So today, I want to give you some things to think about and “chew on”. If you begin to feel defensive or upset by these things, go to God’s Constitution (Bible, in religious terms) to seek out His Truth on the subject. His Truth is all that matters and all we really need! Let the Holy Spirit speak to you and guide you. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. John 16:13-14
Your soul is your mind, will, and emotions. They are the carnal part of you. Until we are filled with, and being led by, the Holy Spirit—our Kingdom Governor—the carnal part of us rules our decision making. What we learn and experience as we grow up fills the mind and affects our emotions and our will.
From the very beginning of life, our minds are receiving and storing information and experiences that will dominate our soul until we are led by the Holy Spirit. Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 Now, when we are little children, whatever we learn becomes our “first truths”, whether it is truth or not. It becomes the foundation of what we believe and do. Remember that in a house, foundations are much harder to remove than walls!
First truths are hard to dig out!
If you were raised in church, as I was, whatever your church doctrine was became your “truth”. You would defend it unquestioningly to anyone who dared to question or condemn those beliefs. But more often than not, you didn’t have scriptures to back up that defense, only quoting what your pastor said or using scriptures out of context. (I have heard some famous preachers taking scriptures out of context to fit what they were saying!) Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of Truth. But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness. And their message will spread like cancer. Hymenaeus and Philetus are of this sort, who have strayed concerning the Truth, saying that the resurrection is already past; and they overthrow the faith of some. Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” 2 Timothy 2:15-19
The picture above is a good representation of our minds. In your mind, you may have several boxes filled with your religious beliefs accumulated throughout your life. To read God’s Constitution with a Kingdom mindset, all that clutter must be cleaned out. Otherwise, you will be reading with a religious mindset. When you begin to address and discard those denominational doctrines and traditions, God’s Word takes on a whole new perspective. It is like the difference between an old black and white TV and the latest 4K TV! You can see God’s Kingdom so clearly! Once you see it, you cannot "unsee" it and return to a religious mindset!
You must be intentional about this decluttering process. When something religious comes to mind, question it and seek out what God’s Word says about it. Most of the time doctrines are to help manage and control the behavior of its people. But it is the Holy Spirit--our Kingdom Governor—who is to lead and guide us in our Kingdom life!
For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. Romans 8:13-17
As you begin to evaluate and discard religious truths that don’t agree with what God’s Word, in context, actually says, you will begin to see from a Kingdom perspective. Read the four Gospels of the life of Jesus. It is so rich with His Kingdom teaching. Everything Jesus said and did was to teach us about His Kingdom Government. If you don’t see that yet, declutter your mind and read.
“When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order. Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before.” Luke 11:24-26 NLT
Yes, the religious spirit is not of God. All the historical evil the world blames Christians for was actually the religion spirit, not God. They only used His name. “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’” Matthew 7:21-23 NLT
Don’t leave your soul cleaned out! Fill it with God’s Kingdom government knowledge. Fill up on Jesus’ Kingdom messages. See everything He said and did as what your life should be like as a Kingdom citizen. His life is our greatest example of how our life in God’s Kingdom should look! One of my favorite examples is when Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. That’s a message all by itself! Do you think that Jesus actually needed to be tested by the devil? No! He was showing us how we must respond to any temptation. He let the devil say what he had to say and Jesus responded with God’s Word. He didn’t preach or argue or explain all the reasons why He wasn’t interested in what the devil had to offer. He simply said, “It is written…” and gave him God’s Word. There is power in the Word! That is how we in God’s Kingdom are to live! Powerful and victorious over every work of the devil and his demons! Matthew 4:1-11
There are things in your soul that no longer belong there. I've only focused on the religious mindset, but allow the Holy Spirit to show you all the clutter—thoughts and information—that need to go, in Jesus' name!
Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. John 8:36
Be a Kingdom light shining in the darkness,
Deborah Luchie
www.kingdomcitizens.org
All scriptures are NKJV unless otherwise noted.
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