“Talk to Me” – A Regression into the Dark Side - Self Deception Series 27 – Purity 1116

To see today's photo, go to mt4christ.org or follow me, M.t. Clark, on Facebook or Twitter. Good morning. Today's photo of gray and green coastal shoreline and blue-green waters of the Atlantic Ocean underneath a pleasant cloud-filled blue sky comes to us from Pastor Andy Elms as he shared this scene on social media from somewhere along the Cornwall coast in the United Kingdom. While traveling with his family yesterday. With a view like this, you can understand why Andy reported he was loving Cornwall and his time to just breathe in. Well, it's Wednesday, and I figured Andy's Cornwall coastal cliffs were enough of a hump to visually represent our arrival at the midpoint of my last full week of vacation, as I consider that it's all downhill from here as a Uh, and as I begin the slow descent towards work next week, I am going to do my best to slow things down and just breathe in the peace that this break from work has given me. The last couple of days of this vacation were actually spent doing a fair amount of work as I finally put pen to paper to chronicle my client experience that is required for Deeper Walk International School of Prayer Ministry. A few months ago, I went through 6 sessions of prayer ministry with Christy Edge, in which we invited the Lord into my past to provide his truth and healing to some memories and misconceptions from my childhood. I spent the last 2 days writing a report about how the Lord cleaned out my closet with his light of truth and love. Even though the outcomes were exceedingly positive, recalling and writing about how I processed and resolved some painful experiences I had suffered through and lies I believed because of them in my childhood, uh, it was emotionally draining. And after I was done, I was looking for a way to decompress and have some fun. So after dinner last night, I decided to regress a little by going back to the movies, um, to see Talk to Me, an Australian horror film about some teenage kids making a TikTok challenge out of demonic Possession turned out to be absolutely terrifying, a little disturbing, and one of the best horror movies I've seen in quite some time because it accurately portrayed the dangers of meddling with the occult and how the spirits of the dead are actually malevolent demonic entities. Although you have to have a spiritual warfare worldview to discern that. Part of the story documents how one of the characters is deceived into believing that a spirit they contact is their departed loved one. Only to discover too late that it's a lie and that the spirit they thought was there to provide comfort and guidance was actually plotting for their destruction. Talk to Me was well done, but it didn't end well as it didn't have a happy ending. It disturbed me quite frankly, uh, because while it was a macabre fantasy film, the spiritual realities that it inadvertently revealed are more truth than fiction. I would rem— I would recommend it as a cautionary tale and object lesson of why you don't dabble in with the occult and you don't attempt to talk to the dead, because there are no— there are no such things as friendly ghosts, as every reported paranormal experience, if examined closely, would reveal a demonic agenda to deceive, kill, steal, or destroy. Unfortunately, the bad ending of Talk to Me is all too real. As people are being deceived by the world, the flesh, and the devil, and trust in themselves or the things of this world instead of finding safety in God's kingdom by putting their faith in Jesus Christ. Part of my enjoyment of the horror genre for me lies in my decision to take them seriously. Unlike others who relieve themselves of the tension created by these depictions of evil by joking or reminding themselves these things aren't real, I choose to not only suspend my disbelief but fully enter into the experience by reminding myself that even though the stories on the screen may have bad effects, gaps in logic or consistency, or deviate from the truth of the spiritual forces of darkness, there is evil in the world, and not all of it lies in the hearts of men. And the only thing I comfort myself with is the knowledge that I know the Lord. And have his protection as my Heavenly Father. So, Lord, forgive me, uh, for my walk on the dark side last night. Although I consider these jaunts into the secular world of entertainment to be research in some regards, I know that regressing to enjoy the things that entertained me as a child or before I came to Christ is not good, because as Christians we are directed to not look back, to move forward, and to put away childish things. And that brings us to our current series on self-deception, where we have decided to investigate some of the ways we deceive ourselves by walking through step 2, deception versus truth, of the Steps to Freedom in Christ, to see what ways we may have been deceived by the world, ourselves, and in what ways we have wrongly defended ourselves. So we present the fourth of the ways to wrongly defend yourself Uh, today with number 4, regression. The Steps to Freedom in Christ describes regression as reverting back to less threatening times. As I stated above, as Christians, we are to pursue spiritual maturity by putting away childish things. While we should have childlike faith, we aren't commended for being babes in Christ and are encouraged to grow in maturity progressively from sons the fathers and the elders. Uh, this is the appropriate direction for our life journey, after all, and is made clear to us when we encounter someone not acting their age. While I understand that we have liberty and that in some ways there is no harm in enjoying the things we did as children, like coloring, collecting comic books, or playing with toys, the extreme cases of regression show us that this isn't right. Uh, the further you go into childish things, the more it is clear that this behavior isn't necessarily where we should be going. In our warped society today, there are grown men that enjoy dressing up as babies. These deluded individuals have found comfort in abandoning their adulthood, and unfortunately, there are others that encourage their regression. I know that's an extreme example, but it's out there, and And it highlights that although we can enjoy our freedom to fondly reminisce about our childhoods and even perhaps indulge in the things we like, we like to do as kids, we should realize that there is possible danger there. Uh, when we pursue childish delights, we run the risk of being an escapist by denying reality or by simply choosing to stop growing in the wisdom or in the purpose that God has for us. If you honestly believe that all I really need to know I learned in kindergarten, you have been deceived. God does not call us to go back to innocent childish times, and neither does He call us to lay down and die. He has welcomed us into His eternal kingdom, and we are to grow into the fullness of Christ. Our responsibility is to be built up and become equipped to do God's work and build up His church. Ephesians 4:13 tells us, "This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God's Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ." So, while we may need to take a break and blow off some steam with a little play from time to time, we should watch ourselves to make sure we are progressing and not regressing. When it comes to our overall purpose in God's kingdom and becoming mature in the Lord. Today's Bible verse comes to us from the Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling by John G. Crews, and this morning's meditation verse comes from the section on Affliction, Discipline, Chastisement, and Trials. And today's verse is 1 Corinthians 10:13 from the New American Standard Bible. The word of God says: No temptation has overcome, has overtaken you, but such as is common to man. And God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. Today's verse falls under the 13th point of our Counseling Reference Guides resource section on Affliction, Discipline, Chastisement, and Trials, number 13. God will never give you more than you can bear. Today's verse encourages us that we are— when we are relying on the Lord, his help will allow us to endure temptation. Okay, I'm about to throw a flag and penalize the late John G. Cruis for being offsides here. Today's verse is encouraging. It does tell us we can endure. And while I could extrapolate an explanation on how giving into despair could be giving— considered to be giving into temptation, of not trusting the Lord, I have a bit of a problem with this verse being used to support the true principle that God will never give you more than you can bear, because frankly, even upholding that conclusion demands some extrapolating to make us see the truth. I guess the idea that God will never give you, you know, never give you more than you can bear is true in an ultimate sense, because we are always secure in his love, and the ultimate protection of his eternal kingdom. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, thank God, because there can and will be situations in life that our bodies, our hearts, or our minds won't be able to bear it. I would say that if we examine some of the excruciating things Christians have suffered through history, we might be a little more comfortable by changing that sentiment to God will never give you more than you can bear in your spirit, because quite frankly, there is documented evidence of broken hearts, minds, and bodies that would challenge whether or not God gave us some things we couldn't bear. Granted, the sufferings we survive can be seen as things we are able to bear. Obviously, we survived. We bore them. Even if we are minus some body parts or some mental, emotional, or physical capabilities afterwards, we bore them. Praise God. But some people don't survive. Their bodies couldn't bear what they went through, and some suffer violence and perish. Thus we look to heaven to see that all— although we die, we live because of Christ. So yes, in these instances, we bear it. We live and bear it, or we die and bear it. But one of the things that we may have trouble bearing is the loss of loved ones, and their absence from our lives is rather unbearable. And our grief, it sure doesn't feel like we can bear it. And our physical or mental suffering, it sure doesn't feel like— feel like we didn't get a raw deal from God. It sure doesn't feel like our pain isn't something we can bear. However, that principle that God will never give you more than you can bear is true all the same. Although those words could be cold comfort to someone who is suffering, if they test, if they test them by drawing close to the Lord, they will discover that His grace is sufficient, and when we are weak, He is strong, and that He will comfort and empower us with His presence and His strength and that if we ask Him for His help, we will receive it. When you have faith and call on God to help you, He will be faithful, although I cannot tell you exactly how in every situation. Some are healed, some live with suffering. Some are restored, and some remain broken. Some are given more time and life on, here on earth. Others are called into eternity, suddenly or slowly. But because of Jesus, we know that God is for us and will never leave us or forsake us. And even though we may suffer greatly, when we seek His help and presence in our lives, we can even take a Bible verse out of its proper context and use its underlying truth to help us to endure and to one day proclaim with confidence that God will never give you more than you can bear. As always, I invite all to go to mtforchrist.org, where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. Today we continue sharing from A.W. Pink's The Holy Spirit, and today's section from chapter 18 on the Spirit indwelling is the evidences of the Spirit's indwelling. So if you've always wondered, like, what evidence do I have that I have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in my life? Go to mt4christ.org and go to the end of today's blog post, and you'll see what A.W. Pink has to say about that. As always, we encourage a life of Christian discipleship, a life not of perfection, sinless perfection, but of one of progress, where we might take deviations to go back to enjoy childish things, but where we keep pressing forward. Into our purpose and growth into the maturity of the Lord. You know, we should learn something beyond kindergarten, and when we're following the Lord, we always remain disciples. We always remain his students as we have to suffer the things of this world, and that, you know, there's a continuing revelation going on when we read the Word of God. You know, it's a progressive thing. I don't know about you, but I forget about things I've learned, so I have to relearn them. And, you know, as we walk through time and space, sometimes the lessons are timely. You know, we get a piece of knowledge or wisdom from the Word of God or from the Holy Spirit that's appropriate for now, that'll help us in times of suffering. And make us see the truth that can set us free from even the most, you know, deep-seated traumas. Ask me how I know. The prayer ministry exercise that I went through, 6 sessions of prayer ministry, really cleaned out my closet in terms of taking care of some pain and painful memories from my childhood and, you know, showed me that the Lord was with me even in the suffering. And exposed some lies, um, you know, that I had believed, um, as a kid that really messed with your— messed with my head and messed with, uh, who I thought I was and how the world was and things like that. So we asked for the Lord's truth and healing, and, um, when we seek it, we find it, you know. So, and, you know, as hard as things can be to bear sometimes. When we stay with the Lord, follow Him, and abide in Christ, we can bear things, even if our bodies can't bear them. Our spirits will bear it, and we continue on. We never die. We are either here on earth or absent from our bodies and present with the Lord. So, there is nothing to be afraid of in terms of death. We are or the spiritual forces of darkness for that matter, as we have authority over them. But we have to know it, and we have to exercise our authority and our power that we have as Christians. So that's why we do the podcast, to expose the lies of the enemy and increase— encourage people to follow the truth of God's word and live it authentically with every day of their lives. Um, that's the 24/7 number on the end of the podcast. Every day, you know, every hour, every day of the week, 365 days a year until we see the Lord, we endeavor to stay faithful and just follow Him and remind ourselves of who we are in Christ and to, you know, seek to do His will and His will only. And so, we do that in the podcast by sharing our teachings from "Victory Over the Darkness: The Bondage Breaker and Freedom in Christ," to teach people who they are in Christ and help them find their freedom in Christ by pointing them to the Steps to Freedom in Christ, prayerful repentance process that takes care of the 7 areas of your life where there might be spiritual or personal conflicts. So if you haven't done the Steps to Freedom in Christ, I highly recommend it. You should go check it out. You can go to the blog and click on links to find free PDFs of it, um, through the blog. But, um, you can also buy booklets of the Steps to Freedom in Christ on Amazon and other places to, uh, to go through. Um, so I recommend that highly. Um, it just happened to transform, you know, be a big part of the transformation that I've had in my life. So thus we point to it. And of course we point to the word of God. Because that's where the truth is. And so we encourage a daily practice of reading the Bible and praying and coming to the Lord's presence and thanking him for what we have. Because when we walk in these spiritual disciplines, we show that we're a disciple and we show the Lord we're pursuing the Lord and that we want his will to be done in our lives. And we just happen to find the fruit of the Spirit along that pathway. Peace, love, and joy, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, patience, and self-control the further we go. So we encourage that. Um, yeah, that's it for today. Um, we encourage people to check out Bible Study with the Sincatis as well on our, our YouTube channel or podcast. Uh, we just finished one this past weekend on, uh, Faith is Substance, and if you want to see what that's about We've gotten some positive reviews on it, so we encourage you to check out our Bible studies. It's not too dry, so you'll have to see that for yourself by checking it out on our YouTube channel or podcast. Well, today I am going— the academic— we're putting the academics aside. As I said, I did finish the paper. I do have to edit it and do a bibliography, but it's not due until September 21st, and Even I can manage to do that, probably manage to do that. I gotta proofread it and whatnot and get that done, but I'm not doing that today, or at least not early today, as, uh, my wife Tammy Lynn and I are going to the Adirondacks, some Adirondacks museum in Blue Mountain, New York. So pray for me, uh, we're going in the mountains on hump day. Um, I'm not sure what'll happen, but I'm sure we'll have fun. And, uh, if, if I, if my camera can Captures good images, you're bound to see them on the blog. Anyway, let's pray. Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you for another day in your kingdom. Lord, we thank you so much for all that you do for us, for all you've shown us, and, and how you just keep us— keep calling us to grow and learn more and become mature in our faith. And Lord, we just thank you for other people, uh, of faith who are on this journey with us. We may not know their names or where they are, but Lord, today we pray for anyone who's listening or um, reading today's message. We pray for you to come alongside them and their prayer requests and to help them in their sufferings and to, um, to guide them in all truth and, and the purpose you have for their lives. Lord, we pray for you to bless them. And Lord, we pray for you to go before all of us today, no matter where we're going, whether we're on vacation or on work or retired or whatever. We pray for you to open our eyes to the things you want us to see And we pray for you to guide our steps and the things you would have us do. Because Lord, you've shown us your truth, and all we want to do is represent you and your kingdom here on earth, to point other people to this faith in Jesus Christ, to save them, to save them from the spiritual forces of darkness and the final destination that happens when you don't have faith in Jesus. So Lord, we just pray, um, for you to go before us today. Uh, we thank you, we praise you, and we love you. And we pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.