Law of Attraction or Faith?

Jesus warned that the defining issue of the end times would be unprecedented deception. And then he revealed a most disturbing thing. This deception will be widely proclaimed by professing Christians. (Mt 24:3-5) “For many shall come in my name, saying , I am Christ; and shall deceive many.” Who are the “many” who profess Jesus is the Christ and patronize his name? Jesus mentions false messiahs and false prophets later in the passage, but here he is warning that many in the church will be deceived by ministers!

Should this surprise us? Weren't those who represented the authentic legitimate “church” the very ones who crucified Jesus? Since the Garden, Satan's strategy has been to use God's word to deceive us. The most diabolical end time delusions will be found in the church.

A cunning deception has infiltrated the church regarding faith. It is the Law of Attraction popularized by the sensational book and movie “The Secret,” which states that my thoughts and words determine what I attract to my life. Many in the word of faith-prosperity movement and the liberal church have failed to discern that their rendition of this ancient law is not the equivalent of New Testament faith, but is actually a fraudulent imitation.

The Law of Attraction is a valid Biblical concept, but its application is often radically contrary to scripture. The thoughts and intents of the heart are vital to Jesus' faith message of speaking and not doubting. “For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.” (Mk 11:23)

The Bible also tells us that the battlefield for the soul is our private thoughts, and if we are double minded we will receive (attract) nothing. (Jas 1:8) This truth is so powerful that you can be literally “transformed by the renewing of your mind.” (Rom 12:2) Our salvation is initiated by believing in the heart and confessing with the mouth. (Rom 10:10) We are commanded to think on things that are lovely, pure and honest, and for those few who strenuously practice it, the results are liberating. We are also reminded that “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” (Prov 18:21) That's not poetic license, but it's an unveiling of the amazing power of intentional thoughts and words.

However, the seduction of the Law of Attraction is its potential to function without God, even in a Christian context. We see this at the Tower of Babel where man's unified purpose, language and self confidence prompted God to make this astonishing observation: “Nothing shall be restrained from them which they have imagined to do.” (Gen 11:16) This stunning potential of focused imagination is an innate God given ability, that can operate regardless of God's sanction.

But, we must understand that the power released via the Law of Attraction does not originate in man, it has a supernatural source. “Neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.” (1 Cor 3:6,7) We have latent untapped abilities, but this verse reveals that we are not a source of anything genuinely creative. Only God can give valid increase. The only alternative is bewitching demonic power. We can bless or curse with our tongue, but some supernatural entity must enforce it.

Without God we can freely imagine and initiate, but we cannot truly create. Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing. (Jn 5:19) If Jesus in his humanity was not an originator of true creativity, why do we think we are? However, we are invited to participate in God's creativity, a delightful privilege unique to humans.

The problem is this: If we are merely transmitters of power, what was the source of power for those gathered at the Tower of Babel when God declared their remarkable potential? Can we invoke and tempt God to submit to human initiative? Absolutely not. Being created in God's image is vastly different than thinking we are miniature gods incarnate. To flippantly and pompously declare that you can “call those things that be not as though they were,” is to open yourself to deceptive powers. (Rom 4:17) To “sow your seed” based on faith principles rather than personal communion, is presumption that leads to tragedy.

 
We are not autonomous beings, we are intrinsically dependent. “Do you not know, that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants you are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” (Rom 6:16) That is also a Law. You were designed to yield to (serve) a loving God. Human self determination and independence is an illusion. “You are not your own; you were bought with a price.” (1 Cor 6:19) Anyone not submitted to Jesus Christ is by default a legal slave of Satan.

The Law of Attraction is an attribute of quantum physics which is merely a distorted glimpse into the mechanics of the spiritual realm, and promotes the false notion that you can create your own reality apart from Jesus Christ who alone IS Truth. It's blind presumption to assume that all reality is unified, and therefore all spiritual powers represent God

Everything in our lives can be reduced to two incompatible realities: Life or death, light or darkness, truth or deception, heaven or hell. Consequently, there are two sources of thoughts in the universe, through which the Law of Attraction can operate. There is the wisdom from above and the wisdom from below, the Holy Spirit or the demonic. (Jas 3:15)

The wisdom from above can only be acquired by self-denial and humility, and it produces godliness and abundant life. The wisdom from below seems right and appeals to my flesh, but it leads to self glory and death. The question is this: Are the motives and counsels of your heart fleshly and demonic, or are they derived from the Holy Spirit who is Wisdom?

Even though all humans have a natural capacity for faith, the Bible says that not everyone actually has faith. (2 Thes 3:2) This is a vital distinction that many fail to grasp. Trusting and believing are fundamental qualities of human nature. However, neither trusting nor believing is faith, they are actions. Faith is a noun, not some capricious leap in the dark initiated by our imagination.

The reason that not all have faith is that it's a divine virtue alien to corrupt flesh, and therefore must be imparted, because “in my flesh, dwells no good thing.” (Rom 7:18) The Bible describes faith as “substance” and “evidence.”(Heb 11:1) Faith has actual existence that transcends our three dimensional world. There is nothing comparable to faith. The Bible calls it a fruit of the Holy Spirit and a gift that is found only in Jesus Christ. (1 Tim 1:14; Gal 5:22; Eph 2:8) Believing is our mental response to faith. Trusting is our emotional response to faith. Without this divine gift of faith, my believing and trusting will automatically revert to some futile false security.

Our goal is to be so radically integrated with Christ that “The life I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God.” (Gal 2:20) That is the true definition of normal life on planet earth. That is why we are told that “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” Because without faith we are detached from God. Pleasing God is not a behaviour issue, it's being connected to God so we can experience his love. That is what delights Him.

“Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” This “hearing” of a word from God is what distinguishes Biblical faith from the New Age law of attraction. The Bible emphasizes the term “the hearing of faith” to highlight the vital connection between faith and hearing. (Gal 3:3, 5) When God quickens the written word to you, or speaks directly to your spirit, faith accompanies that word. That is the wisdom from above that has power to transform lives and produce Godly works. Abraham, the Father of Faith, did not conjure up faith, God spoke to him and faith was supplied.

Faith is not indoctrination, principles or patterns. The Bible implies that such techniques are witchcraft. (Gal 3:1) Faith is a fruit of communion with Jesus Christ, and when He speaks to you supernatural faith is imparted. We don't require a “word” for every little thing in our lives. Love does not micro-manage. But, God yearns for your heart to intimately unite with him in love. Therefore he aches to speak to you more often than you may assume. The problem is our hearing. “Take heed therefore how you hear.”

The truth is, we are to be progressively led by the Spirit of God and live by every word that proceeds from his mouth. “How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand.” If God's thoughts toward you are that vast, don't you think He wants to communicate them?

“The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” (1 Tim 1:14) Faith and love mutually flow from Jesus, and accordingly “faith works by love.” (Gal 5:6) Therefore, the Bible warns “If I have all faith so that I can move mountains, and have not love, I am nothing.” If you just “cast your faith out there” for selfish egotistical gain, the Bible says you are “nothing.” Christians who abuse faith are more accountable than a unbeliever using the Law of Attraction in ignorance.

The deadly fascination of the Law of Attraction is its essential selfishness, which is also the leaven in the American gospel. Self-adsorption is apparently not new in the church. Paul lamented of early Christians, “All seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's.” According to Jesus, believers can quote the Word, apply faith principles, and achieve results, yet to their horror discover later that it was all vanity and vexation, because it was self motivated. If my ministry is motivated by my flesh, I may get results, but God will eventually declare me a “worker of iniquity.”(Mat 7:23) Does the Holy Spirit initiate and orchestrate your ministry, or is it merely your God-displeasing flesh veiled in Christian power words and false humility?

The humanistic Law of Attraction is a common denominator in the prolific world of “self-help” techniques that have infiltrated the church. But self-help is contradictory to the Gospel, because it glorifies man and enslaves rather then liberates. “See to it, then, that no one enslaves you by means of the worthless deceit of human wisdom, which comes from the teachings handed down by human beings and from the ruling spirits of the universe, and not from Christ.” (Col 2:8)

 
Yes, we have creative gifts that we can employ of our own volition, but without engaging God's presence, our works will be hollow and eternally worthless. “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. . . Each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is.” (1 Cor 3)

Copyright 2010 by Hayden Humphrey

Overcoming Compulsive Sins

The American gospel lures us into presumption and self gratification. “I am rich and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.” It's a “Christian” masquerade concealing the deceit and wickedness common to all hearts. But God would not have it so. He “desires truth in the inward parts” and defines us, not just by our actions, but by our innermost thoughts. (Prov 23:7) Holiness is not merely a theological position, it is the transformation of our entire character into Christ's image. Therefore, we are commanded to “Cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2 Cor 7:1)

You can fool others and even yourself, but inexorably your secret sins will be exposed. “Some men's sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they follow after.” (1 Tim 5:24) What we entertain in our hearts will inevitably betray our religious persona. The Lord “will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts.”

THE FEAR FACTOR
“The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life,” is the unholy trinity that breeds all compulsive sins, and the American gospel accommodates it. Sin poisons the soul, quenches love, hinders prayer, and ultimately destroys. To presume that “grace” will endlessly tolerate and nullify your conscious sins is arrogance. Compulsive sins jeopardize your salvation. (Jn 15:6; 1Cor 9:27) “When lust has conceived, it brings forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, brings forth death.” That's a warning to believers!

God is not mocked. What we sow we shall reap, and heedless sowing of sin can send a Christian to hell. Jesus’ basic new covenant teachings provide very specific warnings about persistent sinning. They are remarkably clear and disturbing. Jesus warned that if you don’t deal with your anger, you are “in danger of hell fire.” John also warned: “If you hate your brother, you are a murderer,” and will go to hell.(1 Jn 3:15) Refusal to forgive excludes a Christian from heaven. Failure to deal harshly with pornographic thoughts places you at risk of being “cast in to hell,” a warning you’re unlikely to hear at the next men’s breakfast. (Mt 5:29) Selfish love, offending a child, denying the Lord, and a cold heart, are all mentioned by Jesus as paths to hell for unrepentant believers.

Repentance is to turn away from sin. All Christian doctrine is built on a “foundation of repentance.” (Heb 6:1) There is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, not merely believes.(Lk 15:7,10) Jesus began his ministry with a universal call to repentance. “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” He did not mention believing, loving or receiving blessings. The great commission of the church is to preach “Repentance and remission of sins...” (Lk 24:47) Without this foundation of repentance, Christ's victory will elude you.

“Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men...” Persuade men to do what? Repent. Satan's most effective scheme is to ridicule the terror of God, and to minimize the consequences of sin. But without the fear of God you will never get free from besetting sins, because “The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death,” by repentance. (Prov 14:27)

THE MANDATE
Every serious Christian struggles with sin, and divine wisdom allows it. Solomon concluded that “This sore travail has God given to the sons of man to be exercised (humbled) therewith.” (Ecc 1:13) There is a profound eternal purpose in overcoming sin in our life. The very first mention of sin is that it “is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” This is a divine mandate for all humans. Notice the responsibility is on us. God has done his part. He provided salvation before creation. (Rev 13:8) Our obligation is to enter into it. Jesus said the way is narrow, the opposition is great, and “The kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.” (Mt 11:12; Lk 16:16) That speaks to the innate power of the human will. But our resolve and perseverance have been sedated by a passive, undisciplined and materialistic culture, yearning for the quick fix. However, neither laying on of hands, casting out a demon nor visitation will deliver you from your personal responsibility.

It is true that God's grace is required to overcome compulsive sins, and we are not made perfect by the flesh (Gal 3:3) It is also true that believing is the key to appropriating this amazing grace. Nevertheless, the role of human will power is also vital, and it is sadly misunderstood. Grace and free will are not mutually exclusive, they are mutually dependent. False doctrines offer the illusion of self-sufficiency which merely patronizes grace, or super spirituality which results in passivity and fatalism.

FREE WILL
God gave us free will and he expects us to use it to the utmost! Nevertheless, if I focus on conquering sin by sheer will power alone, I will run into a wall. I discover that I am a prisoner “to the law of sin which is in my flesh.” (Rom 7:23) It is a law, and it subjugates my good intentions. Once I realize my wretched inadequacy, I look to Jesus to solve my problem. But when he doesn't deliver the way I anticipate, I become confused and discouraged.

There is confusion over the function of free will versus faith. Moral free will is so self-evident in scripture that only gross spiritual blindness could fail to recognize it. The New Testament consistently commands us to simply exercise free will against sin, using terms like “stop,” “put away,” “set aside” and “put off.” When we are told to “throw off . . the sin that so easily entangles us,” it's reinforced by this stunning analogy: “In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” (Heb 12:1,4) I find that incredible and daunting! And the passage ends with this austere charge: “Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.” This strict and extreme emphasis on free will is alien to our culture, but it is imperative for overcoming sin.

Paul reduces this “free will issue” to one sentence: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” (Phil 2:12-13) It is clear. We are each personally responsible for our eternal destiny. Why else would “fear and trembling” be mentioned? You cannot rely on predestination or the belief that you are exceptional. You can only yield to God working in you, and his target is your motivation “to will and to do.” God will not usurp or replace your free will, but he is working to liberate it for its created purpose, which is to LOVE!

GOD'S PART
But just how does God work in us “to will and to do?” He allows discomfort, hardship and failure to bring us to the end of our self sufficiency. This is an unpopular concept but it is foundational. “For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives. . .God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. It produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Heb 12) The Greek definition for “chasten” is to “afflict with evil and calamities.” God's chastening and scourging leaves my will intact, but it is no longer selfish and prideful. A broken and contrite heart can choose love over sin because it has been enlightened through suffering, like the prodigal son who “came to his senses” because of the stench of his sins. Sin deceives us and only suffering can bring us into our right mind. “He who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin.” (1 Pet 4:1)

Even Jesus, “learned obedience by the things which He suffered,” (Heb 5:8) and it produced the surprising admission that “I can of Myself do nothing.” His will was not destroyed but transformed and focused with such intensity that He sweat blood while resisting sin.

Chastisement is not to punish us but to humble us. The only way to conquer ruthless unyielding sin is by a process of humiliation. That's how God delivered Israel from the lust of the world. Apparently there was no easier way. “He humbled you, allowed you to hunger . . . that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. . . To humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you. (Deut 8)

Like Israel, it's natural to resist God's discipline and complain, but it is also ignorance. If we could discern God in our humiliation we would embrace Him, giving thanks in and for all things. That may sound idealistic and pious but it is Biblical and required for freedom. Jesus said, “My power is made perfect in weakness." Paul responded, “That is why I delight in weaknesses . . . For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Cor 12:9-10) The illusion of self sufficiency is shattered by our humiliating failures, and in utter desperation, we yield to God.

If you are a serious Christian, do you really believe “that all things work together for good” in your life . . or not? “Well, No I hate my life and I'm a failure.” My heart condemns me, I live in despair, and my failures scream, 'You cannot repent, you love your sin and you're addicted!” No, the truth is that you are deceived by pride which keeps you from the power of grace. "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." (Jas 4:6; 1 Pet 5:5)

“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” (1 Cor 10:13) This verse reveals that your bondage is not unique or incurable, but it is common. No one has a valid excuse for conscious sin. God always provides a way out. To complain that you cannot get free from addictive behavior is a lie that keeps you in bondage!

Notice, God does not remove the temptation, he provides a way to endure it. Temptation is not sin, only when we mentally embrace the temptation is sin conceived. (Jas 1:15) The way out is God's presence! If we have been trained by chastisement to truly hate the sin, we will choose to turn to the Lord the moment temptation presents itself.

FAITH and LOVE
“Let us lay aside . . . the sin which so easily ensnares us . . . looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.” (Heb 12) Jesus opened the prison door but most inmates remain passively in their cell of unbelief and misery, unaware that they are free to simply walk out. Jesus is that door, and “looking unto Jesus” immediately transports us to freedom! Remember, you cannot conquer sin in the flesh, it is a law, but you always have the ability to turn to God by faith. Simply by a quick inward change of focus we discover that He is there waiting, and when we choose to “look,” immediately grace is imparted to endure the temptation.

The fear of God drives us into God's merciful arms, but only supernatural love can vanquish sin, because love, and only love, transcends sin. All sin is self-centered or anti-love, therefore, all God's commandments are epitomized by love. Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” If we keep falling into sin, hurting others and grieving God, it is because love is still in its infancy. Thankfully, Jesus is author and finisher, not only of our faith, but also our love.

MERCY and GRACE
“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb 4:16) Notice, mercy precedes grace. Christians have the astounding privilege of boldly approaching God “in time of need.” And when do we need Him most? When we sin, and guilt, condemnation and despair haunt us, and we are desperate for MERCY! Paul, after struggling with celibacy, said that he “had obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful,” (1 Cor 7:25) Not power, not faith, not even love, but mercy was obtained. God's long suffering mercy is the goodness that leads us to repentance. Begging for mercy is humbling, but it reveals God's love and releases grace to overpower sin.

When Paul was under God's humbling, he was told “My grace is sufficient for you.” (2 Cor 12) Grace doesn't overwhelm us, it's merely sufficient. It is often barely perceptible and it is easily extinguished, because our corrupt bodies deaden our spiritual senses. Nevertheless, grace is evident and discernible to your inner man, and “where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” Sin may stalk and entice you, but the truth is “Sin shall not have dominion over you: for you are not under the law, but under grace.”

WALKING IN THE SPIRIT
This entire subject of overcoming compulsive sin can be reduced to walking in the Spirit. “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” (Gal 5:16) The lust of the flesh is not annihilated, but it is repressed by grace. Walking in the spirit is a deliberate choice to defer to the Holy Spirit in us, and deny our flesh. That is the only way God is glorified through us. To deny self and take up your cross daily, is the essence of the Christian life. Every time you deny yourself for Jesus' sake, power is released. And self denial begins with your thoughts. Aligning your thoughts with God's exclusive thoughts for you, is believing. But it is more than a mental exercise. Jesus won the victory in the Garden when he struggled to align his whole heart with the Father, accepting His will.

Believing requires casting the care of all your emotional and physical welfare upon God in trust. This deep literal TRUST in God's Word is what overcomes the world. “Anything which comes from God is able to overcome the world: and the power by which we have overcome the world is our faith.” (trust) Remember, Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before him, an anticipation birthed from his love for humanity. Sin cannot endure love!

Jesus' temptation in the garden of Gethsemane was that same ancient universal mandate: “Sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” Sin was enticing Jesus to avoid the cross, and thankfully he choose the cross over sin, and so must we. We have been given a reprieve and second chance through a miraculous re-birth. We can now face sin the same way Jesus did.

“Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.” (Jas 1:12)

Copyright 2009 by Hayden Humphrey