tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33655037443451183892024-03-14T00:44:56.364-05:00Spirits - A Christian ViewThis blog is intented to encourage understanding of the entire realm of the supernatural and paranormal with emphasis on a Biblical Christian viewpoint.Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.comBlogger114125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-10416590190368169012019-04-09T12:22:00.001-05:002019-04-09T12:22:21.881-05:00Attention Please<br />
The 2nd edition of the book "Spirit Universe" is now available for download at a reduced price. The book has been edited and updated. It is an invaluable addition to anyone who is involved in ghost hunting, parapsychology, and especially deliverance ministry. To get the book please click on the image below:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.pastorjsermons.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://www.pastorjsermons.com" border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/--wbv40P0w5c/XKzT-_ByLHI/AAAAAAAAEc4/5F09YD2gy3YHMPx6Ocb3rembkgqhlkgAwCLcBGAs/s320/FBButton.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-87240756469829773592018-09-15T15:47:00.000-05:002018-09-15T15:51:38.963-05:00<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #f6b26b;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">When Deliverance is Difficul</span></b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">t<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Whenever
you are in the process of delivering a person or situation from the influence
of unclean or demonic spirits, it is highly desirable to conduct the
deliverance session in both <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">an effective</span>
and simple manner. That desire is often not the reality of deliverance because
of <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">three </span>factors I would like to discuss
in this post.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"></span></b><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Foundation:<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">There <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">is</span> <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">one</span>
fact and <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">belief absolutely essential for any
deliverance team. They must fully believe and totally comprehend the fact that
Jesus Christ has absolute authority and power in the spiritual universe.
Because Christ is all powerful, no spirit can withstand a command given in his
name since his name represents both his authority and spiritual power. If a
deliverance session runs into resistance or difficulty, it is not because of a
lack in the Name of Jesus, but in other factors which must be dealt with before
deliverance is possible. Here are three of those factors <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Attachment:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">One of
the primary reasons that deliverance may fail is because the person needing
deliverance wants to continue the attachment to the spirit. One reason for this
is that the person <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">enjoys</span> the “thrill” of
being connected to the supernatural. This excitement acts as a reinforcer, <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">and</span> the person does not want to give up his psychological
attachment to the spirit, even when the spirit is abusive or unhealthy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unless there is a true desire for repentance
and freedom from the spirit, deliverance should not be attempted. There is a
clear warning in this process of <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">attachment</span>
for ghost hunters and others seeking contact with spirits. Attachment can
become an addiction, <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">and</span> no matter how
the addiction is justified, it can cause much damage and harm.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Mental <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">Illness</span></span></b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Various
forms of mental illness can be easily confused with spirit oppression and
possession. Attempting to deliver a person from mental illness misses the
point. <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">Mental</span> illness, as the term
implies, is a sickness which needs to be addressed through the spiritual gift
of healing and not deliverance. If the person continues to experience such <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">phenomena</span> as delusions, <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">hallucinations</span>, <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">paranoia, and a lack
of contact with reality after a deliverance session, then you can be sure you
are dealing with an illness and not spirit possession.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lack of Faith:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">If Christ
has no role or meaning in the life of a person, then there will not be
sufficient faith in his power or authority for deliverance. By rejecting Christ
the person is also rejecting deliverance and will stay in <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">captivity</span> to the spirit influencing his life.
Of course, Christ can deliver non-believers as a way of showing them who he is
and the authority that he has in the spiritual universe, but someone who has <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">repeatedly been</span> <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">influenced</span>
by demonic or unclean spirits and still has not committed to Christ, more than
likely will reject deliverance. Salvation should come first before deliverance
is attempted. As a matter of fact, the very commitment that the person makes to
Jesus will bring about deliverance on its own. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Conclusion:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Deliverance can be a
fight. <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">Certainly,</span> a deliverance session
is a form of warfare against spirits who do not have the best interest of their
<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">victims</span> in mind. With faith and <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">determination,</span> we can weld the powerful Name of
Jesus as our means of bringing about deliverance, but we may have to deal with
attachment, mental illness, and a lack of faith in Christ before we attempt deliverance</span>Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-60562777295314898482018-07-11T12:30:00.002-05:002018-07-11T12:30:37.458-05:00<h2>
<span style="color: orange;">Publishing Delay</span></h2>
<br />
Just wanted to let you know that I am having difficulty finding a Christian publisher for the Spirit Universe book. I have had two publishers reject the manuscript as being not a "good fit" for their company.<br />
<br />
This shows how misunderstood and neglected the whole ministry of deliverance is in the church. I will keep on trying to find a publisher, and when I do I will let you know in this blog. So, keep on checking back to get the news.<br />
<br />
Pastor Jerry JochemPastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-47001519095215268862018-06-18T13:47:00.001-05:002018-06-18T13:47:21.017-05:00<span style="color: #e69138; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Book Update:</strong></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Just wanted to write a brief post about the new paperback book I am publishing concerning the Christian approach to the paranormal and supernatural. Here is the Introduction to the book:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><em>I want to touch four audiences through
this book. The first audience includes Christians who are involved or want to become
involved in a Christian deliverance ministry. This book holds invaluable information
that you need to know <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">to effectively minister in
deliverance</span>. <o:p></o:p></em></span><br />
<em>
</em><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><em>The second audience includes those
who have “psychic” experiences and abilities that they have to deal with <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">frequently. This</span> book will show you the way to submit
your abilities to God through the Holy Spirit and how to use them for the common
good. <o:p></o:p></em></span><br />
<em>
</em><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><em>The third group who will benefit
from this book <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">are</span> those conducting parapsychological
research or ghost hunting. The technical aspects of this book will be of great value
to them. <o:p></o:p></em></span><br />
<em>
</em><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><em>Finally, this book will be of help
to those seeking a way out of the occult, <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">Witchcraft</span>,
Satanism, Spiritism, and New Age movement</em>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Every topic involved in this blog is discussed in greater detail in the book. Also, new additions to the book make it a great start up resource for those interested in deliverance ministry. Deliverance ministry is sadly neglected in many churches and it is my hope that this book will help change that sad state. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Keep checking back and I will announce when the book is available for you to get.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"></span><br />Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-25335934129822365252018-04-21T17:38:00.001-05:002018-04-21T18:10:20.162-05:00<h3>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dear Reader</span>:</h3>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have not posted to this blog in a considerable period of time. I am working on my book, "The Spirit Universe" so that I can publish it in a paperback edition.<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am updating the book to reflect my current thinking concerning such topics as deliverance ministry, and, of course, I am correcting errors I found in the original version.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As a result of this work, the original version is no longer published on Amazon. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Please stay tuned to this blog because when the updated paperback version is ready, I will put a link in this blog to the publisher's site so that you can buy it for your collection. Be patient because this may take some time. </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The book is an invaluable asset for you to have whether you are doing paranormal research, deliverance ministry, or ghost hunting. The new and corrected edition will help you in a deliverance ministry because the focus of the new book is to help you develop a deliverance team.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Of course, the book is Christ centered and evangelistic so it is a great resource if you are dealing with those in the occult. Even if you purchased the e-book version, it is worth while getting the new edition in paperback. Once again, stay tuned for there is more to come. <span style="font-family: "arial";">Do not forget that you can contact me if you need help and I will try to answer your questions as best I can. </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pastor Jerry</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;">Note: Blogger has removed my original background image for this blog and I am not sure how to get it back again. So, please ignore any references to the original background that I made in past posts. Sorry but this was done without my knowledge or permission.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-54260521430799407662017-08-26T15:39:00.000-05:002017-08-26T15:39:19.149-05:00Deliverance or Ghost Hunting?<strong>Introduction</strong>:<br />
I recently received a telephone call requesting that my church deliverance ministry team perform a deliverance service because the people thought they were being influenced by demonic or negative spirits and energy. When I told them that we would also have to check out their residence and that we would be using such tools as EMF meters and cameras, they became quite concerned and confused. They said they did not want a "ghost hunting" team because they were afraid that ghost hunters would stir up the spirits and make things much worse for them. They were already experiencing such phenomena as the sound of footsteps, objects moving, and feelings of oppression and didn't want the situation to become worse. It became apparent to me that they did not know the difference between a deliverance ministry and a paranormal research group, and I want to discuss two of those differences in this post.<br />
<br />
<strong>Differences in Purpose:</strong><br />
Most paranormal groups exist in order to simply document phenomena. They do not intend to disrupt or change the supernatural environment in any way. They may attempt to make a judgment as to whether the phenomenon is dangerous or not, but their ultimate goal is simply to report substantiating evidence that something supernatural is actually happening. While this goal can have a positive effect in confirming to the people experiencing the phenomenon that in fact something supernatural is happening, it does not bring any relief from or real understanding of the phenomenon itself.<br />
The purpose of a deliverance ministry is totally different from that of a paranormal research group. A deliverance ministry attempts to determine what is actually going on spiritually, and then to bring about significant spiritual change both in the individuals involved as well as the environment. <br />
While a deliverance ministry may use the same tools as a paranormal research group to establish the reality of the supernatural phenomenon, the deliverance ministry has no intent to either communicate with spirits or to give them permission to continue interfering with the lives of living people. In other words, a paranormal research group is there to document the phenomenon, while a deliverance ministry group is there to eliminate the impact and influence of spirits and negative energy.<br />
<br />
<strong>Differences in Power and Authority</strong>:<br />
If a paranormal research group or a ghost hunting group does attempt to change the paranormal environment it may use some form of shamanistic or ritualistic method. Exorcisms of this type do not depend on the faith of the group, and are not founded in the authority and power of Christ through the Holy Spirit. These types of exorcisms may bring about a measure of relief, but because they do not exercise real authority in the spirit universe, this relief is temporary or may actually make the situation much worse over time. In most cases, however, a paranormal group simply does not have the power to initiate any kind of change in the energy environment. They may record the presence of spirits or energy, but they can not do anything about it.<br />
The Christian deliverance ministry is based on the authority and power of Christ through the Holy Spirit. While the group itself does not "possess" this power, it is authorized by Christ to bring about a change in the supernatural environment through the Gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12. As a result, spirits can be dismissed and commanded to leave both the individual and the environment, and negative energy can be transformed into positive energy. There is no spirit or negative energy that can resist the power of God, and so no matter how difficult the situation may seem, the deliverance ministry is more than capable of handling it.<br />
<br />
<strong>Conclusion</strong>:<br />
While both the deliverance ministry and paranormal research group might use the same tools to document spiritual phenomena, their purpose, power, and authority is radically different. With these differences in mind, individuals experiencing troublesome paranormal phenomenon should not hesitate to call a deliverance ministry to help free them from both frightening and potentially harmful experiences. Because of the absolute control that Christ has over the spirit universe, a deliverance ministry shall always produce positive effects. On the other hand, a group who simply documents paranormal phenomena may, unintentionally, make the situation worse and therefore extreme care must be exercised by paranormal research groups to do no harm.Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-29629168666015155212017-07-26T16:56:00.000-05:002017-07-26T17:05:16.716-05:00Check The Source<strong>Introduction</strong>:<br />
An individual who receives paranormal information is doing so through his nervous system. That nervous system does not change based on the source of the information. For a Christian who is Spirit filled, this means that his nervous system will be involved whether the source of his information is demonic or divine. I would like to talk about three sources of paranormal information commonly experienced by a hypersensitive person.<br />
<br />
<strong>God is the source</strong>:<br />
The path for Christian God consciousness is biblically clear. There must first come belief in Jesus Christ so that salvation takes place, that is followed by water baptism as a means of dedicating one's life to following the Lord Jesus, and finally there must be an empowering or energizing of the Christians through the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Once these three objectives have been reached, the conscious awareness of the presence of God becomes a daily experience. Most importantly, the individual is now able to discern between godly and other sources of influence and knowledge. This ability to discern the source of his paranormal experience is based on the fact that he has experienced the person of Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. At this point he can reject any other source of information and focus on only that which is inspired by the gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned in first Corinthians 12.<br />
<br />
<strong>Satan is the source</strong>:<br />
By using the word "Satan" I mean any kind of demonic spirit or entity. Some higher spirit, that is a spirit that does not obviously portray itself as a simple demon, has been been Biblically called a "spirit of light" and can very cleverly portray itself as a divine source. These kinds of spirits can cause a great deal of religious confusion because their primary purpose is to prevent establishing a genuine relationship with God through Christ. People in contact with these "spirits of light" honestly believe they are in contact with an angel or some emissary of God. This type of spirit always violates God's Word and will preach a gospel contrary to the gospel preached by the Holy Spirit as found in the Bible. They will also teach and preach psychic methodologies which, when practiced, bring the individual into captivity.<br />
<br />
<strong>Self is the source</strong>:<br />
People are influenced by all sorts of psychological needs and drives, some of which are subconscious and will only appear when there is a an attempt to release the subconscious into the consciousness through meditation or disassociation techniques. The information derived from this release can often appear to be paranormal and supernatural, but is actually only the psychological interpretation of the individual. This kind of source is actually a "mental guess" put together by a complex mental process of deduction which goes beyond normal everyday consciousness. The difficulty with this source is that it is biased by the attitudes, beliefs, and previous mental assumptions of the individual. As a result, it can produce incorrect or defective information on which the hypersensitive acts. For example, a psychic doing a psychic reading may project his own psychological state on the person he is supposedly doing a reading for. This type of source can be not only defective, but it also can be dangerous and harmful to other people.<br />
<br />
<strong>Conclusion</strong>:<br />
It is extremely important that a hypersensitive check the source of his information. If he is in a ministry which utilizes the spiritual gifts, he can be confident that God is the source and that he can learn to be highly accurate as he serves God through the gifts of the Holy Spirit. On the other hand, those who have sources that are either demonic or that originate from self, can give harmful and destructive information to other people, even though it appears to be paranormal and godly in nature. To those who seek paranormal information, one must aware of the source and reject any ungodly source be it demonic or simply originating out of self. Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-66183894294321602712017-06-18T18:01:00.000-05:002017-07-26T17:10:35.241-05:00Side effects of being Hypersensitive<h2 style="text-align: center;">
</h2>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><strong>Introduction</strong>;</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In this blog and in my book, those who have a higher than normal level of sensitivity to the spirit universe are called "hyper sensitives". If sensitivity to the spirit universe is distributed like intelligence in the human population, then the degree of sensitivity can vary from nearly normal to extreme. In most cases, the farther away a person operates from "normal" sensitivity towards extreme sensitivity is also a measure of the comprehensiveness and frequency of the side effects that a person will experience during his life time.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<strong><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Side effects:</span></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<strong></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The side effects resulting from being spiritually hypersensitive cover every aspect of life. Such sensitivities influence his child hood development, emotional / physical health, and his social standing, . I will not be able to fully discuss each of these categories, but I would like to mention a few of the more significant side effects commonly experienced by many hypersensitive people.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><em>Childhood Development:</em></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";">Most hyper sensitives begin to realize that they are "different" than other people at a very young age. If this understanding does not come from himself, his peer group will certainly let him know that he is strange and unacceptable. This produces three responses:</span></div>
<ol>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";">he isolates himself from his peers, </span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";">he will try to normalize himself by rejecting his hypersensitivity, </span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";">he will, at a later age, pursue both coming to terms with his abilities and developing a greater understanding of how they operate so that he can control them.</span></div>
</li>
</ol>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";"> By in large, hypersensitive kids have a tough going of it, and too often develop both painful and dysfunctional ways of coping with their sensitivity. Ultimately, these side effects shape and control who he is as an adult. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><em>Emotional/Physical health:</em></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";">Both the emotional and physical health of a hypersensitive person can be disrupted by the sheer volume and intensity of what he is experiencing. If the hypersensitive does not learn to differentiate between his own emotions from those that he is sensing, emotional chaos will take place. The more sensitive, the more likely that the person will experience mental and emotional illness. If the sensitive person has practiced meditation techniques which also produce disassociation, the person can develop a personality fragment which is out of control and can produce psychotic and delusional mental states. (For more about this see my book.) </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";">In the same manner, constant exposure to spiritual negative energy can weaken the immune system to produce recurrent physical sickness, most of which is stress related. If the person is involved with demonic spirits, such spirits can have a direct effect on both the mental and physical, resulting in depression, anxiety, and disease.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><em>Social Standing:</em></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";">The desire to belong to a group of people who are also sensitive to the spirit universe, who are experiencing the same things, and who will accept him and allow him to feel that he finally belongs to a group, is highly understandable and should be encouraged. The difficulty is that many of the groups offering these benefits are involved with basically negative uses of hypersensitivity. Groups that practice witchcraft, the occult, and meditative practices can only make the situation of the hypersensitive much worse, as they involve him in more and more destructive energy and practices. In many cultures, a role is found for the hypersensitive as a priest or local spiritual leader, but once again, the direction of these people tends to be negative and can actually victimize the hypersensitive. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><strong>The Solution:</strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";">Since we are focused on spiritual abilities, the answer to dealing with them in a healthy manner is a spiritual answer. The focus of all hypersensitivity must be to be involved with positive energy which means Godly energy Such emotions as divine l</span><span style="font-family: "arial";">ove, compassion, and empathy, as well as such mental abilities as wisdom, knowledge, and understanding can only be found in relationship to God who is the Lord of the spirit universe. This relationship can be achieved through faith in Jesus Christ. Once that faith is established, then the Holy Spirit becomes involved , and the abilities of the hypersensitive come under the leadership and control of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit then insures their safe development and use. One of the most significant changes takes place when the hypersensitive begins to serve God by using the Gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12. This elevates the person's hypersensitivity to new levels and gives it a new purpose and so for the hypersensitive a whole new and exciting spiritual adventure begins</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<strong></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-61949482626079616522017-04-11T16:59:00.001-05:002017-04-11T17:01:14.262-05:00<h2>
<span style="color: #e69138; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Energy or Spirit?</span></h2>
<span style="color: orange; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><strong>Introduction:</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial";">Does the existence of a heavy energy field automatically mean that spirits are present? This question is the first and primary concern of a deliverance ministry. The second question is like the first, if the energy field is present what do we do about it, especially if it contains spirit?</span><br />
<span style="color: orange; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><strong>Confusion:</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: orange; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Sometimes it becomes very difficult to discern whether or not you are dealing with repetitive negative energy or an actual spirit embedded in that energy. This is especially true when the energy field is extremely charged with potent emotions due to a traumatic experience that took place in the environment. When entering into such an area sometimes one can be overwhelmed by the feelings or emotions which seem to be derived from an entity or spirit. So, it becomes difficult to determine what the source of the experience is, and exactly how to identify it. As a result, you can have some members of your deliverance team swearing that you are dealing with a spirit, while others simply say it is residual energy from the past traumatic event. The question is, how do you proceed?</span><span style="color: black;"><br /><strong><span style="color: orange;">A Key Factor</span><span style="color: orange;">:</span></strong><br /><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">The key factor to determine whether or not you are dealing with a spirit or a simple energy field is intelligence. If the source acts intelligently, that is, is able to answer questions and give current information, then you are more likely dealing with a spirit. If you are dealing with one spirit then you are probably also dealing with other spirits in the background. They may choose not to show intelligence or to communicate. You may, therefore, approach deliverance differently with spirits involved than with simple energy. Because there may be more than one spirit involved, you need to determine exactly how many and what their basic motivation is and then deliver based on that information. This is about the only time that a Christian should engage in communication with any spirit but the Holy Spirit. That is, such communication should have the purpose of determining the method of deliverance so that the deliverance can be complete and comprehensive. </span></span></span></span><span style="color: orange; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: black;">.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: orange; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: white;"><span style="background-color: black;">On the other hand, if there is no intelligence involved, than you are simply dealing with an energy field that is having an impact on the observers. Now do not be mistaken, such energy fields can have profound physical, psychological, and spiritual consequences if an individual opens up to the dynamics and content of such fields. In other words, simply because an energy field does not contain a spirit does not mean that is harmless</span> or safe</span><br /><span style="color: orange;"><strong>Methods of Deliverance</strong></span>:<br /><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">If you simply dealing with an energy field, it will do absolutely no good to rebuke a spirit. Rather, an energy field needs to be converted from something negative into something that is positive. This can be done by through the generation of positive energy in the environment that contains the negative energy. Christians can transform negative energy into a positive energy through praise and worship, prayer, and Scripture reading. The deliverance team dealing with a negative energy field should not stop their efforts until there is a clear-cut sense that the negative energy has been transformed by their activity. Note, the energy will not disappear, but rather it will appear in a new form that is permanent and of the opposite nature of the original energy.<br /><br />Dealing with a spirit in an energy field is a different form of deliverance. At some point, the spirit must be identified and rebuked away from the energy field from which it is inhabiting. In other words, it must be cast out, preferably by name, and any other spirits associated with it must also be cast away. This can take some time, and repeated attempts, but there always must be the understanding on the part of the deliverance team that the power in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit will always have the victory. Note, a spirit, no matter how intense or powerful that it seems cannot disobey a command given in the Name of Jesus by believers in Jesus who are filled with the Holy Spirit. Once a spirit or spirits have been eliminated from the energy field, then the energy field itself can be transformed through the methods I have already mentioned.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: orange; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;"></span><br /></span></span><span style="color: orange;"><strong>Conclusion:</strong></span></span><br />
<span style="color: orange; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="background-color: black;">The existence of energy can be determined through the use of electromagnetic measuring devices, but determining the nature that energy must take place through the activity of a hypersensitive or a group of individuals Baptized in the Holy Spirit endowed with the gift of discernment. Care should be taken to determine whether intelligence exists in that field, and if so, than steps must be taken to remove the spirits from the energy field , and then transform the field into a positive from a negative. Therefore, the gift of discernment which is part of the nine spiritual gifts mentioned in First Corinthians chapter 12, should be active during any deliverance session by Christians. There should also be team agreement as to what is actually taking place in the energy field so that the deliverance can be complete, whether it is due to the elimination of spirits or the transformation</span> <span style="background-color: black;">of energy.</span></span></span>Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-70412001628020705342015-08-14T19:03:00.002-05:002015-10-13T20:33:57.561-05:00Deliverance Issues<h2>
<span style="color: #e69138; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Deliverance is a Process</span></h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Introduction:</strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">During the years that this blog has been available to the public, I have gotten several help requests, in which people expressed their disappointment that they were not immediately delivered from the influence of spirits that have been with them for a long period of time.<br />
<br />
After years of suffering under the domination of an evil or unclean spirit, it is completely understandable as to why these folk want "instantaneous" deliverance. Yet, it is important for them to understand that complete deliverance will take place in stages and that patience is required and impatience is the enemy. I would like to briefly discuss the stages of deliverance in this post.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>Stage 1: A Freed Life</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><sup><span style="color: black;">8<em>:35 </em></span></sup><em> And people went to see what had
happened. When they came to Jesus, they found the man sitting at Jesus’ feet,
clothed and in his right mind, because the demons were gone. But the people were
frightened</em>. <b>Luke 8:35 (NCV) </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">
The man mentioned in this Scripture was tormented by a terribly abusive spirit for many years. Yet, at the command of Jesus, the spirit left and the man was set free and was in his "right mind." The demon was forced to obey the command of Christ because of His authority in the spirit universe and because of the sheer power that He could apply.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">A Christian who knows the authority given to him by Jesus, and is familiar with the power given to him by the Holy Spirit can have the same results as Jesus. Actually that is the quickest and easiest part of deliverance, but what follows may not be as easy.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Please note that this Scripture implies that not only was the man tormented by a spirit, but may have been out of his right mind, which is another way of saying that he may have had a mental illness as well. So he was delivered and healed at the same time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>Stage 2: A Holy Life</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><sup><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><em>14 </em></span></sup></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><em> Later, Jesus found the man at the
Temple and said to him, <span class="jesuswords">“See, you are well now. Stop
sinning so that something worse does not happen to you.“</span> </em></span><br />
<span class="indent"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><em><b>John 5:14 (NCV) </b></em></span>
</span><br />
</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">A lifestyle or unrepentant sin is an open door to spirit possession. The kinds of spirits that are most commonly involved with possession actually wander though our world looking for people who have these sin based doors open for them to enter. Even if you go through stage 1 of deliverance, repetition of sin invites your tormenting spirit back, and Jesus indicated that even worst kinds of spirits will take ownership because you have not changed your ways.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">If you do not want to return to the suffering of spirit possession, then be brutally honest with yourself and examine your ways. Don't try to justify or excuse your sinful behavior, but change it. If you can't change it by yourself, then seek help from your Pastor, trusted friends in your church, a self-help group, or a Christian counselor. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>Stage 3: A Victorious Life</strong></span><br />
<span class="indent"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">6:10</span><em> Finally, be strong in the Lord and in
his great power. <sup><span style="color: black;">11 </span></sup> Put on the full
armor of God so that you can fight against the devil’s evil tricks. <sup><span style="color: black;">12 </span></sup> Our fight is not against people on
earth but against the rulers and authorities and the powers of this world’s
darkness, against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly world. <sup><span style="color: black;">13 </span></sup> That is why you need to put on
God’s full armor. Then on the day of evil you will be able to stand strong. And
when you have finished the whole fight, you will still be standing. <sup><span style="color: black;">14 </span></sup> So stand strong, with the belt of
truth tied around your waist and the protection of right living on your chest. <sup><span style="color: black;">15 </span></sup> On your feet wear the Good News of
peace to help you stand strong.<sup><span style="color: black;">16
</span></sup> And also use the shield of faith with which you can stop all the
burning arrows of the Evil One. <sup><span style="color: black;">17
</span></sup> Accept God’s salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the
Spirit, which is the word of God</em>. </span><b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ephesians 6:10-17 (NCV)</span> </b><br />
</span><br />
<span class="indent" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This rather lengthy portion of Scripture describes exactly what you need to do in Stage 3 of your deliverance experience. It clearly tells you that you need to go to war because you have all that you need to win the battle. Unfortunately, once the doors to the occult and spirit universe are open to lower spirits, the battle to stay free of their influence can take years to win. Personally, I was in battle for at least 6 years after my salvation experience, with waves of demonic attack taking place within regular intervals. If you also suffer from a mental condition, then the battle may take a life time to gain complete victory. </span><br />
<span class="indent" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span class="indent" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Conclusion:</strong></span><br />
<span class="indent" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many wish there was some kind of "magic wand" that could bring immediate deliverance without the voyage into holiness and victory in battle, but that magic wand does not exist and it takes work and persistence to be free. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"><span style="color: #999999;"> HERE</span></a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ. Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-75728309092486233002015-02-04T16:56:00.000-06:002015-10-14T17:26:24.819-05:00Demonizing Religion-Christian/Islamic Solutions–Final PostBefore you proceed to read this post, please read parts 1, 2 and 3 first. These posts are a supplement to Chapter 8 of “The Spirit Universe” by Pastor Jerry Jochem.<br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>Introduction</strong><br />
Both Muslims and Christians face a common truth. What Islam does tells the world about the character of Allah. What the Christian Church does tells the world about who Jesus Christ is. If these statements are true then both Muslims and Christians have distinct actions to take relating to Islam.<br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>The Muslim Solution</strong><br />
What every Muslim has to ask himself is whether Allah is a blood thirsty deity who demands human sacrifices through the beheading, mutilating, mass murder, or crucifixion of Christians. If the answer to that question is yes, than as a Muslim you really need to examine why it is that you would submit to or worship a god that shows all the characteristics described as those possessed by Satan? With this realization it may be time to start from scratch and begin to search for the true God.<br />
If the answer is no, that is not the nature of the Allah to which you submit, then you must ask yourself what actions you need to take to stop the demonization of your fellow Muslims and to protect the reputation of Allah. The real question is what you as a Muslim are going to do about those 100 commands in the Quran which promote violence and classify Allah as a murdering demon. So, if you want to continue to be a Muslim who defends Islam then you must do two things: Recognize the problem with the Quran, and determine the source of the problem. Only when these things are accomplished can the Muslim spiritual communities take unified corrective action to resolve the problem. I would like to briefly discuss each step as follows<br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>Recognize the Problem:</strong> If you do not admit that there is a problem then you will never correct it or be free of it. of course, Muslims believe that the Quran is the inspired message of God, and so to admit that some of it has been influenced by a demonic spirit that was in control of Mohammad is equal to blasphemy and therefore, according to the Quran, you can be killed as readily as a Christian. One possible solution to this problem is to take a different approach to those 100+ commands for violence by restricting them to the past. Those commands should be made irrelevant to modern day Islam, and should be ignored in preference to the more beneficial teachings of Islam. <br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>Determine the Source</strong>: The blood is found on the hands of the Islamic leaders (Imams) who focus on the commands that cultivate hate and violence towards others. In order to correct for the inherent problem with the Quran, the religious leadership needs to establish moral standards that govern what and how the Quran may be taught. Unfortunately, such a collective effort of the leadership seems to be impossible because of serious conflicts within Islam. What is needed is a Muslim leader who can unify Islam and direct it towards a civilized understanding of how it is to be applied as a practical and tolerant religion. Unfortunately, I have as yet to see even peaceful Muslim leadership declare the need for rationality in teaching the Quran, and if such a leader arose, it is more likely that he would be killed as a heretic rather than immerging as a reformer.<br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>The Christian Response</strong><br />
Christ gave us clear guidance as to how we are to treat our enemies:<br />
<b>Matthew 5:43-44(NCV) </b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="52"></a> <br />
<em><sup>43</sup>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor<sup>£</sup> and hate your enemies.’ </em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><em><sup>44</sup>But I say to you, love your enemies. Pray for those who hurt you. </em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><br />
<b>Romans 12:17-21(NCV) </b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="18"></a> <br />
<em><sup>17</sup>If someone does wrong to you, do not pay him back by doing wrong to him. Try to do what everyone thinks is right. </em><em><sup>18</sup>Do your best to live in peace with everyone. </em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><em><sup>19</sup>My friends, do not try to punish others when they wrong you, but wait for God to punish them with his anger. It is written: “I will punish those who do wrong; I will repay them,” says the Lord. </em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><em><sup>20</sup>But you should do this: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. Doing this will be like pouring burning coals on his head.” <strong>Proverbs 25:21-22</strong> <sup>21</sup>Do not let evil defeat you, but defeat evil by doing good.</em><br />
<em> </em>There are a a few points that these Scriptures make very clear and I would like to discuss them briefly in the following comments:<br />
<ul>
<li>Nothing in these Scriptures prevents a Christian or Christian nation from defending itself against the barbaric and inhuman acts of the demonized Islamic movement.</li>
<li>Any action taken should not be equivalent to the action of the enemy. That is, no revenge should be sought against those who have committed the horrific acts. Instead, justice must be served through legal process. If we act out of revenge, we become as the enemy is.</li>
<li>Our greatest weapon is prayer for justice and for God to act to defend His children. That prayer must be based on the faith that God will act, and His actions will be the final judgment on those who murder, torture, and persecute His children.</li>
<li>A demonized Muslim is devoted to killing Christians and destroying the Christian faith. Even so, we are told to be ready to extend to them mercy and compassion. The command to love our enemies is what differentiates the Bible from the Quran, the love of the true God is reflected in this Biblical command while the 109 statements that encourage violence in the Quran reflects the true nature of the spirit that dictated it.</li>
</ul>
<strong>Conclusion:</strong><br />
<br />
The final statement in Romans 12:21 is “<em>Do not let evil defeat you, but defeat evil by doing good</em>.” You can not defeat a demon by becoming demonic. The best we can do is offer Salvation through Jesus Christ to the Muslim world. It is dangerous and perhaps deadly to do this, but history proves that 100 missionaries are worth more than 1000 bombs. As Christians we need to pray for Muslims and be ready to support them when they convert to Christ.<br />
<br />
If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"><span style="color: #999999;"> HERE</span></a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ. Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-86835234987316988292014-12-01T14:23:00.000-06:002015-10-14T17:25:57.718-05:00Demonizing Religion– Part 3 A Lesson from IslamBefore you proceed to read this post, please read parts 1 and 2 first. These posts are a supplement to Chapter 8 of “The Spirit Universe” by Pastor Jerry Jochem. <br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>Introduction</strong><br />
The reason that I am using Islam as an example of a demonizing religion is not out of prejudice or hatred for Muslims, rather it is because Islam has proven itself to be one of the most demonizing religions that has ever existed, both in terms of contemporary radicalization and historically as well. As I write this post I want to make sure that you understand my position. <br />
First, I do not believe that all Muslims are demonized just because they believe in Allah or that Mohammad was a prophet. In fact, I think that the vast majority of Muslims abhor and fear the kinds of cruel, and barbaric behavior displayed by their demonized fellow believers. It is my considered opinion though, that you cannot separate the evil works of the religious from the religion that sponsors it. In other words, you can not declare that Islam is innocent when it justifies the use of evil behavior in order to spread its influence, especially when those behaviors involve the destruction of those who do not believe that Allah is God. <br />
<br />
I plan to show you how the demonic inspired Mohammad to include doctrines in Islam that clearly prescribe demonic behavior from those who follow Islam with a passion. In my last post, I stated that you could evaluate a religion by looking at its founder, the method that was used to establish it, and the spiritual seeds it plants in believers. So lets take a brief look at Islam to see what we can find out about each of these components. This post is a quick review so I will insert links to other websites that get into the topic more comprehensively.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: normal;"><strong>The Founder: </strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: normal;">Mohammad was the founder of Islam. The information which follows was taken from a source over thirty years old. If you look for modern day information you will find websites that either sanitize the reputation of Mohammad by writing about him as a virtuous holy man (see this <a href="http://www.al-islam.org/restatement-history-islam-and-muslims-sayyid-ali-ashgar-razwy/birth-muhammad-and-early-years-his" target="_blank">link</a> or <a href="http://realhistoryww.com/world_history/ancient/Misc/Canaan/Prophet_Muhammad.htm" target="_blank">here</a>.), or you will find sites that describe him as a monster. I strongly suspect that the truth lays somewhere between these two extremes.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: normal;"></span>There are a few things that we know about Mohammad which are historically correct. First, he was orphaned at the age of 6 when his mother died and then raised by his paternal grandfather until his grandfather died when Mohammad was 8 years old. Custody was transferred to his paternal uncle. I believe the lack of a stable family life had a deep impact on Mohammed and instilled in him a desire to have constancy, something he lacked in his childhood.<br />
Second, he was a powerful leader to such an extent that by the end of his life he had thousands of followers and had established Islam as a major religion. <br />
Thirdly, he supported himself and his family by attacking and raiding the rich caravans from Mecca, so he was a thief who stole from the rich in his culture. <br />
Fourthly, he had a strong propensity for violence and aggression. For example, he fought several battles (i.e. the Battle of Mecca) in which many were killed. He also attacked the last of the Jewish tribes in Median known as the Banu Qurayza in a bloodthirsty genocide in which 800 people were beheaded by Mohammad because they refused to convert to his religion. This love of violence is important to understand the demonic seed planted in the Quran. It is not out of accident that the sword is part of the flag of Islamic nations. For more detailed information concerning Mohammad’s violent character see <br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">this </span><a href="http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/muhammad/myths-mu-qurayza.htm" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">link</span></a>.<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One final thought about Mohammad that is unique to this blog is that he was a hypersensitive, that is, someone who was extremely sensitive to the spiritual universe and had been influenced by the forces and powers of the spirit universe from early childhood. Some of his childhood experiences that are generally considered to be myths may have a ring of truth to them. For more information see this </span><a href="http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/demons.htm" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">link.</span></a> <br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>The Method</strong>:<br />
Tradition has it that Mohammad retreated to a local cave to meditate, and while in this state of meditation a luminous spirit appeared to him, identified itself as the Archangel Gabriel, told Mohammad that he was a prophet, and began to dictate a series of theological doctrines that later became the Quran. This basic description raises a lot of red flags for those familiar with the operation of demonic spirits in spiritualism and I would like to discuss them as follows: <br />
<br />
First, unsupervised meditative states that produce psychological disassociation are extremely dangerous for a hypersensitive because they promote the development of a psychic receptive personality fragment. (For more detailed information about this personality disorder, please see my book). One of the characteristics of this induced personality fragment is that while it is extremely hypersensitive, it does not discern between demons and other spirits. That means that it can easily become a victim of a type AL spirit who can take control of the hypersensitive for its own demonic purpose – to create and propagate false religion.<br />
<br />
Second, Angels of God serve as His messengers, but they are not theologians and do not prescribe religious doctrine. Never in either the Old or New testaments will you find an angel promoting theological doctrines of religion. In the Old Testament, God established Judaism through Moses and the prophets. In the New Testament, God spoke through Jesus and the Apostles. In either case, angels were not involved and there is a good reason for this. Angels do not truly understand salvation (See 1 Peter 1:12) and as a result, they can not create doctrines of salvation that are valid, especially if they present a doctrine which does not declare Jesus Christ as the only way of salvation for all men. Any supernatural being that comes to establish a religion which bypasses Christ is a demonic spirit intent on deceiving and misleading men. <br />
<br />
<strong>The Seed</strong>:<br />
Many of the commands given in the Quran would be beneficial to society as a whole. However, the demonic seed planted in the Quran commands and justifies horrible acts of violence. In fact, there are over 100 commands in the Quran which require Muslims to act violently toward unbelievers and others who disagree with the Quran itself. For a more detailed analysis of the demonic seed implanted in the Quran and quoted directly form the Quran, see this <a href="http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/quran/023-violence.htm" target="_blank">link.</a><br />
Admittedly there are similar statements in the Old Testament that are commands of violence, but these statements differ in two critical ways:<br />
<ol>
<li>The commands for violence in the Old Testament are focused on a limited group of tribes that were sworn enemies of Israel and would have wiped Israel out of existence. The commands for violence in the Quran are open ended and apply to anyone who does not believe in Allah or the Quran. </li>
<li>The commands for violence in the Old Testament are specifically structured to apply to the time of warfare. No one in their right minds would take these commands and apply them to anyone today. So the Old Testament commands are historical accounts rather than present day imperatives The commands for violence in the Quran are easily applied not only to the present but also to the future. </li>
</ol>
The most important effect of these commands for violence against non-believers in the Quran, is that they open the spiritual door to demonic influence if not possession. Since the commands accomplish the goals of the Kingdom of Darkness, they draw Muslims, who may already have a psychological problem with violence, into a most destructive and inhuman spiritual condition – they truly become like the devil and take pride in their condition. So Islam provides at least 100 ways a person can become demonized simply by believing what the Quran says.<br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>The Actions: </strong>Take a look at what the Quran identifies as acceptable and permissible attitudes and behaviors for a Muslim who is passionate about following its commands:<br />
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/008-qmt.php#008.055">Quran</a><a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/008-qmt.php#008.055"> (8:55)</a> - <i>Surely the <strong>vilest of animals</strong> in Allah's sight are those who disbelieve</i><br />
<blockquote>
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/048-qmt.php#048.029">Quran</a><a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/048-qmt.php#048.029"> (48:29)</a> - <i>Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. And those with him are <strong>hard (ruthless) against the disbelievers</strong> and merciful among themselves</i><br />
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/009-qmt.php#009.030">Quran</a><a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/009-qmt.php#009.030"> (9:30)</a> - <i>And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah, and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah... Allah (Himself) fights against them. <strong>How perverse are they</strong>! </i><br />
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/008-qmt.php#008.012">Quran</a><a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/008-qmt.php#008.012"> (8:12)</a> - <i>I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. <strong>Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them</strong></i><br />
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/009-qmt.php#009.123">Quran</a><a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/009-qmt.php#009.123"> (9:123)</a> - <i>O you who believe! <strong>Fight those of the unbelievers who are near to you</strong> and let them find in you hardness</i><br />
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/005-qmt.php#005.033">Quran</a><a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/cmje/religious-texts/quran/verses/005-qmt.php#005.033"> (5:33)</a> - <i>The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, <strong>that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be imprisoned;</strong> this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement</i></blockquote>
Keeping in mind what Jesus said about the works of the Devil: <i>He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature,for he is a liar and the father of lies</i>.<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a> <strong>(John 8:44),</strong> can there be any question that the above commands in the Quran represent the intent of the Kingdom of Darkness and the will of the Devil? When these actions are brought into reality by applying them to the people of the world, and particularly to Christians who choose to believe in Christ, then the doorway to the demonic is opened, and people suffer and die to the delight of the demonized militant Muslim who is so deceived that he believes his horrendous actions fulfill the desires of God.<br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>Conclusion:</strong> <br />
In my next post, I am going to discuss some of the solutions to the problem of demonization in Islam from both the Christian and Muslim perspective. In these last few posts, I have expressed some rather strong personal opinions about Islam and I would invite any comments you might have concerning some of my conclusions. Please be aware that any threats, attacks, or negative emotional outbreaks will not be published so don’t bother to post them.<br />
<br />
If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"> HERE</a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ. Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-31492635044221091162014-10-22T15:39:00.000-05:002015-10-13T20:33:28.808-05:00Demonizing Religion Part 2<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Supplement to The Spirit Universe a Christian View available at this </span><a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Book/book.htm"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Book Site</span></a><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Introduction</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My book called <em>The Spirit Universe: A Christian View</em> has been published for over a year now. While the reviews have been, by and large, favorable, questions and criticism have been made that I would like to address in this post. Please bear in mind that criticism, if it is healthy, can only lead to improvement, so I address them by trying to clarify the theology and personal experiences made in the book. In this post, the questions or statements made will be in bold font followed by the answers in normal font. If anyone who reads this post has additional questions, I encourage them to leave comments here.</span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is some of the book extra-Biblical?</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, parts of the book are speculative and not readily supported by Scripture. The reason for this extra-Biblical content is that the Bible does not address all the issues that I write about in the book, so speculation based on experience and logical deduction derived from observed facts is all I had to go on. Being extra-Biblical is not wrong, and it does not mean that the conclusions in the book contradict what the Bible does say about some of these subjects. A teaching or conclusion which contradicts Biblical doctrine is called heretical, and I have gone to great lengths to avoid even the slightest suggestion of heresy. One of the reviews of the book states that “<em>As I read this work, I did not sense any violation of Christian doctrine</em>.”, and that statement tells me I did a good job keeping the book within the confines of orthodox Christian doctrine.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>The term “Hypersensitive” was overemphasized because other people experience God deeply.</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In my book, I define a hypersensitive as someone with a greater than average sensitivity to the spirit universe as a whole. I treat sensitivity to the spirit universe as if it is distributed in the human population like intelligence is distributed. There are those with little or no sensitivity to the spirit universe (hyposensitives), those with average sensitivity (Normal sensitivity) and those with a way above average sensitivity (hypersensitivity). By definition, anyone who experiences God deeply is a hypersensitive because such a relationship and experience, sadly, exceeds the norm. Sensitivity is not based on denomination, religion or faith but on personal experience. Many hypersensitives are deeply involved with demonic religions. My book is written to reach out to those who are truly hypersensitive and show them the way that a Christian can adapt to their hypersensitivity in a spiritually healthy manner through the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and by surrendering their hypersensitivity to the Lord. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>It is incorrect to say that those who have not experienced the Baptism of the Holy Spirit have not experience communion with God.</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is not about communion with God. In my book, I illustrate this point by showing the reader that the Holy Spirit is living in everyone who accepts Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. What the Holy Spirit Baptism does is empower the Christian to work in the supernatural as an effective way of witnessing about Christ. It is exceedingly important for a hypersensitive to be Baptized in the Holy Spirit so that his sensitivities can be “tuned” to God and his works conform to the supernatural gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12. Before salvation, he was empowered by demonic spirits in the Kingdom of Darkness, and once saved he must be empowered by the Holy Spirit to serve in the Kingdom of Light as a follower of Christ and that is exactly what the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is all about.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Why does God allow people to become ghosts?</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is a matter of free will. God seems to hold our free will in the highest esteem. He will not do anything to violate our free will because that would make us less than human, and certainly this Is not in his vision for humankind So, where you spend eternity is dependent on the choices you make while alive. If you choose Christ, subsequently your destination is heaven where He lives – it is absolutely true that there are no Christian ghosts. On the other hand, if you choose to worship the world and immerse yourself in its passions and in doing so reject Christ, then you spend eternity in a place where God is not present in any way. We generally call this place hell. This is the general rule and way of things, but there seem to be exceptions to the rule. Some folk have become so focused and so driven by the passions of the earth (which are mainly sinful and controlling) that they osculate between their destiny in hell and their existence on earth. This is a ghost and a most pitiful creature at that. Eventually, all ghosts will end up where they belong as their earthly passions grow weak and they are pulled into hell. Ghosts have no purpose, their future is horrific, and their present is a torment. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Why do some who are Baptized in the Holy Spirit fail to have all the gifts</strong>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The power of God which is released when a Christian is Baptized in the Holy Spirit is structured by the spiritual gifts mentioned in 1 Cor 12. These manifestations of God’s power are gifts given for the benefit of the whole body. As gifts, they do not belong to and are not controlled by the people who are administrating them – they are not psychic abilities but expressions of God’s grace and love for the needy and wanting in His Kingdom. So, not everyone gets the same gifts because the Holy Spirit distributes them according to need and not the desire of the person chosen to administer them. However, keep in mind that every Christian, who has been Baptized in the Holy Spirit can receive any or all the gifts as the Holy Spirit gives them out during a ministry. One gift which is universal and the first evidence of the Holy Spirit Baptism (as Biblically demonstrated in the Book of Acts) is speaking in tongues. This post is not the place to get into details about speaking in tongues. Keep in mind that if you have a problem about how the gifts are distributed; you need to talk to the person who givens them out to His people, and that is the Holy Spirit.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Are Pentecostal or Charismatic churches more subject to error than other denominations such as Baptist or Methodist.</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No, absolutely not. While my church is an Assembly of God Church that believes in and encourages its members to get the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, this is in addition to the Fruit of the Spirit. The Fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, etc.) is considered as important as the Gifts of the Spirit for spiritual growth. The point is that a Christian should have available to him both the Fruit and the Gifts. Church dogma which rejects one for the other is out of balance and a major error. Finally, the basic belief system of a healthy church is based on the foundation of the full Gospel, and not just parts of the Gospel. Spirit filled churches that begin to reject the foundation of the Word get themselves into trouble because they are rejecting the only criteria by which they can judge what is occurring in the Church and whether they are pleasing God. On the other hand, a church which rejects the Baptism of the Holy Spirit can easily fall into legalism and ritualism. The key is balance and careful diligence on the part of the leadership of the Church. While a Pastor has a large influence on the nature of a church, if he is listening to God and following the instructions of the Holy Spirit, then positive church growth will take place, if not in numbers, then in the maturity of his sheep. Each person must choose then, the church and Pastor which will be best for him, and once he makes that choice must submit to the Holy Spirit and to the leadership of the Pastor in order to grow. This principle is valid regardless of the denomination or fellowship that the church affiliates with.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click</span><a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> HERE</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.</span> Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-11466586983284458992014-09-22T17:06:00.000-05:002015-10-13T20:32:48.916-05:00Demonizing Religion Part I–Basic Concepts.<span style="font-size: small;">A supplement to Chapter 8 of “The Spirit Universe” by Pastor Jerry Jochem. </span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ntroduction</span></span></strong><br />
Please note that most of the terms that I use in this post are defined in my book, and many of the concepts I present here are fully developed and supported by Scripture in my book as well. I am not going to redefine these terms or elaborate on the basic concepts, so I strongly suggest that you get the book to answer any questions you may have from this post.<br />
<br />
<strong>A Matter of Kingdoms</strong><br />
The geography of the spiritual universe is basically very simple. There is heaven and anywhere else is hell. Given this elementary dichotomy, it is also apparent that spirits of heaven or from heaven belong to the Kingdom of God, while all others, regardless of claims otherwise, belong to the Kingdom of Darkness. The Word symbolizes these two kingdoms metaphorically; that is, the Kingdom of Light belongs to God and is ruled by God, while the Kingdom of Darkness belongs to Satan and is ruled by Satan. A most compelling understanding about these two kingdoms is that the Kingdom of Light is governed by the qualities of the nature of God such as love, mercy, compassion and Holiness, while the Kingdom of Darkness is governed by the qualities of Satan, which include deception, murder, destruction and a profane rejection of anything Godly. We most commonly understand and identify the qualities of the Kingdom of Darkness as being “evil," a term somewhat underused in today’s culture.<br />
<br />
All of humanity is walking a path which automatically leads to the Kingdom of Darkness. Because of their inherent separation from God, good people need to do nothing to end up in hell serving and suffering under the dominion of Satan. God offered us a new path, and that path begins with the acceptance of the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal savior. Making the choice for Christ leads us into heaven and out of the grasp of Satan. <br />
<br />
<strong>False Religion</strong><br />
Many human beings do not believe or accept that they need a relationship with Christ to escape Satan, but one clear fact of the spiritual universe is that every demon knows that humanity needs Christ, and so they are determined to stop people from receiving the gift of salvation through Christ. In short, demonic spirits know that they must keep you from making a commitment to Christ, and if they simply stop you then you become their prey and victim. One way they can achieve this goal is by creating religions to distract you from salvation and to make you submit to their evil intent and actions. Since they attempt to counterfeit the purposes and nature of the Kingdom of Light, I would like to label this form of religion as “false religion.”<br />
I would like to introduce two more concepts in Part 1 of this post. <br />
<br />
<strong>The Transforming power of Evil.</strong><br />
The first concept is that evil has the ability to transform good into the likeness of itself. Evil thoughts, beliefs, and practices mutate good until it ceases to be good. In this sense, evil can be both transmitted and self-generating. It is a primary objective of the darkness to create as much evil in the hearts of man as possible. It is through this process that man can become demonized.<br />
<br />
<strong>Type AL spirits</strong><br />
The second concept is that there exists a special type of spirit whose entire purpose is to create false religions and by doing so, plant the seeds of the Kingdom of Darkness world-wide. I have called this type of Demon a Type Angel of Light (Type AL) as described in 2 Corinthians 11:14 (ICB) <em><sup>14</sup>This does not surprise us. Even Satan changes himself to look like an angel of light.</em> <br />
These demonic spirits seek out and communicate deceptive, lying, and evil doctrines or teachings to those who are hypersensitive to the spiritual universe, and they target the most base characteristics of those who listen to them. The doctrine they promote has the purpose of opening believers to demoniacal influences if not actual possession. It is through these doctrines that the process of human demonization begins.<br />
<br />
<strong>An Example:</strong><br />
In my next post, I am going to illustrate these concepts by using Islam as an example. I have no hatred of Islam or Muslims, but Islam has proven itself to be the most demonizing religion of all time, and it is a textbook example as to how the Kingdom of Darkness is promoted among men.<br />
<br />
If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"> HERE</a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-53719344294936810042014-07-16T06:08:00.000-05:002015-10-13T20:32:41.497-05:00Book Review Criticisms and Questions Answered.<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Supplement to The Spirit Universe a Christian View available at this </span><a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Book/book.htm"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Book Site</span></a><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Introduction</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My book called <em>The Spirit Universe: A Christian View</em> has been published for over a year now. While the reviews have been, by and large, favorable, questions and criticism have been made that I would like to address in this post. Please bear in mind that criticism, if it is healthy, can only lead to improvement, so I address them by trying to clarify the theology and personal experiences made in the book. In this post, the questions or statements made will be in bold font followed by the answers in normal font. If anyone who reads this post has additional questions, I encourage them to leave comments here.</span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is some of the book extra-Biblical?</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, parts of the book are speculative and not readily supported by Scripture. The reason for this extra-Biblical content is that the Bible does not address all the issues that I write about in the book, so speculation based on experience and logical deduction derived from observed facts is all I had to go on. Being extra-Biblical is not wrong, and it does not mean that the conclusions in the book contradict what the Bible does say about some of these subjects. A teaching or conclusion which contradicts Biblical doctrine is called heretical, and I have gone to great lengths to avoid even the slightest suggestion of heresy. One of the reviews of the book states that “<em>As I read this work, I did not sense any violation of Christian doctrine</em>.”, and that statement tells me I did a good job keeping the book within the confines of orthodox Christian doctrine.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>The term “Hypersensitive” was overemphasized because other people experience God deeply.</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In my book, I define a hypersensitive as someone with a greater than average sensitivity to the spirit universe as a whole. I treat sensitivity to the spirit universe as if it is distributed in the human population like intelligence is distributed. There are those with little or no sensitivity to the spirit universe (hyposensitives), those with average sensitivity (Normal sensitivity) and those with a way above average sensitivity (hypersensitivity). By definition, anyone who experiences God deeply is a hypersensitive because such a relationship and experience, sadly, exceeds the norm. Sensitivity is not based on denomination, religion or faith but on personal experience. Many hypersensitives are deeply involved with demonic religions. My book is written to reach out to those who are truly hypersensitive and show them the way that a Christian can adapt to their hypersensitivity in a spiritually healthy manner through the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and by surrendering their hypersensitivity to the Lord. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>It is incorrect to say that those who have not experienced the Baptism of the Holy Spirit have not experience communion with God.</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is not about communion with God. In my book, I illustrate this point by showing the reader that the Holy Spirit is living in everyone who accepts Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. What the Holy Spirit Baptism does is empower the Christian to work in the supernatural as an effective way of witnessing about Christ. It is exceedingly important for a hypersensitive to be Baptized in the Holy Spirit so that his sensitivities can be “tuned” to God and his works conform to the supernatural gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12. Before salvation, he was empowered by demonic spirits in the Kingdom of Darkness, and once saved he must be empowered by the Holy Spirit to serve in the Kingdom of Light as a follower of Christ and that is exactly what the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is all about.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Why does God allow people to become ghosts?</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is a matter of free will. God seems to hold our free will in the highest esteem. He will not do anything to violate our free will because that would make us less than human, and certainly this Is not in his vision for humankind So, where you spend eternity is dependent on the choices you make while alive. If you choose Christ, subsequently your destination is heaven where He lives – it is absolutely true that there are no Christian ghosts. On the other hand, if you choose to worship the world and immerse yourself in its passions and in doing so reject Christ, then you spend eternity in a place where God is not present in any way. We generally call this place hell. This is the general rule and way of things, but there seem to be exceptions to the rule. Some folk have become so focused and so driven by the passions of the earth (which are mainly sinful and controlling) that they osculate between their destiny in hell and their existence on earth. This is a ghost and a most pitiful creature at that. Eventually, all ghosts will end up where they belong as their earthly passions grow weak and they are pulled into hell. Ghosts have no purpose, their future is horrific, and their present is a torment. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Why do some who are Baptized in the Holy Spirit fail to have all the gifts</strong>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The power of God which is released when a Christian is Baptized in the Holy Spirit is structured by the spiritual gifts mentioned in 1 Cor 12. These manifestations of God’s power are gifts given for the benefit of the whole body. As gifts, they do not belong to and are not controlled by the people who are administrating them – they are not psychic abilities but expressions of God’s grace and love for the needy and wanting in His Kingdom. So, not everyone gets the same gifts because the Holy Spirit distributes them according to need and not the desire of the person chosen to administer them. However, keep in mind that every Christian, who has been Baptized in the Holy Spirit can receive any or all the gifts as the Holy Spirit gives them out during a ministry. One gift which is universal and the first evidence of the Holy Spirit Baptism (as Biblically demonstrated in the Book of Acts) is speaking in tongues. This post is not the place to get into details about speaking in tongues. Keep in mind that if you have a problem about how the gifts are distributed; you need to talk to the person who givens them out to His people, and that is the Holy Spirit.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Are Pentecostal or Charismatic churches more subject to error than other denominations such as Baptist or Methodist.</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No, absolutely not. While my church is an Assembly of God Church that believes in and encourages its members to get the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, this is in addition to the Fruit of the Spirit. The Fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, etc.) is considered as important as the Gifts of the Spirit for spiritual growth. The point is that a Christian should have available to him both the Fruit and the Gifts. Church dogma which rejects one for the other is out of balance and a major error. Finally, the basic belief system of a healthy church is based on the foundation of the full Gospel, and not just parts of the Gospel. Spirit filled churches that begin to reject the foundation of the Word get themselves into trouble because they are rejecting the only criteria by which they can judge what is occurring in the Church and whether they are pleasing God. On the other hand, a church which rejects the Baptism of the Holy Spirit can easily fall into legalism and ritualism. The key is balance and careful diligence on the part of the leadership of the Church. While a Pastor has a large influence on the nature of a church, if he is listening to God and following the instructions of the Holy Spirit, then positive church growth will take place, if not in numbers, then in the maturity of his sheep. Each person must choose then, the church and Pastor which will be best for him, and once he makes that choice must submit to the Holy Spirit and to the leadership of the Pastor in order to grow. This principle is valid regardless of the denomination or fellowship that the church affiliates with.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click</span><a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> HERE</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.</span> Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-59384575445706495832014-06-19T15:54:00.001-05:002015-10-13T20:32:32.880-05:00Can a Christian be Possessed by a Demonic Spirit?<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Supplement to The Spirit Universe a Christian View available at this </span><a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Book/book.htm"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Book Site</span></a><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Introduction</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are three terms that have to be defined in order to answer this question. The first term is Christian; the second is possession, and the last term is Demonic. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Christian:</strong> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think the most basic definition of Christian is a person who believes in the person and work of Jesus Christ and who has surrendered his life and will to the Lord. As a result of his faith in Christ, the Christian experiences a new birth in the spirit that frees him from his past, and, because of his surrender, establishes a relationship with Jesus through the Holy Spirit in the present. Consequently, the Christian has the fullness of the God head living within his born-again spirit. (See John 14:17-20)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Possession: </strong>Possession means that the demonic spirit has gained control of the mind of the person possessed. The demon owns part of the possessed person and can manipulate that person as he wills..</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Demonic: </strong>Demonic spirits are of two types. The first type is non-human and consists of fallen angels who have been distorted and made profane by the evil forces they generated when they rebelled against God. The second type consists of human beings who died in their sins, which were highly evil and began the process of degeneration into a demonic form. I get into a more elaborate explanation of these types in my book along with the Scriptural foundation for describing these demonic spirits..</span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Question</span></strong><br />
<a href="http://www.christianthought.info/demon-possession--activity.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The question is : “Can a Christian be possessed by a demonic spirit?" The answer is no – absolutely not! <br />A Christian cannot be possessed by a demonic spirit because the Christian has the full God head within his spirit. No demon is powerful enough to displace God or even separate a Christian from God. The Christian belongs and has been purchased by the Lord, and that means the Christian is no longer helplessly subject to demonic demands or commands. <br />Being filled with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the Christian not only cannot be possessed, but he has the spiritual power to cast any demon into hell. He can do this just with a command given in the Name of Jesus because he has the right to use the authority in the Name of Jesus. <br />The Christian is filled with the Holy Spirit, and that means that any type of demon cannot possess a Christian but also, no demon would be foolish enough to challenge the Spirit of God by attempting to take possession of a Christian. </span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What a Demon can do!</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Even though a demonic spirit cannot possess a Christian, it can certainly oppress him. Oppression is a systematic attack by a demon to depress, hurt, and bring misery into the life of a Christian. So a demon can do significant damage to a Christian and those around him, if the Christians allows the demon to continue its attack. <br />The fact is that no demon can continue its oppressive attack on a Christian if the Christian commands the demon to stop its attack in the Name of Jesus. This may have to be done in several areas, but the demon is bound to obey such a command because of the power and authority found in the Name of Jesus.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Summary</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A demon cannot take control of a Christian, but it certainly can oppress the Christian so severely that it feels like possession. The Christian can become free of any oppression by using the Name of Jesus to abort the mission of the demon. Oppression will continue only if the Christian is ignorant of his power in the Name of Jesus, or does not have the faith to believe deliverance is possible. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please note that the protection enjoyed by a Christian does not cover those who have not made a commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, spirit possession, including demon possession, is a essential part of non-Christian religions. Deliverance from spirit possession may be a vital part of the salvation experience for these individuals.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click</span><a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> HERE</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ</span>.Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-4500154091196486992014-03-20T16:10:00.000-05:002015-10-13T20:32:20.629-05:00Human Energy Field Interactions With God<h4>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Supplement to The Spirit Universe a Christian View available at this </span><a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Book/book.htm"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Book Site</span></a></h4>
<h4>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Introduction</span></h4>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In my book, “The Spirit Universe," I describe at length the</span><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-xUq6lnEuq8g/UxDAwjSwYgI/AAAAAAAAA8o/qcMDYgcw19o/s1600-h/ByPJ%25255B3%25255D.gif"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img align="right" alt="ByPJ" border="0" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-Xfns6J_Nd2I/UxDAw3YxmgI/AAAAAAAAA8w/r4A0ZQIJQ9c/ByPJ_thumb%25255B1%25255D.gif?imgmax=800" height="29" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; float: right; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="ByPJ" width="100" /></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> feasibility and characteristics of the Human Energy Field (HEF). In this post, I would like to continue that discussion by giving a brief analysis as to how the Human Energy Field interacts with God. I am not, however, going to discuss the reality of or evidence for the Human Energy Field, because all of that and more is discussed in the book.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The HEF and God:</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the primary characteristics of the HEF is that it contains and can transmit information about the person who owns the field. As a result, the HEF is the most basic way that a human being can communicate information to God. For Christians, the Holy Spirit is the communication bridge between a person and God. This is the meaning of praying in the “Spirit." That is to say, using the information contained in the HEF our human spirit can speak to God through the Holy Spirit. This communication does not have to be verbal or a product of our intellect. It can be driven by our strong feelings to such an extent that the communication is exclusively emotional, and we may not even understand what is being divulged. The result is that a person, through the HEF and Holy Spirit, can communicate beyond the limits of his consciousness. Often any verbalizations end up as groans and grunts.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He Knows Us.</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Because the HEF contains all the information about our identity and lifestyle, nothing about ourselves can be hidden from God. Like a book containing the most intimate details of our lives, everything is exposed and communicated to God. Since our conscious mind may not be fully open to all the information in the HEF, God will truly know us better than we know ourselves. The wonder of all this is that He still accepts us and adopts us into His family, knowing all about us, once we accept Christ in our lives.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two Way Communication:</span></strong><br />
<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-dua-FWkFsEs/UyhxCNn6-0I/AAAAAAAAA9A/tZ2yZPOtHpg/s1600-h/god_speaks%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While the HEF transmits information about us, it also can receive information. Once again, the Holy Spirit is the communication bridge between God and man, and so when God wants to tell us something, the Holy Spirit will transmit the information to our HEF. The information can be intellectual and perceived as an audible voice, or it can be felt as a strong emotion such as conviction or comfort. Understand that the information sent to us through the Holy Spirit can influence our HEF to produce visions, dreams, or “hunches." Very often one of the spiritual gifts mentioned in 2 Corinthians 12 is a key mechanism used to communicate. As a result, Christians can truly talk to God, hear God, speak prophetically, and have immersive visions from God.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">HEF and the Spiritual Gifts</span></strong><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 Corinthians 12:7-11(CEV) </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="8"></a><em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup>7</sup>The Spirit has given each of us a special way of serving others. </span></em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><em></em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="9"></a><em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup>8</sup>Some of us can speak with wisdom, while others can speak with knowledge, but these gifts come from the same Spirit. </span></em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><em></em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="10"></a><em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup>9</sup>To others the Spirit has given great faith or the power to heal the sick </span></em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><em></em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="11"></a><em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup>10</sup>or the power to work mighty miracles. Some of us are prophets, and some of us recognize when God’s Spirit is present. Others can speak different kinds of languages, and still others can tell what these languages mean. </span></em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><em></em><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="12"></a><em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup>11</sup>But it is the Spirit who does all this and decides which gifts to give to each of us. </span></em><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When the Holy Spirit enables the HEF of a Christian, the result is a supernatural gifting that involves either the communication of information or power. When information is communicated the believer experiences the gifts of words of wisdom or knowledge, prophecy, tongues or interpretation of tongues, and discernment. When power is transmitted to the believer, he experiences the working of miracles, healings, and supernatural faith. Unlike psychic abilities, these gifts are totally dependent on the Holy Spirit because they originate from Him and are enabled through Him. Needless to say, the Holy Spirit “charges” the HEF with positive energy that is more potent and intense than anything that can be generated by the individual on his own. As a result, the spiritual gifts are much more energetic, accurate, and influential than anything drummed up through self-hypnosis or resulting from the activity of a spirit, even a demonic spirit.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<h4>
If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"> HERE</a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ</h4>
Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-81225962982973874042014-01-10T06:00:00.000-06:002015-10-14T17:27:18.984-05:00Demon’s Breath–A Sign of a Demonic Spirit.A Supplement to The Spirit Universe a Christian View available at this <a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Book/book.htm">Book Site</a><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>Introduction:</strong><br />
How do you know when you are dealing with a demonic spirit during an investigation or deliverance session? While the answer to that question would seem self-evident, and in some cases it is evident, one cannot simply brand all spirits as demons and one cannot assume that all demons are equal in their degree of evil, destructiveness, and power.<br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>Basic Principles:</strong><br />
A spirit can make itself known only in the context of the human energy field that it is drawing from. That human energy field allows two-way communication. The spirit gets energized, and the people get in contact with the character and nature of the spirit that is drawing power from them. It is an exchange of information and energy. As a result, the spirit can modulate the energy and distort it in a way correlated to his character. This character can be sensed by the people as being separate from and different than their own.<br />
<br />
In other words, people in contact with a spirit are like those looking into a “funny” mirror at a circus. What they see is vaguely familiar but so badly distorted that it is unrecognizable. It is their own energy coming back to them but now contorted by the character and personality of the spirit with which they are in contact. Even when manipulated by a non-demonic spirit, the reflected energy is so misshapen that the image appears to be alien and otherworldly. <br />
<br />
There is one other important factor to keep in mind when trying to determine whether a spirit is a demon. Spirits that qualify as actual demons are not human nor will they ever be human. Now there is a type of demonic spirit that once was human but original demons are fallen angels and not of mortal derivation. When these demons contort the human energy field, the resulting energy is so profoundly convoluted by the unadulterated evil of the demonic spirit that it seems to be alien to humanity. This alienation and dehumanizing of the energy field can take two distinct and surprisingly different forms.<br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>Demon’s Breath: A Foul Oder of Evil.</strong><br />
The first form is distinctly demonic in character. The energy is best described as being horribly sinister with an intensity which leaves the investigator with creepy and menacing impressions. The energy field seems to be swirling with feelings of fear, rage, hostility, malice, malevolence, and hatred.<br />
<br />
At the same time, physical reactions such as nausea, chest pains, scratches, weakness, dizziness, and depression can beset the investigators. Paranormal violence as well as aggressive interactions between investigators can take place, and folk may be hurt and damaged either physically or mentally.<br />
<br />
Contact with this form of demonic spirit can cause permanent physical and psychological damage that will not readily heal. In most cases, if you are confronted by this type of demonic spirit, you will quickly identify it as being a demon, but that is not true for the second form in which a demon can manifest itself.<br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>Demon’s Breath: The Sweet Odor of Deception.</strong><br />
Normally such words as beautiful, glorious, wise, peaceful, powerful, and godlike are associated with the Holy Spirit. However, it must be remembered that Satan and his demons want to replace God and in their spiritual presumption, will actually emulate some of the traits of God. In my book, I call these types of demons “Angels of Light” (Type AL) and explain that their main objective is to promote false religion by undermining trust in God and His Word. Entire nations have been impacted negatively by these demons, and millions have been lost to Christ because of their deceptions and unholy doctrines.<br />
<br />
In this post, however, I would like to focus on the ability of these religious spirits to confuse and deceive even born-again and Spirit filled Christians. We must always remember that our spiritual perception of spirit forms can be distorted by demonic spirits. As a result, information or guidance that we think is coming from the Spirit of God can actually originate from a demon.<br />
<br />
So how do we know if we are actually dealing with a demon spirit that is trying to manipulate us in some ungodly manner? Well, the following Scripture gives us insight to solve this perplexing problem: <br />
<em><span class="chapter-num" id="v62004001-1"><sup>1</sup> </span>Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world</em>. 1 John 4:1 <span style="font-size: small;">(</span><span style="font-size: small;">ESV</span><span style="font-size: small;">)</span><br />
So here are some of the tests that will let you know if you are dealing with a religious demon:<br />
<ul>
<li>Since the primary function of Type AL demons is to keep people away from Christ, they will not acknowledge that Jesus is God, the savior of mankind, and the only way to the Father. In essence, they will deny that Jesus is the way, truth and life.</li>
<li> They will justify their misdirection by attacking the Bible. They will say that it is erroneous, corrupted, or improperly interpreted, and then provide their own translation or supplemental material that supports their false doctrines.</li>
<li>They will make assertions about God that are opposite of His revealed nature. For example, they will promote a doctrine that God wants them to kill non-believers, or punish others who do not hold to their doctrines. This tactic can be intensely personal, for instance, Type AL demons will use condemnation to keep folk in bondage to their doctrines. </li>
<li>Finally, these spirits will lie about the mercy, goodness, or intent of God. They will declare that God does not love or care for those who have accepted Christ or that God’s intent is for evil and not good.</li>
</ul>
<strong>Do You Need Help</strong> <br />
Got a problem with the paranormal or have a question you would like one of our authors to discuss? Fill out a <a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Blog%20Stuff/private_help_request.htm">Confidential Help Request Form</a> and we will get back to you as soon as we can. . If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"> HERE</a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px;"><b>Comments:</b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px; text-align: justify;">Inorder to stimulate conversations about this topic, the comments section is now open. If you have experiences, insights, or questions, then please leave a comment</span><br />
<br />Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-79687353486155585712013-12-10T06:00:00.000-06:002015-10-13T20:31:44.507-05:00A Christmas MessageA Supplement to The Spirit Universe a Christian View available at this <a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Book/book.htm">Book Site</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Introduction </strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
The Spirit Universe and the Physical Universe exist<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-MLMQV9z-GOs/UoPhLjSDK5I/AAAAAAAAA70/xFi5BkuK55Y/s1600-h/ByPJ%25255B4%25255D.gif"><img align="right" alt="ByPJ" border="0" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-mKKUUl-WH3U/UoPhMKc6N1I/AAAAAAAAA78/wk3H6ZvoGP8/ByPJ_thumb%25255B2%25255D.gif?imgmax=800" height="29" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; float: right; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="ByPJ" width="100" /></a> side by side. While the two universes tend to be separated and distinct, they will be occasionally integrated or blended by the expenditure of energy. Christians know that this blending of the two Universes took place with unparalleled intensity on two separate occasions. In other words, there are two occasions in which heaven touched earth and earth became a portal of heaven. The first occasion and the one that we will discuss here is that of Christmas.<br />
<br />
The energies involved in the spirit universe are neutral. That is to say, they are neither bad nor good. However, the energy can pick up the characteristics of the spirit that is using it. The energy utilized by a demonic spirit is experienced as evil or negative energy. On the other hand, the energy used by the Holy Spirit, or an angelic spirit, feels and gives the impression of heavenly glory.<br />
<br />
<strong>Christmas energy</strong><br />
To see what type of energy was involved with Christmas, we must turn to Scripture:<br />
<b>Luke 2:8-14(ASV) </b><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="8"></a><em><sup>8</sup>And there were shepherds in the same country abiding in the field, and keeping watch by night over their flock. </em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389"></a><em></em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="9"></a><em><sup>9</sup>And an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. </em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389"></a><em></em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="10"></a><em><sup>10</sup>And the angel said unto them, Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people: </em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389"></a><em></em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="11"></a><em><sup>11</sup>for there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. </em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389"></a><em></em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="12"></a><em><sup>12</sup>And this is the sign unto you: Ye shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying in a manger. </em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389"></a><em></em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="13"></a><em><sup>13</sup>And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, </em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="14"></a><em><sup>14</sup> Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men in whom he is well pleased. </em><br />
As we look at the Scripture, we can see that there are three basic descriptions of the energy surrounding this announcement. It first considers the glory of God, then it considers the joy of God, and then finally illustrates the activity generating the energy of God. <br />
<br />
<em><sup>9</sup></em><em><strong>and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid</strong></em>.<br />
The glory of God is an incredibly intense manifestation of the presence of God. This "glory " can actually be frightening and can have a strong physical effect on those who are experiencing it. The energy involved, however, is exceedingly positive and communicates an other worldliness that demarcates it as coming from the spirit universe in the best possible way. <br />
<br />
<em><sup>10</sup></em>I<strong><em> bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people</em></strong><br />
The energy express by the Angels was joyful. This is again a very positive form of energy that has an immediate impact on those who are experiencing it. It can produce a sense of celebration that results in dynamic expressions of laughter, dance, and uplifting emotions. <br />
<br />
<em><sup>3</sup><strong>And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, </strong></em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="14"></a><em><strong><sup>14</sup> Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men in whom he is well pleased</strong></em><br />
This particular passage explains the dynamic source of the energy that is being experienced by the shepherds. The source of this energy was nothing less than complete and focused adoration and praise of God. The Greek word used to describe this energy would be "dunamis". This particular Greek word means that the energy would be experienced in an explosive manner. We get our word "dynamite" from this Greek word. So this passage is telling us that the praise and worship of God was producing an exceedingly powerful energy characterized by joy and glory.<br />
<br />
<strong>Conclusion</strong><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
The entire world was changed by the incarnation of Christ. That incarnation was preceded by proclamations of glory and great joy. The flow of Christmas power put forward and will continue to deliver eternal peace to all men who please God. I can only wish you and yours the merriest and happiest of Christmases from me and my family.<br />
<br />
<b>Comments:</b><br />
In order to stimulate conversations about this topic, the comments section is now open. If you have experiences, insights, or questions, then please leave a comment.<br />
<br />
<strong>Do You Need Help</strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
Got a problem with the paranormal or have a question you would like one of our authors to discuss? Fill out a <a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Blog%20Stuff/private_help_request.htm">Confidential Help Request Form</a> and we will get back to you as soon as we can. . If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"> HERE</a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-82474894131371438682013-11-10T07:00:00.000-06:002015-10-13T20:31:20.401-05:00Spiritual Dangers in Paranormal Investigations<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Supplement to The Spirit Universe a Christian View available at this </span><a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Book/book.htm" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Book Site</a><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"></span></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Introduction</span></strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The general opinion of a lot of ghost hunting and deliverance ministries is that there is no spiritual dangers involved with what has become a hobby for many people. Yet, when dealing with unknown or negative energies, possibly in the control of demonic or hell bound spirit, there is a clear and powerful danger. This danger definitely involves all three aspect of a person - the human body, mind and spirit. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is important to realize that, like radiation such as x-rays, the degree of danger is correlated to the degree of exposure to the negative energy and the spirit forces it contains. We can look at some common practices during an investigation and rate the probability of a damaging experience as follows:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Danger Scale</span></strong><br />
<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-4jRMIp57Yak/UktCM7ZVf9I/AAAAAAAAA1Q/xP_sUmEPUzU/s1600-h/dangerspractices%25255B19%25255D.jpg"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The chart on the left attempts to quantify in a general way, the degree of spiritual danger present during an investigation. It really does not matter if the purpose of the investigation is deliverance or ghost hunting. The dangers remain real for both groups.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The red/green bar represents the probability of negative side effects taking place during and after an investigation. The red means a high probability of some kind of spiritual damage taking place, while the green means that the chance of a negative impact is lower.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The column on the right lists some of the more common methods used by paranormal investigation groups. While some of these methods are very similar, there are enough differences in the methods so that they can be ranked independently.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What Damage</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></strong>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Negative energy and the spirits it contains can do a lot of damage to individuals and whole families. Kids, for example, that come into contact with demonic spirits or who are introduced to occult methods can be influenced through out their lives in both damaging and destructive ways. Why is this so? Because exposure to paranormal forces can open doorways to spirit influence and oppression. These influences can manifest as depression, anger, delusional thinking, and paranoia. When spirits are involved, the individual can be oppressed relentlessly, accompanied by a mental and spiritual overload of sensations and truly frightening experiences. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Scale</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></strong>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Danger Scale is based on a simple concept. The less personal interaction you have with negative energy and spirits, the safer you are as you investigate or conduct a deliverance session. The methods in the green do not require inter-personal contact. After all, recording an energy spike or temperature drop does not demand any interaction at all. On the opposite end, and certainly the most dangerous, is mediumship of any sort. Mediums open themselves not only to intimate spirit relationships, but they allow spirits to control their minds and bodies. This is extremely dangerous and most likely will lead to oppression if not possession. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Similarly, trance induction will produce a personality split that comes under the immediate control of a spirit. A dissociated trance state will diminish the will and confuse the identity of the person who allows spirit contact while in even a mild form of disassociation.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Individuals that practice occult techniques are also in serious danger of negative influences and spirit influence. In many of these methods, the autonomic nervous system is activated under the control of a spirit. This is a milder form of disassociation but nevertheless is highly dangerous.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While the least dangerous and safest approaches focus on simple measurements (EMF, Temp, Sound, Video), the danger increases as soon as communication methods are used. From delayed responses generated by EVPs to immediate responses through the use of a “ghost box” the degree of personal interaction increases as does the danger. Often challenging the spirit to become violent and actually attack the investigator is really giving permission for the spirit to take bodily control. The energies involved can change body chemistry, for example, scratches may often be histamine reactions rather than actual physical wounds.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Perhaps the most serious danger from communication with spirits is that the person may come to believe that the spirits are telling the truth about themselves and about their final destiny, This leads to false religious beliefs that can prevent the person from embracing the truth as revealed by Christ and His Word. World religions have been created by spirits who find someone gullible enough to believe that they are getting secret and valid information about God and the spirit universe. The impact of this kind of deception can be world wide and cause misery and suffering for millions of people who follow a faith designed by spirits instead of God.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Conclusion</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></strong>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not every investigation method is worth following. Deliverance teams only need to establish the existence of spirit influence to do the work of deliverance. Communication with the dead just produces delusion and false belief designed to perpetuate the comfort of the spirit and the discomfort of the follower. Deliverance teams are there to deliver, and not communicate. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Comments:</b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: justify;">Inorder to stimulate conversations about this topic, the comments section is now open. If you have experiences, insights, or questions, then please leave a comment.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px;"><strong>Do You Need Help</strong></span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px;"><strong><br /></strong></span>
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px;">Got a problem with the paranormal or have a question you would like one of our authors to discuss? Fill out a</span><span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24.75px;"> </span><a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Blog%20Stuff/private_help_request.htm" style="background-color: black; color: #99dd9b; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24.75px; text-decoration: none;">Confidential Help Request Form</a><span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 24.75px;"> </span><span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px;">and we will get back to you as soon as we can. . If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click</span><a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html" style="background-color: black; color: #99dd9b; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px; text-decoration: none;"> HERE</a><span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px;"> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.75px;"><br /></span>Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-13657884744839083042013-09-10T17:13:00.001-05:002015-10-14T17:28:24.798-05:00The Spirit of Suicide.<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Supplement to Chapter 20 of The Spirit Universe: A Christian View. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <br /> <strong>Introduction</strong> </span><br /><strong> </strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Coping with suicide is extremely difficult for those family </span></span><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-72iAoXq8_eY/Ui-PD4i_ZAI/AAAAAAAAA0A/fc1VqWLEUw0/s1600-h/ByPJ%25255B3%25255D.gif"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;"></span></a><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">members and friends confronted by the death of a loved one at his/her own hand. Is suicide a sin? Clearly it is a sin because it breaks one of the basic commandments given to us by God: <br /><em><sup>13</sup>“You must not murder anyone</em>. Ex 20:13 <br />In this case, the word murder is used correctly and implies the premeditated killing of someone, including oneself. In other words, premeditated self-destruction is murder, and those who purposely murder do not go to heaven.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><strong>Complications</strong> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What makes suicide so devastating is that it seems to be beyond repentance. Even if a spirit, who committed suicide, should regret the action, he can not take it back. Death has shifted him from the realm of confession, repentance, and forgiveness to one in which nothing can be changed – the deed is done eternally. For those who have friends and relatives who may have committed suicide, this is extremely bad news and difficult to bear. Is there no hope for the person who committed suicide? We must go to Scripture to find the answer to this question. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><strong>What Scripture Says</strong> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While a number of Biblical characters actually committed suicide for various reasons, the most significant and informative Scripture is when Jesus was tempted to commit suicide at the urging of Satan. This temptation is found in Matthew 4:5-7: </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup>5</sup><em>Then the devil led Jesus to the holy city of Jerusalem and put him on a high place of the Temple. <sup>6</sup>The devil said, “If you are the Son of God, jump down, because it is written in the Scriptures: </em></span><em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;">‘He has put his angels in charge of you. They will catch you in their hands so that you will not hit your foot on a rock.’” (See Psalm 91:11-12)</span></em></div>
<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><em><sup>7</sup>Jesus answered him, “It also says in the Scriptures, ‘Do not test the Lord your God</em>.’” <br /> <br />This is an interesting Scripture because it gives us the insight that suicidal ideation is demonic in nature. In other words, suicide may be the result of a spiritual attack – an attack that is indeed life threatening. This also means that there is a spirit of suicide! A spirit or spirits that specialize in convincing people to kill themselves as a way out of their suffering and misery. </span><br /> <br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Operating Procedure for the Spirit of Suicide</strong></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We can understand the spiritual manipulations that are operating when a spirit of suicide claims a victim. There are three basic stages which we can see in the above Scripture. </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;"><strong>Degradation:</strong> Jesus had been without food for 40 days. He was at his lowest both mentally and physically. It was at that point when Satan came to tempt Him to commit suicide. In the same manner, a spirit of suicide begins its attack by degrading the quality of life of its intended victim. It will do this physically by introducing chronic disease, psychologically through the production of such mental conditions as depression, socially by isolating the person from the loving help of others, and spiritually by blocking the person’s perception of God or by convincing its victim that God no longer cares for or loves him and that he is alone. The spirit of suicide will put the maximum amount of stress on its victim to drive him to the point of wanting to escape by self-murder. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;"><strong>Deception:</strong> The spirit of suicide promotes three lies in order to make suicide a desired outcome. The first lie is that nothing the victim can do will change the outcome of his life. Essentially the spirit of suicide convinces its victim that the victim is helpless to change his quality of life. The second lie is that the degraded quality of life experienced by his victim is permanent. This lie steals the hope of ever having a happy or content life. If there is no hope then there is no reason to continue to live. Finally, the spirit of suicide lies to its intended victim by declaring that no one really cares about him and that even God does not love him. This final lie makes the victim feel rejected, alone and isolated both from his peers and from any spiritual strength he could find in God’s love.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> An alternative to this lie is that God loves him so much that he will be automatically forgiven for suicide. This is the lie used by Satan as he tried to get Christ to jump to his death. This alternative lie actually "tests" God as Jesus noted in verse 7.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Defeat:</strong> At this point the spirit of suicide actually begins to suggest plans by which the person can kill himself. Often these suggestions come in a compulsive manner through thoughts of death, or ways of killing oneself quickly. Once these plans are accepted, the actual act of self-murder is close at hand. You might notice that Satan suggested to Jesus that he should throw himself off of a high building. In the same manner, the spirit of suicide will suggest the means of destruction for its victim. </span></span></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;">Even with the apparent finality of suicide there is hope for the victim of the spirit of suicide. That hope depends on a number of factors such as:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;">Once the spirit of suicide had manipulated the person to the point where he is defeated, it will sometimes remove itself from the victim and there will be a sudden realization of the sin involved and a deep desire to confess and receive forgiveness will emerge. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;">If a slow method of suicide was chosen there will be time for the person to confess and ask for forgiveness even if nothing can be done to prevent his death. God is merciful and will readily accept the heart felt desire to be forgiven for self destruction if the desire is genuine. Unfortunately, this period of grace does not apply when an instantaneous method for death is chosen and the person has no time to ask for forgiveness. Such an instantaneous method would be destroying the brain using a gun of some sort. A less instantaneous method would be the use of drugs or even hanging. In the short period between the initiation of the method of death and the onset of death itself, the suicide victim can be forgiven and if originally saved, can enter into heaven.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: normal;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You might take into consideration the response of Jesus to Satan’s suggestion of suicide:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Matthew 4:8-11(NRSV) </b><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389" name="9"></a> <br /><em><sup>8</sup>Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; </em><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3365503744345118389"></a><em> <sup>9</sup>and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” <sup>10</sup>Jesus said to him, <strong>“Away with you, Satan!</strong> for it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’” <sup>11</sup>Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him. </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: normal;">By far the best approach is prevention. If the victim is a Christian, then he can command the spirit of suicide to leave him in the Authority and Power of Jesus’s Name. It is also possible for other Christians to bring about freedom from the spirit of suicide by deliverance. Christians were never meant to be victims of suicide because God has a plan and purpose for each life.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;">If you are contemplating suicide it is first necessary to realize that you are battling a demonic spirit who wants to see you dead. You need to reach out for help from your pastor or other Christians whom you trust. You can also find help on the internet from such sites as: </span><span style="font-size: normal;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/AFSPnational">https://www.facebook.com/AFSPnational</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Those Who Remain</b></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If the person who committed suicide was a Christian, a
member of your family or just a friend, the question as to whether that person
will be waiting for you in heaven can become a torment. With all your heart you want to believe that
he made it and received the promise of salvation. On the other hand, you recognize that suicide
is a sin and may not have been confessed to the Lord before death. Trying to
answer these kinds of questions will only produce stress and depression, and
will certainly not result in peace of mind or heart!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the case of suicide of a loved one, a Christian must
leave all judgment in the hands of God. We know that God is merciful and just.
He understands the influences that a spirit of suicide can have on defeating an
individual to the point of death. He
will not punish a victim of a demonic spirit. Yet God is also just, some
recognition must be made that the victim of a spirit of suicide had a way out
of death just by believing in the Authority and Power in the Name of Jesus. So
in the final analysis, judgment must be surrendered to God by placing the
suicide victim in His hands, and by trusting Him for the best possible outcome
for someone who committed suicide.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><strong>Do You Need Help</strong> <br />Got a problem with the paranormal or have a question you would like one of our authors to discuss? Fill out a </span><a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Blog%20Stuff/private_help_request.htm"><span style="font-size: small;">Confidential Help Request Form</span></a><span style="font-size: normal;"> and we will get back to you as soon as we can. . If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click</span><a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"><span style="font-size: normal;"> HERE</span></a><span style="font-size: normal;"> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><b>Comments:</b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: justify;">Inorder to stimulate conversations about this topic, the comments section is now open. If you have experiences, insights, or questions, then please leave a comment.</span>Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-90492324648879330922013-07-09T16:30:00.000-05:002015-10-13T20:30:25.255-05:00Dysfunctional Psychic SensitivitySupplement to Chapter 13 – Discussion of the Psychic Receptive Personality.<br />
<strong>Introduction:</strong><br />
<div align="left">
Hypersensitivity to the spirit universe is a natural phenomenon. It is no different than<br />
being naturally able to play music or create art. It is certainly an inherited trait and one that is basic to the character and functioning of personality. As such it will play a profound role in the formation of the sensitive's world view and general understanding of who he is at a deeply existential level.<br />
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
An individual has a number of dysfunctional choices that can be made to deal with hypersensitivity to the spirit universe. In this supplement I would like to expand on these unfortunate choices and then offer a functional and spiritually fulfilling option.</div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
<strong>Bury It.</strong></div>
<div align="left">
The symptoms of hypersensitivity to the spirit universe can be out and out bizarre. In fact, seeing, hearing or feeling spirits, being subject to negative and uncontrollable energies, and experiencing unexpected emotional reactions to objects can be both frightening and anxiety provoking. A lot of these experiences take place in childhood and can produce a constant state of fear that eventually results in the development of coping skills that suppress or bury the person’s hypersensitivity under a blanket of denial and rejection. <br />
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
The problem with this is that, like any other personality characteristic, if the individual tries to bury hypersensitivity to the spirit universe, then he buries it alive. Hypersensitivity can be suppressed but it can not be destroyed without destroying an important aspect of personality. In other words, a psychic frontal lobotomy is not the answer.<br />
<br />
One very predicable outcome that results from suppressing hypersensitivity is periodic and unpredictable outbreaks of the suppressed material. These outbreaks can vary from exterior but intense poltergeist like events to becoming overwhelmed by the flood of sensory information coming from the spirit universe. Often this deluge of information comes at times when the normal ego boundaries are down, such as during sleep, and results in disturbing dreams, visions, or psycho-motor responses that produce a negative aftermath such as depression, anxiety, and physical illness. Given enough of these outbreaks, the mental health of the hypersensitive is in jeopardy! Clearly, suppressing hypersensitivity is not the best solution.<br />
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
<strong>Control It</strong></div>
If suppressing hypersensitivity does not work, then many, perhaps the majority, of hypersensitives will attempt to learn techniques and methods to control it. They will plunge themselves into the mystical but very deceptive world of the occult. They will begin to train themselves in the meditative and occult methods that supposedly will enable them not only to control hypersensitivity but that promises to make them even more hypersensitive and powerful. There is certainly no lack of such techniques ( See chapter 11 of my book for a detailed explanation of these techniques) but they all depend on a process by which the hypersensitive mentally disassociates from his hypersensitivity to create what I call a Psychic Receptive Personality. <br />
<br />
Since all the methods used by the occult result in some level of disassociation, the hypersensitive will eventually develop a part of himself that is not in his immediate conscious control, a part of his personality that eventually functions independently from his primary personality. To some degree, but not to the same degree in everyone, the Psychic Receptive Personality is going to come into play in those practicing these occult techniques. <br />
<br />
The difficulty with all of this is that the Psychic Receptive Personality is unable to tell the difference between good and evil. It will function with any spirit from demons (Type D) to highly deceptive angels of light (Type AL). (See Chapter 8 of my book for a discussion of the types of spirits.) It may take years before the hypersensitive realizes that he or she is in a terrible bondage to spirits, but when that realization finally hits, it will take serious and long lasting spiritual warfare to get free of captivity and enslavement to spirits. Clearly, practicing occult methods and attempting to control hypersensitivity by disassociation leaves the hypersensitive in worse condition then ever before.<br />
<br />
<strong>The Christian Approach</strong><br />
A Hypersensitive can become a Christian just like anyone else because salvation is dependent upon faith in Jesus Christ and not psychic gifting. Because hypersensitivity is a natural ability, God can use it to His advantage. This means that Christianity offers a solution to the hypersensitive that is truly unique in the world. <br />
<br />
Instead of becoming involved in occult and spiritually negative methods to develop natural sensitivity, Christianity offers the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. This involves a direct contact with the Holy Spirit that empowers the believer to function in a supernatural manner. Natural hypersensitivity is expressed through the nine spiritual gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12. Those gifts govern how the hypersensitive will receive information from the spirit universe (i.e. the Word of Knowledge, the gift of Prophecy) and how the hypersensitive will deal with the powers of the spirit universe (i.e. the working of miracles, the gift of healing.)<br />
<br />
Unlike occult methods of development, the Baptism of the Holy Spirit holds no dangers or spiritual entrapment. It is dependent on submission to the will of God, and obedience to the directives of the Holy Spirit. Furthermore, the promises of personal power and egotism found in the occult are not present in the Christian approach. Instead, both humility and service to others is the primary basis for supernatural enablement.<br />
<br />
<strong>Do You Need Help</strong><br />
Got a problem with the paranormal or have a question you would like one of our authors to discuss? Fill out a <a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Blog%20Stuff/private_help_request.htm">Confidential Help Request Form</a> and we will get back to you as soon as we can. . If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"> HERE</a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-42299234119219256552013-04-23T15:44:00.000-05:002015-10-13T20:30:07.798-05:00Extreme Psychic Hypersensitivity–A Challenge and A Danger.<strong>Introduction:</strong><br />
One of the most common questions that I get from the people who read this blog is whether hypersensitivity<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
to the spirit universe is a blessing or a curse. The answer to that question is complex and depends on such factors as the degree of sensitivity and the spiritual maturity of the person involved. <br />
<br />
<strong>The Distribution</strong><br />
In my book, <em>The Spirit Universe: A Christian View</em>, I make the assumption that sensitivity to the spirit universe is distributed in the human population in much the same way as intelligence.<br />
<br />
Sensitivity to the spirit universe is on a normal distribution often charted as the figure above, that is, a bell-shaped curve. The right side of the curve represents those who are sensitive to the spirit universe. The part of the curve outlined in red represents those individuals who are extreme hypersensitives. In my book, I offer a general test for hypersensitivity and anyone scoring 100 to 150 in the survey test would be considered an extreme hypersensitive.<br />
Extreme hypersensitives are the people that most often ask whether their sensitivity is a curse. They do so because their overall experiences are so intense and frequent that they actually interfere in the conduct of life.<br />
There are a number of very dangerous reasons for this as I will outline below:<br />
<br />
<strong>Negative Energy</strong><br />
The majority of the spirit universe is filled with profoundly negative and harrowing images and energies. The extreme hypersensitive experiences these shadowy elements with a great intensity and inadvertently applies them to his life and mental stability. For example, while a less sensitive person may become aware that there is a depressed spirit in the room, the extreme hypersensitive will personally experience the suffering and emotional pain of the spirit and become depressed for days because of it.<br />
It is this uncontrolled and persistently caustic bombardment of painful, deprived, sadistic, and just evil impressions that will do irreparable damage when incorporated into the hypersensitive's mind and personality. Over time, if an extreme hypersensitive is repeatedly hit with negative spiritual energy, his mind and personality will begin to be shaped into the very image of the spiritual energy that has recurrently wounded him.<br />
<br />
<strong>Broken Boundaries</strong><br />
Our perception of the physical universe maintains some semblance of order because of the boundaries we place on our senses. Sound is restricted to hearing, and visual imagery is subject to sight. The extreme hypersensitive finds that these normal barriers and boundaries do not hold for the stimuli found within the spirit universe. His everyday life is intermingled with the exceptional perceptions of the spirit universe, and his emotional and mental states are equally polluted by the uncontrolled and confusing events from the spirit universe. In short, the extreme hypersensitive can lose his self-identity and sense of reality because he cannot successfully incorporate the often traumatic events within the spirit universe into his world view.<br />
<br />
<strong>Demonic Invasion</strong><br />
As if broken boundaries and an unending cascade of negative spiritual energy is not enough, the extreme hypersensitive is like a duck swimming on a pond during duck season with a sign around his neck that says, ” Shoot me first." The extreme hypersensitive attracts invading demons like dogs attract fleas.<br />
The general state of an extreme hypersensitive, having already been filled with negative energy that weakens ego boundaries, is fertile ground for a demonic spirit to attempt to take possession of the hypersensitive. All such efforts are accompanied by abnormal thinking, emotions and behaviors that may be diagnosed as a psychotic break or, at a minimum, the development of a neurosis accompanied by delusions. Suicidal thinking may occur when it seems that all of hell has made its home in the mind of an extreme hypersensitive.<br />
<br />
<strong>Hope?</strong><br />
Even extreme hypersensitivity can become a blessing under three basic conditions:<br />
<ul>
<li>The extreme hypersensitive must become strong spiritually and the way to do that is by establishing a relationship with someone stronger than the demons who attack him. That person is Jesus Christ and exclusively Jesus Christ.</li>
<li>Once strengthened by a relationship with Jesus, the extreme hypersensitive will have to become aware of the source of his psychic perceptions. That is, he will have to be able to tell if they are coming from himself or from sources outside of himself. It is one of the functions of the Holy Spirit to gift him with discernment and knowledge.</li>
<li>Finally, the extreme hypersenitive must learn about the Authority and Power he has through his relationship with Jesus in the spirit universe. By using that Authority and Power, he can prevent the impact of both negative impressions and demons.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Do You Need Help</strong></span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Got a problem with the paranormal or have a question you would like one of our authors to discuss? Fill out a </span><a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Blog%20Stuff/private_help_request.htm"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Confidential Help Request Form</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and we will get back to you as soon as we can. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click</span><a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> HERE</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-26348135458608575852013-03-11T14:40:00.000-05:002015-10-13T20:29:51.167-05:00No Place For Religious Intolerance<a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-j9qILXHUtDc/S4caBoM7hHI/AAAAAAAAAGk/4DCuVnJPDv4/w1131-h328-o-k/ByPJ.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Photo" border="0" height="37" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-j9qILXHUtDc/S4caBoM7hHI/AAAAAAAAAGk/4DCuVnJPDv4/w1131-h328-o-k/ByPJ.gif" width="95" /></a><strong>Introduction: </strong><br />
I recently have had the misfortune of watching what I thought was going to be an entertaining movie about the paranormal. I was not far into the movie when I realized that it was a thinly disguised mockery of a viewpoint that many Christians hold to be true about the spirit universe. Specifically, that all spirit activity is caused by demons. Now if you read my book, you will see that I think this particular belief is oversimplified and over generalized, but certainly must be respected and its assumptions evaluated in deliverance ministry. The real question here deals with the role (if any) of religious intolerance in the paranormal.<br />
<br />
<strong>What Is Tolerance?</strong><br />
Tolerance is often confused with other religious or philosophic issues, which really do not apply or that add to its meaning. In modern humanistic society, to tolerate something is to agree that it is correct or truthful. So for many, tolerance simply means that one must capitulate truth or one must not strongly disagree with or disapprove of another’s beliefs or practices. In this definition, anyone who holds to the idea of an absolute truth, or who evaluates and expresses value judgments based on concepts such as right or wrong, is considered to be intolerant.<br />
<br />
In modern society, tolerance is also confused with respect. That is, to be tolerant is to respect another. Actually, the two attitudes are substantially different. I can disrespect people I tolerate, or I can refuse to tolerate the behavior of people I do respect.<br />
<br />
Because of this kind of confusion in the definition and understanding of tolerance and intolerance, Christians are often accused of being intolerant because they reject other gods and stand for the truth of Christ.<br />
<br />
<strong>Biblical Tolerance </strong><br />
To get a better idea of what Christian tolerance is all about, we can look to the Book of Romans (ESV) starting with the 14th chapter:<br />
<em><span class="chapter-num"><sup>1</sup> </span>As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. <span class="verse-num" id="v45014002-1"><sup>2</sup> </span>One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. <span class="verse-num" id="v45014003-1"><sup>3 </sup></span>Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. <span class="verse-num" id="v45014004-1"><sup>4</sup> </span>Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
<br />
<div class="bibleverse">
<div id="p45014005.01-1">
<em><span class="verse-num" id="v45014005-1"><sup>5</sup> </span>One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.<sup> <span class="verse-num" id="v45014006-1">6</span></sup><span class="verse-num" id="v45014006-1"> </span>The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. <span class="verse-num" id="v45014007-1"><sup>7</sup> </span>For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. <span class="verse-num" id="v45014008-1"><sup>8</sup> </span>For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. <span class="verse-num" id="v45014009-1"><sup>9</sup> </span>For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.</em></div>
<div id="p45014005.01-1">
<em><br /></em></div>
<div id="p45014010.01-1">
<em><span class="verse-num" id="v45014010-1"><sup>10</sup> </span>Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; <span class="verse-num" id="v45014011-1"><sup>11</sup> </span>for it is written,</em></div>
<div class="block-indent">
<div class="line-group" id="p45014011.05-1">
<em>“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, <br /><span class="indent"></span>and every tongue shall confess to God.”</em></div>
<div class="line-group" id="p45014011.05-1">
<em><br /></em></div>
</div>
<div class="same-paragraph" id="p45014012.01-1">
<em><span class="verse-num" id="v45014012-1"><sup>12</sup> </span>So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. <sup>1<span class="verse-num" id="v45014013-1">3</span></sup><span class="verse-num" id="v45014013-1"> </span>Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. <span class="verse-num" id="v45014014-1"><sup>14</sup> </span>I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. <span class="verse-num" id="v45014015-1"><sup>15</sup> </span>For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died.</em></div>
<div class="same-paragraph" id="p45014012.01-1">
<em><br /></em></div>
</div>
In this Scripture portion, Paul gives us some really important principles concerning tolerance and intolerance. First, Paul never says that the truth of an issue must be ignored or that conflict will not take place as we discuss the differences in opinion that folk hold about the truth. In other words, Paul does not tell us to abdicate speaking the “truth in love” just to placate the emotions of another person who disagrees with us. Nor does Paul suggest that we shilly-shally around discussions about issues important to us.<br />
<br />
Secondly, what Paul does recommend is that we attack the issues and not the people who hold a differing opinion. Nor should we purposely offend someone just because we can do so by mocking their beliefs or practices. Paul attitudinally defines intolerance as both holding people in contempt for what they believe and mocking or ridiculing their practices. Once these attitudes have matured the door is open to behavioral intolerance. Behavioral intolerance takes place when people who hold a differing opinion are forced to adopt a belief system contrary to what they hold to be true. Often intolerance results in punishment, or even death for those who remain true to their own opinion.<br />
<br />
Thirdly, Paul indicates that tolerance is void of judgment because God is the only true judge. Instead, he suggests that we give grace to those in disagreement, and try to understand their position by developing empathy for them as people who need the love of God. To become intolerant is to reject love, and none of us can afford to be without love, regardless of what we believe.<br />
<br />
<strong>In the Paranormal</strong><br />
By virtue of the topic of study, the paranormal should be wide open to discussion and debate of all types. As a Christian, I have no fear that my faith or my Biblical knowledge of the spirit universe will be found lacking in any way, but I also know that because I stand for the truth of Christ I will be accused of being intolerant.<br />
<br />
Yet, some of the most intolerant people I have ever come into contact with are those accusing me of being intolerant because I strongly disagree with their interpretation of the spirit universe. Often they mock and degrade my beliefs somehow thinking that they have to right to do so because they think that I am the intolerant one.<br />
<br />
Anyone who joins either a paranormal investigation team or deliverance ministry should closely examine their level of tolerance and follow the advice of Paul. Speak the truth but do so in the love of Christ for those who need him.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Do You Need Help</strong><br />
Got a problem with the paranormal or have a question you would like one of our authors to discuss? Fill out a <a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Blog%20Stuff/private_help_request.htm">Confidential Help Request Form</a> and we will get back to you as soon as we can.. If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"> HERE</a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3365503744345118389.post-77322636321142521842013-02-04T21:23:00.000-06:002015-10-13T20:29:40.227-05:00Spirit Universe Supplement 4– Visitors in Heaven.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;">
I was recently watching a television program in which two people, having clinically died, went to a place in the spirit universe that they thought was heaven. Once in heaven they were contacted by a spirit being of great beauty who allowed them to experience his love for them. When they returned to the living, they were deeply impressed by this “unconditional love” and were more or less implying that everyone is going to heaven because God loves everyone without condition! This message flies in the face of the Christian faith which requires a commitment and relationship with Jesus Christ in order to abide in heaven with God the Father. How can this difference be understood? Is it possible to visit heaven even if you are not a believer in Jesus Christ, or if you are a believer in a totally different religion?</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Introduction</strong><br />
<br />
<strong>The Structure of Heaven</strong><br />
In chapter 12 of my book, I discuss heaven and base my understanding of heaven’s structure on the earthly structure of the tabernacle of David and of the Temple of Solomon. The book of Hebrews clearly tells us that both these places of worship were reflections of the way heaven is structured (Hebrews 9). Without going into the detail covered in chapter 12, part of the structure of the temple was an outer court that was open to visitors to the temple. These visitors did not have to be Hebrews, and some certainly believed in other gods and had their own pagan temples in which they worshiped their god. While visiting the temple in Israel, they could experience some of the meaning of Judaism and perhaps even have an experience with the holiness of God, but they were not allowed to enter either the inner court or the Holy of Holies. They could visit but not abide. They could experience the fringes of God’s presence but not come into a deeper relationship with Him.<br />
<br />
So it is with those who visit heaven! They can visit the outer courts, and since they are having a spiritual experience, they can directly and intensely sense the presence of God, but they cannot get any closer to Him because they are not in relationship with Him. They can visit the outer courts of heaven but cannot enter the inner court because they do not belong to Him, and they cannot enter an intimate relationship with Him because they have not walked the path that He set forth for those who want intimacy with Him – the path of Jesus Christ, who is the "way" to intimacy with God.<br />
<br />
<strong>God’s Unconditional Love</strong><br />
It always amazes me when people have a supernatural experience with God and are shocked that His love is both comprehensive and profound. I think this is because of the common misconception that God is some angry judge ready to punish them at the slightest violation of His will.<br />
The Biblical perspective of God is radically different. The Old Testament portrays Him as a God of righteousness and stern judgment, but the New Testament clearly says that “God is love” (1 John 4:18). The New Testament also declares that God has an almost indescribable love for everyone, regardless of their sin, or even if they have rejected Him and are in a miserable spiritual condition (John 3:16).<br />
<br />
<strong>Love does not equal Intimacy</strong><br />
If you do not believe in Jesus Christ and have an after death visit to the outer court of heaven, you will experience the soul shaking love of God for you. That is because God does love you without condition, nor does your spiritual state in any way diminish His love for you. <br />
What many who have had this experience do not understand is that God’s love for them does not mean they have a relationship with Him, or will spend eternity with Him. If God is just and righteous, then the condition of their spirit cannot be ignored, and God will not fellowship with or become intimate with sin even though He deeply loves the sinner. The problem has nothing to do with God placing conditions upon His love, but has everything to do with the person’s inability to love God because of the deteriorated condition of his spirit.<br />
<br />
Take a look at this Scripture:<br />
<sup>16</sup><em>For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life</em>.<br />
<br />
This Scripture has two messages. The first message is that God loves the world and everyone in it. There are no conditions mentioned that restrict His love. The second message describes the path to follow in order to enter into an intimate relationship with God and to have this intimacy for all eternity. You must believe and accept the work of Christ in your life, and then walk with him till you reach the end of your physical journey.<br />
Coming to Christ changes your spirit to the extent that when you die, you will enter the Holy of Holies, the inner sanctuary of God’s love. You will be able to feel fully the love of God, but most importantly you will be able to experience totally your mutual love. That is why, having eternal life means knowing Jesus. Eternal life is having the full Godhead dwell within, and experiencing all the love of God that you can receive from Him and all the love you can give to Him.<br />
<br />
<strong>The Visitor</strong><br />
I believe that God allows people to visit the outer court of heaven for several reasons. First, I think that He wants the visitor to experience His presence so that the visitor knows God does exist. Second, I believe that the visitor experiences the unconditional love of God so that the visitor becomes motivated to find the way back to that love. It is the first step toward God consciousness. Finally, I believe that the experience of a loving God will illuminate the sad condition of the human spirit who has the weight of sin to bear. The self-recognition produced by the visit to heaven can cause a desperate need to change, to find a way to be free from the destruction produced by sin.<br />
<br />
<strong>Do You Need Help</strong><br />
Got a problem with the paranormal or have a question you would like one of our authors to discuss? Fill out a <a href="http://www.abundantlifewin.org/Blog%20Stuff/private_help_request.htm">Confidential Help Request Form</a> and we will get back to you as soon as we can.. If you have not made a commitment to Jesus and you would like to do so now, then click<a href="http://christ-spiritpower.blogspot.com/p/become-christian.html"> HERE</a> to go to a page that will show you how to become a follower of Jesus Christ.Pastor Jerry Jochemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17892401432304505748noreply@blogger.com