Spiritual Neurosurgery

When we purchase a brand new car, we do not expect to drive out an incomplete vehicle from the showroom. We do not assume that the manufacturer will add the tires 6 months after the date of purchase, engine, after 12 months, the seats, after 17 months. Wherever the car is made from, it comes complete, along with the new car smell.

Our new-creation in Christ is no different. We are complete in Him. We are brand new creations and are made righteous when we receive Jesus Christ to our hearts. Our old identity is gone and Christ Jesus becomes our new identity. Since we could not manufacture righteousness, sanctification, redemption or wisdom with our effort, Jesus became all of that for us. We cannot create love, joy, peace and all the attributes of His nature with our self-effort either. It is His life in us that enables us to bear fruit.

This new creation happens in the spirit. This regenerated spirit of ours is fused with the Spirit of Jesus and is seated at the right hand of the Father in the heavenly places. What is implanted on the inside of the believer is the very Life of Christ Jesus. We have been redeemed from all the spiritual, physical and financial curses and do not have to be helpless victims of the negative circumstances surrounding us.  As He is (present tense: the glorified Christ), so are we in this world.

But since the un-renewed mind (which is often a slave to emotions and circumstances) fails to grasp these amazing truths, it dominates and sucks the life out of one’s life. So the hindering element in the picture is the un-renewed mindset, which is shaped by upbringing, personal experiences, media, movies, friends, religious doctrines, collectively accepted opinions, collectively accepted religious views, books; or in other words, by what we have been exposed to over the years.

Thankfully, we do not need the services of a neurosurgeon to renew the mind. Thinking patterns or mindsets are formed simply by believing what we are consistently exposed to – whether it is true or not. We can alter the old mindset simply by re-aligning our focus. Unless the mind is focused on to the person of Jesus Christ, His finished work on the cross (I don't have to and even even if I wanted to, it is ignorance to assume that I can add to it by my works) and renewed to the knowledge of who we are already in Him - we will let the negative circumstances dominate us, try to put our trust in self-effort or hop from miracle to miracle.

I’m all for miracles, signs and wonders as they become a lifeline to us, when we exhaust our trust in our five senses. However, there is a difference between expecting miracles from without and allowing ourselves to be the living conduits of His abundant Zoe life, from within. The latter is more fun and comes as a result of the revelation of our new-creation reality in Christ.   

One of my favorite scriptures in the Amplified Bible is the second portion of 1 Thess 2:13 – “… the Word of God, which is effectually at work in you who believe [exercising its superhuman power in those who adhere to and trust in and rely on it].” The word of God exercises its superhuman power when we wholeheartedly depend on it. It is not just about quoting or memorizing scriptures, but internalizing or being one with it. 'It' becomes a 'He' when we realize that Christ Jesus Himself is the Word of God. The reality of our new creation has to move from one's spirit (where we are newly created) to the head.

Just because I have redeemed my credit card points for an Amazon or a Barnes & Noble Gift Card, does not mean I have the books from either stores with me. I need to exchange the gift card for the books in order to experience what has already been redeemed for. Likewise, since Christ Jesus redeemed us from all the curses, it does not mean we will automatically enjoy the freedom in all the areas of our life. We experience freedom to the proportion we renew our minds (believe with our heart) with Jesus’ finished work on the cross.

The exterior is merely the reflection of the what we deeply believe. The supernatural gift of salvation that we received by faith, is not just about a free ticket to heaven. Sozo (the greek term from which 'saved' comes from) is about full restoration; it has the potential to make a person whole. When Jesus taught the disciples to how to pray, He prayed, "Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven". It does not take much thinking or revelation to come to the conclusion that there aren't any kinds of ailments or recessions in heaven. If that is the case, why do we love to spiritualize and theologize and let simple truths go over our heads?

Instead of over-analyzing and over-spiritualizing, let us be like little children and receive what our Abba Father has to freely offer. We can do nothing to earn the blessings. The child of God is already blessed, in Christ Jesus. The moment we try to earn our blessings, we sever ourselves from the help of Christ, who is the answer. Lasting and abundant freedom becomes a reality as we continue to behold, revel and abide in the unconditional Love, which was expressed in the person of Jesus Christ.

"Spirit-led"

I had used the phrase 'Spirit-led' in my post titled 'Guilt Vs Love' and I feel I should clarify a point.

This phrase has become a cliché among some circles. People are waiting to be "led" always. We do not have to wait for the glory cloud to envelope us or for a booming voice from the Heaven, when a situation that needs Jesus' touch presents itself. Jesus said, "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give." (Matt 10:8 NKJV). "Go into all the world and preach the gospel...And these signs will follow those who believe..." (see Mark 16:15-20 NKJV). The directives are straightforward and it is for the believer, not just a select few.

The person who has His power, which He freely gives, is equipped for the task. The authority is His; we are merely yielding ourselves so that He can flow through us. This does not necessarily have anything to do with our senses. Sometimes we may have to step out in faith and when we do that, the Holy Spirit will give us specific words of knowledge or a vision regarding the situation at hand. This is what I meant by 'Spirit-led' in this context. But often times, we like to wait for that 'great anointed minister' to pass through our city, while forgetting that the believer has The Anointing (Jesus) in him. 'Heal the sick' does not have a different or a deeper meaning in Greek. Gospel is powerful. But I can sound "spiritual" and mask the timidity that I have (which is simply a product of unbelief/unrenewed mind) with a statement like, "I do not feel led to go and empty a hospital".

Suppose a person who is gifted with the spiritual gift of prophesy stumbles upon a sick person. Should he say, "well, I'm a prophet and therefore I do not heal the sick"? No, Jesus wants to see the manifestation of the stripes that He bore for everyone. "Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven". Jesus healed and delivered those who were oppressed by the devil. Now that He is Spirit, He flows through us to touch others. Although we would have the urge to call it "our ministry", the ministry is really His.

However, each one of us have distinct* assignments (Eph 2:10) in Him. Not everyone is called to occupy the office of a pastor, evangelist, teacher etc. If my calling is to clean the bathroom at church (if you think that it does not need a calling, volunteer to clean your church bathroom for 8 weeks, and see if you can do that cheerfully), I should not try to become a teacher. This "trying" only leads to a flesh-driven activity, which will bear no fruit from Him. But when we are connected with and gently guided by the Holy Spirit, we will have great joy in whatever task that we are involved with and above all, He can do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think.

*Lest it be misread, distinct does not mean that one person is "better" because he or she has a "flashy" assignment than the other. They are not. They are not lesser either. As a matter of fact, 'I' or 'They' no longer exists. "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Gal 2:20 NKJV).

I could be 5 seconds or 50 years in Christ Jesus - the resurrection power (Rom 8:11) that houses me is the same in either cases. Jesus Christ or His Power is not the variable here. What changes is my understanding of Who I am carrying, as I renew my mind to the knowledge of my new-creation reality.