YOGA GURUS: EMPTY YOUR MIND; BIBLE: FILL IT WITH GOD'S SPIRIT AND WORD!

- Duke Jeyaraj

Gayathri Devi writes about the conversation between a husband and wife in her ook, “A Calm Brain: How to Relax into Stress-Free, High-Powered Life”: 

Wife to her husband: “My husband says Yoga would be good for me because I've become so hyper….When the (Yoga) teacher says, empty your mind, I think, what do you mean…”

While Yoga teachers might say, “Empty your mind…” the Bible tells us quite the opposite. 

Jesus did speak about the dangers of keeping your inner-being empty. 

Eugene Peterson renders Jesus’ words when he pointed out this danger this fabulous, unforgettable way: “When a defiling evil spirit is expelled from someone, it drifts along through the desert looking for an oasis, some unsuspecting soul it can bedevil. When it doesn’t find anyone, it says, ‘I’ll go back to my old haunt.’ On return it finds the person spotlessly clean, but vacant. It then runs out and rounds up seven other spirits more evil than itself and they all move in, whooping it up. That person ends up far worse off than if he’d never gotten cleaned up in the first place” (Matt. 12:43-45, The Message). 

Please notice the word, “Vacant”. If your inner self is kept vacant, that’s an invitation for Satan and his team to storm in! Also notice here that “seven other spirits” came back into that soul that was vacant. The number seven in the Bible is linked with “completeness or perfection”. Here, what Jesus is saying is perhaps this: “The completely swept and kept empty heart has potential to be completely demon-possessed!” Satan only comes to steal, kill and destroy, the Bible teaches. But Jesus, the only God-in-flesh came to give us, life, life to the full (John 10:10). What the world and its pleasures cannot give, Jesus gives! A life of meaning, purpose and true joy - only Jesus can give us that. That's why he died for us on the Cross. His blood can cleanse us from every sin, when we repent and turn to Him, in faith, the Bible teaches (John 1:12).

The message of Jesus in the Bible passage I first quoted is this: trying to live a clean, moral life (the imagery of the house, “empty, swept and put in order” (Matt. 12:44) with one’s OWN help, without the enabling power of the Holy Spirit who can fill us if only we invite Him into our hearts, is very dangerous. Those who try to live holy in their own strength can return to a life of sin that is far worse than it was before their coming to Christ. This is Jesus’ point.

Trying to be holy with your strength is also impossible. You can't pull yourself up, with your bootlaces can you? That's why we need a Savior. The only Sinless Savior there is, is Christ Jesus. 

Don't keep your heart, mind, soul, inner being empty. Let the Spirit of God fill you constantly (Eph. 5:18).

Elsewhere in the Bible the challenge to fill our hearts and minds with Scripture is often-repeated. Here are passages from five different Bible books which pose this challenge: 

“Your Word have I HIDDEN IN MY HEART, That I might not sin against you!” (Psalm 119:11, NKJV).

When we talk of God’s Word when we sit in our houses, when we walk by the way, when we lie down, when we rise up, pretty soon, that Word from God, will be hiding in our heart (Deut. 6:7). “Imprint these words of mine on your hearts and minds, bind them as a sign on your hands, and let them be a symbol on your foreheads”(Deut. 11:18 HCSB).

When we keep God’s Laws (WORDS) as the “apple of our eyes” and “write them in the tablets of our hearts”, they would empower us to “keep from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her WORDS” (Prov. 7:1-5).

Jesus, the Word in Flesh, told his disciples that His Words should “sink into their ears” (Luke 9:44, NKJV). That way, it was enroute to permanently stay in their hearts!

"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God." That was Paul's way of saying "hide God's Word in your heart" in Colossians 3:16.

Don't keep your mind empty. Fill your heart, mind, inner being, soul with God's Written Word!

So, in CONCLUSION what am I saying?

Yoga has three elements (as some respected Bible teachers have put it): a PHYSICAL ASPECT, a MENTAL ASPECT and a VERBAL ASPECT. 

ABOUT THE PHYSICAL ASPECT: Yes, Yoga is a form of physical exercise. There is nothing wrong with physical exercise as long as we know that our spiritual fitness counts more with God who told us through Aposle Paul this: "for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come" (I Tim. 4:8). "Over-weight" Israel priest Eli could not even survive a simple fall (I Sam. 4:18 NLT). Did Eli take his physical fitness like most of us do, lightly? Am I advocating Yoga purely as a physical exercise? Hang on. 

We already talked about the MENTAL aspect of Yoga first up: Yoga tells us to empty our mind; but the Bible tells us to fill our minds, hearts, souls, inner-self with God's Holy Spirit and God's Word. To see Yoga as a way of worship of the Sun is absolutely unacceptable for we are called to worship the "Sun of Righteous who rises with healing in his wings", even the Lord Jesus (Mal. 4:2). We worship Yahweh who gives orders to the obedient Sun and not the Sun itself (Josh. 10:12-13). To see Yoga as a way of Salvation is also ruled out for we know that that Jesus claimed to be ONLY way of salvation (John 14:6; Acts 4:12). To practice Yoga as a way of Salvation is to insult Jesus' work on the Cross.

Finally, we will talk about the VERBAL aspect of Yoga, which involves various chants. R. Stanley, respected Indian Bible teacher put it brilliantly: "Even chanting the name of Jesus in vain is forbidden in Scripture!"

So, I would not recommend that Yoga even be used a pure physical exercise because of the MENTAL AND VERBAL BAGGAGE THAT COMES ALONG WITH IT. Let's use forms of physical exercise that are not questionable biblically.

WHAT SO UNIQUE ABOUT JESUS' DEATH IN A WORLD OF MANY DEATHS?

Duke Jeyaraj

So many people die every day. What makes Jesus' death unique?

 

By definition God is eternal. So God cannot die actually! But God can die – if He chooses to. Jesus chose to die. He was unique in his death too. He said, "No man can take away my life from me. I lay down my life voluntarily. For I have the right to lay it down when I want to and also the power to take it up again" (John 10:18). And that is what exactly happened at Calvary's cross: Jesus willingly gave up His life. The nails did not hold Him onto the cross but it was just love, as someone put it. No one died the way Jesus did: others would die and then bow down their head. But Jesus bowed His head and then died – He could pick and choose the exact moment He would give up his spirit without resorting to a suicide (Jn 19:30)!

Jesus said that He was dying as a "ransom" for the sins of the world – a purpose for which no one has died or will die (Math 20:28). He explicitly said that the blood He would shed would bring "forgiveness of sins" – again a unique reason to die (Math 26:28). The rest of humanity - when it dies - does so for their sins. The wages of sin is death, we are told in the Scriptures (Rom 3:23). Put in another way, we all die because we are all sinners. But Christ wasn't. He need not have died at all. But nevertheless He did – as a substitute for sin (Isa 53:5). A one-of-a-kind death! Because He was one hundred percent human – He could die as a valid substitute for the human race. And because He was one hundred percent God as well He could die for all people of all time. God is beyond time, you see! "A just-God Jesus could save us, but not understand us.” A just-man Jesus could love us, but never save us. But equally-God-and-equally man Jesus could understand, love and save us, if only we surrender our lives to Him alone!" – this is how someone put this whole thing irrefutably! 

THREE DUCKS IN THEIR BIGGEST ODI GAME & OUR "DUCK" WHEN IT COMES TO SALVATION

Duke Jeyaraj brings out a spiritual truth from the Bible starting with an event from the World Cup Cricket Final 2015

Andrew Ramsey wrote the following line about Brendon McCullum's 3-ball duck in the World Cup Final 2015 versus Australia in Melbourne before 90,000 plus people: "If two successive air swings were not sufficient to alert McCullum to the peril that Starc posed, the third ensured the visiting captain’s World Cup Final batting memories will be brief, bitter and bereft of any contact between bat and ball." Later in the New Zealand innings, two other batsmen, Corey Anderson (one time record holder for the fastest ODI hundred) and Luke Ronchi (whose ODI highest score is 170 runs) also recorded ducks. Three of the cleanest ball-strikers in the Kiwi line-up scored ducks in their biggest ever ODI game.

Ducks. Zeroes. These words reminds me of our score when we compare it with the score of God's score when it comes to purity: it is nought. We have ALL sinned and fallen short of His glory, the Bible records (Rom. 3:23). In other words: we have a duck across our name when it comes to salvation. We can't make it heaven with our merits. We cannot save ourselves through our effort. Our good morals are like filthy rags (like menstrual cloth) before God, Isaiah wrote. All our "g-o-o-d" minus "G-O-D" is just a 0 - a zero (as someone said). But there is only one who coverts that duck into a hundred. That's Jesus, the God in flesh, the only one who never ever sinned, the one Mediator between God and Man. All one needs to be saved is to put one's trust in this Jesus, who died for us on the Cross and arose, with a repentant heart (Luke 13:5; Rom. 10:9). Paul writes, "It is by grace you have been saved, through faith..." (Eph 2:8). Would you come to Jesus to accept this free gift of salvation? Would you do it now?

DISAPPOINTED WITH OUR BATTING STARS? MEET THE “STAR” WHO WON’T Y EVER!

Duke Jeyaraj put key moments of the India-Australia World Cup SemiFinal in Sydney on 26th March 2015 in poetry with an interesting thought at the end

Virat Kohli is undoubtedly World Cricket’s Biggest Batting Star,

His multiple, mind-boggling, batting feats keeps raising the bar,

Batting first, the Aussies had in this knockout game posted a total above par,

He arrived at the crease, when India’s target of 329, despite the brisk 70+ opening partnership, was still very far,

A match-winning 150 would he would score in that India-Australia war?

After such a knock would he blow kisses to Anushka Sharma, his girl yaar?

Those were the skyrocketing expectations Indian fans had about their Batting Caesar,

Like my daughter, who unable to resist temptation, would often reach for the Nutella jar,

He fished outside the offstump for balls from which he should have stayed afar,

His batting tempo appeared far slower than what he drove during the TV ad break: the car,

Pretty soon, the Aussie keeper easily caught an edge from his bat without a sweat or a scar!

With Rohit and Raina following him soon, India’s World Cup Celebration cake did char!

Rahane was out when his snick, amidst Sydney’s deafening noise, caught Steven Smith’s alert ear,

Maxwell’s direct hit caught out of the crease, India’s lone late warrior that night, Dhoni, the czar,

“In Sydney, the Indian batting became a chutney!” – this, the creative critics did roar,

It’s true all human heroes will at some point disappoint us: they are all hit by the sin tar,

That’s why we need to come in repentance and faith to the Christ, whom the Bible calls, “the bright morning star!”

BLOOD ON SCHWEINSTEIGER’S FACE & THE BLOOD SHED FOR YOU TO EXPRESS GRACE

A Duke Jeyaraj poem on the FIFA World Cup 2014 Final in Brazil with an important message at the end

The FIFA World Cup 2014 trophy was brought out to the grand ground by Mr. Puyol and Ms. Bundchen
Into the Maracana Stadium not far away from the statue of the One in Rio who from the dead, is risen!
The most watched televised program in the World – this, about the World Cup 2014 Final, was written
“Who will triumph, team Germany or Messi’s Argentina?” – with this question, crazed fans were smitten
As both teams attacked and defended with equal enthusiasm – the pressure in the stadium increased like in an oven,
Early in the game, German Kroos’ potentially-goal producing gift, by Argentine Higuain was not taken
When what he thought was a goal was flagged off as ‘off side’, the celebrating Higuain was shaken
At the stroke of half-time Hoewedes’ header bounced off the post with the Argentine goalie frozen
Early extra time arrived and Palacio, by lifting the ball over the goalie, Argentina’s account he almost did open,
Thanks to Jerome Boateng’s gutsy defending, Lionel Messi’s finishing was far from a perfect ten,
In the 113-minute, the 22-year old Mario Goetze volleyed-in a goal with a World-class sheen,
And in disgust the Argentine coach Sabella asked his defenders, “Where have you all been?”
When Messi shot wide the 122-minute, 35 yard free kick, his team’s last chance to equalize, his face was ashen,
The name of unified Germany in the list of FIFA World Cup winners, after 24 long years was seen!
And that Joachim Loew's German team was the best in the planet – this was clearly proven!

 

Germany’s Schweinsteiger had blood on his face but was yet in the field by the time of the final siren,
He reminded me of the One who came to give a gift more precious than the one gift to Argentina, mistakenly given by Kroos, the German!
I am referring to the gift of forgiveness from sin which Jesus came to give by shedding blood as predicted by the Bible penmen,
He was the only One to be born on this earth without the help of the male semen,
Every sin of ours were laid upon Him on the Cross – no sins were excluded, not even the “sins that involve the hymen”,
We must take a U-turn and come back to him to receive this forgiveness like the boy in the Gospel record who once ate from the pigpen!
If you do that, then you will have a joy that is unspeakable while on this earth and go to live eternally in the glorious place where the streets are golden!
And now we must be ready to meet Jesus, for he shall return to this Earth to judge everyone, all of a sudden.

Duke Jeyaraj, an Engineer turned Doctor of Ministry graduate, is the founder of Grabbing the Google Generation from Gehenna Mission, a ministry to presentday people funded by Indians who read his writings and hear his messages. Find out more about Duke and this inter-denominational ministry by liking www.facebook.com/googleduke

 

NO STONES AT YUVI; NO STONES AT YOU….

(Duke Jeyaraj puts the India-Sri Lanka T20 World Cup Final 2014 held on 6 April 2014 in Dhaka in poem and drives home an important message at the end!)

“Will the T20 World Cup 2014, be Captain Cool’s 3rd World Cup win as India’s Captain?”

"Would Lanka’s Twin Towers end their T20 Careers on the peak of the Victory Mountain?"
Well, for the die-hard Cricket fan, these pre-match questions were the oft-asked refrain!
With Kohli’s big-hitting in the 16th, certainly past 170, seemed to go, the Indian batting train!
With him was Yuvraj, the 6-sixes-in-1-Death-Over man all geared up, one and all to entertain,
But alas, he batted for 21 deliveries seemingly without applying his brilliant, big-hitting brain!
His rusty, slow-coach 11, Kohli’s valiant efforts, seemed to send straight to the drain!
What was worse, even Dhoni could make only 4 runs off 7 balls, that too after much strain!
Raina, who plundered 17 runs in 1 Over in the Semis never got to bat and that was insane!
With 19 scored off the last 4 – how well did Malinga & Co, the Indians at the end, did contain!
The accurate wide Yorkers they sent down could have landed in an on-pitch proverbial grain!
Theirs was one of the best ever Death bowling efforts seen in a T20 game – this was plain!
The Lankans were off the blocks in the 130-run target chase set for them like a Great Dane! Just-in Sanga’s catch wasn’t taken by Mohit and unhappy Dhoni pushed back his mane!
Sri Lanka still needed 53 in 45 with 6 wickets remaining when Mishra dismissed Thirimanne,
But the match turned conclusively when from Thisara Perera’s bat, a barrage of sixes did rain!
Sanga & He ensured it was Lanka that took with it the T20 World Cup home in their plane!
Kohli hugged Sanga the legend, swallowing his bitter disappointment and hiding his pain,
In fury, stones were thrown at Yuvi’s home – he was seen that sad night as a terrible villain!

When the numb-in-pain Yuvraj pondered, “Why are stones thrown at me by all and sundry?”
I recalled the One who refused to pick up a stone and throw it at a woman caught in adultery!
He told her, “Leave your life of sin!” much to fury of those who watched him from the gallery!
This “He” is Jesus, the God-in-flesh who came to release us from life’s purposeless drudgery!
Repent from sin and turn to Him in faith, you will spend your life with him joyously in eternity! 

ESTHER ANUHYA: SHE IS DEAD, BUT SHE STILL SPEAKS....

-Duke Jeyaraj

She would perhaps check her WhapsApp updates early in the morning. Like you and me perhaps do. She died unexpectedly, unfortunately. Like you and I, unfortunately, perhaps can. We are talking about Esther Anuhya. Only 23. A Techie. From Machipatnam. Worked in TCS-Mumbai. Reached Mumbai's LTT Railway Station after spending Christmas holidays in her hometown in Andhra Pradesh at 4:50 AM on 5th Jan. after a long train journey which started from Vijayawada, in all likelihood, going by her cell-phone records. Co-passengers confirmed that she had alighted from the train at the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus Station in Mumbai. She checked her WhatsApp at 4:54 AM on 5th Jan., 2014, according to reports. Someone who sent her a WhatsApp message saw the double green tick and understood this. But what they did not perhaps realize was this: someone perhaps put a tick next to Esther's pic and said to himself, "I will harm this girl." Her college Professor Dad Mr. Jonathan Surendra Prasad, was waiting her call which he hoped will go this way: "Daddy, I reached my room in YWCA Hostel Andheri, Mumbai, safely. I am missing you already!" But that call never came. Early that morning, it looks like she could have hailed an auto to her hostel. Her last published tweet to the world was this: "I rather have an honest enemy than a fake friend." Whoever took her from that Railway Station tragically turned out to be a "fake friend" (see https://twitter.com/Esther_Anuhya). "Don't put too much of belief in anyone. Even your shadow leaves you when you are in the dark," she once tweeted. On that stomach-churning morning, it looks like she put her trust in someone - an auto-driver, cabdriver or whoever - much to her grave disappointment. On 16th Jan 2014, her half-decomposed, waist-down burnt, rodents-bitten, dead body was identified in the Vikhroli Creek just meters off the Eastern Express Highway in Mumbai.Esther's uncle, Arun Kumar told a newspaper that while Esther was 5 feet 3 inches tall what remained of her body only made up two feet. The rest were burnt. Thus the nine-day long search her family launched for her in a city they knew little about came to a spine-tingling, sorry, end. The girl who wished Tennis Star, Roger Federer, a happy long life on his birthday via Twitter, did not live long, unfortunately. Her end came in the most saddest of circumstances. Was she raped and burnt to destroy evidence? "According to a preliminary post-mortem report, the victim was sexually abused before being killed," a police source said. Police suspect that she might have been gang-raped. "She might have been taken to a secluded place off the Eastern Express Highway in Bhandup, Mumbai, where she was gangraped," police sources revealed. ("Police looking at techie-gang rape theory," page 5, January 18, 2014, Hyderabad edition; The Indian Express online edition, January 23, 2014; Hyderabad Chronicle, 26 January 2014). 

Hmmm. After discovering that women aren't shying away from reporting rape these days, it looks like certain shameful, stubborn, men still want to rape and go on to destroy the possibly-damning evidence by burning their rape victims. By doing that, they perhaps think they are safe. Safe from being found out. Safe from a jail punishment. But God knows, the Bible declares (Josh 22:22). These people - whoever they may be - may escape jail here on the earth, but if they do not repent and come to Christ in faith, they will not escape hell on the other side of the earth. On the other side of eternity. This is true not only true about them. It's true about everyone. We all need to repent. We all need to uncover our sins. We all need to come to Christ who died on the cross for our sakes. For our sins. If we do not uncover our sins before Jesus in prayer, here and now, they will be uncovered before the whole world on that terrible judgement that is certainly coming. This is the teaching of the Bible (Read Matthew 10 and 25 in the Bible and you will get this). The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare them; the cords of their sins hold them fast - so warns the Bible in Proverbs 5:22. Burning evidence of transgression cannot ensure escape from punishment, whoever we may be. Your sin will eventually find you out, the Bible teaches (Num. 32:23). On this side of eternity in certain cases like it happened in the case of Achan, Prophet Jonah, Ananias-Saphira, etc., in the Bible. Or on the other side of eternity like it will surely happen for those who reject Jesus stubbornly finally and go to hell. The fire that the perpetrators of the horrific crime against Esther Anuhya started died down. But the fire of torment in hell will never die down, Jesus warned (Mark 9:47-48). So, why do you run and hide? Come to only-God-in-flesh Jesus in true repentance and hide in His grace that was expressed on the Cross where he shed his blood for you. Do it now. Before it's too late. There is no condemnation for those who go on being in Christ Jesus, the Bible teaches (Rom. 8:1).