Video Transcript: The Problem of Perceived Lack

Welcome to Lesson three. This lesson is about Eve and the problem of  perceived lack. Satan's attack on Eve's integrity was attack an attack on her  wholeness. Prior to the fall, Eve's spirit, soul and body were in harmony and  alignment, and unfortunately Satan's methods haven't changed. His approach  with Eve is reminiscent of the cultural attacks on womanhood that we're seeing  today. The main question is, Did God really say, so what caused Eve to fall  victim to Satan's lies. She had been placed in a garden, that was heaven on  earth, we would have loved to have been there, no weeds, she could have  everything she could possibly want. And more. She had every kind of food to  eat. She had a one woman man, and she had the freedom to do as she pleased whenever she wanted to, can you imagine that? She had perfect health, perfect  weather, and no known danger. So what caused her to fall? Well, some people  say she was out witted, she was deceived. But James tells us that we're  dragged away by our own evil desires. So what was Eve's evil desire? What  happened between the day she was crafted, bawnaw, as a perfect woman, to  the day that she took and ate the fruit. At some point along the way, she looked  at that one tree out of the 1000s upon 1000s, and she decided that something  was missing in her life. She perceived, lack the word perceived means to come  to an opinion about something or have a belief about something. This belief  doesn't have to be based on truth. It doesn't have to be based on reality or even  fact. A perception is simply the formation of an opinion, or a belief. It can be  rooted in truth or fact. Or it can be comprised of past memories. snippets of  conversation lies from trusted friends, dreams, imaginations. It can even be  based on how you feel when you wake up in the morning, and then go and run  into somebody that is new to you. The key to perception is that the belief you  believe is true. So what did Eve believe? Well, she decided first to believe  something was missing in her life. And then she chose to believe that God was  holding out on her that she had a face to face relationship with God was not  enough that he walked in the garden with her, not enough that she had the right  to eat of the tree of eternal life. Not enough. In the Old Testament sin is defined  as missing the mark. The concept comes from shooting an arrow with it veering  off the straight path and missing the target. In the New Testament, it also means  to miss the mark. Within the Greek. The word sin can also carry the connotation  of missing out on one's share of the inheritance or one's portion or destiny. I see  it as missing out on the plan of God for our life. I was thinking about Eve, you  know what caused her perception of God to change. It seems that when she  decided to believe she was missing out on something, she generated a self  fulfilling prophecy. And what she missed out on was eternal life. What she got  was a life filled with evil sickness, disease and death. When Eve agreed with the perception of not having enough, she actually sowed the seeds of perceived  lack. Lack, in its ultimate form, is death. If we choose to see our lives through  the lens of lack, we make ourselves miss out on what God has for us our share 

of the inheritance because our choices and decisions are viewed through a lens  of ingratitude and doubt. Sometimes I think we don't fully appreciate the  disconnect of the soul and spirit. In Psalms 119 25, we read my soul cleaves to  the dust, the word cleaves can mean sticks to, runs after, holds onto, but it also  means to be joined together. Our soul, in its degradation is deeply integrated  into the physical realm. When Jesus comes in to save us, he extricates us bit by bit, in my case, unfortunately, he's had to pry some things out of my clenched  fist. And this process can be painful, letting go of what appears stable and  Certain is confusing and frightening at times, maybe your life feels disconnected and out of sync. You may have experienced trauma that left you disoriented and  confused. Or maybe because of your environment or even your own choices.  Your mind has fed more on hopelessness and anger, bitterness, envy, jealousy,  pride, or even perversion, rather than on hope, and the promises and  ordinances of God. You may have abused or altered your body in an effort to fit  into the world system, you may have turned your back on your gender, in an  effort to find your identity. You may feel like your spirit is weak, and you are just  not able to allow it to control your body and your emotions. Your body and your  emotions are ruling you. But the good news is that because of Jesus, the Holy  Spirit can live in you and can help you overcome any negative in life, whether it's imposed on you, or whether it's yours as the result of your own choices. The  Spirit of God is bigger than anything we've done or can do in our search for  meaning, significance, and wholeness. In the scriptures, we see the word way  over 600 times we see in Proverbs 14:12, that there's a way that seems right to  a man, but its end is the way of death. Eve thought the way to fixing her sense  of lack was to acquire knowledge. But Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:14 There's a  way that leads to life. But it's a difficult half with a narrow gate, and few find it.  The choice is ours. It's the same choice Joshua set before the Israelites in  Deuteronomy 30:15. See, I set the for you today. life and prosperity, death and  destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, walk in  obedience to him keep his commands and decrees and laws. And then you will  live an increase in the Lord your God will bless you in the land you're entering to possess. But if your heart turns away, and you're not obedient, and if you're  drawn away, you will certainly be destroyed. This day I call the heavens and  earth as witnesses against you because I've set before you life and death,  blessings and curses. Now choose life so that you and your children may live  and that you may love the Lord your God and listen to His voice and hold fast to  him. Because the Lord is your life. Robert Frost in his famous poem, The Road  Less Traveled says it this way. Two roads diverged in a wood and I, I took the  one less traveled by and that has made all the difference. If we want a sense of  wholeness, we have to choose to align our spirit, soul and body with the ways of God. We find his ways marked very clearly in the Bible, in the Divine laws that  govern this universe, in his prescribed manner of wise living in the explanations 

of how the Kingdom of Heaven operates in the judgments or sentences that  were handed down when cases were brought before the Lord's throne. And in  the testimonies of many witnesses, as to the style of life that brings God's favor  and blessings. Anything outside of his ways, leads us away from life, joy, peace,  and our sense of identity, purpose and fulfillment. And anything outside of his  ways, will ultimately end in death. I hope that you'll be able to take this lesson  and think about it and apply it to your own situation. Think about Eve. Are you  like her? Are you seeing things, perceiving things as lacking in your life?  Perhaps you want to take an inventory of what you have, and then what you  think that you don't have that you need? It is true. Some people don't even have  the basic necessities. I'm not talking about that. In those cases, we go to God  and we lay out our case before Him and He will hear and answer our prayers.  But if your lack is simply perceived, if it's based on what you see other people  have or what the world system says you should have or do or be, then let God  change your perceptions. I pray for you today that you will be set free from the  perceptions of this world and that you'll be allowed to have a joyful life living fully in the power of the Holy Spirit. Have a wonderful rest of your day and we'll see  you tomorrow.