Charles Capps - Gods image of you

Contents

Preface

Father, I call for the supernatural wisdom of God to flow forth unhindered from these pages, to reveal the hidden things of God and to bring forth the revelation that You would desire to put in the hearts of the reader: that the image of God in the Word should come alive in them, that they may walk in a higher level of faith and understanding of Your Word.

Father, I believe You for the supernatural healing power of God to flow through Your Word to the spirit, soul, and body of every person who reads this book.

Seeing Yourself as God Sees You

The business world has long ago discovered that a man will never rise above his self-image. The image he forms of himself will cause him to either succeed or fail in life.

It is not so much what or who he is that determines his fate in life, but what or who he imagines himself to be. His image of himself can carry him to heights of success or plunge him into depths of defeat and despair.

It is not the things that happen to a man in life that cause him to fail or succeed, but what he believes about the things that happen to him.

The world uses all kinds of gimmicks to raise the salesman's self-image, for the image he has of himself will either set him free to reach for new horizons or hold him in poverty.

One successful deal never has made anyone a success. Nor has one bad deal made anyone a failure. But sometimes that one success or failure forms an image inside that individual that governs his outlook on life and everything that happens to him.

Distorted Image

Not only is this a fact in the world system, but also in the lives of many Christians who believe God is against them because of previous failures.

They see themselves through their own critical eye. Their self-image has been distorted by condemnation of the devil. They have become deceived in their own imagination.

They think negatively. They believe negatively. They talk negatively.

Their tongue deceives their heart.

They will be crippled for life unless they find the knowledge of the truth, for it is the knowledge of truth that sets men free. God's Word is that truth.

When the knowledge of truth is received, then they must be a doer of that truth.

By doing what the Word says, thinking as God thinks and seeing yourself as God sees you, you allow God's Word to build your self-image.

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:

For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this mans religion is vain.

James 1:22-26

James says, "If any be a hearer of the Word, and not a doer, he is like a man beholding his natural face in a glass, who then goes his way and forgets what manner of man he was."

By getting into the Word of God, you can see yourself the way God sees you. He does not see you as you are now. He sees you as you will be after the Word does a work in you. He calls things that are not as though they were until they are.

Sons Now

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

1 John 3:2

God says we are His sons now. We're more than conquerors through Him that loved us. To be more than conquerors means we can enjoy the conquest without doing all the fighting. That's more than a conqueror. You don't have to go through all the battle. Some things you must do, but some things Jesus has already done for you. You have to rest and believe in what He has already done.

God's Word says we are more than conquerors, and greater is He that is in us than He that is in the world.

Pressure Distorts Image

James describes the person who is a hearer of the Word and not a doer. He is like a man that hears who he is, but does not speak his faith and never establishes that image within himself. He walks away from the Word with joy. But when the circumstances of life slap him in the face, he says, "Oh, why does it happen to me? Why me, Lord?" He has forgotten what manner of man he was.

While he was reading God's Word and had the Word before his eyes, he thought, "Glory to God! Just let me get at the devil!" But then he walked off and forgot everything he had heard, because he did not establish that image by confessing the Word.

Have you noticed that in a meeting with others of like faith, you can believe every word of God. The Word preached gives you a glimpse of who you really are in Christ. But it takes time to establish that image within you. If you don't get it down inside you, it will fade away.

Unless you act immediately on God's Word and put it into motion in your life, the devil will steal it from you when you get out there and have to face the circumstances of life.

This is what happens to a lot of Christians. They come to a meeting and get so high that they can almost fly home without an airplane. But when they get home, they have to face the every day situations of life, away from all those of like faith. It is then that they forget who they are in Christ, and Satan steals the image that was built from the Word.

The image that God puts in His Word is the image you should have of yourself. You must have the image God has of you if you expect to fulfill the place He has designed for you in the Kingdom.

You can't go around seeing yourself the way the devil says you are and still fulfill God's purpose for you in the Kingdom.

See yourself as God sees you. Believe what God says about you.

You must believe it longer than just while you are reading it. You must believe it when you face the circumstances of life.

Flesh Can Be Trained

But I beseech you, that I may not be bold when I am present with that confidence, wherewith I think to be bold against some, which think of us as if we walked according to the flesh.

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.

2 Corinthians 10:2 ,3

Someone may say, "I'm afraid I'll get in the flesh."

Sometimes we've been deceived into believing that our flesh is sinful and that we always have to be beating the flesh to death. But the flesh is not necessarily sinful. Your body will do anything you train it to do.

If you receive the right images, you'll be surprised about what your body will do to fall in line with that. Your words are so important when it comes to getting your body in line with the image. Your words have everything to do with making the image a part of you.

Wrong Imagination Distorts Image

(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; )

Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.

2 Corinthians 10:4-6

I like verse six. Paul says it's all right to revenge people who have been disobedient. Just don't do it until your obedience has been fulfilled. Now that will jerk the slack out of you.

But verse five is the one I want to zero in on: Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that comes against God's knowledge.

You must cast down the imaginations that put an image inside you that is contrary to what God's Word says. Get rid of it. Quit trying to see yourself as a poor sinner saved by grace.