Study #464 – Faith And The Natural Mind  (November 1, 2010)

Heb 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

Mat 14:31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and *said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

Mar 11:21 And being reminded, Peter *said to Him, “Rabbi, behold, the fig tree which You cursed has withered.” 22 And Jesus *answered saying to them, Have faith in God. 23 “Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it shall be granted him. 24 “Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you.

I have just included 3 of the 280 verses on faith in the New Testament. Faith is one of the predominate themes in the Bible so it is a very important subject for the believer. While it is common for the”believer” to have very little of the real faith mentioned in the Bible, they still appear to be believers in Bible truth. It is also possible to have “faith” but of a very “little” kind. Therefore, we could conclude that faith is experienced in varying dimensions from strong to weak or from maximum to none. Paul said for not all men have faith.

While Hebrews 11 attempts to define faith for us from Old Testament examples, these levels of faith are much too extreme for us to relate to our personal experience. For example:

Heb 11:32 And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, 33 who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. 35 Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, in order that they might obtain a better resurrection;

Heb 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.

This kind of faith is of the Old Covenant kind and is related to the natural condition of man and his faith before the New Covenant conversion and the development of the new creation inner man in which God Himself dwells and walks. Therefore, even the natural man has a tremendous potential for wonderful faith. Utilizing the “Faith of God” is the potential for the New Creation Species of Man and is far beyond the faith of the natural man. By utilizing this higher dimension of faith even greater things could be accomplished for God.

If we could define faith by a scale from 1 to 10 we could judge a person’s faith from (1) a measure of faith to a (10) which is God’s Kind of Faith. Most of us fit somewhere on that scale. God’s kind of Faith, which created the universe, is in this invisible realm that is related to the New Inner Man and the Christian life. By “faith” we understand that the worlds were formed by the Word of God but the visible world was made from invisible things. The natural mind cannot function in these invisible realms so it can ONLY reject any faith that can acknowledge these invisible realms as valid.

J.B. Phillips translated Bible text from the original Greek into modern English and when he translated Paul’s letters he was confronted and annoyed by the outrageous certainty of Paul’s faith. However, it was not until he recognized all that Paul had suffered and experienced that he was certain that his faith was real and exactly as he presented it. It is in 2 Corinthians 11 that Paul reveals the “sufferings of faith” that was the basis of his “outrageous faith.” We might conclude that “outrageous faith” is far beyond the capacity of the natural man and must be assigned to the new inner man. This “outrageous faith” helps us understand his insight into faith in other less dramatic examples.

2Thes 2:13 But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. 14 And it was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In order to examine the “faith of the inner man” I want to compare that with the truth that is inherent in the new inner man. Truth is in two dimensions as it relates to man. One dimension is outward which we refer to as objective truth. This truth is derived from facts, history, research, environment, experience, books and education. While these things may be true they are not of the eternal Kind of Truth.

The Truth in the eternal realm can only come to us from God and this Truth is of the inside kind or what we call subjective Truth. This subjective Truth is the proper kind of Truth for establishing our Theology. Theology based upon the outward kind of truth –objective truth– produces a knowledge based upon outward and physical evidence. Too many schools of theology use this kind of humanistic truth to destroy the faith of their students by human reasoning. This kind of truth produces doubt in the authentic nature of the scriptures and even in the basic knowledge of God. Humanistic theologians tend to take the scriptures apart and examine each word or phrase to discredit it but never capture the truth presented. They put the scriptures on the autopsy table and examine it like a cadaver and discover it has no life in itself. They just prove what Jesus said.

John 5:39 “You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of Me; 40 and you are unwilling to come to Me, that you may have life.

When or (IF) we contact that realm of Spirit, Truth and Life we are contacting Christ, the Living and Abiding Word of God, who IS Eternal Truth. This is the Realm of Truth that Jesus experienced when He did what He saw the Father doing. The impartation of Christ, the Living and Abiding Word of God, into our being has made available to us the Mind of Christ and the Truth that He IS in that invisible realm. Preaching and teaching Truth from this realm is what is called ministering Spirit and Life.

This opens up several important questions about this invisible realm and questions about the nature of this Eternal Magnitude and Quality that has been imparted to us within the New Covenant. Is it possible to ascertain the exact nature of this impartation? If we cannot contact this Realm then the New Covenant becomes just another abstract quantity and another religious word that has no power. The total mystery of the Christian Life and outward activity ( ministry and evangelism) is held within the New Covenant and its subjective provision. The Bible calls this Eternal Provision “Christ in you, the hope of Glory.” The magnitude of what that means is not explained in the Bible, therefore, it must be first experienced before it can be explained. Why? Because this is not just an objective doctrine that can be taught but a subjective experience that can obviously be lived out on earth or the New Covenant has failed.

As we examine these 280 scriptures on faith it seems clear that faith, as it relates to the natural man, is of the natural kind. The natural man can manifest faith in a chair and solidly believe it will be safe to sit in that chair because of visible evidence that the chair will hold him. This is what we are calling natural faith by empirical evidence. This faith comes to us by experience and through the five physical senses.

The natural man has also been given a “measure of Faith” that is built into man at creation. Even though it is a natural kind of faith it is enough for us to respond to God in repentance and to receive forgiveness of sins. If this produces a new creation and a growth process begins within the new inner man, the quality of faith should change from just a natural faith that is common to all men to a new kind of faith that is exclusive to the Christian Life and inherent in the New Inner Man. Why? Because faith must transition from the natural faith common to all men to a new kind of faith that comes to us only from God. This is “God’s kind of Faith” and is imparted to us in embryo form and is inherent within the Sperma of God by which we are born again. This “God kind of Faith” is another evidence that we have been born of God. Without this kind of faith it is impossible to please God. All true Christians should have some degree of this kind of inner / imparted faith of the “God kind.” The degree or magnitude of “God’s Kind of Faith” that we have is directly related to our level of maturity and growth of the new inner man.

Gill Bible Commentary. Mark 11:22 And Jesus answering, saith unto them...To all the disciples; for what Peter said, he said in the name of them all; and according to Matthew, the disciples said, “how soon is the fig tree withered away?” To which this is an answer; as if the words were directed particularly to Peter: have faith in God; or “the faith of God”, as the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions; that is, exercise, and make use of that faith which has God for its author, which is the work of God, and of his operation, a free grace gift of his; and which has God for its object; (and faith) that is supported by his power,

Having the faith of God is much different from having faith in God. The natural man can have faith in God as part of the measure of faith that is common to all men. However, ONLY the new inner man can have the faith of God or have God’s kind of faith. This kind of faith is inherent within the living and abiding Word of God, the Spirit of Christ, that is received within the Sperma of God. God’s kind of faith can only come from God. The “name it and claim it kind of faith” is of the natural kind. This higher and eternal “kind of faith” is completely unique to the Christian that has been born of God and to whom God has imparted this internal “something” that posses other dimensions of Truth.

Young’s Literal Translation Mark 11:22 And Jesus answering saith to them, ‘Have faith of God’; 23 for verily I say to you, that whoever may say to this mount, Be taken up, and be cast into the sea, and may not doubt in his heart, but may believe that the things that he saith do come to pass, it shall be to him whatever he may say.

It seems reasonable that there are at least three kinds of faith. (1) That which is common to all men to believe for visible, natural and mechanical things and by that to function in the visible world. (2) That which is inherent in the natural man in creation that permits man to recognize the creator God and respond to God in a small measure of faith. This faith is necessary to repent and be born again. (3) The Faith that is directly from God, the God kind of faith, imparted to the new creation man, through the Sperma – which is the Living and Abiding Word of God. It is this kind of Faith that is designed to produce miracles, signs and wonders. This is the Faith that is designed to grow along with the new creation inner man. Jesus connected this “Faith of God” to the disciples when He said “whoever shall say.” Exercising this kind of faith is sufficient to move mountains from the land to the sea. In other words, at least some of the Faith that God used to create the universe is available to us to enable us to do the will of God. Casting mountains into the sea to demonstrate power or as a personal testimony or as another ministry hobby probably will not work.

These statements of Jesus are obviously the “Truth” but why do we not see this manifested in the church? We must ask “Is this Truth objective or subjective?

Truth within comes to us both intuitively because it is part of creation and also as part of our experience. These two dimensions of truth can be real in both the inner , subjective truth and outer, objective truth. Within both dimensions of truth we find an intuitive truth and an experiential truth. This is also true of “God’s Kind of Truth." God’s Kind of Faith operates in the same realm as God’s Kind of Truth. This realm of Truth is what divides churches and breaks fellowship. Why? Because some “believers” only operate in the natural realm of faith and truth and because of that reject the supernatural dimension of Faith and Truth. Even if they see a miracle they will make up some natural reason for it and give a natural explanation in order to discredit it as a miracle.

It is not difficult to identify “writers of Christian Philosophy” because they have no Awe of God and they lack certain experiential characteristics of the Divine Nature and they manifest no fear of God. Even some TV preachers fit that profile because they con the people into giving and make ridiculous promises about reaping prosperity. There is obviously no fear of God or any expectation that they will be held responsible for that deception.

Rev 21:8 “But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

Even though all liars and adulterers are included in this list of those who will end in the lake of fire there seems to be no understanding that these “preachers” are included in this group. Some say this does NOT include those adulterers and liars who are saved but just the unsaved! They seem to believe they are excluded from this extreme judgement but they may accept that they might lose some “rewards.”

Recently a well known preacher who was having sex with some women in his church said that after a person becomes very mature he attains to a dimension of growth and a “spiritual excellence” which excludes him from all guilt. He justified his adultery by his theology. For him, it was easier to change his theology than overcoming his lust. It is clear that deception is Not limited to the unsaved.

Even our disappointments, our failures and mistakes become part of our Truth and Faith reservoir from which we establish standards of Life and reality. This is Truth that comes through our experience and some is obtained through our fear of God and the absolute nature of His Word.

For example: I have been a “seeker of truth” since 1953. When I found no realty in the standard denominational church, I thought I had found truth in Christian Science. It offered much more information and facts about the Bible than I had previously received. However, it turned out to promise and claim much more than it could deliver. After 15 ½ years of trying to adjust to that “kind of philosophy of truth,” I discovered it was just another cult that created its own truth that could not produce a subjective reality. It depended upon a natural faith in certain doctrines and Bible verses that were “explained” by another book called Science and Health With Key to the Scriptures.

After being born again and receiving the Holy Spirit I continued the search for truth but now I looked for truth that could create a demonstrable, personal, experiential reality in a new and living way. Now I am beginning to understand that Truth without Faith is not the answer. I also discovered that the source of the Faith to activate experiential and Eternal Truth is not from books, doctrines, religion nor from man but from God and is God’s Kind of Faith.

Then the dilemma struck me. Where can I get this God Kind of Faith and what do I need to pray for to satisfy this search for Truth/Reality? When it became clear that all this provision has been given by God in the New Covenant, I soon understood that I was asking for something I had already received within the Promise of the Father and the New Covenant. At first this seemed way too easy and simple to be true. Why? Because it was all included in the Promise of the Father. Surely it must be more complicated than just participating in the Promise of the Father and the New Covenant Provision. However, this is the basic foundation and the beginning of our experience into the fulness of the Christian Life. Without this provision of God, Christianity is just more religion.

Now my message begins this way: If it was complicated, ignorant and unlearned fishermen could not have participated and the world would not have been turned upside down in a few months.

Act 17:6 But when they failed to find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brethren before the city authorities, crying, These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also (Amplified Bible).

Now a new question appears: If I have received the Promise of the Father AND The New Covenant why am I still struggling with so much failure? Maybe I just know about the New Covenant but have not yet experienced enough of its provision to demonstrate its reality. At least now I know how to pray and what to pray for so I can develop into a genuine New Covenant Christian. I am disappointed in being just a Christian who believes in Jesus but am powerless to receive and demonstrate all of what He died for on Calvary. Is the measure of beginning Faith sufficient to enable me to move into the realm of Faith and Truth that is ideally demonstrated by the Lampstand Church in the Holy Place dimension? Not at all!

My thesis is this: The natural faith of the Outer Court dimension will only be effective in the Outer Court dimension. It can never appropriate what is necessary to function in the Holy Place dimension. For that reason the New Covenant MUST be fully experienced as we complete the full preparation of the Outer Court experiences. When each of these “foundations” are experiential, the New Covenant provision will be sufficient in our Inner Life to enable us to demonstrate the full Christian Life (pure Gold) required by the Lampstand Church He is building.

This Document is titled “ Faith and the Natural Mind.” A natural faith is ONLY related to the natural mind which can only accept the natural kind of faith and truth. Attempting to understand spiritual and eternal matters with the natural mind of the natural man will be impossible. Therefore, there MUST be a renewing of the mind through a full consecration offering. The Consecration Offering is ONE of the essential foundations for the Christian Life that is revealed in the Seventh Outer Court dimension. We sometime say this offering is the last of the Outer Court preparations but entering into the New Covenant reality is actually the reason for the seven preparations or foundations. This SECOND VEIL indicates a transition from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant dimension where the Lampstand Church is designed to function.

Didn’t the THIRD VEIL represent the transition to the New Covenant when Jesus Sacrificed Himself and the Veil was torn from top to bottom. Yes, that is certain! This Veil opened up the New Covenant Priesthood after the Order of Melchizedek and released the Lampstand Church to begin to function in the Most Holy Place dimension. However, overcoming at the Lampstand dimension is necessary to be able to function in the Most Holy Place dimension. This Holy Place preparation is linked dynamically with the New Covenant which MUST provide an escape from the fleshly/earthly/carnal/temporal/natural realm of the Outer Court. Why? Because the SANCTUARY (tent) that houses the Lampstand Church is accessed through the Second Veil between the Outer Court and the Holy Place. The Church that Jesus Christ is Building is in the Holy Place NOT the Outer Court.

The next dimension, called the Holy Place Life and Ministry, holds many mysteries and the answers to many questions. For example: What is it that is inherent within the New Covenant Christian that recognizes Eternal Truth? What has been provided that enables us to detect Truth and recognize the Word of God as an absolute reality. How can we exercise Faith in that realm when much of the world denies any relevancy of the Bible? Is there a God given faculty that enables us to know and believe things that others deny? Obviously there is this mysterious realm that we are getting more familiar and comfortable with. If this is true in our understanding now, what is the limit of revelation that is available to us in that realm? Have we exhausted the possibility of “ doing the things we see the Father doing?” If Jesus is the prototype Son and ministered in this higher realm, is it also the plan of God that we also function in that same dimension and mystical realm?

I am guessing that we, the Christian Church, has not even touched or recognized a small part of the totality of what God has provided for those who Love Him.

1Cor 2:6 Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; 7 but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God predestined before the ages to our glory; 8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

1Co 2:9 but just as it is written, “THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.” 10 For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.

1Cor 2:11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God, 13 which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.

1Cor 2:14 But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. 15 But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no man. 16 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE SHOULD INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.

Paul is presenting a theology designed for the Christian Church for the whole Church Age. This is obviously referring to a dimension of Christian experience far beyond the current experience of the visible church. In fact, most of the visible church would not believe this realm of knowledge is even available as normal Christian experience today.

If other Christians cannot accept this why do we believe this is certainly available to us and should be our daily experience? What has God imparted to us that makes us different from the multitude of Christians that attend the church building each week. The multitude will easily accept the doctrine that this dimension of knowledge was ONLY for the early church and has now passed away. They boldly preach that now that we have the Bible we don’t need that mystical stuff! But this IS the Bible that we are reading from.

These verses in 1 Corinthians 2 reveal the experience of those walking in the Kingdom of God dimension. If we can ignore the Kingdom of God we can ignore these verses. If we accept the reality of the Kingdom as present reality and within us then these verses should be our experience. Paul was just referring to things that are normal for the church in any age. He even anticipates the reaction of the natural man and acknowledges that the natural man will reject this simply because he has no ability to accept mystical/spiritual things. Why? Because these things are Only revealed by the Spirit. Since this reaction to mystical things is the evidence of the natural man, who is incapable of receiving spiritual truth, it should be clear the natural man is the normal believer and the one functioning in the visible church. He is even standing in the pulpit preaching carnal and irrelevant things!

If this is true, then what is our excuse for not living in these higher realms and knowing and experiencing these things of the Spirit of God? In John 14-15 and 16 Jesus told us what we could expect when the Holy Spirit came, whom He would send from the Father.

Once we have received the Holy Spirit we want to call the visible church carnal and dead but what is our actual testimony concerning these verses? Can we actually manifest the Truth, Life and Faith of God inherent within the provisions of the New Covenant? If not, why not? Do we have a valid excuse for our pitiful condition? Maybe we should schedule a corporate conference and bring together many leaders and try to devise an acceptable corporate excuse for our failure to manifest the fulness of Christ, the Living and Abiding Word of God.

However, God has imparted something (extra) to us so we really believe the scriptures are true and that God will do what He says. He has added something to us inside that makes us unique and different from the multitudes. But is this testimony of having something (extra) enough to fulfill the purpose of God? Is having received something (extra) the extent of our testimony? Is our testimony just that we believe we have the (extra)? But what is Faith without the reality of the experience? Is faith just dead without the evidence? It is at least dying!

In the little time I have left I want to experience this next realm of God’s restoration process. This is the focus of my life and prayer that God will make me an experiential New Covenant believer. After that I will pray to become a New Covenant minister! The great need today is for a few people to enter into this next dimension of the Holy Place Life and Ministry so they can preach from their actual experience and help others to enter in to this dimension of Christian Life that is directly related to the Lampstand Church.

The time for POINTING at that realm and guessing what that realm means to us should quickly come to a close. Someone, someplace must enter in so they can help us to fulfill God’s revealed purpose and bring joy to His heart. If we think this is too difficult for us or that we don’t understand enough yet about this dimension, this is just another excuse for not participating in what God has freely provided. This is “PROMISE,” not doctrine or Hope. Once we accept that He will bring many sons to Glory, we then need to ask how will He do it? It would be very sad to know about these things but then ignore their reality and to be shut out of the experience.

It is a fact that Jesus functioned in these dimensions and we are to grow to His measure and stature and be conformed to His image. Therefore, we certainly cannot ignore the provision or God’s calling to fulfill His purpose! How can we make our calling into a choosing if we ignore the provision. His provision is given to us as a PROMISE so we can attain to the reality of Christ and be included in the “many sons that He will bring to Glory.”

1Cor 2:16 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE SHOULD INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.

When we receive the “IMPARTATION of CHRIST IN US” there is an inherent assurance within us that this whole revelation in 1 Cor 2 and the other revelations are true. It can also become “OUR TRUTH” when it becomes our experience. If it becomes “OUR TRUTH” we will be able to preach the Spirit and Life of that TRUTH and inspire others to seek the Kingdom in this ream of experiential TRUTH. Another doctrine will not advance the church into this next restoration. Preaching another irrelevant message about past revivals or past restorations has not advanced the church one inch. Why would we think another message will change ANYTHING? If 500 messages has not changed the visible church, why would we think 500 more messages will accomplish any more?

Would it be possible just to stop all this Sunday entertainment and foolishness and declare a moratorium on messages and just seek God until the majority of believers receive the Promise of the Father and become New Covenant believers? If the Inner, Abiding Anointing began to teach the believers ALL things, why would they still require a “message?” The “message” would certainly interfere –and may conflict– with what God was teaching them from within. At this point in the development of the church, this may still sound like fantasy or dreaming, but it seems that the past “church systems” and methods are not advancing the church to any higher realms. It seems reasonable that the visible church will not make the transition into the Holy Place realm of the Lampstand Church that He is building. The pitiful condition of the visible cannot be denied except by those who failed to develop that inner “something” that comes from God and is always pointing to experiencing the fullness of Christ and for each of us to fulfill God’s Eternal Purpose.

When we can find that kind of Christian in which this kind of Light/Life is present, we experience that “something from God” that witnesses that this is one chosen by God to make the transition to the next restoration. These are the ones I want to speak with and compare insight to see if these things are confirmed. To ONLY look for these “New Covenant seekers” from among pastors has been rather disappointing. Too many believe that they have already received EVERYTHING God has for them and their calling is to lead others into what they have. How shallow?