Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. Colossians 2:8.
There is … a form of mind cure that is one of the most effective agencies for evil. Through this so-called science, one mind is brought under the control of another so that the individuality of the weaker is merged in that of the stronger mind. One person acts out the will of another….
But the so-called science is based upon false principles. It is foreign to the nature and spirit of Christ. It does not lead to Him who is life and salvation. The one who attracts minds to himself leads them to separate from the true Source of their strength.
In these days when skepticism and infidelity so often appear in a scientific garb, we need to be guarded on every hand. Through this means our great adversary is deceiving thousands, and leading them captive according to his will. The advantage he takes of the sciences, sciences which pertain to the human mind, is tremendous. Here, serpentlike, he imperceptibly creeps in to corrupt the work of God….
While it is believed that one human mind so wonderfully affects another, Satan, who is ready to press every advantage, insinuates himself, and works on the right hand and on the left. And while those who are devoted to these sciences, laud them to the heavens because of the great and good works which they affirm are wrought by them, they little know what a power for evil they are cherishing…. Mark the influence of these sciences, dear reader; for the conflict between Christ and Satan is not yet ended….
Neglect of prayer leads men to rely on their own strength, and opens the door to temptation. In many cases the imagination is captivated by scientific research, and men are flattered through the consciousness of their own powers.
Cut away from yourselves everything that savors of hypnotism, the science by which satanic agencies work.
The Faith I Live By p. 320
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for Aunt Lori. Her cancer is getting worse. Kristi
—-Please I have one more prayer request! One of my son’s has found a nice 5 bedroom old farmhouse out in the country for rent for a cheap price!! Lots of room for gardening etc.! They have 5 kids and it would be perfect for them! And little Emily is one of them! She would be back in her small country school which she loved so MUCH! Please pray that they can get it they would be saving several hundred dollars a month on rent and be out in the country instead of town! Connie
—-Please pray for Ava. She is 93 years old and is feeling down in the dumps as she is missing her husband who died in 1980. She says she is catching a cold too so she needs our prayers. Kathy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Friends,
When Esther Marie was born, her big sister was delighted as she had been praying for a baby sister for years. Even before Ronnie Jay was born three years earlier, I had told her that when I had a girl, she could name her after her Bible hero, Queen Esther. She loved to hold Esther and to help care for her. To ten-year-old Eileen, it was like having a living doll to play with, only she had to be very careful with this “doll.” One thing she enjoyed doing was dressing Esther up in different outfits. (I really hadn’t noticed this, but later she admitted that she had done it.) In fact, she did that so often that by the time Esther had learned to dress herself, she used to change clothes many times a day. As soon as I figured out why her clothes kept “falling” off from the hangers and onto the floor, I corrected that bad habit in a hurry.
We all are in need of a special change of clothes, however. This change of garments is much more important than what we wear on the outside and is vital and has eternal consequences. Zechariah was given a vision of Joshua, the high priest, that shows us our need for this garment. “And he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. And the LORD said unto Satan, The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan; even the LORD that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment. And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD stood by. And the angel of the LORD protested unto Joshua, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by.” Zech 3:1-7
Just as Joshua was standing before God in his filthy garments, so He sees the filthiness of our sins, for “all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do” Heb 4:13. We cannot hide those sins: we cannot take away those sins ourselves. How much we need to be cleansed by Jesus’ blood. Praise God! Our Dear Saviour has provided His own spotless robe of His righteousness that we do not have to appear all spotted with sin before the Judge of all the Earth. The True Witness will not put that robe on top of our filthiness, however, but He takes away our filthy garments of our own unrighteousness and then clothes us with the robe of His righteousness.
Yet even after we have been cleansed, we are not free to do as we will for we would soon be all dirty again as Scripture tells us, “The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.” 2 Peter 2:22 How much we need His Holy Spirit to fill us through and through. Jesus told two parables that illustrate that fact. He said, “When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.” Matt 12:43-45 “No man putteth a piece of a new garment upon an old; if otherwise, then both the new maketh a rent, and the piece that was taken out of the new agreeth not with the old. And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved. Luke 5:36-38
James admonishes us, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” James 1:22-25
May we come to Jesus that He may remove the filthy garment of our unrighteousness and clothe us with the pure spotless robe of His righteousness. May we open our heart’s door to the Dear Saviour that He may come in and help us to walk in His path. (Rev 3:20) May we obey the law of the Great King of the Universe, not to earn salvation, but because we are filled with love and gratitude for His great Gift to us.
Rose

A Dangerous Form of Mind Cure