Matthew 15:13 Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted shall be rooted up (KJV).
Every believer will have issues that they will struggle with, without exception. How quickly they overcome them depends on how they handle them. However, for several, there are those mountains that just seem to stay planted where they are and won’t go away. The difficulty lies in them treating the symptoms instead of the root of the problem. They try to get rid of unwanted behavior, thought patterns and so on without addressing the core issues. We can pick off all the apples on a tree, but apples will eventually grow back. On the other hand, if we put the axe to the roots of the tree, it will cease to produce apples. At times, we need to address the unwanted fruit as symptoms of something deeper going on inside.
As we begin to address roots, we first need to realize a few things. One, we face them from the standpoint of victory. We are told in Romans 8:37 that, “We are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.” In Christ Jesus, we already have the victory. More often than not, it is a question of submission. As it is written in Galatians 5:16, “Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh,” for example. Secondly, what we do is not who we are! There are times we blow it, but that does not necessarily mean we have character issues; although, it in some instances there may be character issues. For example, a person can suddenly be overtaken in a moment of anger and lash out, even though his norm is a peaceful demeanor. Lashing out is not typical. It was not premeditated, he was just caught off-guard. In such cases, repentance comes quickly. In such cases, it may mean there is something troubling him on the inside that has not been dealt with. Whatever took place was not in his heart, nor part of his character –“he was out of character. ” Thirdly, God is for us and will expose anything contrary to our new nature that needs to be rooted out. He will allow circumstance to come into our lives in order to put pressure on what needs to pushed to the surface, so we can see it for ourselves. It’s called exposure. Once we see it, we have a decision to make: do we hold on to it, or do we release it? He will show us what needs to be done to be rid of it. Caution: the more we try to ignore what He is showing us, the more He turns up the pressure. Sometimes this means publicity -it blows up in front of everybody and is no longer private. God’s love for us is so great that He does go to extremes sometimes. Don’t think so? What about the Cross? On the other hand, if we continue to ignore what He is showing us, we can become indifferent. Our relationship with the Father grows cold, and we fail to become who He has called us to be. It also leads to self-deception. Humility is key here! When things are happening, it is time to ask for wisdom.
The following are just a few possible scenarios to help recognize root exposure. One scenario is where a person has a difficult time with anger and wrath. Anger being the long burning emotion that has built up over time, and is often hidden; whereas, wrath is the sudden explosion that quickly ignites and is gone. Sometimes the wrath is connected to the anger. The anger and the wrath are symptoms of something deep-seeded. It may be an emotional wound or a fear that they are protecting. It is easier to feel anger and wrath than the hurt caused by the wound. Anger also keeps other people at bay. It is a defense mechanism used to keep others for hurting them again. In this case, once the wound is healed, the anger and wrath disappear. Depression is also a symptom of unaddressed issues. For example, when people fail to express or deal with their anger properly (stuffing it), it turns against them. If you meet a person who is always angry, you will have probably met someone who has deep-seeded wounds and fears.
Anger also is a manipulative tool used against others. People use it in order to get what they want: agreement from others, or the vanquishing of opposition -winning arguments; getting others to do their bidding; and is some cases, getting others to turn on them. People often do things based upon what they believe to be true; whether it is or is not. For example, if they have a hypothesis that says, “No one listens to me,” they will get others to listen by employing anger. Much is based upon early wounds that have left them feeling unvalidated; hence, carrying feelings of worthlessness to others. Even with it being untrue, the feeling makes it real to them. This ties in the with the concept that no one would be interested in what they have to say. In some cases, anger is used to validate the hypothesis that says, “no one loves, and on one wants to be around me.” The idea is that the anger will cause others to reject them, which only reinforces their belief system. Unconsciously, they have a tendency to sabotage relationships that may start to develop into something that is close or intimate. Others have grown up fearful and are too timid to speak their minds, but have found anger to be a tool they can use to express themselves. Anger does give people a feeling of power. The unfortunate thing about such use of anger is that it too employs fear, and such use of anger is demonic in nature. It is totally contrary to the Word of God.
Ephesians 4:31-32 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you (KJV).
The key to releasing bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour (tumult or controversy), and evil speaking is forgiveness. When we release people from their offense, which includes ourselves, we are in a position to receive healing. The ability to forgive is found in the power of the Holy Spirit, especially when the emotions involved are so strong. Sometimes we simply have to ask the Father for the help to forgive. If we make the conscious decision to forgive, the emotions will follow. We cannot make the mistake of making decisions based upon the feelings or emotions of the moment. As we forgive healing will come, along with the ability to be kind and tenderhearted.
Another key in overcoming issues of inferiority is renewing our minds in the Word of God. Ask the Lord to show you how He sees you in the Scriptures, and ask for a vision of how He truly does see you. If you see yourself the way He does, inferiority will have no place in your life.
