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"Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me". -Matt 16:24 First of all, and very important to keep in mind. “A student/disciple will always be below the Master. The Master/Lord is always greater than His students. The master here being Jesus Christ (There is only one Lord, who is above and beyond all His disciples). Many of God’s people will have to go through a similar experience to that of Christ. This is why we are to take up our cross and follow Him. This is the sanctification process that will involve great challenges and various types of suffering (be it persecution, suffering due to other sins in addition to our own sins. It could be inherited illness, or overexertion, because we take on the responsibility to do important work or even God’s work when others do not step up (like in the case of James White for instance, who In addition even met more persecution from the professed people of God, who accused Him even when he suffered, due to being to conscientious).
All of this to experience and learn and to go through a similar experience to that of Christ, just like Jesus Christ went through the experience of being a human. Who also had to go through various degrees of physical, mental and spiritual suffering. Particularly when coming face to face with the horrors and evil of the unconverted heart and mind, in the form of fallen angels or humans inhabiting the spirit of Satan, in order to properly understand how it is like. Even his closest disciples rejected and denied Him at one point, who was thus possessed by Satan for a time. Some repented, while Judas had become too corrupt at this time, and was only sorry he got caught. So you see how even God’s professed people can be inhabited by a demonic spirit and even Satan himself in a spiritually weak moment. This was the sin of losing faith, judging by the standards of the world (walking by sight), the sin of pride, and of fear of losing honor with men. Jesus says: “what you did to the least of these, you also did it to me”. What does this mean? It means that the spirit of the world and Satan, also did it to Him when “in the eyes of the world," which is in the eyes of the spirit of the world/of the flesh/of self, without the spirit of God (be it temporarily or due to temporarily weakness like in the case of Peter). Christ “seemed” like the “least" when He drank the cup of indignation and suffered the consequences of sin, physical, mental and spiritual agony. But was He during this time the least to God? This is when the heart of God was closest to the Son, in His worst agony, even if this was concealed to Christ, because He had to undergo the experience of true separation from God. Yet His suffering , when He seemed like the least to the world, it was of highest importance and value to God. This was also the climax of Christ's sanctification, when he was perfected.
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Jesus said: if they hated and persecuted Him, they will also hate and persecute His disciples. The more you separate yourself from the spirit, heart and mind, of the world, the more hatred and persecution you will experience. Because is a student greater than His master? No. So if they did it to the master, they will also do it to the student. "Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also." -John 15:20 Paul says that the apostles who are closest to Christ, because they have rejected more of the world, will be looked upon as “foolish” in the eyes of the world. While to God, the wisdom of the world is foolishness to Him. "Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight." 1. Cor 3:18-19 So it is always opposite. The more you separate and remove yourself from one of the spirits on either side, whether the spirit of Christ or the spirit of this world/Stan who is the prince of this world, they will understand each other less and less in all areas and become more and more alienated. This is why Gods word states" can two walk together unless they be agreed?(Amos 3:3). No, because as a Universal law, it is impossible. “The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day”. - Proverbs 4:18 A true Christian, when he take the path of righteousness, and he let Christ purify his heart of all unrighteousness, the closer he get to the heart of Christ, and the further he is removed from the heart of Satan, will hate the spirit of the world and former sins to an increasing degree, and it becomes detestable to him.
Does he now love himself more than before? His heart more than before? No, He loves Christ who now has taken more and more possession of his heart and mind. Meaning more discernment and having more of the heart and wisdom of God, rather than the “wisdom” of this world and the prince of this world. The Christian still recognizes that a human heart without God or Christ, who hate the true Christ and loves the world, is at worst a completely black heart. He will not hate his heart more the closer He is to Christ, because he know it is because he has died to the world and is alive in Christ. It is Christ and His spirit that transform the heart and mind. If he hated his heart more after Christ has taken more possession of it, it would be a sign that he hated the spirit and mind of Christ. The important thing is to recognize that it is in Christ and with Christ, when He lives inside our hearts and take more and more possession of it. So it is less and less of his own heart, and increasingly more of Christ's heart, received gradually in the life long sanctification. From self "righteousness", which in reality is unrighteousness, to receiving the righteousness of Christ.
We hate the world and the natural human nature without Christ, while we want Christ to save the world from itself, from its own nature, its nature without Christ, which is the spiritual heart and mind of the ruler of this world. So we are to desire to crucify our sinful nature, and love Christ in us. We love that He has taken more possession of it because it is not of our own works, but the work of Jesus Christ, His Father and their Holy spirit. As Christ take fuller possession of our heart and mind, we will also understand Jesus Christ more fully. We understand how truly great He is, how full of wisdom he is, how full of love he is, how marvelous and highly intelligent he is. Since we understand this to an increasing degree, the closer we get to him in the sanctification process, the worse our own selves, the unconverted heart, the heart without Christ, will appear to us. We understand more of how truly great He is compared to any humans, and even humans and ourselves with Christ living in our hearts. He is above all and perfect in all His ways, forevermore. A true Christian will hate the spirit of this world to an increasing degree. While a worldly person will hate the spirit of Christ and those in the process of becoming changed into His nature. If you want it and ask for God to change you, He will often allow trials, afflictions and attacks from Satan and the world. Both because it is in them, and because we need to see the ugliness of the heart who do not desire the true and entire Christ who do not desire to be changed.
So we are confronted with two opposing spirits that by nature hate each other. We are not to hate humans, we want them saved from the world, from sin and from Satan. Christ said that the world hated Him and that if we are in Christ and choose Him and choose to be on the path of righteousness, it will hate us too. Why? Because the spirit of the world, of self ø, is the spirit of Satan, and the more humans are filled with that spirit and less of the holy spirit with Christs’ name and character, it will hate the Christian more and more the closer He get to the spiritual heart and mind of Christ. Christ said: "No man can serve two masters: for either he. will hate the one, and love the other; or else. he will hold to the one, and despise the other, Ye cannot serve God and mammon." Matthew 6:24
This battle is spiritual and the further these spirits that inhabit both angels and humans are, the more they will naturally hate each other.
This conflict is not so apparent as it is an inner working, and the battles we fight are spiritual. Also keep in mind that it is different measures of the spirit, from lesser to fuller. This is why even as Christians we are to go from immaturity, which is a lesser amount of the spirit of God to maturity. Appearances will deceive. God looks at the heart, not how things appear like to the world. For "Satan himself will *appear* as an angel of Light", but it is only a deceptive cover. The wisdom of this world, is foolishness to God, and the wisdom and ways of God will appear like foolishness to the world. "Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. " -1 Corinthians 3:18-19
The measure of success will be measured in about opposite ways. Because God judges the heart and motives. The greatness measured in this world, is not impressive to God. The closer our hearts and minds are to Christ, the closer we get, we will see things increasingly from Gods’ perspective and understanding of things. God does not judge or see things the way the world and Satan does. The more you see everything from the worlds’ perspective, the further away you are from Christ, His heart and mind and visa versa. Because of what He has done. It is by His atonement, and by His undeserved grace and power, and not of ourselves that anyone should boast. That it is He who removes more of the polluted areas in our hearts, so we can better discern the ways and truths of God. Read: 1. Cor:3 and 4./ John 15:18-21/ Proverbs 16:2
True Exorcism Spiritual tumors = demonic doctrines and traits of character in your spiritual nature that stem from the spirit of this world, the spirit of death (as the result of holding on to them will lead to the second and eternal death for which there is no resurrection). These "demons" are cast out from a person. They are cast out (surgically removed, spiritually speaking) by the TRUTH and by accepting and believing light, truth, Christ. His doctrines and his character and spirit.
Law, character and spirit etched into your nature = Image). Either in the image of the beast/word/self/Satan or the Image of Christ. This all happens as a natural consequence and by actual actions- believing, accepting and receiving Christ’s Way and Truth, by His definition and standards. If you have Christ and His Father as your Lord and master, it means that you believe in His teachings and methods. If God says He is not a respecter of persons, that there is neither Jew nor gentile, male nor female, free or bond- but all are equal in terms of outer characteristics, and of same value to God, that means we want to be follow his pattern. Read Galatians 3:26-28.
We accept this character trait from the spirit of God, which removes the demon, which in this instance would be the character trait of prejudice in the outer factors. This is typical of world and the old law and covenant: this is the figuratively priesthood of the literal Israel, when the people of God still had a thick veil over their eyes, not the antitypical and more perfect priesthood, of Christ, in the manner of Melchizedek, which is not by birth-right or inheritance, which are outer factors, and not of a temporal, but eternal priesthood. See Hebrews 7 and Ephesians 3.
So, true exorcism in action, is by walking and advancing on the path of purification and holiness (sanctification).
The preaching of the cross is foolishness to the spirit of the world
The spirit of the world is not just found out there in the world, but is also very alive inside the churches, because it does not see and understand the value of Christ’s Way, the way of the cross.
"Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Matthew 16:24
Was the Cross a way of pleasures or sufferings? It was a way of suffering on the path towards righteousness, and the method of overcoming the spirit and law of death. There are blessings too, as we disconnect more from the spirit of the world, the closer we can get to Christ and the better equipped we can be in our service to God and humanity. Although most will reject the cross and choose to follow and be formed in the image of the beast in stead. Choosing the broad road, including the broad roads that have entered the churches.
See Romans 8:2 We were never promised a path decorated with beautiful flowers, but of roses with thorns. It is called the narrow way for a good reason, because it is the tough way, a way that involve suffering and pain. A road that involve fiery trials in order to burn away the impurities on our soul. So we can receive a heart and mind, a character,by the grace of God, suitable for the society of heaven and this earth made new.
- The sanctification process is not a process that go straight from black to white. We may have several
white areas early in our life, and then some of these may blacken later on. These plus the ones that had not been sanctified earlier, has to be sanctified later in life.
While God will become bigger, does not mean we are to have a poor judgment of our current state and doubt that Christ has come a long way sanctifying/cleansing our hearts. We are not to walk around in heaven being invisible. We will have love for God first and creation on second place. But God is not a tyrant who will hold us like slaves and tell us we are nothing. No, that is not from the Christ I know. He is not a tyrant. We become something in Him. We become sons and daughters of God. If we doubt this, when God has told us that we have been born again, I believe it would be lack of faith.
What we are to regard as nothing is the old self, the character traits that come from the law and spirit of self/world/the flesh. That is the character of the law and spirit of 666. And also understand we are of creation, not part of the holy trinity who is in the category: creator. And that while we are at one point to be set free and manage to walk by the law of the spirit and not just the letter, we have been educated by and still continue to be educated by the Holy trinity. So we are to become independent in a sense, yet still dependent upon God.
Yes, only the Father and Son will be exalted. I do not speak of worshiping sanctified humans or angels here of course.
Entire series: "Salvation/ Sanctification"
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