, but a definite assurance from God himself that this system holds true all the time for all men otherwise it is not a law. There are two laws that are operative where the soul of man is concerned. Paul refers to these as the “law of the spirit of life” and the “law of sin and death” – these are both laws. [See Romans 8] The law of the spirit of life flows out of the reborn spirit and it is enforced in its operation through the word. The law of sin and death flows out of the flesh. If you accept this as God’s psychology we have a clear insight into the origin of those feelings that put us in a non-resourceful state while sapping us of all the emotional strength at our disposal. The law that produces it is called the law of sin and death and its champion is the flesh! We often do not challenge these “feelings” because we feel that they are outflowings of our personality or some mysterious thing that happens to us without any cooperation on our part.
Since the Law of the Lord restores the soul, there must be something emotional about the word. Have you noticed that words are vehicles that transport and unleash powerful emotions in our world? Somebody says something around you and it throws your world into a spin. This is why you tend to smile or feel good when complimented and wretched when verbally abused. All form of words transfer emotions and God’s word is not an exception to this rule. It is obvious then that the emotion of God is contained within and expressed through this law of life that hands our emotions over to the true emotions of God. You need to see that your emotions, left in their natural outflow, do not truly reflect who you are; this is why the bible talks of the need for restoration in the soul. Your emotions as you know it today is an eclectic mix of emotions that have been released around you consistently. The trouble is that much of the emotion that we have been exposed to is corrupt. Contrary to what you might have come to accept then, you are not depressive! You act depressive because you have learnt how. It is a law. The flesh in cooperation with the law of sin and death will present convincing proof that you truly are moody, depressive and prone to sadness and other emotional highs and lows.
The Christian is quick to claim the benefits of redemption where bodily healing and financial increase is concerned and rightly so but the genius of redemption reaches into the soul of man also. For the most part however, it seems that we shy away from exposing the soul to the light of God’s word. We prefer to see this as part of being “human”.
According to the bible the law of the Lord is perfect restoring the soul. There are three thoughts I want you to hold in your mind – The fact that this is called a law, the fact that the soul needs to be restored and the truth that God’s word is the perfect recipe for restoring the soul. This means that the word of God is the perfect law for dealing with our emotions.
Consider the fact that in handling the emotions of man, God restores the soul or our emotions using a law. This can only mean that the emotion of man follows definite laws and patterns. This confirms the fact that your emotion is not following some haphazard principle. There are laws that set in motion this powerful essence called the emotion and the forces that it unleashes in our every-day world.
Since this is presented as a law, it must mean that it is not some hit and miss affair, but a definite assurance from God himself that this system holds true all the time for all men otherwise it is not a law. There are two laws that are operative where the soul of man is concerned. Paul refers to these as the “law of the spirit of life” and the “law of sin and death” – these are both laws. [See Romans 8] The law of the spirit of life flows out of the reborn spirit and it is enforced in its operation through the word. The law of sin and death flows out of the flesh. If you accept this as God’s psychology we have a clear insight into the origin of those feelings that put us in a non-resourceful state while sapping us of all the emotional strength at our disposal. The law that produces it is called the law of sin and death and its champion is the flesh! We often do not challenge these “feelings” because we feel that they are outflowings of our personality or some mysterious thing that happens to us without any cooperation on our part.
Since the Law of the Lord restores the soul, there must be something emotional about the word. Have you noticed that words are vehicles that transport and unleash powerful emotions in our world? Somebody says something around you and it throws your world into a spin. This is why you tend to smile or feel good when complimented and wretched when verbally abused. All form of words transfer emotions and God’s word is not an exception to this rule. It is obvious then that the emotion of God is contained within and expressed through this law of life that hands our emotions over to the true emotions of God. You need to see that your emotions, left in their natural outflow, do not truly reflect who you are; this is why the bible talks of the need for restoration in the soul. Your emotions as you know it today is an eclectic mix of emotions that have been released around you consistently. The trouble is that much of the emotion that we have been exposed to is corrupt. Contrary to what you might have come to accept then, you are not depressive! You act depressive because you have learnt how. It is a law. The flesh in cooperation with the law of sin and death will present convincing proof that you truly are moody, depressive and prone to sadness and other emotional highs and lows.
The word of God presents us with an alternative, an exact picture of your true emotions as given to us in the word. The man that refuses to recognize and express this word-governed emotion is called “simple” in that verse. The “simple” is the man who is unwise with the way he treats his emotions but doesn’t know it. He is devoid of that wisdom that is found in God alone. The emotions of God transferred into my emotions through the word restore my soul to the original intent of God. In other words I can become so proficient in operating out of the emotions of God as presented in his word that it becomes the smartest thing for me to do.
Every circumstance that you face could in fact be taken as an opportunity to practice the emotions of God flowing into your soul through your reborn spirit. The word of God is the bridge that places the emotions of God on tap for your emotional life. I can go from the advanced practice of depression, moodiness and gloom to the practice of the emotional stability of God. The rate at which this emotional conversion is manifested is proportional to the intensity with which I wage war on the emotional responses that I have accepted for so long as mine. If you choose to own the emotional response of the flesh you are correct. You are also correct if you choose the emotion of God. Hoever even though you are free to make choices you need to realize that you are not free to determine the outcome of our choices. You determine your choice, then your choice hands your emotions over to the peace of God or the cares and traumas of this world.
You see, man is created to operate like God. He doesn’t only look like, he is designed to act like God, and this is what is referred to as godliness – a god-like slant to life. A godly man therefore has the emotional attributes of God; a godless man shuns these attributes preferring the alternative that the flesh provides. It is part of our redemption in Christ to execute judgment upon the flesh’s hold on our emotional life. What we fondly refer to, as being human is actually a misnomer. Adam was created human, and then Adam fell as sin seized control of his life. Sin twisted his mind, altered his judgments and threw his emotions into confusion. He was no longer operating as a man would, but listening to and obeying alien spirits. It is this Adam that became the father of the human race. He was a fallen man and produces a race of fallen men. God sent the true man, the Lord Jesus who gave us a solid example of what a true man is like. There are emotions that flow from fallen man, and there are emotions that are true of the true man. When I act out of the weakness of the flesh, I am not acting like a true man, but as a man that is dominated by the environment. We often refer to some men as super-human when in reality they are human. What we refer to as human is actually fallen man. Paul in his letters refers to this as “mere men”. A mere man, is a Christian who bypasses the emotion of God made available through his new nature, but chooses to enforce the rights of the affections of the flesh. The mere man will vehemently resist smoking or drunkenness but will affirm his rights to the most addictive cigar and wine of all – the emotions of the flesh!
It is human for you to declare war on the stranglehold that the flesh has on your emotions. If disease tries to fasten itself on your body, you boldly execute the judgment of grace upon that disease for Jesus bore our sicknesses and pains. If poor thinking and poverty tries to hem you in, you boldly declare that Jesus has been made poor in your stead. It also holds true that his soul went through horrendous travail so that your soul does not have to stand for one minute under the terrors of depression or moodiness. It is a miscarriage of justice for you to allow in your emotions that which Jesus took upon him when all the terrors were released upon him.
Emotions are important. This is not about a state of denial, but intelligently executing judgment upon thoughts that breed the traumatic emotions in your soul. It is a law, if you entertain certain thoughts you ultimately will manifest the effects of these thoughts in your emotional life. A fellow can be extremely anointed and at the same time be given to bouts of depression and self-pity. Elijah knew how to call down fire from heaven and execute judgments upon false prophets, but this mighty man seemed to have little or no control over depression and self-pity. He went a full day’s journey into the wilderness and almost submitted to bouts of suicide! God fed him supernaturally and he received so much strength that he went the next 40 days and night without food unto Horeb. Even after these supernatural experiences he still responded from self-pity as he vehemently accused Israel before God. He was blind to the fact that he wasn’t the only one left. There is reason to believe that Elijah’s emotion shortened the length of his effectiveness in ministry while on earth. [See 1 Kings 19]
And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. Gal 5:24
The fleshly affections that produce a slant in our emotions are to be judged in the light of the redemption we have in Christ. Moodiness, self-pity, rage, clinical depression and those kinds of emotions are affections that we have developed that we can sentence to the death of Christ. We are to remember that he has taken all that was due us upon him and has been judged under the penalty of it. When these emotions rear their head we affirm what is true in Christ and use this to deliver our emotions to new affections and desires
…to be continued
Every circumstance that you face could in fact be taken as an opportunity to practice the emotions of God flowing into your soul through your reborn spirit. The word of God is the bridge that places the emotions of God on tap for your emotional life. I can go from the advanced practice of depression, moodiness and gloom to the practice of the emotional stability of God. The rate at which this emotional conversion is manifested is proportional to the intensity with which I wage war on the emotional responses that I have accepted for so long as mine. If you choose to own the emotional response of the flesh you are correct. You are also correct if you choose the emotion of God. Hoever even though you are free to make choices you need to realize that you are not free to determine the outcome of our choices. You determine your choice, then your choice hands your emotions over to the peace of God or the cares and traumas of this world.
You see, man is created to operate like God. He doesn’t only look like, he is designed to act like God, and this is what is referred to as godliness – a god-like slant to life. A godly man therefore has the emotional attributes of God; a godless man shuns these attributes preferring the alternative that the flesh provides. It is part of our redemption in Christ to execute judgment upon the flesh’s hold on our emotional life. What we fondly refer to, as being human is actually a misnomer. Adam was created human, and then Adam fell as sin seized control of his life. Sin twisted his mind, altered his judgments and threw his emotions into confusion. He was no longer operating as a man would, but listening to and obeying alien spirits. It is this Adam that became the father of the human race. He was a fallen man and produces a race of fallen men. God sent the true man, the Lord Jesus who gave us a solid example of what a true man is like. There are emotions that flow from fallen man, and there are emotions that are true of the true man. When I act out of the weakness of the flesh, I am not acting like a true man, but as a man that is dominated by the environment. We often refer to some men as super-human when in reality they are human. What we refer to as human is actually fallen man. Paul in his letters refers to this as “mere men”. A mere man, is a Christian who bypasses the emotion of God made available through his new nature, but chooses to enforce the rights of the affections of the flesh. The mere man will vehemently resist smoking or drunkenness but will affirm his rights to the most addictive cigar and wine of all – the emotions of the flesh!
It is human for you to declare war on the stranglehold that the flesh has on your emotions. If disease tries to fasten itself on your body, you boldly execute the judgment of grace upon that disease for Jesus bore our sicknesses and pains. If poor thinking and poverty tries to hem you in, you boldly declare that Jesus has been made poor in your stead. It also holds true that his soul went through horrendous travail so that your soul does not have to stand for one minute under the terrors of depression or moodiness. It is a miscarriage of justice for you to allow in your emotions that which Jesus took upon him when all the terrors were released upon him.
Emotions are important. This is not about a state of denial, but intelligently executing judgment upon thoughts that breed the traumatic emotions in your soul. It is a law, if you entertain certain thoughts you ultimately will manifest the effects of these thoughts in your emotional life. A fellow can be extremely anointed and at the same time be given to bouts of depression and self-pity. Elijah knew how to call down fire from heaven and execute judgments upon false prophets, but this mighty man seemed to have little or no control over depression and self-pity. He went a full day’s journey into the wilderness and almost submitted to bouts of suicide! God fed him supernaturally and he received so much strength that he went the next 40 days and night without food unto Horeb. Even after these supernatural experiences he still responded from self-pity as he vehemently accused Israel before God. He was blind to the fact that he wasn’t the only one left. There is reason to believe that Elijah’s emotion shortened the length of his effectiveness in ministry while on earth. [See 1 Kings 19]
And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. Gal 5:24
The fleshly affections that produce a slant in our emotions are to be judged in the light of the redemption we have in Christ. Moodiness, self-pity, rage, clinical depression and those kinds of emotions are affections that we have developed that we can sentence to the death of Christ. We are to remember that he has taken all that was due us upon him and has been judged under the penalty of it. When these emotions rear their head we affirm what is true in Christ and use this to deliver our emotions to new affections and desires
…to be continued
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