Thursday, January 7,
2016, 3:44 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “Courageous.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Matthew 17:14-21 (NASB).
Mental Illness
(vv. 14-15)
When
they came to the crowd, a man came up to Jesus, falling on his knees before Him
and saying, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is a lunatic and is very ill;
for he often falls into the fire and often into the water.
A person who is a “lunatic,” is someone who is considered to
not be of sound mind, i.e. someone who is not in control or feels he is not in
control of his own mental faculties; someone who is not able or feels he is not
able to make sound (rational, sensible) judgments. This word translated here as
“lunatic” can also be translated as “epileptic,” yet for today, I believe the
Lord would have me focus on the idea of not being sound in mind.
So, what does the Bible have to say on this subject of not
being sound in mind? In other words, how does the Bible address the subject of
mental illness? I see two possible explanations in scripture for what we call “mental
illness.” One is demon possession and the other is sin, although I must say
here that many people today, and in Biblical times, too, refer to people as “mentally
ill” who are following the Lord Jesus in obedience. Jesus was called “crazy,”
or “out of his mind,” by his own family who, thus, wanted to take charge of him.
He was also accused of being possessed by a demon (or by Satan) by the religious
leaders of his day. The apostle Paul was also accused of being out of his mind,
as probably were many of the prophets of old. So, sometimes people are tagged “mentally
ill” just because they are different, not because they are possessed by demons,
nor because they are sinning against God, nor because they are “out of their
minds.”
Yet, for now, I want to discuss the subject of those who
truly behave in a manner in which they are not exercising self-control over
their own minds and behaviors. I want to look at the subject of the mind and of
self-control in scripture to see what the Bible has to say on this subject,
because the Word of God is our authority for what we believe as Christians, and
God is the one who created us and gave us our minds, so he is the best one to
diagnose what ails our minds, hearts and emotions and to prescribe the best
remedy.
Unbelieving
Generation (vv. 16-18)
I
brought him to Your disciples, and they could not cure him.” And Jesus answered
and said, “You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with
you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.” And Jesus rebuked
him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured at once.
The disciples were not able to cure the young man, yet Jesus
did not address them alone. He spoke of a generation of people who were
unbelieving, corrupt, and wayward. I believe that is also our generation today,
at least here in America, i.e. a generation that is, for the most part,
unbelieving and led astray. So, how are we, as this generation of people, being
led astray? Those who were born after WWII grew up on television, for the most
part, and are very heavily influenced by the media. These influences have also
worked their way into the church, sadly enough. Many Christians in America
spend much more time watching TV, playing video games, surfing the internet,
chatting on social media, and watching movies, etc., than they do spend time
with God in prayer and in his Word. So, their minds are influenced and molded
by what they take into their minds the most.
In our world today, the people who define “mental illness,”
either in the medical profession and/or in the legal profession, have given “mental
illness” diagnoses for just about everything under the sun. “Sin” is no longer “sin.”
It is given a name of some malady, and is explained away as some mental
deficiency over which people have absolutely no control. The person with the “illness”
is said to not be responsible for his or her own behavior, i.e. he or she can’t
help it, and he or she will always be this way, they say. And, so they
recommend medicating and/or institutionalizing those who “can’t help the way
they are.” Rather than trying to help them find a cure for their “illness,”
they just drug them up so that, supposedly, they are not troublesome for
themselves or for society as a whole.
So, what does the Bible have to say on this subject of the
mind and self-control? For one, as already mentioned, and as referred to in
this passage, there are those who are possessed by demons and they need
deliverance, not drugs. I don’t believe, however, that true followers of Jesus
Christ can be possessed by demons, but they can be oppressed by them and strongly
influenced (tempted) by them to where they might feel as though they are out of
their minds. Satan is a powerful foe, for sure, but he is NOT more powerful
than God! Amen! God has provided a way out for us from under such powerful
influences coming against our minds, and that was through the cross of Christ
when he shed his blood so we could go free from slavery to sin and so we could
become slaves of righteousness. There is power in the blood! Amen! God has
given us all we need to resist Satan, to flee temptation, and to draw near to
God. We just daily must put on that spiritual armor so we can fight off Satan’s
evil schemes against us (See Eph. 6:10-20).
Secondly, when people behave in a manner in which they lack
self-control, and they do things they might not otherwise do, i.e. things which
are against God’s moral laws, the Bible calls this “sin.” The world calls it an
“illness.” Such things as sexual promiscuity, marital unfaithfulness,
pornography addiction, alcoholism, spousal or child abuse, incest, thievery,
murder, lying, rage, obesity, and the like are often given some “mental illness”
tag so that the person sinning feels less guilty about his sin and is convinced
he can’t help what he does, and that he will always be this way, and thus he
must be medicated for the remainder of his or her life. And, thus we have a corrupt
and unbelieving generation which excuses away sinful behavior by calling it
something other than sin, and by giving people an “out” from guilt or remorse
by excusing their behavior under the guise of “mental illness.”
You of Little Faith
(vv. 19-21)
Then
the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not drive it
out?” And He said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly
I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to
this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be
impossible to you. [But this kind does not go out except by prayer and
fasting.”]
The reason many Christians are going around thinking they
have some “illness,” and thus they can’t control their minds or their
behaviors, is because they have believed Satan’s lies. They have little faith
to believe God’s word and to trust in his promises. Therefore, they lack both
hope and healing.
So, what is the truth? The truth is that the fruit of the
Spirit is love, joy, peace… and self-control… The truth is that God’s grace is
not a free license to continue in sin without guilt and without remorse. God’s
grace, which brings salvation, teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and
worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we
wait for Christ’s return. If we lack self-control, it means we are not under
the control of the Spirit of God, but we are yielding to our sinful flesh
and/or we are giving the devil a foothold in our lives by believing his lies
that we can’t help what we do. The truth is that God did not give us a spirit
of fear, but of power, of love, and of self-discipline (of self-control or of a
sound mind) (2 Tim. 1:7). We CAN control our minds and actions!
Romans
8:5-9 says this: “Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on
what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have
their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is
death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed
by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do
so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. You, however,
are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed
the Spirit of God lives in you.”
Romans
12:2 says this: “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and
approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Philippians
4:6-7 says: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by
prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the
peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and
your minds in Christ Jesus.”
And,
Colossians 3:1-7 says: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your
hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set
your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life
is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then
you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever
belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires
and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You
used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.”
Mountains are often used symbolically in scripture to mean
several things, one of which is obstacles which stand in the way of our
spiritual progress. They are also symbolic of idolatry (where people worshiped
idols). These lies people believe telling them they have a “mental illness”
which has no cure and which must be medicated the rest of their lives is a lie
of Satan, which serves as an obstacle to spiritual progress and maturity in
Christ, as well as it is a hindrance to their healing. So, if we want to have
victory in our lives over our minds and emotions and behaviors, then we need to
have the faith in God to say to these “mountains” “Get out of the way!” and
they will have to move.
In other words, if we as the people of God take up the
shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit, and the helmet of salvation, etc., and
put on the belt of truth with which to fight off Satan’s evil schemes against
us, we can gain the victory over these things which are troubling to our minds
and which haunt us and which cause people to feel as though they have no
control over what they do. We can be whole in Christ Jesus in mind. We can
stand against all evil, and fight off all evil attacks against our minds, and
we don’t have to accept “mental illness” as a diagnosis or that we can’t help
what we do or that we will permanently be this way the rest of our lives. I can
attest to God’s power to heal hearts, minds, emotions and bodies. By his
stripes we are healed! I once looked to “broken cisterns” to satisfy, but no more!
I once trusted in humans and their diagnosis, and took their pills, but no
more! My trust is now in God alone and not in their prescribed medications to
minister to my hurts. Jesus is my great physician, so I put my life in his
hands, and he heals me! Amen!
Courageous! / An
Original Work / December 24, 2013
Based off Various
Scriptures
The Word of God throughout taught.
Some people heard, but did doubt.
Still others had faith in Christ.
By grace He purified them.
They turned from sin
And they obeyed Christ.
He opened up their blinded eyesight;
Turned them from darkness
To the true Light;
Forgave their sin by His might.
He strengthened them in their faith.
He said, “Remain my faithful.”
He called them to obedience.
By faith, they were so grateful.
By faith, they were to follow Jesus;
To daily sit and listen to Him;
To have such faith
That mountains could move;
To love those whom He gave them.
Be on your guard; courageous.
Stand firm in faith. Be thankful.
Take up the shield of your faith;
Protect against all evil.
Do not move from
The hope that you have.
Your faith in Jesus let it endure.
Hold to the truth;
Your conscience be clear.
Endure with perseverance.
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