Brainwashed -- Deceived

The working of the human mind is a marvelous mechanism not much understood after all these years of man's existence. It is evident that we come into this world with very little innate capacity. Unlike the animals born with instinct to preserve life, nourish itself, and flee or hide from danger, the human baby is completely helpless. At this point the parent(s) must vigorously watch over it and protect it, nourish it, train it, and produce a desirable adult. This may take a decade to reach a learning level which pleases a man, but it takes a lifetime before the human being is fully developed. Even then he may not know much about himself.

One branch of learning, which is dignified as a branch of science, is called psychology. Those educated in this area may presume to practice a form of mind control (Psychologists or Psychiatrists). It is a fact that people can so mess up their lives tha t they need help in escaping the bondage which wrong lifestyles create. Pressures brought on by failing health, tragic losses, disturbances in the status quo, often become destructive of the physical health and so enslaving as to bring on physical pain and great discomfort. There is no discomfort of the body which is so debilitating as depression. It prevents sleep and even brings on bodily pain.

Man's Creator made ample provision for his human creature to withstand and overcome all sorts of handicaps. The body's ability to heal itself is most remarkable. Men know little about the mind's ability to heal itself, but this calls for understanding which many lack.

When man was created by God he was placed in an ideal environment, equipped with abilities sufficient to enable him to cope with living, even into many centuries. Also, his ability to communicate with his Creator was sufficient to sustain him in whatever state God would want him to pass through. Since man was created for the pleasure of the Creator (Rev. 4:11), made "in the image of God," by which we understand that he had many of the capacities of a supernatural Being, He was put in charge of the rest of God's creation. That task may seem insurmountable in light of today's world, but two factors may explain it. (1) He had those abilities which likely enabled him to know what was happening anywhere among the creatures in his charge, and what to do for them. (2) He did not face the present situations, for the "very good" creation was not yet under a curse. This came later to curtail rebellion in man.

What Happened to the Creation?

The creation which God saw was "very good" was "cursed" for man's sake (Gen. 3:17). Man had voluntarily violated God's warning not to go beyond certain bounds. Satan, symbolized in the serpent, had also been cursed because of his presumption of interfering with God's work with the human being.

The curse touched every living creature on earth, a right action since man had been put in charge of that creation. Now it would take something which man did not know before -- toil and sweat, to reap from the ground the foods necessary to life and comfort (Gen. 3:19). Death itself was the threatening element of the curse. "The wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23). This penalty begins to show its grip on the human creature from the beginning, though it may not take the final payment for many years. It is reaped as a penalty in pain and death to the body, in ignorance and confusion to the mind, and in darkness to the soul.

The Curse on the Soul

It is easy to see how the curse works on the human body, even of those not yet responsible for their own choices. While death is the ultimate mark, it shows earlier in various diseases, weaknesses, deformities, and lack in both mind and body. Since intelligence is centered in the brain, treatment can begin there for some marks of the curse. But there is an area which psychologists do not know unless they are familiar with the Bible. After all, it is the book of instructions for bringing up children and maintaining the senses of the adult.

The Bible describes man as threefold in his nature: spirit, soul, and body (1 Thes. 5:23). The curse extends into all of these areas. We can find the part of the body where the fault seems to have lodged. Medical science has been able to treat that with medication, surgery, or other means. The problems of the mind we treat by education, but this is not nearly enough. Man has never been as good as he knows, but always goes beyond and violates what is right. Knowing what is right is not an incentive to do right. The reason for this is that man has another element in his being, a nature of selfhood which he naturally caters to unless he has had instruction in spiritual things.

Men know they have feelings, or emotions, but they think this is a quality of their minds. If only they were taught correctly, men suppose, they would do right. Discipline of a child is not merely a matter of telling what is right, punishing him when he is wrong, or paying him for good. The sense of right and wrong -- righteousness and sin -- must come as an emotional exchange between parents and child. It cannot be instilled simply through a voice of authority and the language of instruction. It is acquired as a product of a loving example. Parents prove their relationship is properly motivated. Their everyday example re-inforces their teaching.

This is said that we might deal with the theme of our title. Why will thirty-nine people voluntarily commit suicide at one session. It is contrary to nature and to reason. When depression or other pain comes and an individual is unable to rid himself of it any other way, he may take his own life. But with the suggestive influence of a leader it appears there is a definite gain, and the natural capacity to preserve self is overwhelmed. Knowing that it is considered wrong by society, by parents, or others, is not enough. The individual is moved by his own emotions, while reason and wisdom are both rejected.

How can this be avoided? It is done through a lifetime of discipline in which one learns that all men are helpless, all men are sinners, all men must look up. God must be at the end of that gaze. "The spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward parts of the belly" (Prov. 20:27). This says to the Bible student that God uses man's spirit as his lamp, revealing the darkness in a man's real self. One brought up on the teachings of the Word of God will find that God does provide direction to the life if one is willing to listen. That willingness produces faith in Him. God honors His promises on that basis.

This is the only certain way to avoid deception by those antichrists whom Satan has working throughout the world to deceive. Parents who have failed in this may face the grief of seeing their children doing the unthinkable, even murdering their own children to satisfy the self, the ego, which is in darkness.

May God bless hearts to be willing to heed Him!