CHAPTER 23

RIGHT BELIEFS, RIGHT THOUGHTS

At the beginning of this book we postulated that the Bible is the ultimate self-help book.  When it comes to real solutions involving the inner human, it is the only useful self-help book, because it is truth.  John 8:31 says “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  It is the Word of God which can rehabilitate our soul by filling our human spirit with truth, which will then drive our soul functions and keep the Sinful Nature generally under control.  No human has a perfect belief system from top to bottom.  But there are divine standards designed to guide us through our life, and especially our spiritual life. 

This book has pointed out many false assumptions about how humans think and form beliefs.  We now see that all of it occurs in the soul, not in the brain.  We discussed how the brain is a gateway between the soul and the outside world, enabling the soul to interface with the universe.  Let us also recall what we discussed about the issue of truth in beliefs, that all people think their own beliefs are "true," or at least "working" for them.  By definition, people only believe what they think is true or close enough by their standards.  And our core beliefs center on those things we believe are both true and most important in our lives.  So we asked ourselves whether truth is what each person thinks it is, or is there one true belief system?  And if the latter, who gets to decide what is right or wrong, true or false, acceptable or unacceptable?  There can be no other answer except "God gets to decide."  The only other choice is "No one" and humans cannot live with that answer.  But they try.  And they fail.  And what belief system does God endorse?  We Christians believe it is our faith, based on what the Bible says, because it was written by 35 people in 66 books over about 1500 years yet provides a coordinated and consistent story, reveals a loving and merciful God who offers salvation by grace through belief in Jesus Christ as Savior, explains the universe, gives us answers to our fundamental questions about life, describes what a spiritual life should be, and provides other answers to deep questions which shows us it is true.  And it works.  No other belief system reveals anything close to that, or has its power.  Does that make us narrow minded to accept one single belief system?  Not if it is truth.  But others believe their opposing belief systems are true, or something like it.  We believe they are wrong about that.  Does it bother us that not everyone believes what we believe?  Only because we want them to have eternal salvation, but we defend their right to choose.  So we do not apologize for believing that the Bible is the truth.  For us, it is our core belief system and therefore it drives our thoughts and beliefs at all levels.  Imperfectly, of course.  We are human.  And forgiven.  And we can also hold other subordinate beliefs as long as they are not in significant conflict.

God does not have a dynamic and fluid belief system.  He only offers salvation through one specific method based on the sacrifice of His Son.  Any other attempt by any other method will be rejected.  God made the most basic and necessary issue of our lifetime, which is our salvation or lack thereof, a matter of what we believe.  The Bible says "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved."  (Acts 16:31)  Note that it is not thoughts which save us, but a single and very specific belief.  It does not mean we merely believe that Jesus existed as a real historical person.  That is not specific enough.  It is the salvation work of Jesus Christ which is the key, the belief that He is our Savior, which when believed is the moment we are eternally saved.  Thoughts are not beliefs until they are accepted as true.  Thoughts can be all over the map, some as works in progress, others half-baked, others rejected immediately after thinking them, others occur in dreams where belief is somewhat suspended, others are various forms of whatever crosses through the soul, often whizzing by and then gone forever.  But it is the acceptance of thoughts as true which turns them into beliefs.  If a thought which is accepted replaces a previous thought which was opposite, then the belief has changed to the new belief.  Thoughts form beliefs only when the thought is accepted as true.  And one single specific belief provides eternal salvation.  There will be a lot of nice people who spend eternity in misery.  A very sad fact, but an exclamation point on the importance of thoughts and beliefs, because one specific belief, or lack thereof, will determine the eternal future of each and every person who ever lives.  

Note that God made salvation a matter of beliefs.  Some might say, how can something so simple as a belief result in eternal salvation?  I assume none of you would ask that, having read to this point.  We have seen how powerful beliefs are, and how they are the truest reflection of the inner human.  Belief is acceptance.  Belief is commitment.  Belief is trust in the one providing the information.  Beliefs are not "something simple."  God chose belief in Jesus Christ as Savior as the only way of salvation because it is acceptance, commitment, and trust, which is what God requires of a person to become one of His own.  Therefore God did not make salvation a matter of being "good" to some relative degree, but rather a matter of what the individual believes.  That is the ultimate reason for this book.  God requires humans to believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior in order to accept the free gift of salvation which God has offered.  God did the work, and Jesus Christ made the sacrifice.  Humans must simply believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior, in their soul as we have learned, to accept the free gift, the most difficult thing God ever did, which was sacrificing His only Son for all of us.  Any other route is closed off since it would be a matter of who deserves salvation, which changes it from a free gift to an earned payment for services rendered.  And what do we have to offer God that He needs from us anyway?  Nothing.

Those who reject salvation by faith through grace will never gain a human spirit, which is required to interact and live with God.  There is no incremental earning of a human spirit.  It cannot be achieved by being good enough, or by working hard enough, because the soul alone cannot please God or interact with Him.  It requires the human spirit as a partner which can interact with and please God.  When the two parts of the inner human work in tandem, God hears and provides His divine favor.  If there is only a soul, God waits for the belief to occur.  No human after the Fall of Adam and Eve can ever deserve anything from God.  But all humans are given the opportunity to accept the free gift of salvation simply by what they believe.  Thoughts and beliefs.  That is what this book is about because it is what God requires of us to fulfill His will.

As we conclude, there is such a thing as right core beliefs.  God gave us the Bible to define them and to show us how we can develop them.  Since our core beliefs drive the important thoughts and thinking we engage in, and the decisions we make, having correct core beliefs is critical if we are going to align with God's will and with reality.  In the final analysis, these are the same.  Truth always comes back to the Bible, even when it is rejected.  The Bible separates right from wrong, truth from lies, tells us why these truths are the correct ones, and why all opposing belief systems are therefore wrong and opposed by God.  God is not arbitrary about what He believes and what He requires of us, but He can only support that which is right and true because He designed us and the universe.  Our soul and human spirit were designed to function on truth.  When we function on anything else there will be distortions.  It is like putting diesel fuel into a gasoline car and saying "all fuel is just fuel, so all is acceptable."  The truth is beneficial to the inner human, and everything else does some degree of harm if it is believed.

After salvation God makes our life about believing the Bible as His truth, and to use it as our source of knowing, understanding, and loving Him.  Depressing as the current status of the world may be, it is not an excuse for believers in Jesus Christ to join in the escapism, distractions, and participate in pretending that all beliefs are equally acceptable.  They are not.  The reason is that God does not find them equally acceptable.  He gets to decide.  His Word tells us what He believes.  As believers we must align our thoughts and beliefs with His. 

If the soul becomes damaged the road back is long and hard, but there is at least a narrow road back.  It is akin to recovery from a serious disease which has decimated the body.  The decimated soul can be rehabilitated, but there is only one answer, and the Bible provides the solution.  The soul can only be rehabilitated by the Word of God.  The damage was done by believing falsehoods and lies.  Only truth can repair and undo the damage.  And truth only comes from God, which He has revealed to us in the Bible.  Learning the Bible, the Word of God, is the only means of rehabilitation.  Not at a casual level, but by a deep understanding and belief in what it reveals.  It is spiritual food, nourishment for the soul.  Truth heals and reforms the soul so it can function normally again.  Therefore all proper, correct, accurate, noble, and worthy beliefs are rooted and grounded in what God has told us, and that is revealed in the Bible.  It must therefore be the guide for our beliefs.  And what we believe will drive our thinking, and then our actions.  The process of recovery is full of setbacks and pain.  But how could it be otherwise, since the slide into the abyss was a long and involved process of slow destruction.  Such damage cannot be overcome in a short time, or without pain and setbacks.

Growing in God's Word is not like other types of learning which results in knowledge of the universe.  The truth from the Bible is actually and literally "alive and powerful" as Hebrews 4:12 says.  Unlike learning math or physics or a hobby, the Word has spiritual power in and of itself, and it can be harnessed if it is taken into the human spirit.  1 Corinthians 8:1 says "We know that we all possess knowledge. But knowledge puffs up while love builds up."  The Word of God is the source of love, unlike all other religions.  It is learning the Word and growing by it which gives us power from God to live a life focused on God's plan for us.  Therefore, growing spiritually allows us to have greater and greater fellowship with God.  So we see that growing up spiritually is the primary task required of the new believer.  Growth inside any family requires food and learning from teaching.  God has provided spiritual food in the form of principles written in the Bible which must be taught by a Pastor who is well trained in understanding the Bible, which is the Word of God and the “mind of Christ.”  Intake of the Word of God becomes the primary means of spiritual growth in the family in order to meet our spiritual obligations.  2 Peter 1:3-10 says: "His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness... 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." 

The Bible explains the need to keep the Heart and Mind focused on God's Word to avoid the distractions of the Sinful Nature.  Because the following passage from Proverbs describes this so clearly, it is included in its entirety without comment:

Proverbs Chapter 2:

2 "Making your ear attentive to wisdom, and inclining your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding,
4 if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;
7 He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity,
8 guarding the paths of justice and watching over the way of his saints.
9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path;
10 for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you,
12 delivering you from the way of evil."

These verses from Proverbs show how the Heart and Mind when functioning properly under a belief system based on spiritual information housed in the human spirit will yield knowledge, understanding and spiritual wisdom.  When this happens the Bible says the person has a good Heart and a sound Mind.

God gave us free will to choose, primarily for or against Him and His plan, but also for most other things in life.  If humans did not have truly free will, they would be merely puppets and their choices would not be true ones, and therefore they could not appreciate and love God.  That is why humans have truly free will, because God wanted us to be able to make uncoerced decisions and therefore be capable of having spiritual interaction with Him which was genuine, and individually chosen.  However, it is this free will which changed the entire course of human history and led to all the distortions covered in this book.

This brings us to the answer to the question "What should we think and believe?"  The answer is: "truth."  God wants us to believe what He has told us because it is the truth, which is only found in the Bible.  When we reject what God says is truth, we look for substitutes.  The substitutes are various forms of untruth, from living on emotion to believing in a religious system other than that found in the Bible.  However, most humans just want to avoid thinking and believing very much at all.  Apart from the Biblical view of what our thoughts and beliefs should be, there is no other useful source or authority.

The reason this spiritual growth is necessary is because God requires us to make constant positive decisions in favor of Him, to continually go to Him and seek His grace.  Therefore we must learn what He requires of us.  Over time the believer can reduce destructive mental thoughts such as arrogance, anger, envy, hatred, jealousy, and a long list which can creep into the soul.  The believer must grow and leave the newborn status behind, then proceed through adolescence, and become a spiritual adult.  The believer glorifies Jesus Christ as he grows in the knowledge of God’s Word.  This growth can only be accomplished by learning what God has told us through the Bible.  Humans were designed by God to think and form beliefs.  God did not design us to function on a belief system which is based on false information, half-truths, or lies.  Humans have a soul which requires information to function, to think, to form and hold beliefs.  But those beliefs can be right or wrong, truth or lie, good or bad.  We were designed to function on the belief system revealed in the Bible, which is truth, because it is the Word of God -- His truth.

The inner human will live forever.  Our thoughts and beliefs will determine our happiness both on earth and for all eternity.  That makes them very powerful things.  Thoughts and beliefs have eternal implications.  Choose them wisely.

THERE IS NO END 

WHAT YOU THINK & BELIEVE NOW  

WILL MATTER FOR ALL ETERNITY 

OTHER FREE BOOKS BY NEAL FOX:

“The Future Times: Biblical Prophecies About the Remainder of History & Beyond”  2017

“Exploring Deep Concepts & Mysteries of the Bible”  2018

"Time & The Universe: A Biblical View"  2019

"Vanishment & Tribulation" (Novel)  2020

Website:  http://nealfoxbooks.blogspot.com 

Contact Information: nealfoxbooks@gmail.com