We Brain Wash You Without Your Consent
Free From Bondage Ministry
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2010, "Free From Bondage Ministry"
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Free From Bondage Ministry does not claim that Christianity is simple. We just work to keep the basic message from the Bible simple and workable for people.
Free From Bondage Ministry has published a whole series of short books, on many different subjects. We want to inform the readers that the basic concept is the same in each and every book, with just an emphasis on the subject at hand. If you download additional titles from our ministry, you will find a lot of repetition from one book to another. Downloading more titles won't hurt, but might not be needed if the basic concept is understood.
The series of nineteen books called “God's manual for......” will bring the reader a basic concept of the message from Free From Bondage Ministry. A book called “ The General Application of the Who Told You Principle. Repent and Overcome or Else.....”, touching in much Biblical detail on the problems of life, is the book that ties these nineteen manuals together. For anyone seeking answers based on the “Who Told You....” concept, this book is a must read that uncovers the hidden message in the Bible in much detail.
The basic publications from Free From Bondage Ministry, "God's Manual For...." and the monthly MP3's, are free of charge. Other books, like: “General Application of the Who Told You Principle. Repent and Overcome or Else....”, the "We Are At War Bible Study", and the book "Can You......??" carry a charge for the download. These books required, and still require, such a large amount of time and energy to bring you a cross reference for many of life's problems and the Bible's answers, that we cannot bring it to you for free. But by studying “General Application of the Who Told You Principle. Repent and Overcome or Else.....”, the "We Are At War Bible Study" and "Can You......??" you will find out that it is worth every penny and more.
And believer beware. What you think to understand might be twisted by your thinking, which you would understand and evaluate if you really understand the concept of Free From Bondage Ministry.
If the books helped you, we would appreciate a referral, and a review.
http://www.freefrombondage.weebly.com
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We Brain Wash You Without Your Consent
Intro.
"This is the true story.....". Or another one just like it; "We investigated this.......", or "From reliable source......". Or how about the: "It's just for entertainment, so it won't hurt......". The average American gets over 3000 marketing messages daily, is bombarded with news flashes, and then watches TV, gets on the Internet, reads magazines or finds other forms of media and entertainment to keeps him- or herself occupied. Our minds are submerged in millions of impressions that are fired at us at a daily basis, and we still believe that we are thinking for ourselves. That all that input does not have an influence on us.
So they create a television show to check if families would survive without the media for a week. And while the masses are glued to that media, the whole nation gets to see how strongly influenced that family is by the media. Just two days into the trial the family members are about to kill each other. And the masses think it is great entertainment, not realizing that by watching, they are just as stuck in media land as the experimental family.
But this is just one example. Realize that our political preferences, our health, our spending habits, and go on and on, are being influenced by the ongoing bombardment of the media that takes place every day.
And if you by any chance feel that the media is not an ongoing stream, a bombardment, on a daily basis, then you really need to get a check-up from the neck up. In that case we challenge you to eliminate any and all media from your life for a week. And if you fail on any given day, the week starts over again. We bet you that that week will become the rest of your life.
The media, such a large part of our world, and yet it is the one thing that should drive all of us up the wall at any given time. The media impacts every aspect of our lives. Pretty much every subject in the book series from Free From Bondage Ministry finds a point of influence from the media. Some subject just mildly, others majorly. And realize that that influence doesn't just come from the news. Any TV show has an influence, every ad, every magazine, every e-mail, every video / computer game, every radio broadcast, every piece of media imaginable. They all influence us, and in many ways we are being targeted as the route to an increase in market share.
Now here is the big issue in regards to the media. It is the media itself that would be used as an avenue to warn people about the influences of the media. Kind of a "shooting yourself in the foot". So in the mess that is thrown at us by the media we should look at it more like this, think more like that, consider more of whatever. All while the media itself will say anything to promote themselves. Now don't get the wrong idea, because it is important to understand that the media can be a useful medium of information. But how do you figure out what is the right thing to listen to and what is junk? What is influencing you positively and what has a negative influence? So we take the easy way out, believe what the media is telling us. Realize however what a dangerous place you put yourself into by just blindly following.
But then, some of us just want to find a real answer regarding the influence of the media. We hope to find that by going to a Christian seminar, a Christian counselor, read Christian books. Yes, if we would all be more like Jesus, we would know what to think of the media. It would not be of any real importance anymore. And we try, and try, and try some more.
Yet most people who follow this route end up the same as non-believers. Churches are filled with people who are still stuck in the media war. The way the media influences Christians is pretty much the same as the influence on non-believers, although Christians tend to be more selective in what they let into their heads
So what is the answer when it comes to the media? Could it be found at a seminar, a church, in a book, or in a television program? Yes, yes, yes and yes. If you would find one that actually teaches and practices the answer. But it is hard to filter through all that is out there if you don't really know what to look for. Especially since most of the media would be warning against themselves, which creates a tinted picture. Because you don't know what answer to look for, you could easily be had. After all, if you knew the answer, you wouldn't be looking anymore.
So you might be wondering. Is this another one of those books.....? If it were, we wouldn't be writing this. Just imagine, a book that is brought to you by media avenues, that warns you about the media? Well, you can make up your own mind about this controversy by the time you are finished reading this book. So, this is not your average book about the media war. Actually, even though this book is based on Biblical concepts, the content is so different, that many readers could consider this book to be just a bunch of b....... (excuse our choice of language here). When reading this you could easily find yourself wondering what this has to do with warning you about the influences of the media.
But before you speak your mind, we urge you to read on. And at all times keep God's incredibly revealing words in mind. The few simple words he spoke in the Garden of Eden to the first couple: "Who told you.....?". More on this later on.
By the time you finish this book, you will have it figured out. Figured out to a point that you will never look at any media medium the same way again. And all you want to do is share with others what you learned from reading this simple book. But bare with us. Because first of all this book is not a literary work of art. Secondly, it will be a repeat of all that you have read so many times already. So we have done our best to bring all that with some fun and looseness. So hang in there, because there is an underlying message that will make it all clear. And it is in that message that the challenge lies.
For many centuries people have studied the Bible, looking for the underlying message. People wonder if there are encrypted messages in the Bible. Well, we feel people might be making it way to difficult. Maybe we are bringing you that secret message, and it isn't encrypted, neither is it all that hidden. It is just grossly overlooked. And when you understand the concept that Free From Bondage Ministry brings you, you will also understand why it is so grossly overlooked. Which should bring you even more on the alert.
Before the beginning.
God was pleased. He had just finished a lot of work. So much creation in such a short period of time. Of course a God day is much much longer than thousands of years we currently use on our earthly calendar, but it was still a lot of work. Five God days had passed. It was time for creation of a species called "Angels". Yes, you read that correctly, no human creation yet, neither were we the first creation.
Now we can just see you think. Naked chubby angels with silk scarfs elegantly rapped around their private parts. With their feathery wings they are sitting on clouds, playing little golden harps. Well, dream on. That is how the church has been displaying angels. God did not give them feathery wings, nor did they wear silk scarfs around their bottoms. And there is not a single mentioning in God's word about little golden harps, or floating on clouds.
For many earthly years the angels roamed the earth side by side with God. Until one angel, the smartest one of all considered he was better, smarter, greater than God. He placed himself on a mental pedestal, so high that he exalted himself above the clouds and the stars. Which by the way right away shows us that they were not floating around on clouds, but living below the clouds just like us humans do now.
The planning and the actions this one angel took on his thoughts were the first original sins that ever happened in this universe. With his intelligence he persuaded one third of all the angels to follow him in his rebellion against God. The original sins that were initially just within one angel, spread like wildfire over the population. Pride, bitterness and resentment went rampant. In the process of rebellion in which two thirds of the population did not follow, hatred, rage and anger, resentment, bitterness and unforgiveness started. The evil lusts and desires became an evolving matter by itself, turning into sexual immoralities. Fear, anxiety and stress spread throughout the earth's population. Looking at the whole list of sins that had developed, consider that these were all being expressed in different intensities. While some would express absolute hatred, others would just be nagging a little. While some would pretty much die of fear, others would feel some signs of fear. Some would have no relationships, unable to forgive the other individual, while others would have great relationships but feeling some resentment and unforgiveness in that connection.
God was no longer pleased. With His power and might He shook the earth. The rumbling and trembling created mountain ranges, changed the climate into what we now know as the ice age. Everyone and everything perished, including all the rebels. All spirits came before God, but not all stayed with Him. The rebel spirits of Lucifer, now changing in name to Satan, and his henchmen were judged and cast back to earth. According to later descriptions they fell like lightning from the sky and ended up in the earth's atmosphere. There they remained, as spirits. Disembodied, with all their lusts and desires, and no means to express them. Pure torment. It is what you could consider hell. Just picture this, if you had all your lusts and desires and no way to express them. Neither could they....... Or could they......???
What most people consider the beginning.
Now that that ice age massacre had come to an end, it was time for God to start over on creating a population for this planet called earth. So God went to work for another day, a God day that is. The sixth one. And he created Human, a man. God put the first human, Adam, in a protected area, to guard him from the wild and dangerous world that was created in that ice age massacre. What an awesome place to live, and then imagine working together with God on naming the plants, the animals and all else. Creating a world that would make human life sustainable.
But Adam was lonely. So by the first ever recorded attempt of human cloning, with DNA modifications, God created another human, called Eve. She was a woman, and was bound to be Adam's mate.
Life was amazing. The couple walked together with God in the cool of each evening in their beauty and innocence. Naked, with nothing to feel ashamed about. There was just one simple rule to follow in paradise. "Thou shalt not eat of the fruit of the tree of wisdom".
But then the unfortunate thing happened. A combination of a few things changed everything. The spirits from the rebellion that came from the previous creation were still roaming the planet, and they were desperately looking for bodies to work out their unfulfilled lusts and desires. And they had located their victims. And these victims, called Adam and Eve, had something called "free will".
So by a sneaky way, through telepathie, using a serpent to converse with Eve, evil tempted Eve with ideas that did not line up with the one basic rule of paradise. So while that one simple rule should have been so easy to follow, temptation won the battle of Eve's mind. With her free will she decided to follow the temptation rather than the one simple rule.
Then Eve, in her innocence, dragged Adam along in the first sin the new creation committed. Suddenly noticing how good was counteracted by evil, Adam and Eve were being bombarded by dozens and dozens of thoughts and emotions. The lusts and desires from Satan and one third of all the angels that were also condemned were suddenly entering their minds. Adam and Eve had given these evil spirits the right to access them by disobeying God. So they started acting a little different then before. They had all these thoughts, feelings and emotions running through their heads. What was happening to their minds?
Then God came by for the usual walk in paradise. Eventually finding the first human couple, ashamed of their nakedness, God asked them a very simple question. "Who told you....?".
Now this is where we want to start jumping in as a present day ministry. God did not ask Adam and Eve if they had gone mad. He didn't ask if they were having a brain fart, or if they needed to take some medication to sedate those negative emotions. God was very clear in His understanding that these thoughts, feelings and emotions were not original to Adam and Eve.
Now we do want you to picture this. Adam and Eve standing there in their leavy bathing suits. Adam telling God; "It was that women that you gave me. I should have given you an arm and a leg instead of just a rib. Look what I got for just a rib". And then Eve standing there blaming Adam, blaming the snake, blaming God for how tough it was to follow the one difficult rule. Jadajadajada...... That must have been a great scenario. Just for a moment place yourself in Adam or Eve's "shoes" to get a really good idea on the whole situation.
But let's review what was really taking place there. We want you to take a look at it all in three different levels. The input level, the responsibility level, and the blaming level. Most people live their lives within the last two levels. They either take responsibility or try to blame others for what happened, or make a mix of these two. God made it clear with His response "Who told you....?" that He knew where to look for the cause of the situation. He understood all this was an input issue. But it was Adam and Eve's response that shows the unclarity from their side regarding the situation. They responded like pretty much every other human that walked the earth since then, until humans that are now walking the face of the earth. Blame someone or something, maybe showing some personal responsibility.
Consider this. When looking at Adam and Eve in the scenario, we see that they missed the boat in God's question, "Who told you......?". As human as they were, Adam and Eve only looked at themselves or the other human involved in the situation. Even though the serpent provided input which Eve knew about, all the other head trash seemed to come out of their own mind. Then they scanned for what they had to be personally responsible for, and what they could blame on someone or something else. They also scanned all that was going on in their heads, but considered that to be their own creation, their own mind.
Adam and Eve did not consider, even though the serpent had just provided Eve with input, that their new attitude, new behaviors and new actions had very little to do with blaming. Their personal responsibility had something to do with it, because they were both in control of their decisions on what to do. On what actions to take, based on the thoughts, feelings and emotions going through their heads.
But here is something to realize. God asked Adam and Eve that one important question. "Who told you.....?". God wanted to make Adam and Eve aware that the thoughts, emotions and feelings racing through them were not original to them. And that even though they were responsible for acting on it, they were not responsible for what was put in their head.
God made it very clear again in later years, when He revealed that "We are to hold every thought captive". In other words, think before you act, because your thoughts might not be yours. It might be that someone "Told you......".
The years that followed.
The four thousand years that followed, showed an ongoing repeat of the scenario that we just reviewed with Adam and Eve. That is, if we look at the three levels; input, responsibility and blame. The Old Testament is like a history book, where some people relied on the blaming level, and others on the responsibility level. These scenarios fluctuated from God pleasing and God following, to God displeasing and God disobeying. But there is an underlying story that surfaces sometimes in the writings of the Old Testament. An underlying story that represents the third level, the input level.
Because for four thousand years humanity struggled to keep the right path. And keep in mind that many went astray because of chasing after this thing called money. Those understanding that input had something to do with their behaviors and their actions, would go through numerous attempts to ban the input. That is what all the blood sacrifices were for, that the Old Testament is filled with. These spiritual leaders were aware that there were evil spirits that roamed the earth, looking for humans to live through. The blood sacrifices were to cleanse the humans involved in these sacrificial rituals of the external evil influences. The problem was that these sacrifices would only be effective at the time of the sacrifice. For that moment only, could they listen to the words of God in their heads, without evil screaming over it with all it had. Evil would return right afterwards, and the only way to guard it of long term, was by sheer obedience to God. But any sin ever committed would for always give evil the access right to the sinner's thoughts and emotions. So being a mighty man or women of God, required total responsibility in following the right thoughts, feelings and emotions. Well, even the biggest names and hero's from the Old Testament couldn't keep that up.
We can almost hear some of you think. "Yeah, but how about some of these Biblical figures, they did not stray from God". Are you sure, or are you maybe missing where these individuals were straying from God? In today's world we all know what would go against God's will. Even most non-believers know about these activities. Adultery, murder, crime are just a few of them. Then there those activities that are sin, but are all too often reviewed as minor issues. Cussing, drunkenness and lying are just a few. But then there are many activities that are considered normal among humanity, and yet they are against God's will. Resentment, bitterness, self pity, unforgiveness, worry, anxiety and fear are considered so normal within humanity that very few consider this sin. And yet they are. Yes, you read that correctly, even fear is sin. After all, God did not give you the spirit of fear.
If you would take the Old Testament and read it with in the back of your mind that the actions taken are the results of thoughts, feelings and emotions. Then consider if these thoughts, feelings and emotions, and the actions following from that, were original to the individual described in the stories of the Old Testament? Or did these thoughts, feelings and emotions come from somewhere else? Consider where in the Biblical stories sins were committed, even those that today's world doesn't consider sin, but are still sin even today and always. Everywhere we see that thoughts, feelings and emotions were followed through on with actions, while that input came from somewhere. What input caused the stories of the Old Testament to take place. We could list example after example, but you should read your Bible, and try to figure this out by yourself. The question to keep in mind should remain; “Who told them.......?”.
An opportunity to come clean.
So about four thousand years passed by since the first humans walked the face of the earth. All these years they walked among the evil spirits that God cast into the earth's atmosphere a long time before. For all of these four thousand years an unseen battle had been taking place. A battle of the mind, literally. And mankind still believed that all the thoughts, feelings and emotions were original to them. And the average man and woman were very willing to comply with these thoughts, feelings and emotions. After all, it was their own mind. Why question yourself?!
So the battle was easy for these evil spirits. Mankind, for the most part, didn't even understand they were fighting a battle against something outside of them. Just think about it. A battle in which one of the parties believes he is just having a little struggle with himself. That one party has no clue who the battle is against.
Now God wasn't too pleased with how mankind was handling this. So He decided to go all out. In spite of knowing what an unimaginable suffering would take place, He send His only begotten Son to teach us about how God really wants us to live. To understand God. To have knowledge. To free us from bondage, by first of all starting to understand what we are in bondage to. God knew that by the shedding of His Son's blood, mankind would be enabled to cast out that evil over and over again. That is, if we would believe that that is the sacrifice that His Son Jesus Christ made for us. The ultimate blood sacrifice, that would enable mankind forever to win the battle of the mind against these evil spirits.
So what did Jesus teach us? In very basic terms He taught us that if we would not follow the words of His Father, that we were following another kingdom. A kingdom known as God's enemy. The kingdom of Satan. And that if we would follow that kingdom, we would give it the right to manifest itself through us and the generations to follow. That manifestation would result in all kinds of misery. Disease, poverty, divorce, death, disaster, and the list goes on and on.
But He also taught us that if we would truly believe in God, and truly believe in Him as the Son of God, that we could free ourselves from that bondage. We could take the access rights away from these evil spirits, so they would no longer manifest themselves through us. But it would require true believe, understanding, repentance and casting out the evil within us. We would move closer to God by believing in Him and His Son. But only by walking in their spirit and not after, how it was called, the flesh, would we be able free ourselves from the evil spirits. Jesus went around freeing people from evil spirits and the accompanying diseases and disasters. Mankind marveled at His powers. Yet He even told us that if we really understood, we would do the things He was doing, and greater. But even those following Him closely, and learning from Him first hand, could not believe that at that point in time.
Now here is that famous day. In the garden of Gethsemane, Christ is experiencing all the signs and symptoms of extreme fear. As his disciples described, He was down on His knees, sweating blood. Many people talk about the forty days that Christ was tempted in the desert. But realize that showing these extreme signs of fear were an extreme form of temptation as well. Satan made a last attempt to persuade Christ to give up. But there is a difference between experiencing the fear and giving into it. Feeling the fear, even showing all the physical signs, does not mean giving in to that fear and committing the sin. Christ followed through on what needed to happen, in spite of the feelings, thoughts and emotions. He knew to follow God's path, in spite of what was trying to persuade Him in a battle of the mind.
Then there was Judas. So what was it that made Judas betray Jesus. Yes, he got money, so that probably was a motivating factor. We could argue about that forever, but let's go back to God's question "Who told you.....?". Yes, Judas performed the action of the actual betrayal, but were the thoughts, feelings and emotions of doing this original to him? Then there were the mobs that wanted Jesus crucified. Were those people, who wanted to see Jesus crucified, following thought, feelings and emotions that were original to them, or were they following something else. Was something playing tricks with their minds, without them realizing they were being had. And was Peter, who denied three times to know Jesus, following thoughts, feelings and emotions that were his, or were they coming from somewhere else. The list of people with thoughts, feelings and emotions, and the action that followed out of that goes on and on.
The crowds were cheering when the Son of God was beaten beyond recognition, carried the cross through the narrow streets, nailed to the wood, and then left to die.
Now pay close attention. Listen carefully, because you can barely hear His words. After all, He used one of His last breaths to speak these words. "Father, please forgive them, for they know not what they do". Did you hear it? No, no, let's ask that differently. Did you understand that??
Hearing something is something very different than understanding it. And we want you to understand this. It is crucial that you gain this knowledge. After all, God told us that His people were in bondage because of a lack of knowledge. These were some of Christ's last words. He did not speak them just for the fun of it. So you better get the meaning behind these last few words.
Most people consider them "make me feel good words". Look, even after doing such a bad deed, we are still forgiven. Well, that is one way to look at it. But then why did Christ add the words "They do not know what they do". If all He meant was to ask for forgiveness, why give the reasons that those who killed him should be forgiven. We can almost sense your thoughts while writing this. "They do not know what they do?!?!?...... Of course they knew. They had just had the Son of God beaten beyond recognition, then nailed Him to a cross to let Him die a horrific death. Now don't tell me they did not know....". Well, Christ told you they did not know what they were doing, so what makes you think you know better?
See, Christ understood the same thing His Father understood during that scenario in the Garden of Eden, when He said "Who told you......?". The crowds of people who killed Christ, should have been asked the same question. "Who told you....?". Because they did not understand what they were doing, because something that wasn't them, was telling them to do it. That something, the same evil spirits that persuaded Eve and then Adam, put thoughts and feelings and emotions in the heads of the crowds. And they considered these thoughts, feelings and emotions to be original to them. And since their neighbor was expressing the same thoughts, feelings and emotions, everyone considered to be right. Why question yourself if pretty much everyone around you seems to be having the same frame of mind?
Maybe Christ wasn't so much referring to the fact that the crowds did not know what they were doing when looking at the action of putting Christ to death. What if Christ was referring to that the crowds did not know what they were doing in their heads? That they did not know they were not listening to their own thoughts, feelings and emotions. That that what was going on in their heads was not original to them. The crowds of people did indeed not know what they were doing, because they did not know what they were doing in the six inches between their ears.
What put Christ to death weren't those crowds of people. The crucifixion of Christ took place because of what was going on on a spiritual level. What put Christ to death were the evil spirits from God's previous generation, working through these crowds of people. Satan himself, together with one third of the angels that had rebelled against God. And the people themselves did indeed not know what they were doing. Besides that Christ was sacrificing Himself to become the ultimate blood sacrifice, His own blood. He made this sacrifice to take all the sin of the world that had ever been committed, as well as all the sin that still would be committed, on Himself. And realize where those sins come from. Not original to the people committing them. The original thoughts, feelings and emotions tempting people to sin came and come from Satan and his henchmen.
So not only did the crowds not know that they were swept up in Satan's mind game to commit such evil against Jesus Christ, but next to that the sins brought by Satan's temptations that were destroying the world had to be redeemed by Christ. It was and is the sin that each and everyone of us commit that crucified Christ. It was, and still is, the battle of the mind because “someone is telling” us, that put Christ to death. And the battle of the mind is in this world because of that one angel, Lucifer, who is in rebellion warfare against God.
Now do take notice here. We are not saying the crowds (including us) did not have any responsibility. They are still responsible for not understanding, not having the knowledge. Because if these crowds had known about the battleground that was going on in their heads, and then had still followed through on it, they would now have willingly conformed to the evil that was telling them to do this. It was because they did not know what they were doing in their heads, what they were listening to, that they cannot be blamed for following the thoughts, feelings and emotions. And we, as mankind in today's world are in general still unaware of this battleground. That is why Christ asked for their forgiveness. Had the crowds known what they were listening to, the evil spirits of Satan (Lucifer) and his henchmen, they would have been just as evil by acting these thoughts out. Judgement would have them cast out of Heaven as well. Because they would have been willingly obeying evil. They would have shown to believe more in Satan than in God.
Through the centuries.
Fortunately some people took Christ's teaching at heart and did something with it. Risking their lives, and many lost that physical live in the process, they went about spreading the knowledge.
But there is something to think about. Remember that game in school. Where one person tells something to another, who tells another, who tells another, and on and on it goes. And then at the end the one phrase that was passed on came out totally different then the original. Well, even though the Bible accompanied the teachings that were passed on, you can rest assure that the same thing happened with God's word. Just take the seven churches in the beginning of the first century. They were already all going different directions. And realize that there was a principality with a following, who had a serious interest in this happening.
But there was more going on. The initial church was set up to do the following for the people. To be a healing church, to be a church of sanctification. To be a church full of disciples, to be a church of teaching, a church of....., you name it. All that has changed significant throughout the centuries. Looking at the modern church, it has more and more become a place of social gathering and entertainment. In many churches even the teaching has disappeared.
But let's jump back for a moment. In the fourth century, rulers of large estates and countries decided this church thing would be a good way to bring people together in large groups, to then indoctrinate them. Using the word of God to install fear, to punish people. A practice that continued for many centuries. The practice of installing fear is still used in many churches today. And that while God clearly stated "I did not give you the spirit of fear". But yet many churches use fear in the attempt to make people believe more. Not to mention how many actions taken by churches were motivated by creating an image that would draw people to become part of the church, even if it would not follow the law of God.
For many centuries law and church were woven into one. Sometimes with the law ruling more, other times the church. All while the Old Testament as well as Christ and the post-cross writings of the New Testament warn about legalistics overtaking the law of God. Thousands upon thousands were prosecuted under human law, in the name of the Lord. All while human law should be submissive to the law of God, not overrule it.
With the clock quietly ticking time away we get to the the era around the first world war. With the advances in medicine and science, people are taking over in the world of healing. Mankind figures to be so brilliant, that they can manage all diseases, disorders, mental challenges with pills, surgeries and therapies. Since then that knowledge has helped to eradicate some simple contagious diseases, but complex diseases like cancer, depression and many many more have gone rampant. Among believers the numbers that suffer are no different than among non-believers.
So how did these changes come about. Yes, the watering down of the message brought by Christ is definitely an issue. On top of that we have people making their own rules, bringing in their own ideas, their own perceptions and translations. But were that their own thoughts? Maybe there is much more going on.
Let's go back to that one important question again. "Who told you......?". Looking back at all the people who influenced how the Word of God should be dealt with, we should ask ourselves that question as well.
Who told the founders of the early churches to stray from the basics that Christ taught? Who told the landlords and rulers to use the church as a place to bring people together to indoctrinate them? Who told law makers to have human law overrule the Bible as a basis for convicting people? Who told mankind to take healing out of the Christ, and that we as people can do an equal if not better job? Who told all of them to do what they did? Going back through history, can you see how mankind could have been under a spell? Was something playing with the minds of people in powerful positions? It might be time to review the history books, and look at all that happened in a different light.
Present time.
Now it is time to take a look at the modern times we are encountering today. Looking at churches, the diversity is soo great that it almost seems as if nobody really understands anymore what Christ actually taught.
Now we could simply say "Read your Bible". Then everyone could be on one line. But even there the trouble shows. The differences between the different translations is stunning. Fortunately the scrolls of the Dead Sea have been found, so at least the Old Testament can be accurately translated. But even then, the Hebrew and Greek words often have multiple meanings, still leaving room for different interpretations. Besides that so many people have added things to Christianity, that can't even be found back anywhere in the Bible. Watch out what you believe, because “Who told these people.....?” to add things to Christianity, that have nothing to do with it?
There are churches, healers, psychologists, organizations, governments and single individuals like politicians, that will do anything to proof their case. Some will even call what they do Christianity based, because it somehow relates back to a single Bible verse. Or because the founder of their ideas claimed initially that it was Christianity based. Others yet take the whole Bible, use what fits their needs and disgard the rest. Free From Bondage Ministry has no doubt that even the concepts described in this book will be attacked from all sides. Maybe you are, by reading this far, ready to launch a personal vendetta against Free From Bondage Ministry and the concepts from it's books. Just one quick question before you act that out..... "Who told you.....?". Satan has a very big interest in keeping you from understanding that what undermines his ways of warfare.
With all this going around, the question arises again "Who told them....?". Realize that Lucifer, now named Satan, and his henchmen, are highly intelligent beings. They will disguise evil in what looks like blessings, just to make you believe you are on the right track. Only to find out later that the blessing turned out to the bait to get you into the curse. Satan has very high stakes in twisting God's word. Much sin is clear to be identified. But taking God's word and twisting it such that it sounds like the real thing even though it isn't, will drag people unknowingly further away from God. All while they think and believe to be following God's word. Or they are believing in a different religion all together, because they were “told to”.
So we recommend that you study the Bible for yourself. Challenge what you are told to believe. Even challenge the concept of Free From Bondage Ministry. But also challenge congregations that have thousands or even millions of followers. Remember, Lucifer was so intelligent that he persuaded one third of all angels to rebel against God. Christ died on the cross for your sins, but that doesn't make you immune to Satan's persuasive powers. So even what millions claims to be the correct following of God's word, could still be taking these millions further away from God rather than closer.
So we live in a world where through the centuries so-called holy people have fought, from little word fights to full blown wars, over how we should live according to Christ. Not to even mention how so-called holy people have done many other things then fighting, that clearly are not matching the teachings of our Lord.
Interestingly records show that the casting out of evil spirits was a very common practice in most churches until the early 1900's. People with physical diseases, mental and emotional ailments, were treated in churches.
Consider however, that since the 1900's, the world slowly but surely relied more and more on science and law, especially after the writings of Darwin. Not too surprising, since throughout the centuries the church had shown themselves as being pretty unreliable as well. And consider that for the day of today, many congregations are small. A few hundred members at the most, since the chance that larger number will result in people fighting over stupid arguments is becoming too big of an issue. Not to even mention that churches seem to be the home to just as much disease, depression, mental illness, criminality, divorce and other issues, as among non-believers. Who would still trust church. Many arguments can be given why church is not a place to hang out in. Realize that Satan is a spiritual being. He loves hanging out in places where people open their spirit to receive. Most people attending church would not know the difference between Satan talking to them or God. Satan after all comes disguised very well, as the angel of light, and will even bring you messages that appear as Godly as possible, still dragging you into sin in the long term. Buyer beware is the phrase to use.
So now we even have comedians making jokes how a terrorist can easily kill two Jews, by just throwing a penny between them, and then that you can do the same thing with catholic priests by throwing a small boy between them. And everyone laughs, but there is a sick and saddening truth in that joke. Millions have been brutally abused, misused, tortured and slaughtered in the name of God. Why would anyone want to believe anymore? No wonder so many people don't want to have anything to do with the Bible or church.
Looking at just the last century, we see two world wars, and many other wars. Lets focus for a moment on the second world war in Europe. There we can see how one man starts sharing an idea, influencing thousands upon thousands, eventually brutally killing millions in the process. He shared thoughts, feelings and emotions, and was able to turn even children against their own parents. In many of the wars and struggles this world has gone through in the last century we can see how it all started with an idea someone had, a feeling, an emotion. And where did these thoughts, feelings and emotions come from. Think again about God's words; “Who told you.....?”.
So what has happened to society at large by turning more and more away from God? Turning away from the teachings of Christ. Understanding less and less of the battle of the mind. The battle between the law of God, and the law of sin.
Disease of all kind is going through the roof, with new diagnosis and treatments being invented all the time. Surgeries, pills and therapies of all kind are supposed to help, but more and more people suffer through life, or die premature. Or their struggle is extended by medical science, keeping people alive that should be dying. That what use to be signs of wealth are now suppressing the people of nations in the forms of obesity and debt. In many cases the media seems to be an guiding us in what carries a higher value than life itself. Substance abuse, criminality, pornography are at an all time high. Whole hordes of people are trying to find ease in alternative treatments, often guided by the media, drawing them even further from the basics....... “Who told them.....?”.
To the nitty-gritty of the media.
So what does all this history reviewing have to do with the media? Everything!!
First of all realize that understanding your relationship with God is the first step to understanding the influences of the media. Yeah, really. And understanding your relationship with God starts by understanding His word, the Bible. The art to understand the Bible is to read through it all, understanding the basic concepts. Too many people get hung up on little details. They study every word, know exactly in which chapter and which verse you can find whatever. But they fail to understand the basics. They have a great head knowledge about the Bible, but not necessarily a heart knowledge. Don't get us wrong. It is important to understand the meaning of every word in the Bible. We at Free From Bondage Ministry feel we have not even scratched the surface yet. But studying that should not get in the way of understanding the message that is woven throughout the whole Bible.
In many ways the Bible is a very extensive history book. To learn all the details of about four thousand years, would be missing the essence of what history can teach us. So where to start, and how to keep track of what you learn? Start by splitting the Bible in three sections. Most people will split it in two sections, the Old Testament and the New Testament. We would like to suggest to split it in three sections. The Old Testament, the New Testament pre-cross, and the New Testament post-cross. So lets look at the underlying story that we can find back in all three sections. An underlying story that describes the battle between good and evil. The battle between the law of God and the law of sin. Because it is within that battle that peace and quiet gets disturbed. That is where our lives become the battle ground.
In the Old Testament we see how evil spirits influence people. The only way to be free from these evil spirits accessing the mind of humanity, was through sheer obedience, or blood offers. Once sin was committed, temptation from evil spirits would be forever there. The sheer obedience would only become tougher and tougher, because evil had the right to tempt.
When Christ came along He taught us that we should be aware of the battle ground. He made us aware that having knowledge is the way out of the bondage. Many of his teachings were based on how we perceive life, and how we respond to what happens to us. He was making us aware what voices in our head we were listening to.
And then He gave us the greatest gift we could have ever received. A chance to win in the battle against being accessed by evil spirits. In order to make that possible, He made the ultimate blood sacrifice. His own blood. That sacrifice did not do what many people think it did. Many consider that His sacrifice freed us from evil spirits. But if that were true, we would not be tempted anymore. And everyone can see that we are all being tempted all the time, even the strongest believers among us. After all, if none of us was tempted anymore, none of us would feel or express fear, unforgiveness, bitterness, ever use His name in vain, and the list goes on and on. Lets face it, there is not a single day that goes by without being tempted. Even Christ was tempted. And if Satan was smart enough to persuade one-third of all the angels, what makes you think he would not be able to get to you and persuade you.
So what do we see post-cross? John and Peter went around casting out evil spirits. So the evil spirits were still there. Christ's sacrifice did not automatically remove all evil from humanity. Now we know that some people will say that only those who believe in the Christ are free from evil. But Paul made very clear that that is not true either. He was talking about the “evil that lived within”. And he referred to himself. And he was a believer. He also mentioned that we need to clean ourselves, in body, soul and spirit. Yes, we had to do that ourselves, it wasn't done for us. And when Christ addressed the seven churches, he also showed them what they needed to overcome. In what areas were they listening to something other than the law of God? Who were they listening to? And if you are reading this as a believer, are you being tempted from time to time? And sometime even acting on it?! So, evil is still with us.
So what Christ's sacrifice did was give us the power to be forgiven of our sins. Not just so that we could enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but to also deny evil spirits the access rights to our thoughts, feeling and emotions during our live here on earth. So if we would not be one hundred percent obedient, which was required in the Old Testament, we could still cast out those evil spirits instead of them living within us for the rest of our lives. So besides being saved for eternity by believing in Christ, we also have a chance to start over every day. With one warning though. That we should not sin more because we have His grace cover us. God forbid.
We realize that some people will point at their Bible, and refute what you just read. We are aware of that, but would like to point you that your Bible might allow you to refute that. If you would take other Bible translations, you might not be able to use the same versus to do this. Hence the human influence in the Bible, leaving out partial verses or translating it such that it says something different. And why did that happen? We guess we don't have to mention it again, although we probably should. So here we go. They were "told to.......".
So the constantly returning story is about the battle of the mind, the battle between the law of God and the law of sin. And humanity is living life as if the thoughts, feelings and emotions are all original to themselves. As if that battle is not being played out through them, but humanity is just having some issues in the six inches between their ears with themselves.
And this is where we get to the media part. The media has an enormous influence on mankind in general. For most people our lives are filled with constant ongoing influences from the media because we are under an ongoing bombardement.
So when the media is present in your life, are you aware of the spiritual battle ground that is taking place behind the scenes? When you are taking in the information the media provides you with, are you considering that the media is an easy tool on the spiritual battle ground? Or are you considering that whatever the media brings to you was correct, and original to their minds? Or is God's question in your mind? “Who is (indirectly) telling me.....?”, or "Who told them.......?"
Christ was beaten beyond recognition, humiliated by the masses while dragging His cross through the narrow streets, getting nailed to that cross to die a slow and painful death. And He understood God's question; “Who told you.....?”. So He could look at those people that had done that to Him and ask for their forgiveness, because He understood.
So now, when the media is bombarding you, and your mind is spinning with all the information, there are a few questions to ask.
- What are your thoughts, your feelings, your emotions?
- And are you acting on these thoughts, feelings and emotions?
- “Who told you.....” to think, feel and respond that way?
- Is your response according to the law of God, or the law of sin?
So listen carefully to what is happening in the six inches between your ears, hold every thought captive for a moment. Even be aware that you might even have physical responses (Fear could make shake and tremble. Worry could cause insomnia. And go on and on). Then figure out what law you are following, or were about to follow. The law of God or the law of sin.
One thing to remember is that Satan and his henchmen are very intelligent. They have many centuries of experience. They will work really hard to disguise their curse as a blessing from God. So even if you think to get blessed, buyer beware. You could easily be had, and actually get cursed. There are media blurs that base their attraction on Biblical principles. At least, that is what they say. But are they? Or are they taking God's word, and twist it to fit the plans they were "told to" follow? And they were “told to......” so you could be indirectly influenced. And your mind is taking anything from the media in and influences you unknowingly. The scary stuff from that article openend your mind to fear. The cheater in that soap openend your mind to cheating. That crime show openend your mind to fear and crime. That bloody video game openend your mind to bloody action. That advertisement for this or that “cure” openend your mind to believing the human created solutions to be the ultimate solution. So what is easily perceived as just entertainment, just a news flash, just an advertisement, could be Satan giving you the feeling of a blessing, dragging you into a curse and sin, opening up your mind to the access of evil. One thing to really be aware of in that matter is how you could be getting dragged into believing that the human solution is the ultimate solution to all problems. This is where you unknowingly also enter the kingdom of sin. The moment you believe that something is the ultimate solution to whatever problem, you are stating that God is inferior to that solution. Beware, to not call God inferior to your human solutions.
So check “Who is telling you.....” and “who is telling them....”? It is not just entertainment and staying up to date with the news that is taking place here. Your decisions on what to watch, listen to, read, believe and follow, could be in conflict with the law of God. You could be entertaining yourself into sin. Again, buyer beware.
You will find that constantly considering the law of God in your exposure to the media, keeping in mind “Who told you.....?”, will help you get on track in the media war. Who do you know that could use what you learned? It is within the law of God that we do not keep our knowledge of good and evil to ourselves. We must all become disciples. Now that doesn't mean that you go hit a fellow believer or a non-believer over the head with your Bible when he or she is a media junkie and through that being dragged into the law of sin. But there should be a non-judgmental guiding of this person to make them understand. That doesn't mean you won't offend that person, or that you will not hurt their feelings. Christ was very confrontational, in some ways offensive, and definitely did hurt some people's feelings. But it was God's law that needed to be brought to the people.
So secondly ask those questions that you asked yourself about the media.
- What were / are their thoughts, their feelings, their emotions?
- And were / are they acting on these thoughts, feelings and emotions?
- “Who told then.....” to think, feel and respond that way?
- Is the media, by thinking, feeling and responding that way, following the law of God, or the law of sin?
If they are following the law of God, and you disagree with them, you will have to go back to the first person to question, yourself. But what if they are following the law of sin? So where do you go with that kind of a media from there? Well, that is a tough one, and yet an easy one. The easiest route is to just not use that medium of media anymore. But since we are all sinful, there is not a lot of of media out there that does not include sin. That could be an indication to block all media from our lives, which first of all is pretty impossible, and second of all would evil more free play with those not understanding what the media is spiritually doing with them. Which makes that you still allowed sin to prevail. So instead of getting indoctrinated by the media, use it in the battle against sin. Just like we, at Free From Bondage Ministry are using the media to get this message out to the public. Yes, we can use the media to spread the word of God.
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