The Control is in our Hands

Amen, Amen!!!! The bullies have no control over us if we do not respond. Their control comes when they can cause us to be upset, that's their goal.

I heard a saying; "they want to believe we are a bad person to justify all the mean things they did to us."

Love of the World is Far Different from the Love of God

From: How to Spot a Narcissist Right Away, 11 signs.

"1. They love to talk about themselves.

2. They lack empathy.

3. They feel entitled

4. They are obsessed with Success

5. They are emotionally fragile

6. They can't take criticism

7. They blame others

8. They have little sense of humor

9. They think the rules don't apply to them

10. They are materialistic

11. They name drop"

Unquote

My thoughts on observations over the years concerning these signs:

These are things I have noticed over the years pertaining to many people. All of us have at times engaged in some of this, feeling a little embarrassed about ourselves we didn't make a practice of it. Narcissists do all of this on a regular basis so much so that it is difficult to maintain a relationship with others.

Because of their devilish mindset to be superior to others the narcissist cannot help themselves. They are impervious to constructive input from others which is the reason they never change and even grow worse as they grow older.

I use the term devilish because I am convinced the devil has deeply influenced the person plagued with this personality, convincing them how they are is a good thing. The euphoria they derive from their temporary fixes of superiority produces dopamine that requires more and more instances of superiority over others to keep the euphoria going.

It's sort of like a drug addict that cannot wait for the next fix. This is why the narcissist lacks a sense of humor, they cannot see anything else except their next superiority fix. Their soul is bound up in the addiction, nothing around them is amazing, they often walk around in a sad face without joy.

Narcissists hate the joy of others because it makes them feel worse, the fix of dominating others is diminished by those who are unaffected by their antics.

The devil used the same tactics in the garden with Eve when he was able to convince her that God's provision was not good enough. She had to have her own power her own way to feel happy.

Our own power our own way never brings happiness or joy, it only brings a continual disappointment in the long run as normal rational people become weary of the continual one-upmanship of the narcissist.

Honest loving relationships are based on a mutual love for one another, mutual concern, mutual interests, and mutual give and take without the need to be dominant. In fact, love never dominates or intimidates, it blesses, helps, and encourages.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

"4 Love is patient, love is kind, it is not jealous; love does not brag, it is not arrogant.

5 It does not act disgracefully, it does not seek its own benefit; it is not provoked, does not keep an account of a wrong suffered,

6 it does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;

7 it keeps every confidence, it believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away with; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away with."

When we compare God's Holy Spirit's love with the world there is no comparison.

How about we look at the love of the world in comparison, as though written in verses, it will be the opposite of God's love.

The worlds love according to the devil;

1. Love is impatient, love is unkind, it is jealous, it boasts and is arrogant.

2. Love acts disgracefully to preserve self, it seeks only its own, it is easily provoked and keeps records of all perceived wrongs.

3. It rejoices in unrighteousness, and hates the truth.

4. It gossips continually and is paranoid and skeptical about good things.

5. Worldly love fails, it destroys relationships when not elevated above others.

It makes sense that we are watching an increase in narcissism in these last days when the devil is working hard to destroy all that is good and kind and loving.

1 Peter 5:7-9 "…7 Cast all your anxiety on (Jesus Christ) Him, because He cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded and alert. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in your faith and in the knowledge that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering."

Smith Wigglesworth's Insight Into How to Refuse to Be Offended

Defending the Faith

"Anything that takes me from an attitude of worship is of Satan." Smith Wiggleworth

Even if people attempt to deter us from worship we must leave behind those who bring our attention away from Christ to the things of this world must be set out of our lives.

Those who love Christ and love us will want to encourage adherence to the Bible and spiritual growth.

If we are not growing we are regressing, we must keep growing in Spiritual health to remain obedient to Christ.

I have met many people who seemed staunch in their beliefs about God until the culture changed. As the culture changed so did the superficial believers change to fit the culture around them.

We know we have been faithful when we do not change with the culture, even willing to be rejected for defending the Word of God.

2 Corinthians 10:5

"5 We are destroying arguments and all arrogance raised against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,"

Challenges to Follow the Bible as God Commanded

When a modern-day Christian is faced with a challenge to follow Scripture they will defer to their traditions, fighting bitterly to defend what God never said or commanded.

When we look closely at the standards, principles and instructions of God in His Word we notice that most of what the modern-day Christian practices in their gatherings is not only opposite of what God commanded but leads people away from obedience to His Word.

The day I prayed that God would show me only truth is the day my eyes began to be opened to all the nuances of modern Christianity that work against the gospel but most Christians will defend bitterly, even willing to ruin relationships to remain faithful to their own traditions.

Mark 7:5-8 "5 And the Pharisees and the scribes *asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk in accordance with the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with [e]unholy hands?” 6 But He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written:

‘This people honors Me with their lips,

But their heart is far away from Me.

7 And in vain do they worship Me,

Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

8 Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.”"

Why do so many people today stand in opposition to the Word of God while claiming to be “Bible believers”? The answer is clear, those who use the Bible out of context justify their man-made traditions using Scripture out of context and defending them so bitterly that they are willing to bludgeon those who wish to know the heart of God to obey Him.

Traditions of man make people feel in control and comfortable. They have not relinquished their own control to allow God to be the mentor in their lives, they want to maintain their level of comfort doing whatever others before them did at the expense of God’s truth.

Mankind has always desired to be in control working in opposition to God’s commands. We know this from the story of Eve in the garden when she was willing to set aside God’s commands to have her own way. The tradition of “following one’s own heart” is not only still in the world but had intensified exponentially in these last days of apostasy.

The deception has been clever and cloaked in “God-talk” to confuse those who sense that something is off but are unwilling to pray asking God and digging into His Word to discover His truth according to the Bible.

Most people today who claim to be Christians will not hear what God has to say about a matter, they bitterly and unrelentingly defend the ideas and traditions of men without batting an eye or taking time to think through what they are defending.

This is the reason those who want to obey God, love His Word the WAY He meant for it to be understood, will be hated and rejected by the very people who claim to be our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Those of you who have attempted to explain from Scripture what God said, to someone who was quoting it out of context or repeating a man-made idea, not in Scripture, know the angst and rejection that comes from “churchgoers” who say they are “Bible-believing.” It is astounding the punishment many believers endure from those who would say we are family or “brothers and sisters.”

As we move through this apostate age we are witnessing a defection from the word of God, but even worse a deception that man-made ideas and traditions are held up as equal to the Scriptures.

When defending the traditions with a refusal to sit down and read through to prove what God said is seen as a personal attack rather than the desire to be sure that we heard God correctly, we know those who defend the traditions willing to reject a brother and sister in Christ are very likely not born-again.

When we attempt to expose false teaching and wrong ideas based on human wisdom we are almost immediately shunned and gossiped against. Those who want to be comfortable in the culture and remain proud of themselves will not listen to sound doctrine.

2 Timothy 4:2-4 …2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction. 3 For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears, they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires. 4 So they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

What do we do with this mess when our desire is to obey God, searching His Word, and seeking the Holy Spirit to be sure of what God told us?

My only advice comes from Scripture, keep on speaking truth, remove ourselves from those who do not want the truth, and remain faithful to His Word no matter how others respond to it or us. Do we care more about what God told us than we do about human companionship? We must!!!!!!