The Doctrine of Emotion. Part 2

The Emotions of the Soul.

Our study of ROM 9:1 has led us to look at the Doctrine of The Emotions of the Soul.

Point 1 was our Definition and Description. In Point 2 we looked at some New Testament Greek words for emotion. In Point 3 we saw that our emotions are tested by God.

We are now on Point 4: Old Testament Words for Emotions.

The first Hebrew word we saw was Racham often translated bowels and this word is used to designate the emotions and points to having mercy (GEN 43:30; 1KI 3:26).

A second Hebrew word is me`ah which is also translated intestines, abdomen, stomach, belly, or bowels; it too refers to the place of emotions. We looked at many verses that, when correctly translated, showed that the meaning of those words really referred to the emotions (JOB 30:27; SOS 5:4; JER 4:19).

The third Hebrew word for emotions is beten meaning something that is hollow; the belly, the abdomen (PRO 13:25; PRO 18:8;PRO 26:22). In PRO 18:8, the person who listens to gossip is emotionally stimulated by listening to all the horrible things about someone of whom they are jealous. They respond to gossip, but it produces wounds in the soul like a ulcer. This is why Solomon wrote in PRO 24:17 “Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles;” When you rejoice over the tragedies of someone, you are sick either mentally or spiritually and jealous of them. The emotional activity of gloating over someone you can’t stand only destroys you. The next Hebrew word used to designate emotions is kilyah translatedreins. Reins is an old English word for the kidneys and adrenal glands. The adrenal glands secrete the hormone epinephrine which is the fright, flight, or fight hormone, stimulated by the emotions.

While there is no spiritual content to emotion in the Church-age, there is some definite spiritual content to emotion in the Millennium. In the Millennium, the filling of the Holy Spirit appreciates the reign of Christ. And why shouldn’t there be a tremendous emotion response? Look at the conditions during the Millennial reign of Christ, that thousand year period of blessing and prosperity. REV 20:1-3, “And I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he should not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.”

We looked at a few descriptions of what the world will be like at that time: 1. There will be world peace. National and individual peace will be the fruit of the Messiah’s reign (ISA 2:4; 11:6-9; 60:18; 61:7). He’ll settle things fairly between the nations and the people. No more will nation fight nation; they won’t play war anymore (ISA 2:4; 11:6-9). So, of course this is going to be a very emotional time. The wolf will romp with the lamb; the leopard will sleep with the goat. Calf and lion will eat from the same trough, and a little child will tend them. The whole earth will be gleaming, brimming with knowing God, a deep living knowledge of God.ISA 60:18 “Violence will not be heard again in your land, Nor devastation or destruction within your borders; But you will call your walls salvation, and your gates praise.”

There will be no more stories of crime in your land, no more robberies, no more vandalism. ISA 61:7 Instead of your shame {you will have a} double {portion,} And {instead of} humiliation they will shout for joy over their portion. Therefore they will possess a double {portion} in their land, Everlasting joy will be theirs. So, of course this is going to be a very emotional time.

2. It will be a fantastic time of inner happiness and joy. ISA 9:3 “Thou shalt multiply the nation, Thou shalt increase their gladness; They will be glad in Thy presence As with the gladness of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.”The Lord will repopulate the nations, expand their joy. The joy of a great celebration, sharing rich gifts and warm greetings. ISA 9:4 “For Thou shalt break the yoke of their burden and the staff on their shoulders, The rod of their oppressor, as at the battle of Midian.” The abuse of oppressors and cruelty of tyrants is done away with a deliverance as surprising and sudden as Gideon’s old victory over Midian.

3. The kingdom will also be characterized by glory. ISA 4:2 “In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth {will} be the pride and the adornment of the survivors of Israel.”

4. The King will personally minister to every need so that there will be the fullness of comfort (ISA 12:1-2; JER 31:23-25). All Judah’s people, whether in town or country, will get along just fine with each other. He’ll refresh tired bodies; He’ll restore tired souls.

5. There will be the administration of perfect justice. ISA 9:7 “There will be no end to the increase of {His} government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.” His ruling authority will grow, and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness He brings. He’ll rule from the historic Davidic throne over that promised kingdom. He’ll put that kingdom on a firm footing and keep it going with fair dealing and right living. So, of course this is going to be a very emotional time.

6. There will be the most fantastic teaching ministry of God the Holy Spirit. ISA 11:1-2, “Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.”

7. There will be direct instruction from The Lord Jesus Christ as the King of kings (ISA 29:17-24; 3:14-15). Before you know it, and without you having anything to do with it, the waste lands of Lebanon will be transformed into lush gardens. At that time the deaf will hear what’s been written. After a lifetime in darkness, the blind will see. The castoffs of society will be laughing and dancing in God;, the down-and-outs will shout praise to The Holy One of Israel. There’ll be no more gangs on the street. Cynical scoffers will be an extinct species. Those who never missed a chance to hurt or demean will never be heard of again: Gone will be the people who corrupted the courts, gone the people who cheated the poor, gone the people who victimized the innocent. God’s message for the family of Jacob, the same GOD who redeemed Abraham: No longer will Jacob hang his head in shame, no longer grow pale with waiting. For he’s going to see his children; God’s personal gift to him are lots of children who will honor the Lord by living spiritual lives. In holy worship they’ll honor the Holy One of Jacob and stand in holy awe of the God of Israel. Those who got off-track will get back on-track, and complainers and whiners will learn gratitude. ISA 29:17-24, Is it not yet just a little while Before Lebanon will be turned into a fertile field, And the fertile field will be considered as a forest? And on that day the deaf shall hear words of a book, And out of {their} gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see. The afflicted also shall increase their gladness in the Lord, And the needy of mankind shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. For the ruthless will come to an end, and the scorner will be finished, Indeed all who are intent on doing evil will be cut off; Who cause a person to be indicted by a word, And ensnare him who adjudicates at the gate, And defraud the one in the right with meaningless arguments. Therefore thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob, ‘Jacob shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now turn pale; But when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst, They will sanctify My name; Indeed, they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, And will stand in awe of the God of Israel.” And those who err in mind will know the truth, And those who criticize will accept instruction.

8. The original curse placed upon creation in GEN 3:17-19 will be removed so that there will be abundant productivity to the earth, even the animal creation will be changed, ISA 11:6-9, And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with the young goat, And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little boy will lead them. Also the cow and the bear will graze, Their young will lie down together, And the lion will eat straw like the ox. The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper’s den.

9. Sickness will be removed. The ministry of the King as the healer will be seen throughout the Millennium so that sickness and even death will be removed, the exception being death when dealing with criminal sin or capital punishment (ISA 33:24; JER 30:17; EZE 34:16).

10. All of the deformed are healed as well, if they were deformed at the time of the second advent they will experience a total healing (ISA 29:17-19; JER 31:8).

11. There will also be a supernatural work of preservation in the Millennial age through the King (ISA 41:8-14; EZE 34:27).

12. No social, political, or religious oppression (ISA 14:3-6; 42:6-7).

13. There will not be the tragedies of mental illness or of infant deaths. ISA 65:20 No longer will there be in it an infant {who lives but a few} days, Or an old man who does not live out his days; For the youth will die at the age of one hundred And the one who does not reach the age of one hundred Shall be {thought} accursed.

14. The earth’s population will soar, so this means there will be sex. Children will be born to the believers who began the Millennium and they will have a sin nature; therefore they will need salvation (JER 30:20; 31:29).

15. There will exist a perfect economic system in which the needs of men are abundantly provided for (ISA 62:9-19; 65:21-23).

16. There will be an increase of solar and lunar light. The increased light is a major cause of the increased productivity of the earth (ISA 4:5; 30:26).

17. There will be a unified language. The language barriers will be removed so that there can be free social intercourse (ZEP 3:9). The world will unite in the worship of God and God’s presence will be experienced as never before!

18. Perfect environment exists because Satan is bound and demons are removed (REV 20:3). So, of course this is going to be a very emotional time.          Therefore, there is no religion in the Millennium. All the nations of the earth will enjoy perfect environment under the reign of Christ. There is universal peace, universal prosperity, a perfect world government because the world will be ruled by Christ, along with mature believers of the Royal Family in resurrection body. However, in spite of all this, look at what happens at the end of the thousand years. In REV 20:7-10, And when the thousand years [of perfect environment] are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them [who will be deceived because they have been in perfect environment for a thousands years and are totally frustrated] the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. The Great White Throne Judgment comes in Rev 11-15. Then In REV 21:1 “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.” At that time the world has ended, and we now go into eternity. Therefore, ecstatics during the Millennial reign, will then be a legitimate time of spiritual emotion.

Believers in the Millennium are universally indwelt with the Holy Spirit, as in the Church-age (EZE 36:27; EZE 37:14; JER 31:33). Believers in the Millennium are also commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit or endowed by the Holy Spirit (ISA 29:19; ISA 32:15; ISA 44:3; EZE 39:29; ZEC 12:10). Therefore, the filling of the Holy Spirit in the Millennium is characterized by ecstatics and emotional appreciation (JOE 2:28-29). This is why and how our emotions can be a driving power in our lives. When we are aroused emotionally, unless we do something great and good, we are in danger of letting our emotions become perverted. So, of course this is going to be a very emotional time.

Salvation continues to be presented to the new population of the millennium. Evangelism reaches its peak during the millennium. The millennium starts out with believers only who are good parents and establishment oriented, yet many of their children turn out to be unbelievers. However, make sure you understand that there is a giant population explosion (EZE 20:34-38; MAT 25:31-46). Unbelievers are removed by the baptism of fire; therefore, there is the need to repopulate the earth. Human love is intensified to the point of perfection, and this results in the population explosion. Spirituality in the millennium is by the filling of the Spirit and is characterized by ecstatics. There will also be optimum spirituality among believers (ISA 65:24; JOE 2:28-29; ZEC 14:16-17). Perfect environment will exist because Satan is bound and the demons are removed.

Remember that in the Church-age, Christ is absent from the earth. Therefore, this dispensation is characterized by no ecstatics connected with the filling of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit’s function during the dispensation of the Church-age is to glorify The Lord Jesus Christ. In JOH 16:12-14, “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear {them} now. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall disclose {it} to you.”

In the Church-age, spirituality, which is the filling of the Holy Spirit, produces the character of Christ, but the filling of the Spirit has no emotional connotation. Spirituality is minus emotion in the Church-age. Therefore, the filling of the Holy Spirit produces the character and glory of Christ, without emotion being an integral part of spirituality (GAL 5:22-23; GAL 4:19; ROM 5:5). Remember that emotion is never designed to produce character, but to respond to character. Appreciation of Jesus Christ comes through perception of doctrine rather than emotional function. This does not eliminate emotion, but puts emotion in its proper place. Emotional function cannot produce integrity, fulfill the Royal Family honor code, apply doctrine, nor be a part of the filling of the Holy Spirit. In the Church-age, emotion is a responder to many things in the right lobe, including doctrine, the laws of divine establishment, love, and patriotism, but emotional response is never the filling of the Holy Spirit. You can be depressed for physiological reasons and still be filled with the Spirit. How you feel has nothing to do with your spiritual status quo. Emotion and ecstatics have no spiritual content in this dispensation. Therefore, how you feel is never the index of your spiritual life or experience. Emotional activity or ecstatics is not indicative of spiritual activity or advance in the Christian life. The purpose of the filling of the Holy Spirit is perception of doctrine, advance to spiritual maturity, production from your ambassadorship, but never the manufacture of ecstatics. Emotion is designed to respond to doctrine in the right lobe, but is not characteristic of the filling of the Holy Spirit. Ecstatics or emotionalism belongs to the entire human race; the filling of the Spirit belongs to the believer only. The emotions can respond or react to the filling of the Spirit, but emotions cannot be the filling of the Holy Spirit. Only in the Millennium when Christ is present on the earth and ruling the world does emotion or ecstatics characterize the filling of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, spirituality includes ecstatics. While there is no spiritual content to emotion in the Church-age, there is definite spiritual content to emotion in the Millennium. In the Millennium, the filling of the Holy Spirit appreciates the reigning Christ. Therefore, ecstatics will then be a legitimate spiritual emotion.

Believers in the Millennium are universally indwelt with the Holy Spirit, as in the Church-age (EZE 36:27; EZE 37:14; JER 31:33).

Believers in the Millennium are also commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit or endowed by the Holy Spirit (ISA 29:19; ISA 32:15; ISA 44:3; EZE 39:29; ZEC 12:10). Therefore, the filling of the Holy Spirit in the Millennium is characterized by ecstatics and emotional appreciation. This is why and how our emotions can be a driving power in our lives. When we are aroused emotionally, unless we do something great and good, we are in danger of letting our emotions become perverted.