According to the Scriptures, there are several ways in which the psyche is saved. All center and focus in Jesus, for his name is the only name given under heaven among men whereby we may be saved. For this reason, we call upon the his named to be delivered from every trouble which troubles the soul or psyche. We must always remember that »...BY GRACE ARE YE SAVED THROUGH FAITH; and that not of yourselves: IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are HIS workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them« (Ep 2:8-10, KJV). This great salvation is the gift of God, given freely! We are his workmanship, his creation unto good works which Yahweh has prepared for us. This salvation is past, present, and future in its application and outworking in our lives.

If the salvation of my psyche is the END of my faith and not the beginning, then God must be working in me now to bring about this deliverance and I cannot assume that my salvation is complete, although Jesus has done all that needs to be done for it. And indeed, although, as Jesus declared on the Cross »It is finished!« (Jn 19:30), this salvation of the psyche is ongoing. While some do not teach a progressive salvation, the Scriptures do:

If we are coming from a place of complete ignorance of the truth into an understanding of all truth, and the truth makes us free, then, we cannot assume that the salvation of the psyche is in manifest actuality complete until we have put on immortality, for the redemption of the body is what denotes that »glorious liberty of the sons of God« (Ro 8:18-23; 1C 15:26, 42-58).

So when I speak of God saving the psyche, I am speaking of the work of the Holy Spirit in us as a continual daily happening and not as a once-for-all experience. Consider the New Birth: it is an instantaneous experience in its inception (Jn 3:3-8), but continued through the notion of Christ »being formed« in us (Ga 4:19). Similarly, in the Holy Ghost Baptism, we are filled with the Holy Spirit (Ac 2:1-4), but then there is Paul's admonishment to »be filled with the Spirit« (Ep 5:18). So the salvation of the psyche is both instantaneous and continual. Whenever we call upon Jesus to cleanse away evil thoughts and emotions and desires, does this not amount to asking him to save our souls in some specific issue?

In this section, I have elaborated below some of the Scriptures' teaching regarding some these different things.

Anytime we read about RETURNING to Yahweh or Jesus in Scripture, we are dealing with the principle of Metanoia, in this case, in its aspect of REVERSION unto the Lord. The Greek word translated »returned« here is the word epistrefô, which means "to revert (literally, figuratively or morally)" [#1994G]. Epistrefô is composed of two morphemes, epi, meaning "preposition properly meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etc.), as a relation of distribution, i.e. over, upon, etc.; of rest at, on, etc." [#1909G], and the verb strefô, meaning "to twist, i.e, turn quite around or reverse (literally or figuratively)" [#4762G]. Strefô is in turn derived from the noun tropê which means "a turn ("trope"), i.e. revolution (fig. variation)" [#5157G]. This verse describes a reversion in terms of what is GOVERNING our psyches, for both a Shepherd and a Bishop are types of authorities who exercise leadership. The Shepherd leads his sheep everywhere they must go. And so we see a turning back from self-government of the psyche unto the government of Jesus Christ. He is the one who must govern or rule in our thoughts, emotions and wills. Speaking of Jesus, Isaiah prophesied that »unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform this« (Is 9:6-7, KJV). Jesus bears the burden of the government of our psyches, for it is »upon HIS shoulder«, not ours. We don't shepherd ourselves, he does. And his government increases, as John the Baptist said »he must increase, I must decrease« (Jn 3:30-31, KJV). In the realm of our thought-life, our soul-life, the manifest Presence of God is meant to rule and increase, with the new psyche, that of the Heavenly Man (1C 15:45-49) displacing and replacing the psyche of the man of earth. This amounts to nothing less than the salvation of the soul from corruption and madness.

Consider this verse from Ezekiel:

For this to actually occur there must be a change in one's thinking and willing, there be some kind of repentence. Now metanoia and its verb form metanoein are usually translated as »repentence« and »repent« respectively. If we reconstruct metanoein with cognate forms of its principle morphemes, meta- and no-, we wind up with the word MID-KNOW. MIDKNOWING denotes that transitional state of mind in which we are being changed from faith to faith and from glory to glory (2C 3:14-18).

Again, we see this concept of turning, but this time from the standpoint of helping someone else to turn. This is the principle of freely giving what we have freely been given.

As people sat and listened to Jesus teach, they were exposed to the manifest counsel and wisdom of God. And, if you read through the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), it becomes apparent that Jesus healed and saved people from many things while he was teaching them, the miracles themselves bearing witness of his teaching and becoming examples thereof and he often used the workings of miracles and healings to teach the things of the Kingdom of God. Jesus was a supernatural teacher who taught whatever the Father gave him to teach at any given moment. Likewise, when the apostles taught, they performed signs and wonders while they explained the Kingdom of God to their hearers.

Of course, now that Jesus has been crucified and has risen from the dead and ascended to the Throne at the right hand of the Father on high, he now teaches us through his manifest indwelling Presence. We know him now as »Christ in you, the hope of glory« (Co 1:27). In this verse in Colossians, the word rendered »Christ« is nothing more or less than a transliteration of the Greek word khristos, which means "anointed" or "the anointed One". Thus, whenever we see the word »Christ« used in reference to him dwelling in us, it is speaking also of his anointing, that is, his manifest Presence or Shekhinah, working in, upon, and through us who believe.

Consider these verses together:

The word »unction« simply means anointing. That »unction from the Holy One« which causes us to know all things and which teaches us all things is nothing less than Christ living in us, even as Paul taught the Galatians. As John wrote, he wrote to them and taught them because they knew that unction. Years ago, when I had first begun to believe in Jesus and read the Scriptures, I used to be completely mystified by these statements of John. I didn't believe that I knew all things because I felt that I was totally ignorant, never having grown up in a church or with any kind of Christian teaching. But since then, I have discovered that the Spirit of God in me does in fact teach me everything I need to know as I need to know it. In effect, I know all things on account of the manifest Presence of God always being ready to teach and illumine me. It is his Anointing in me which flags both truth and error in my perception so that I can distinguish one from the other. So, whenever I hear someone teaching something from the Scriptures, I can always trust Jesus to (eventually, if not immediately) cue me in on those parts of a teaching or a prophecy which are truly proceeding from the Lord.

This verse shows that it is that »engrafted word« which saves my psyche. Because Jesus' Anointing abides in me, I can receive a word of God which will be »engrafted« or implanted in my consciousness, a word of God which is »not of corruptible seed, but of INCORRUPTIBLE, ...which LIVETH and ABIDETH FOR EVER« (1P 1:23). As that word grows, its roots and branches will infiltrate my thought-life and alter its very fabric, disrupting that of the former godless (atheist) consciousness and building that consciousness in which the Son of God is manifest. The result is that I learn to think more like Jesus and (thank God!) less like me (a man). This delivers my psyche into a whole newness of life and each reception of that engrafted word prepares me for the next part of my salvation, that I might have hope while that Unction leads me into all truth.

If we do not have the word of God engrafted into our consciousness (memory is a part of consciousness, i.e. an aspect of the psyche), we cannot possibly hope in the Word of God, whether that Word be the Scriptures or Jesus (Jn 1:1,14). But once that word is implanted, we can place hope in it on account of who Jesus is, and wait for his salvation, knowing that he will fulfill his word, even when our minds seem not to function properly at all, even with the resultant »fainting« of psyche on account of its weakness.

If ye continue in my word...

Isaiah proclaimed »To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them« (Is 8:20, KJV). When he said this, he was warning them about those who come seeking to engage God's people in forms of witchcraft. Prior to this, he said »Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. And I will wait upon Yahweh, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him. Behold, I and the children whom Yahweh hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from Yahweh of Hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion... should not a people seek unto their Elohim?« (Is 8:16-19). The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews related to Isaiah's words this way: »And again, I will put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and the children which God hath given me. Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death HE MIGHT DESTROY HIM THAT HAD THE POWER OF DEATH, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, TO MAKE RECONCILIATION for the sins of the people« (Hb 2:13-17). So we can see that Isaiah's word, like that of the Psalmist, points toward our being RECONCILED with God through Jesus Christ. Now the law in Isaiah's day was the Law of Moses, but in our day it is the »law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus« which has me free from the »law of sin and death« (Ro 8:2, KJV) which is the »law of Yahweh«. This is the law which truly CONVERTS or transforms the psyche. The »testimony« is the record of the things which Yahweh has done, which have been seen and heard, experienced. We see this testimony all over the Scriptures from Genesis on through Revelation. As I said before, conversion, turning and returning all speak of repentence or midknowing. Isaiah could have also said »the Scriptures«, for this is what he was essentially saying. It is through the knowledge of the Scriptures through the Spirit of God that our psyches are changed into his image and glory. We need to think like God, amen, like Jesus the Son of God, and the Scriptures communicate that way of thinking to us.

Paul said that the law of Moses, the law of sin and death, could not do what Christ could do. Note the difference in the blood: »Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but BY HIS OWN BLOOD HE ENTERED IN once into the holy place, having obtained ETERNAL REDEMPTION for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, SANCTIFIETH to the PURIFYING of the flesh: How much more shall the BLOOD OF CHRIST, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, PURGE YOUR CONSCIENCE FROM DEAD WORKS to serve the living God?« (Hb 9:12-14). »Conscience« is a part of the psyche, and it is purged by the Blood of Christ. And it is through confession that that Blood gets applied to the psyche (1J 1:5-9). We are saved by the Faith of Jesus (Ga 2:16-21). What I am really driving at, is that the Scriptures reveal the ways of thinking, perceiving and feeling which are God-like (the Mind of Christ) and which are fleshly (the Carnal Mind). By reading them, we acquaint our minds with the Truth and we gain the knowledge of exactly what we need to confess. So we confess our sins unto God for cleansing and we believe that word unto righteousness and we confess the Lord Jesus unto salvation. In other words, as we believe the Scriptures, the Truth, we are simultaneously confessing what God is purging from us and what we are becoming in Christ. Keep in mind that the Holy Spirit must be energizing the Word of God to our consciousness, mixing it with the faith of Jesus, for it to do us any good.

Having said all this, if we understand that the psyche has in the past been characterized by beastly reasoning, we can understand the means by which we overcome the beast, that is, the sin which indwells the soul: »And they overcame him (either the beast or the devil) by the BLOOD OF THE LAMB, and by the WORD OF THEIR TESTIMONY; and they LOVED NOT THEIR LIVES unto the death« (Rv 12:11, KJV). John saw in the Spirit that we would do this, and he saw as history portrayed before him. Let us believe then, that Yahweh is purging us right now of all sin and dead works by the Blood of Christ and bear witness to each deliverance and healing he brings us and love not our own lives unto the death. (I will talk about »the death« later.) That Unction of the Holy One will teach us all things as we read and call upon the name Jesus in prayer and worship unto the fulfillment of that overcoming which John saw in the Spirit.

Like the Psalmist we can say, amen, with regard to the psyche, that is, the soul: »But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me« (Ps 49:15, KJV).

I said I would talk some more about »the death«, and so we come to the doctrine of BAPTISMS. I am not going to elaborate on every little aspect or detail about baptisms here, but I will relate it to the »great salvation« of Christ, the salvation of the psyche. Jesus said:

First of all, let me say this: Baptism will do you no good at all if you do not BELIEVE. We are saved through belief in the truth (2Th 2:12). We know that we are not saved by works out of ourselves (so forget any self-help method you know), but by grace through faith, that »grace through faith« being the gift of God through Jesus Christ (Ep 2:8-10, Jn 3:16). However, if we believe, then there is a greater measure of Yahweh's salvation in baptism. We will not be damned if we are not baptized, but we will be damned if we do not believe in Jesus Christ.

John the Baptist prophesied this about Jesus. Yahweh will certainly get to the ROOTS of our problems. Let me apply this to the psyche. Every sequence or collection of thoughts or beliefs we have can be likened to a tree with roots (which secure it in our consciousness), a stem (from which the branches extend), and branches (the elaborations of those ideas). The purpose of God in Baptism is to cut down every thought-tree in us, each one which does not bear good fruit, at its root and cast it into a fire, for consumption by burning. The goal of this baptism, regardless wherewith we be baptized, is a thorough purging. Now, all that will be burned is simply »chaff«, that which is unharvestable. We know that the Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Yahweh, but so also is that »unquenchable fire« (Hb 12:29).

As John taught it, there are three basic types of baptism or immersion, that is, three elements with which we are to be baptized: Water, Holy Ghost, Fire. Regardless of element, the basic principles of baptism are the same. When participated in with faith, Water Baptism is not simply a ritual, otherwise there would be no saving in it. The Baptism in the Holy Spirit (Ac 2:1-4) is likewise spiritual, evidenced by the manifestation of glossolalia or speaking in tongues. The Baptism with Fire is that immersion into Yahweh's manifest Presence in which everything unlike God is consumed by his Presence until it ceases to be. As Paul taught it, there is only ONE BAPTISM (Ep 4:5). Therefore, the three are simply subdivisions of the One.

The apostle Peter also explains baptism to us:

When Yahweh brought the Great Flood upon the earth, he literally baptized the entire surface of the planet with water. As the waters receded, the land arose out of the water. At that time, the old heavens and earth passed away and all things were made new. Noah (along with his family) thereafter inherited the earth! Everything which was corrupt was washed away by the Flood. As Peter points out, the Great Flood is a type, a figure in the natural which points to or explains something spiritual, of Baptism. The difference is that Baptism deals with the heart, that which is internal, rather than the surface, that which is external. Note that Baptism saves us »by the resurrection of Jesus Christ«. A good conscience is the result of not only its being purged by the Blood of Christ, but also by its energizing by the same power which raised Jesus from the dead! Glory to God! And this is most directly associated with Water Baptism. But Peter says only »baptism« (singular), so the same principles apply to all baptisms.

Now note Paul's spin on Baptism:

As it pertains to the psyche, baptism is meant to »bury« the psyche of the old man and cause the psyche of the new man to »walk in newness of life«. We don't have to think, feel and will as we did before we believed. »We shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection« pertains every bit as much to the psyche, the soul, the mind, as it does to our spirits and bodies.

There are many other verses than the one's which have mentioned in this writing which pertain to the salvation of the Psyche. When the Spirit so directs, I will continue this presentation further.