God created everything by His Word that joined with His Spirit to become the force in the creation process. First the darkness over the face of the earth was overcome by the revelation of the light of His glory, and then the power of His Word worked. But all that was created was from the earth and has elements of it. Only in mankind did God breathed the ‘breath of life,’ and in him the heavenly elements were also placed. In his fallen nature, mankind is afflicted by weaknesses of various kinds that must be overcome.
The special qualities in man being in God’s image: The Holy Bible is the description of God’s relationship with His creation in relation to mankind and the effect of this on everything else. Before God created anything, He was and His glory was everywhere. But since nothing can be added to Him, God first contracted His Divine presence and glory to create an empty space. In that empty space, everything in the universe was created and placed. Before the process of creation on the earth started, it was ‘without form and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep’ (Genesis 1:2-4). God commanded light to be revealed and not freshly created, for the command was ‘Let there be light’. Though the light was termed as good after examination by God, the light was separated from darkness, but the darkness was not removed or destroyed and remained part of the earth’s surface. Everything, after that, came out of the earth and contained some element of both light and darkness within.
It is only in the case of man that God was Himself directly involved in forming and shaping him from the ‘dust of the ground’ (Genesis 2:7). When God breathed into that pile of dust shaped in the body of a man, it ‘became a living being’. The Jewish sages term him as ‘a speaking being’, the only one who can understand and converse with God.
In heaven, God created the angelic beings, but none of them were given any dominion rights over any part of creation. God created Satan ‘perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you’ (Ezekiel 28:15; 17). In this state of excellence, his ‘heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor’. He did not continue in his assigned role of offering worship and praise to God, his Creator, but attempted to usurp His Divine glory to himself. In his pride, the devil decided to ‘ascend above the heights of the clouds’ to be like the Most High (Isaiah 14:14). The gifts of wisdom, a sweet voice to sing, and the and the talent of playing music filled him with such arrogance that he desired to rise up to be equal to God. He wanted to control His creation, and one third of the angels he did control rebelled with him.
In His mercy, God did not destroy the devil and the other angels with him but ‘cast you to the ground’ (Ezekiel 28:17). In his pride, the devil has been trying to find fault with everything God has created and subvert that to turn against Him and is called ‘the accuser of our brethren’ before God (Revelation 12:10). God has not denied access to the devil to Himself. The expected answer about his rebellion against God could be, ‘You have created me with such excellence that it is not possible for anyone to live righteously’. As a counter to that, God created mankind on earth ‘in His image and likeness’ and filled them with His traits and gave them dominion over all the created things on the earth.
In all of creation, mankind is the only one to have authority over other beings, and God Himself came down from heaven to visit them daily in the evening in the Garden of Eden. Man was blessed with all wisdom, knowledge, and understanding from God Himself through his spirit. Adam was barred from only one tree, which would connect him to the earthly knowledge acquired through the five senses. With that, God gave mankind the option to follow and obey Him or turn away to follow his own ways. The Jewish sages refer to this as two states of a human being; the first is ‘yetzer tov’ or the desire to do good, and this good is not only about good works for others but also about following God. The second is ‘yetzer hara’ or the desire to do evil or violate God’s established laws in nature as well as in conduct with others and towards God.
Mankind has been blessed with the presence of God with them and forgiven their sins through the sacrifice of animals earlier and then permanently through faith in the sacrifice of His Son. In the Temple in Jerusalem and with all of humanity, God was external to them, but through faith in His Son, we are blessed to have God in us as our ‘teacher’ who teaches us all things. The uniqueness of mankind is evident when we focus on God and count His blessings rather than keep looking inwards towards our own problems and lack. God has always responded to our prayers, though most of the time we disagree with Him, for we want Him to act as per our desires. When we look unto God and His love and magnificence, we are filled with awe, and the obstacles in our way look insignificant.
Overcoming bad habits: The Jewish Book of Philosophy describes our thoughts as garments of the soul, but these do not define our real identity. Thoughts originate in the mind and over time get turned into our desires in the heart and finally dominate the soul as deep longings. It could be anything that becomes a habit, invariably a bad one or a weakness. Whenever we want to, we change our clothes, either when they are soiled or we discard them when we want, though many people want to keep everything. Our thoughts also, like our clothes, are within our power to be changed, though it takes a deliberate and continuous effort to do so.
Apostle Paul has provided a way out that leads to victory. The first part of this is, ‘Be anxious for nothing,’ and it means not to be unduly disturbed (Philippians 4:6–8). The second is ‘but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God’. Prayer includes all that we bring before God, but supplications are specific requests to seek God’s intervention. God desires to know from us, though He knows everything. Being thankful is the opposite of whining or complaining, and we can find any number of blessings to thank Him. With that is the promise, ‘And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus’. There are three aspects of this peace: first is peace from God, which is a gift—to not be disturbed unduly. Second is peace with God, which is through forgiveness of sins and reconciliation of relationships. The third is peace of God, who is in control and is fully aware of the blessings He brings from a trial. It could be our turning to Him, and we receive peace through the Lord Jesus and not through our own efforts.
While God is working in us, the Apostle gives the final advice, ‘Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things’. On the one hand, the peace of God guards the food, or what we feed our mind and heart and the outcome of that, and on the other end, His peace fills our hearts. And we change our diet to the listed things and keep on renewing our minds to keep them focused there permanently. Over a period of time, these thoughts, when not handled properly, become strongholds of the devil to control our life pattern, and for us, it becomes spiritual warfare to remove and destroy them.
Apostle Paul teaches us the practical way to remove these strongholds in the power of the Lord Jesus and the indwelling Holy Spirit. We begin the process of inner change by ‘casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ’ (2 Corinthians 10:5). What we choose to meditate upon starts dominating us, and it is not about positive thinking but about inner transformation. A believer is constantly reminded by the devil (the accuser of the brethren) about his past sins, with the aim of shaking his confidence and faith in the Redeemer and salvation through Him.
To overcome anything, we must first understand what we are fighting. Apostle Paul, the great fighter, has identified our enemy as ‘rulers of darkness of this age’ and not flesh and blood but spiritual forces or demonic spirits under control of the devil (Ephesians 6:12). The signs of such weakness are easily seen: first, love of the things of the world and seeking contentment in them. Second, arguments or excuses to justify your behavior pattern while blaming others for the same. Third, unwillingness to accept the weakness and rejecting the help to come out of it. Four, no more prayer time or Scripture study and refusing to do the right things. Five, not resisting temptation but expecting the Lord Jesus to do it for you.
Apostle Paul was chosen by our Savior to be the Apostle to the Gentiles with this note: ‘I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake’ (Acts 9:16). The list of his sufferings for the Lord is very long for anyone to endure without complaining and yet loving God and others. The key as per him is ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me’ (Philippians 4:13). The way to overcome weaknesses or to bear it till a way is found is not in oneself but in the Lord. So the start point for this is to turn to God and pray to seek His help and to learn and absorb the lesson that He gives through the pain and shame to improve our way. Two, preach to yourself the promises of Scripture to find strength. King David did this repeatedly through psalms and prayers to call Him ‘My Shepherd’. In a period of darkness of the soul, he cried out, ‘The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?’ (Psalm 27:1). Talk to the inner you without listening to the fleshly you.
Third, examine yourself (2 Corinthians 13:5). This is about in-depth analysis of one’s thoughts, desires, and ways to check and turn back to God. Four, expect answers to your prayers in light of His promise (Matthew 7:7). Five, cultivate a sense of gratitude for all that you receive and be ready to help someone in similar circumstances. Six, be quick to call out to the Lord for help. In faith, Apostle Peter walked on water to go to the Lord, but looking around at the storm around him, he went under (Matthew 14:30). He immediately cried out, ‘Lord, save me,’ and the Lord stretched out His hand to pull him out of the water to safety.
We have been termed as sheep, for a sheep is totally incapable of looking after itself or finding a way back when lost. Our Lord in His love comes looking for the one lost sheep to lead it back to safety (Matthew 18:13). We must keep looking in hope to Him for help, and He has never failed, nor will He now.
Escaping temptation: God is complete and perfect in Himself and has both the male and female traits as we see in man and woman. In the beginning ‘God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them’ (Genesis 1:27). Later, God decided ‘it is not for man to be alone’ (Genesis 2:18-22) and decided to’make him a help meet comparable to him’. Initially, man and woman were one in body, and later God took a rib from man and ‘He made that rib into a woman’. The rib cage of an individual protects his heart and lungs, where the heart is the center of all desires and the lungs cleanse the blood through oxygen and impure gas exchange. The woman as ‘ezer-kenegdo’ of a man is not only his partner but also to protect him from evil desires and lead him into a life of holiness and righteousness. As partners, the two are supposed to ‘become one flesh’ and this is not only about their physical union but also the spiritual (Genesis 2:24). They are not supposed to lose their individual identity, which would be through the one being added to the other to become two. In their individuality they stand together to become a force multiplier for each other and become eleven.
Lord Jesus has categorically assured us, ‘If two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven’ (Matthew 18:19). God gives great importance to a family—to care for, strengthen, and equip each other to be victorious over the trials of this world. Our Lord has promised to establish His throne in their midst, for He is already in every believer.
Before moving out to Gethsemane Park and His crucifiction, Lord Jesus girded Himself to wash the feet of His disciples at the Last Supper. He did this ‘knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands’ (John 13:3–4). From the realization of the point of your strength, are you rejoicing in that and ready to serve and equip others to join in the battle? Once we develop this attitude of caring for others, we become more like our Lord. God immediately steps forward to fulfill His promise, ‘I the LORD your God will hold your right hand, saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you’ (Isaiah 41:13). I surrender my strength (right hand) into His left hand, and His might clears all ways for me, both within me as well as outside in the world. There is no other way but this to succeed.
God did not create Adam to live in fear but to overcome and subdue the earth and all that is in it. Even after fear entered his life after sin, God came to meet and restore him. The Saviour Lord has blessed us with the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of ‘power, love, and self-control’ and not fear. We must walk in His light and power while submitting all our weaknesses and tribulations before His throne of grace and mercy. He holds our hand and will never leave or abandon us!
