Christ Revealed in His Own Word #25
“Neurosis 01 Anxiety”
Wednesday Evening, July 3, 1996
Brian
Kocourek, Pastor Grace Fellowship
This evening I want to continue on with our reading of
"Christ Revealed In His Own Word."
So let's pickup at PP 18 and read.
18 Christ
Revealed In His Own Word 65-0822M
I was just talking to a young minister and his wife in the room just a few moments ago.
And both of them are nervous just
like the rest of the world, rest of the
human beings on earth. I said, "Remember, Satan's got a punch coming
at you." I don't care who you are, God... He's got a right to that one punch.
Which had you rather be, that punch, be blind, or be an arthritic setting in a
chair, or be nervous? See? He's got somewhere he could punch you. He's got a
right to that open place. Now, that's the spot you got to keep covered all the
time.
19 Christ
Revealed In His Own Word
And
to see this nervous age that we're living in... And last week's tapes, I
think, will reveal to you the great hideous things that we're going to speak on
one of these days when we can get a place sufficient, of the opening of those
last plagues to be poured out upon the earth--those Vials, rather, pouring out
of the Vials, and the Seven Thunders... And those hideous sights that's coming
upon the earth...
20 Christ
Revealed In His Own Word
Men now and people today are in such a
neurotic condition, the whole world... You read this last months
"Reader's Digest." You notice the subject there; it's on Billy Graham
the great evangelist. He got so tired he just couldn't hold his meetings, and
he--he went to Mayo's Clinic for a physical checkup. There wasn't nothing wrong
with him, only he just doesn't do enough
work. And they put him to running: physical exercise. He runs a mile every
day. And then, the article goes on to say that science has proved, that today,
that young children, these little boys and girls hit their middle age at twenty
years old. And by twenty-five, many times in many cases the girls are out of
menopause at twenty-five years old.
I don't know if you knew it or not, but a
few nights ago while the Holy Spirit was speaking here in the meeting, a little
girl setting down here; that's exactly what was wrong with that child when It
called out. I looked at her a second time, looked again, and I seen what was
the matter. I thought, "It can't be; that child's too young." But it
was, menopause, about twenty years old, twenty-three, something like that. See?
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Revealed In His Own Word
My mother and your mother struck that age
about forty-five to fifty. My wife struck that age about thirty-five. Now, it's down to twenty. The whole human race is rotten. Well,
if them physical beings of our body is tearing down like that from eating hybrid foods, tensions, that rotten it,
does not that also rot the brain cell? Then we can see how women can get on
the street naked. We can see how they can speed through the streets at a
hundred and twenty miles an hour, all these things. It's come to a place where the whole nation, the whole world, not only
this nation, but everywhere, mentally gone.
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Revealed In His Own Word
And then when we open up those, the Lord
willing, on those Seven Vials and show those hideous things... Men will be so insane after while, till
they'll imagine they're seeing ants the size of a mountain. They'll be tormenting
women, be locusts come upon the earth with long hair to torment women who cut
theirs off, hair like women hanging down, and long teeth like a lion, stingers
in their tail like a scorpion, and so forth, to torment men upon the earth. But
then it'll be too late to do anything about it. You get right now. See?
Tormenting...
Christ Revealed in His Own Word #25
Wednesday Evening,
July 3, 1996
Tonight I would like to look at this thought here of what
Brother Branham is telling us that the whole world has come to a condition that
it is mentally gone. He said, the hybrid foods and the tensions have caused our
bodies to rot and our brain cells as well. Now this is not good, and don't
think for a minute that because you are n the Bride of Christ that you are not
affected by this condition. We are all affected by this condition, because it
is caused by the food and the tensions of the hour. If the soil has nothing
left in it, then how can the food have anything in it. So don't think that if
you go health food crazy that this will be your answer. The answer is not in
the Physical food, nor in a tension free atmosphere, but in Christ only.
Now we find that what brother Branham is telling us here is
also found in the scriptures where we are warned that there is coming at the
end-time, a time that will be full of tension and stress and it will hard to
bear. We are also told that the
anxieties of life will be self consuming everyone on the face of the earth.
[ 2 Timothy 3: 1] AMPLIFIED: But understand this, that in the last days
there will set in perilous times of great
stress and trouble - hard to deal
with and hard to bear.
[ Mark 4: 18 - 20] Notice that it is the cares of this life
which creep in and choke off the Life that is in the Word. And so this is a
warning to us to be careful not to get so caught up into the things of this
world as to allow them to take over sole dominance of our lives. Now the
Greek word used here for CARES is the
word Merimna which means the anxieties of this Life. And I want you to notice that the word anxieties is defined by
Webster as being a state of being uneasy or apprehensive, or worried about what may happen; concern
about a possible future event. The Psychological effects of anxiety are worry
and nervous tensions.
[ Luke 8: 18] Notice that it is not just the anxieties of
this life, the bills and the mortgage and the auto loans, and the utilities
etc., but it is the pleasure seeking and other things as well that will creep
into our lives and choke off the Life that is in the Word.
Now notice that brother Branham used the term neurotic which
comes from the word neurosis. Neurosis according to Webster is defined as: Any
of various Psychic, or mental, functional disorders characterized by one or
several of the following reactions:
ANXIETY, COMPULSIONS and OBSESSIONS, PHOBIAS, DEPRESSION, and
DISASSOCIATION.
Brother Branham said, Men now and people today are in such a
neurotic condition, the whole world.
Notice that he is telling us that this condition is a world
wide condition. He said, it is not just confined to the United States, but it
is world-wide.
[ Luke 21: 31 - 36]
Now, I want you to notice that this condition is to come upon every one who
dwells upon the face of the earth. So it does affect us. We are not supposed to
be some kind of super human that can not be affected by these things, but we
are merely mortal in this flesh and we need to know what it is that is
affecting us before we can find the
cure. Because after all, if we think this doesn't pertain to us then we won't
want the cure when it is given to us.
What is causing this condition is the focus we have in our lives. If our
focus is on the things of this world, then we will be caught up into these
anxieties. But if our focus is upon Him and His Promises, then we will be able
to overcome this snare or trap.
Our focus should be on the Son of Man in our Midst. Not on
the cares of this life, because they are considered a snare to the real things
that God has in store for us. Now for the rest of the evening I would like to
examine these attributes of neurosis that Brother Branham said has taken over
the minds of the people throughout the entire world in order to see how they
are affecting every one of us as well. Once we can see what it is that is affecting
us, then we can begin to deal with the fact that we are not super humans and
that we really need help from God to overcome this condition.
Christ Revealed in His Own Word #25
Wednesday Evening,
July 3, 1996
One other Point I want to make concerning what Brother
Branham said here. He said, if the bodies have turned to mush then what about
the brain cells. And if this is true then everyone without exception in the
world is losing their minds. This includes the Bride of Christ as well. And if
we believe the Scripture, then we should believe that "all
these things are working together for the Good for those who Love God and those
who are The Elect according to His Purpose." So then, actually our
losing our minds is to our advantage, because after all, we must lose our minds
first in order to receive his.
In fact if we still have our own minds, then we have a
problem, because God said, "My ways are not your ways, and your thoughts
are not My thoughts." So
then if we still kept our own minds and
tried to receive His mind as well, we would only end up with a hybrid mind and
we know anything hybrid has no real life in it and is dead while it yet
lives. So we must lose our minds before
we can receive His mind. And God has allowed this thing to come on the earth in
order to hasten the day along and the Promise of our receiving His mind. "In
that day when He is glorified IN His saints." After all, he said
if he did not shorten the day no flesh would be saved. So don't look upon what
is happening to the world as something innately bad. After all, aren't "All
things working together for the good to those Who Love Him and are The Called
according to His Purpose?" So then this is working out for our god
as well.
Now as we examine these attributes that make up the neurotic
condition that is in the world every where, let's begin by examining Webster's
definition again. Webster defined Neurosis as: Any of various Psychic, or
mental, functional disorders characterized by one or several of the following
reactions: ANXIETY, COMPULSIONS and
OBSESSIONS, PHOBIAS, DEPRESSION, and DISASSOCIATION.
And so let's begin our little study here by focusing on the
first attribute Anxiety. When Jesus
spoke about the cares of this life he was speaking of Anxieties. Anxieties is
defined by Webster as being a state of being uneasy or apprehensive, or worried
about what may happen; concern
about a possible future event. The Psychological effects of anxiety
are worry and nervous tensions.
So we see that it has nothing to do with today, but what
might happen tomorrow. And what did Jesus tell us about such things as this?
[ Matt 6: 24-34]
we are actually commanded to take no thought for tomorrow, pertaining to what
she shall eat or wear Don't worry about
tomorrow, because after all each day their is enough to think about? And if you
worry about tomorrow, then you only compound your troubles. Because not only do
you have today's troubles, but tomorrow's as well.
Now what is the one thing that many men and women go through
in this message. I know of a few brother that got all tore up recently because
their wives left them and went back into the world. Let me tell you what brother Branham said about that.
[981-Q-274 Q & A
COD 64-0823M] Brother, look, let me tell you, she's
going to sue you for a divorce; that's Satan. See? You shouldn't do that, but
if you're a Christian and done nothing in the world to hinder that woman, then
it's Satan doing that. He's only trying
to tear you up. Now, if she is one of God's elected, she will
come to Him. If she's not, she's not
worth worrying about. Then if it does... If you worry, it'll break your health down, and that's what Satan wants
to do. He's working, I know, at you. So you just commit the whole thing to
God and go right on serving God just as happy as you can be. God will take care
of the rest of it. "All that the Father has given Me will come to
me." Get down on your knees; I'll pray with you or anything. I'll pray
over the matter. Just say, "Lord God, I love her; she's the mother of my
children," (if she is) and say, "I--I--I just commit the whole thing
to You, Lord. I want them saved; You know I do; but I can't go no further.
She's going to divorce me anyhow. I haven't done nothing; if I have, reveal it
to me; I'll go make it right. I will do anything." Then commit it to the
Lord and just let it alone then, just let it alone. Go right on living just the
same as--as nothing had ever happened. And God will take care of the rest of
it.
Christ Revealed in His Own Word #25
Wednesday Evening,
July 3, 1996
So you see worry will only tear your health down and that is
what Satan wants to do. He wants to distract you from where we should really be
focused, and that is in Christ. So just
commit yourself and your family to Christ and keep moving on.
Now the next attribute of neurosis that Webster speaks of is
COMPULSION. Webster says, Compulsion is a compelling or being
compelled; irresistible, repeated, irrational impulse to perform some act. Now we are warned that men will be
this way in [ 2 Tim 3: : But understand this, that in the last days
there will set in perilous times of great stress and trouble - hard to deal
with and hard to bear. For people will be lovers of self and utterly
self-centered, lovers of money and aroused by inordinate and greedy desire for
wealth, proud and arrogant and contemptuous boasters. They will be abusive,
blasphemous and scoffers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy and
profane. They will be without natural
human affection, in fact callous and
inhuman, relentless-admitting of no truce or appeasement. They will be
slanderers-false accusers, trouble makers; intemperate and loose in morals and
conduct, uncontrolled and fierce,
haters of good.
So we see that self constraint is a very important thing
which will be hardly found in the end-time. Just look at our President. He can
hardly constrain himself when it comes to money, women and popularity. He's not
satisfied with adultery, but he is a breaker of every one of the ten
commandments. And not just once in a great while. It seems that he
repeatedly breaks them day by day. Compulsion
is a compelling or being compelled; irresistible, repeated, irrational impulse
to perform some act.
Now the next attribute of neurosis is Obsession: In which Webster defines as the act of an evil spirit in
possessing or ruling a person. Having
such a persistent idea, desire or emotion that one can not get rid of it. Such as over-eating, or under eating.
Bolemia or anorexia, or filthy talking,
or as Mr. Clinton does, Fornicating and Adultery. These are all acts which show
possession of an evil spirit. Brother
Branham said, you can feed a habit or keep nurturing a habit and after a while
it will take on a life of it's own becoming a spirit possession. Then it is
demon possession. I don't care if it has to do with women or sports or even
food. A demon is a demon. And if it is not natural, it's demonic.
The next attribute we see Webster refer to in the defining
of neurosis is PHOBIAS which we all
know is an irrational, excessive, and
persistent fear of some particular thing or situation.
The next attribute we find in defining a neurotic is DEPRESSION which Webster defines as
being low in spirit, gloominess; dejection and sadness. And all these result in a lessening of
activity. Usually in a person suffering
from depression, all they want to do is eat and sleep.
And finally the last attribute that makes up a person
suffering from Neurosis is DISASSOCIATION. This means that the person begins cutting off
association with people and becomes secluded, wanting to be left alone.
Now although it is possible that a person may possess all
these attributes, it is not necessary for them to have all these to be neurotic.
Neurosis is having one or more of them, but it is not necessary to have all of
them.
And I believe what we have here is a mental disorder that
actually cripples the persons functionality as a human being. If the person is
a wife and mother, it cripples her ability to function in those roles. If the
person is a minister it cripples their ability to minister the Word of God. If
the person is a Deacon, it cripples their ability to keep order and to help as
needed in the assembly. What ever the persons function, Father, Mother, Sister
or brother, it cripples those functions in the home. No wonder there is so much
talk today of the dysfunctional homes. If the world is under a neurotic
condition, then the homes have got to be dysfunctional. Sunday morning we shall focus our attention
on what the cure for this neurotic condition is.