I have to wholeheartedly agree with Ik.

I have posted on this forum much information about the ability for mankind to deceive himself. I have clearly pointed out (to LL especially) that knowing ourselves is a first step to understanding just how deceptive we can be towards ourselves. Reading the Bible is a great way to begin knowing ones-self.

I have pointed out that this is at the heart of the problem we are speaking about on this thread.

For example, if you want to create a following of people and make some money, you need only to produce something that appeals to people. This is pretty easy to do.

For example, make and sell really good fudge and you'll make some money. This is why every store in the world puts hundreds of candy bars (etc.) in the checkout lane; Because all you need is a suggestion of what already appeals to your nature and you will bite, and this is especially for children because they have not achieved maturity (mastery over their nature) as adults have (or should have).

Furthermore, we all know that candy is bad for us, but (some of ) we eat it anyway because we weigh the consequences (or not) or deny, whichever is easier (requires less energy, i.e., denial).

The Bible, on the other hand, is the opposite. It does not appeal to our "nature". Instead, it appeals to the spirit, closely associated with our intellect.

The Bible explains that there is war between the spirit and flesh (the battle between the heart and the mind) and part of our "job" here in this life is to grow up and overcome the desires of the flesh. We should mature, acquiring a "new nature" that comes with the knowledge of spiritual things.


"For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other..."
(Galatians 5:17)


The fleshly desires are centered around self...


"I had motives for not wanting the world to have meaning, consequently assumed it had none, and was able without any difficulty to find satisfying reasons for this assumption . . The philosopher who finds no meaning in the world is not concerned exclusively with a problem in pure metaphysics; he is also concerned to prove there is no valid reason why he personally should not do as he wants to do . . For myself, as no doubt for most of my contemporaries, the philosophy of meaninglessness was essentially an instrument of liberation. The liberation we desired was simultaneously liberation from a certain political and economic system and liberation from a certain system of morality. We objected to the morality because it interfered with our sexual freedom."

(Aldous Huxley, "Confessions of a Professed Atheist," Report: Perspective on the News, Vol. 3, June 1966, p. 19 [grandson of evolutionist Thomas Huxley, Darwin's closest friend and promoter, and brother of evolutionist Julian Huxley. Aldous Huxley was one of the most influential liberal writers of the 20th century].)


Spiritual desires center around what the Bible calls the "fruits of the Spirit", and is good for the whole, focusing on others:


"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."
(Galatians 5:22-23)


Now, how many of these attributes do you see in children. Few, right?

Why?

Because they have not achieved maturity. Unfortunately, neither do many adults.

What a place the world would be if all people worked to achieve the fruits of the spirit.

Now, over time, this war evolves into a physical reality of grand proportion.

Why?


"From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?"
(James 4:1)


Over time, those who are intent on making more money, achieving more power, satisfying more of their fleshly desires, step on the toes of those who want to live simply, purely, and in the Spirit. These toes represent freedoms and God-given rights.

Eventually, those who "desire" begin to oppress those who have achieved (some degree) of maturity, and so you have the world condition. In fact, those who are not spiritually mature often war against others who are not mature.

On a more personal level, the individuals who live in denial and those who are not prone to denial begin to become repugnant to each other. The mature desire self-sufficiency and self-governing through personal responsibility and respect for rights of others (focus on the benefit of the whole—constitutional republic). The immature lean toward all-sharing, powerful peace-keeping government, and negotiable (as punishment) rights in exchange for a strong peace-keeping government (focus on self-indulgence-communism).

(Ironically, the outward stated position of communism—benefit of the whole—turns out to be exactly the opposite of what it is marketed to be.)

The mature recognize their own (and other's) selfish nature and work to improve themselves, buffering themselves thereby needing little (small) government.

The immature, not recognizing their selfish nature believe that all are good and therefore are all too willing to impute much power into government.

In the current political world, these two opposing natures are used to divide people by nurturing and focusing on their differences. Those who divide the people use this division to overcome the middle class by bankrupting government and removing industry (manufacturing).

Finally, when the middle class is gone, you end up with Red China: A large, powerful, oppressive government lording over bike-riding, stone-throwing peasants. The middle class has been removed as they present the only formidable force against a large, corrupt, greedy, "immature" government. The "lording" government explains away the misfortunes (bankruptcies, devaluation, etc.) as being by natural processes when in reality, they have been manipulated to produce this result.

So long as the social programs continue to provide bribeous handouts to (a sector of) the masses, (a sector of) the masses continue to enjoy the free ride and continue to vote for those who promise to keep it coming.

This is our current condition. This is the reason for the 2-party system. This is the reason for the mountains of false scientific evidence supporting evolution:

Because knowledge of the Bible and the rights and personal empowerment is affords to people is counterproductive to the purpose of creating large, powerful, centralized government.

I have recently stated that evolution is only a social control, and I mean exactly that. So long as masses of people remain in a state in which they don't understand their own nature and they don't understand the remedy for it and the great benefits afforded by the remedy (stated directly—so long as the masses don't know who they could be), they will continue in a poor and oppressed condition, a condition that is especially beneficial to powerful land owners, multinational corporations, and international bankers, the same vast minority who work so hard to keep this liberating knowledge of the Bible from us (or to discredit it).

The Bible provides the liberation from this condition, but so long as those controlling the mass media keep (some of) us ignorant of the Bible by misinformation and slander, (some of) us will continue to live a life without knowing the great benefits of personal-responsibility, and these will, without fully realizing the far-reaching effects of their own personal denial, be used to oppress those who have chosen to (and have had the courage to) know the truth and to face ourselves.

Evolution is nothing more than candy in the candy store, and the store owner is more than happy to keep selling it to us. So until we are mature enough to cease our feasting and quit our denial, we will continue be fat and to live a life lacking the quality, vibrancy, and purpose that we could enjoy if only we would buy from the vegetable stand.


"An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. "A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy.

"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego." He continued, "The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed.""


"Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed."
(John 8:31-36)