The Word of God tells us that a civilization collapses from within; one person at a time, like a pebble tossed into a peaceful lake, causing a ripple effect that creates a disturbance across the entire surface of the water. However before the peaceful water can be altered, the pebble must cause it to lose its stability.
“…For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” (James 1:6 b-8)
Once the water has become unstable, a chain reaction begins that cannot be stopped or controlled. Only time or a miracle, some intervention from God Himself, can restore peace to the water.
People are double minded and unstable everyday and yet, somehow, we have been able (for the most part) to avoid the more obvious consequences of this instability. But this does not prove that consequences are not on the way.
History has recorded the dramatic collapse of previous countries and civilizations, which eventually over time have been able to rebuild and recover. So we may erroneously conclude that collapse comes and goes and will do so forever. But God has revealed that some time in the near future the inhabitants of planet Earth will experience a worldwide collapse of civilization, which will be so catastrophic that it will require the personal intervention of God Himself in order to rebuild and recover.
Double mindedness could also be called, “indecisiveness,” “confusion,” or “chaos.” The Bible tells us that confusion is “of the devil” because it is contrary to the necessary order God has established to maintain human life. So we can conclude that double mindedness is like an illness, very similar to mental illness that requires God’s method of healing in order to recover.
When considering any illness and what is required to make someone “whole,” we must also consider all of the dimensions of the body that may be involved and contributing to illness. The dimensions which comprise the whole person include the spirit, body, mind, and emotions. Therefore it is wise to address each dimension and discover the role it may be playing in each specific illness.
God has created the body to heal itself, when it is given what it needs to function properly. Originally the environment in which we live and the food God created for us to eat were specifically designed to meet these needs. However over time, the integrity of our food and environment have been altered and degraded so we must now supplement in order to meet the needs of the body and remain healthy.
Therefore, when we address double mindedness, we must not address it solely as a problem that exists within the mind. The Word of God tells us that “double mindedness” can originate in the spirit and manifest itself through indecisiveness, confusion, and chaos. So if we desire to heal the mind, we must also address the spirit, body, and emotions in order to discover what is needed to heal.
Considering the spiritual dimension, if double mindedness leads ultimately to collapse and self-destruction, then we must pursue the opposite of double mindedness. That is “single mindedness.”
What is single mindedness?
If double mindedness is indecisiveness, confusion, and chaos, single mindedness must be based on decisiveness, order, and peace. If we follow after decisiveness, order, and peace, we will eventually be led to Truth. This Truth (with a capital “T”) is not the conflicting “truths” based on the confusing and chaotic changing presumptions and opinions of the world, but the Truth grounded in one absolute Truth provided by the One True God who created all things and ordained how everything created should function and be maintained.
God Himself is the only one who is qualified to provide genuine, absolute Truth. “God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.” (Romans 3:4)
Since Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life and since He is also the Living Word of God in the flesh, the only way we can find life and avoid the double mindedness that leads to self-destruction and the collapse of civilization is to embrace the Truth of God’s Word.
