Chapter 1
Paradigm
Although many have read the forgoing eight books on the subject the LINE which is the conscience, it still takes lots of meditation on the new found knowledge to cause the paradigm shift we have need of to lead successful lives in Christ.
The word ‘paradigm’ comes from the Greek. It was originally a scientific term, and is more commonly used today to mean ‘a model, theory, perception, assumption, or frame of reference’. In the more general sense, it’s the way we “see” the world; not in terms of our visual sense of sight, but in terms of perceiving, understanding, and interpreting.
Because we are created as the old creation and have to grow into being the new creation it is necessary that our frame of reference of the past life, out of Christ, be renewed.
Except for the Ten Commandments that are written on our hearts we have no other frame of reference when born into the earth. Everything we are today is because of the way we were taught. Some of this teaching goes on without the help of others. When you burnt your hand for the first time, that knowledge went in to the bank of knowledge of things you must not do, automatically. This is for self preservation. To be prepared for the ordeals of life however is another matter. The instructions we receive from teachers will form our frame of reference. This may or may not be correct for they might not have been taught correctly no matter how pure their intention.
The fundamentals of success are things like integrity, humility, fidelity, temperance, courage, justice, patience, industry, simplicity and modesty.
In a materialistic society the above is discarded for the empty wasteland of self. Self-denial is not in their vocabulary except if it is to exalt self.
The Christian walk should be as 1 Peter describes, in my own words; If you are a slave and are treated unjustly, and you bear this ill treatment with patience for the sake of your conscience then God is pleased with you.
J.F.B. on patience: “Endurance. “The word of My endurance” is My Gospel word, which teaches patient endurance in expectation of my coming (Rev 1:9). My endurance is the endurance which I require, and which I practice. Christ Himself now endures, patiently waiting until the usurper be cast out, and all “His enemies be made His footstool.” So, too, His Church, for the joy before her of sharing His coming kingdom, endures patiently. Hence, in Rev 3:11, follows, “Behold, I come quickly.””
As we read and are led by the Holy Spirit to understand the word of God these preformed paradigms will be changed if we are willing to be patient. Forming, this time a solid foundation from which to move in faith in all areas of our lives with great God given authority. The power of the transformed mind being under His control, as we learn to die to our will and except His will. We are to become His Kingdom His power His glory.
Rom 12:2: “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
This renewing of the mind goes on continually if we are willing to have the mind dealt with. In a Christian’s case we are striving to have the mind of Christ. All of this has been explained many times in the previous books.
This book is aimed at cementing the new found knowledge onto the knowledge of the rock of ages through bringing about a paradigm shift that will annihilate the previous old creation thinking.
Ps 51:10: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” (spirit right— literally, “constant,” “firm,” not yielding to temptation.)
Ps 66:18: “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:”
Ps 69:32: “The humble shall see this, and be glad: and your heart shall live that seek God.”
Ps 112:7: “He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD.”
Ps 119:10: “With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments.”
The Ten Commandments are written in Exodus 20. We received the knowledge of the commandments written in our hearts very much the same way Mosses received the original laws written on stone. By the observance of these original laws the heart would be strong and impregnable as a fortress on the rock. Moses is said to be an educated and humble man who breaks the commandments at the sight of the people worshiping an idol. By this act we see that he lost control and places the idol of self back on his own throne. He took it personally. Going back to God he wanted another set of laws for he had broken the first in a fit of rage. This time however he had to carve them by hand, a slow painstaking process. In this same way these laws have to be re-chiseled into our hearts as we seek the Kingdom of God. We Know the laws, but break them and then have to rediscover the Ten Commandments and the fact that they are Holy and given by a Holy God. We know these laws. This book however will take us into the area of identifying how we break the spiritual Ten Commandments.
Chapter 2
THE GARDEN
Although we have a thorough understanding of what sin is it seems that we will have to delve deeper into the heart for there are many who are still struggling to see in the garden. For this reason I am writing on the subject of the heart. The heart is the most delicate instrument and also the most tender and fragile instrument in the universe. It is the conscience, which must be kept free from sin. Each of us has the same conscience and it functions with the Ten Commandments. If you love God and do not keep his commandments you are a liar. (1 John 2)
He says in this verses that he gives us no knew commandment but to uphold the original commandment. Furthermore all of the word is for the perfection of the saints
1 Jn 2:5: “But whoso keepeth his word; in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.”
Bengel: “Love and obedience. There is a gradation: 1Joh 2:3, “know Him”; 1Joh 2:5, “we are in Him”; 1Joh 2:6, “abideth in Him”; respectively, knowledge, fellowship, abiding constancy.“
Our steadfast prayer should be to be fulfilled with God. Whenever we long for some person it could be that there is a part of us which needs to be fulfilled. The longing should not be toward people but to be fulfilled with God. We cannot expect people to fill the gap in us; they are not capable of fulfilling the heart, THE HEART BELONGS TO GOD. Remember you gave your heart to God! Our study should be to keep the heart free from sin of any kind by the guidance of the Holy Spirit who lives in the heart. However the presence of the Holy Spirit departs the moment sin enters, perhaps in the form of worry. This is when David would beg God to not let His Spirit depart from him. We are to keep the heart, as was the original commandment to Adam Keep the garden! The garden, heart and conscience are therefore the subject of the Bible. The heart needs to be fulfilled with the knowledge and love of God. When we give our hearts to God we long to read the Bible, we long to be fulfilled with the word of God. Unfortunately we come into contact with others who are trying to understand the Word with their intellect and not the Spirit. They cause the pure fountain of the Word of God to become the bitter waters of Marah. All the arguments of different doctrines lead us into the wilderness away from the original knowing we had within us concerning the truth, for the Spirit lives inside us and will guide us to all truth. Rom 8:14: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”
In order to be Spirit led we have to abide by the first law.
Deut 6:5: “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”
To love God is the greatest of all commandments, for the simple reason that when we keep His commandments we are His dwelling place in us. We are the tabernacle of God. Naturally God cannot live in a sinful heart, for this reason when we give our hearts to God He forgives our sins, and His Spirit comes and lives in us. After this we are to keep the heart free from sin with all diligents for out of it flows the issues of life. (Prov 4:23) Paul however says that there is no good thing in us, in other words we still have to overcome our lower fleshly nature in Christ.
Notice how Paul puts it in the following verses:
Rom 7:19-23: “For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.”
This warring that is going on is the flesh that constantly trying to take back the throne of the mind, but Paul teaches us to take thoughts captive and to die to them daily. We die in Christ and then rise in Christ to take authority as Christ would have, in the earth. However, the heart must be sinless and free from the flesh. The reason why many struggle to see in the garden is simply sin in some form. You might say that you have died and understand atonement but there might be an unknown sin which you are not aware of. (Lev 4) For this reason I recommend that the communion should also enhance the unknown sin as the sinner of old, placed his hand on the head of the lamb to be slain, we also place our sin on the lamb that was slain once and for all. Imagine the crucified Christ, then go and place the unknown sin on His head and receive forgiveness. In this way we understand that Paul wants Christ to be crucified in us. (1Co 2:2) This is our only hope and the cross becomes our center! In this way the heart becomes holy and sanctified and like the imagination of a child. As the child is able to imagine, so will you. As we die to sin even to the unknown sin we die and rise on the life side of the cross. We have entered in because of the cross and blood. The study of the character and love of God will only increase in such a heart. To understand our Father in heaven should be our ultimate quest. We grow ever nearer to God as we are willing to be sanctified. It might be preconceived ideas of right and wrong that cause error in the heart. Perhaps you thought: “well this person is not using this thing and has no need of it and for this reason I will use it and bring Glory to God by creating something useful with it.” It sounds logical but it is theft in the eyes of God. If we disregard the commandments and precepts of God we do not love the Lord our God with all our heart, which is the first and greatest of all the commandments. If the heart is soft enough it will pick up that the Spirit is not approving. If we obey, all will be well but if not the Spirit departs. After this the heart begins to harden and we can no longer pick up movement in the Spirit, let alone see. It might be just a little pride or obstinacy. You might be thinking; “No Lord, forget it, I will not ask for forgiveness on this subject, I was right.” Our goal should be to die to self; our horizon should be humility, “Thy will be done not mine”. Our horizon should be discipline and self control. God placed us in this world to overcome the evil one –in us; in Christ. Keep the garden; do not allow the flesh to rule. Take thoughts captive and hold them to the light of God’s word. If the heart is pure the blessing will not depart. Please understand that good things will not simply come to you because the heart is pure. We still need to live by faith, more on this in the next chapter.
To have a mind garden should be natural to all God’s children. We are created in the image of God who creates with His imagination. Everything man could possibly imagine in the Spirit has already been created in the physical. For instance, the tales of King Author and his magical sword that lives in a city on a hill called Camelot was a story a person conceived in his spirit and told as a story for the entertainment of listeners. The sword is the two edged sword of Heb 4:12 it is the word of God which helps God’s children become kings in the spirit. Camelot with her high towers and walls of defense compare with Matthew 6 where Jesus calls His church a city on a hill. Below in the dark valley live the dark evil forces that want to posses the city on the hill. As in many fairy tales we see how the once joyful place filled with laughter, flowers and water becomes dark, dirty oppressive, and tear-filled. This is exactly the two different mind sets any person on earth can have. The challenge is to live in the above by self-control and discipline and not allow the darkness any rule in the thought life.
Physical fountains, waterfalls and gardens compare to the language the Bible uses in the book of Songs for instance. The character of God and that which has for each of His children, who will grow into kingship, is overflowing abundance of understanding of the love of God. Imagine being fulfilled with the nature of the same creator who creates flowers and sunsets and stars with His thoughts and words.
At rebirth we all experience a little of the miraculous when we give our hearts to God. The heart is gradually filled with the wonder of prayer and a craving to read the Bible. We pour our hearts out before God and feel more spiritual than others. We talk of God all the time, we pray and receive miracles. However this closeness to God soon disappears. Many Christians tell me that they would do anything if only that wonderful original feeling could come back again. I can think of two reasons why that feeling will never come back again. Firstly, God wants to train us to live beyond feeling –in the spirit, and not feeling. Feeling will lie to us and lead us back into pride. Remember we have given our hearts to God and must not give it to pride. The second reason is that God will lead us out of the rule of emotions into the realm of the Spirit. We will learn to discern whether we are ruled by the flesh or the Spirit. This deception of the below forces which are within, as Paul describes will go on as long as we live and will keep the Christians mind in utter chaos if the rules are not obeyed. The first rule is to love the Lord our God with all our hearts—and not allow the emotional self any space in the heart which is the dwelling of God. We are not to allow the rule of fear or worry or any lower emotion. It’s of great importance that the Christian learn to discern between emotional rule and that of the Spirit. We can never trust the inner voices. It may sound like a revelation from God but it could be the voices of other gods of self. My pride, what about me or the poor I… In order to have a personal garden we have to go through the wildernesses of life in order to have personal revelation on whether we are fleshly or spiritual. It takes time to learn which spirit is ruling in our hearts. We gave our hearts to God but were not taught to keep the heart, the garden or conscience. The heart must become soft and pure, but only under the guidance of the Gardener, which is the Christ Spirit. As we obey the still small voice spiritual growth commences. As we disobey, the Spirit distances himself from us. It takes time to firstly be saved from the rule of emotions, and then to be saved from the hurt full past that was pushed down into the crevices of the subconscious. We were not taught to take problems to the cross, we forgave and forgot, but it is still inside, and not crucified to the cross under the direction of the Gardener. We have a dark side that needs to be faced and dealt with at the cross. The sub conscious is too complex to be cleared by humans; it must be dealt with by its Creator, and the one who died to save us of its devastating effects on the nervous system. The suppressed hurts of the past does cause a hard heart, out of which comes all illnesses, chaos and accident. The heart, all of the heart must become the house of God. I wish this process could have happened faster but no use trying to hurry the Lord. The story of the Israelite’s who died in the wilderness is the story of many dear Christians who never learned to die to self. Until we learn to trust the Lord with all our hearts we will never have a garden mind. The heart must be blood sprinkled so it can be the mercy seat where the voice of God is heard, between the wings of the Seraphim which really is the spirit. The mercy seat is the conscience.
We have to learn to use physical things to understand the spiritual. Another example would be the rock of ages hymn sung by many. “Rock of Ages cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee. Let the water and the blood, From Thy river side which flowed, be of sin the double cure, save me from its guilt and power”; The rock of ages is Jesus Christ that was slain and the water and the blood that came from His side is the river, is for the sin of all mankind. This particularly refers to the rock Moses was to speak to, but struck and out flowed water out of a rock in the middle of the wilderness. Madam Goyuon tells in one of her books how to use a physical thing to experience the garden. She recommends that one should imagine going to a small harbor where a small rowing boat is tied to the pier. Now climb down into the boat, loosen the rope, and use the oars to push yourself away from the pier and row calmly out of the harbor. Once outside the harbor go hoist the little sail and experience the gentle wind rushing the boat through the water. As an ex sailor this helps me a lot, for nothing can compare to the sense of calm and freedom of sailing away. As I did as she described, I hoisted the sail, and when I turned to go to the rudder of the boat, Jesus was sitting there. I asked what I must do. He said “do nothing”, but I call coil the rope I said. He said “come sit with me”. Together we became one as we sailed the oceans of the blood washed heart. I have written on the subject of the garden in the book called the Garden. I used the scriptures out of all of the Bible and twelve paintings to cover this area. The mainspring is the heart that must be cleansed. It is a daily process of dying to self, but remember to not stay at the cross. Go to the cross with all the problems and sins you are aware of while eating the bread, and then drink the blood, and rise in Christ. A Christian should rise and take authority over all situations in Christ. Say how thing are going to be today. (Mark 11: 23), speak to the mountain; prophesy over the problem as faith rises in your heart. We only have faith if the heart is pure. There is no point to quoting Bible verses and calling good things if the heart is not pure. If one uses these techniques it will result in soul power. It must not be by might or power it must come out of the spirit. There must be an awareness that God is in this thing that we believe for. There must be no doubt. This thing that you believe for must be seen clearly as if it has already appeared in the physical until it does come in the physical, it takes discipline and determination. If your mind keeps wondering, if the eye is not single it cannot bring forth the things you believe for. You have to stay focused and remain in praise and thanksgiving all the time. However, the main spring is the state of the heart.
I always go to my beach garden in the morning for the sea shows me the state of my conscience. When I enter in and see the sea is calm I wait there until the sun rises and experience the painted skies with the Lord. Here I read the Bible and wait for inspiration and guidance for the day. If nothing comes, that’s fine for I have the peace that all is well. When the sea is stormy I know there is sin in my life in the form of impatiens or worry. In this way I have learned to take thoughts captive and die to them so the heart can be blood washed and sanctified. One morning the fog was covering my sea and bus stop shelters were in my way, I could not see the ocean. This was a result of me being involved in a project for too long. I was tired and I was losing contact with the Lord of the heart garden.