CHOICES MADE BY THE IMAGINATION
DELUSIONS OF A VISIONARY IN THE NEGATIVE?
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr.
I. SPIRITUAL THINGS ARE NOT ALWAYS LOGICAL?
A. THE BLIND MAN WAS TOLD TO GO WASH IN A POOL OF WATER
SOME DISTANCE AWAY?
WHY NOT HAVE SOMEONE BRING HIM THE WATER?
B. NAAMAN DIPS 7 TIMES? WHY NOT 5?
C. SPIRITUAL DISTORTIONS CAN HURT?
Numbers 11:5 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick:
II. WHY? WHY? TELL ME WHY?
A. The soldier asked the Drill Sergeant?
B. The school teacher and the student? WHY is 2+2=4?
C. WHY IS THE TREE IN THE GARDEN?
I think God clearly stated the tree’s purpose. The tree was a test?
Genesis 2:15 And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
III. WE CAN TEND TO FAIL IN OUR VISION WITH A SENSE OF THE BIGGER PICTURE? HOW CAN WE MAKE THE WRONG CHOICES?
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not
eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said,
Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. 8 And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the
trees of the garden. 9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
13 And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
IV. WHEN WE FACE DIFFICULTIES AND PROBLEMS SOMETIMES WE LEARN THE BEAUTY OF RELYING ON EXCUSES.
A. There is no record of Adam and Eve being sorry and repenting?
Why excuse self instead of repenting?
B. We can find offering excuses to be a cheap way out.
Proverbs 22:13 The slothful man saith, There is a lion without, I shall be slain in the streets.
C. This man lived in Jerusalem, there were no lions in the streets.
D. This man learned to offer imaginary excuses as acceptable.
E. THE LADY AND THE BUG!
I once was visiting a lady, she was having problems with mental confusion.
Her health care person and I sat at the kitchen table with her. She started screaming there was a big bug in the middle of the table.
I asked where? She showed me! I killed the imaginary bug?
She started screaming, a million imaginary baby bugs came running out of the crushed imaginary bug.
Note: it was real to her.
F. Do we face imaginary or enlarged problems?
V. IMPERFECT PRACTICE MAKES LEARNING HARDER.
A. IT IS VERY HARD TO UNLEARN THE FALSE, AND RETEACH THE TRUTH
B. TEST
C. LESSONS
D. RETEST
E. CORRECT
VI. LET US DEFINE SEVERAL WORDS:
A. IMAGINARY:
Just in the mind.
Existing only in fiction
Lacking factual meaning
Not real, unbelievable
Impractical not capable of reality
Psychological rather than physical origin
B. We are not talking about hallucination, just not accepting the moment in the reality of the situation. WORRY ENLARGES THE PROBLEM.
C. DISTORTION:
TO TWIST OUT OF THE TRUE MEANING OR PROPORTION.
To twist out the normal natural condition.
To perceive unnaturally and logical.
Contort, to represent falsely --- to pervert
VII. WHEN YOUR BOAT APPEARS TO BE SINKING IT IS EASY TO ALLOW YOUR IMAGINATION TO RUN WILD.
Mark 4:38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
VIII. WHEN YOUR ARE TIRED? WHEN YOU THINK YOU STYLE OF MINISTRY IS BETTER?
WHEN YOU PUT OTHER PEOPLE DOWN? YOU WILL DISTORT REALITY.
Luke 10:40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her
therefore that she help me.
Isaiah 66:4 I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.
IX. CHRONIC SICKNESS AND CHRONIC DEPRESSION TENDS TO USHER DELUSIONS IN THE MIND?
UNREALISTIC GOALS AND GREAT CHANGE PUT PRESSURE ON INDIVIDUALS!
A. PARANORNIA:
Delusions of persecutions/grandeur
Away from the mainstream
Suspiciousness
Distrustfulness
B. SCHIZOPHRENIA:
Withdrawal
Separation of thinking/emotions
X. WE GROW BEHAVIORIAL AND SPIRITUAL DETERIORATION?
A. Deterioration is so slow and gradual we often don’t notice it.
B. IS IT POSSIBLE TO GROW IMAGINARY PROBLEMS ?
C. WE TRY TO GET AS GOOD AS OTHER PEOPLE ---
PLAYING WITH ---
EMOTIONS
CHURCH
TRUTH
2 Thes. 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 12 that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
XI. THE CHOICE OF DELUSION?
A. LOT LIFTED HIS EYES TO THE WELL WATERED PLAINS ---
B. JOSPEPH’S BROTHERS HATED HIM, YET HE WAS NOT THEIR ENEMY?
C. ACHAN SAW GOODLY GARMENTS, AND NEVER GOT TO WEAR THEM.
D. SAUL SAID, YES I OBEYED THE VOICE OF THE LORD. WHEN HE HAD NOT.
Hebrews 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do
it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
E. Let us not hide behind excuses and whitewash our problems.
God help us not justify our problems but look for Godly solutions.
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
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