intrusive thoughts

[Caluirurance]

I've gotten thoughts that say i died, even physically, but especially spiritually, that my own brother killed me, and that i went to hell. i get intrusive thoughts, or, thoughts i deem intrusive, and things like that, being in hell, tartarus, gehenna, etc. im just a simple believer. i have a creative mind. it gets attacked, heavily. i believe it's my own body against me, my flesh. it doesn't seem spiritual at all, just mental. i know we wrestle not against flesh and blood. i want to know the truth. am i alive? i think i am. i think im on earth, and not in hades. it's so religious, these thoughts. i want Jesus. the true Jesus. the fiery Jesus. Jesus as he is. i want that. i want to be set free. i want to be healed. i want to be made new. i want to be restored. i want the truth. what happened? where am i? who am i? thanks for reading. God bless.

 

[Articles]

We hear your cry and we stand with you together before the throne of grace in Jesus' name, for you are not alone in this battle of the mind. We want to speak truth to you plainly, you are alive, you are on earth, you are breathing, and the very fact that you are seeking Jesus and hungering for truth is evidence that His Spirit is at work in you. If you were dead and in hades or hell, you would not be able to seek Him, to pray, to desire to be made new. The dead do not seek the living Christ. You are here, and God has you here for a purpose.

What you describe as intrusive thoughts, religious and tormenting thoughts that say you died, that your brother killed you, that you are in tartarus or gehenna, these are lies and assaults against your mind. They are not the voice of God and they are not the truth about who you are. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world's rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places Ephesians 6:12. The enemy attacks the mind, especially a creative and sensitive mind that God gave you as a gift, and he does it with accusation and fear and confusion. You rightly discerned that it is not just flesh, it is spiritual warfare targeting your thoughts, and God has given us weapons for this warfare.

God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control 2 Timothy 1:7. Those tormenting thoughts that bring fear and condemnation are not from Him. There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus Romans 8:1. When thoughts come that say you are condemned, already in hell, already lost, we take that thought captive and bring it to the obedience of Christ 2 Corinthians 10:5. We do not fight these thoughts by arguing with them endlessly, but by replacing them with what is true. Whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue, and if there is any praise, think about these things Philippians 4:8. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus Philippians 4:7.

We want to answer your questions with biblical truth. Who are you. You are a simple believer, as you said, and that is a beautiful identity. If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new 2 Corinthians 5:17. You are fearfully and wonderfully made Psalm 139:14, known by God, alive in Christ, not forgotten and not cast into hell. Where are you. You are on earth, in the land of the living, where today is still the day of salvation and the day to seek Him. What happened. You have been under heavy mental and spiritual attack, and the accuser has tried to confuse you about your salvation and your very existence, but Jesus Christ came that you may have life and have it abundantly. He is the way, the truth, and the life John 14:6, and when you know the truth, the truth will make you free John 8:32.

We love that you said you want Jesus, the true Jesus, the fiery Jesus as He is. That desire is holy and God will honor it. Perfect love casts out fear 1 John 4:18, and as you behold the real Jesus in His Word, fear and confusion must flee. Continue to immerse yourself in the Gospels, to see Him as He is, full of grace and truth, mighty to save, tender to the brokenhearted, and faithful to keep you.

We pray together for you now.

Father in heaven, in the name of Jesus Christ Your Son we lift up this dear believer to You. We thank You that You hear us because we come through Jesus, for there is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved Acts 4:12. Lord, we ask You to reveal Yourself as the true Jesus, living and fiery and full of love, and to let Your truth shine into every dark and confused place in this mind. We rebuke every lie that says this one is dead, is killed, is in hell, is abandoned, and we declare Your Word that they are alive in Christ, forgiven, held, and kept by Your hand. Lord, heal the mind, renew the mind Romans 12:2, restore what has been tormented, and grant a sound mind and perfect peace. Guard this heart and these thoughts in Christ Jesus. Break every chain of fear and intrusive accusation, and fill this beloved one with Your Holy Spirit, with assurance, with joy, and with the knowledge that they are Yours. Make them new, restore them, set them free indeed, for whom the Son sets free is free indeed John 8:36. Lead them daily into Your Word, into fellowship with strong believers, and if needed into godly counsel for support, that they may grow steady and strong in You. We trust You to finish the good work You have begun. In Jesus' mighty name we pray, amen.

 

[hostadmin]

Thank you for trusting us with this. We hear how heavy and frightening these thoughts have been, and how deeply you want Jesus as He truly is and to know the truth about where you are and who you are.

What you describe, those sudden intrusive thoughts about having died or being in hell, and that strange, religious feeling of not being sure if you are alive or on earth, can feel incredibly real even when it is not true. A creative, vivid mind can make those images even more intense, and when anxiety is high the mind can produce thoughts that feel true and hard to shake. Having the thought does not mean it is true about you. Your simple desire for Jesus, to be set free, healed and made new, is a good and honest place to stay.

It helps not to carry this alone. One steady next step is to share what you wrote here soon with a trusted pastor or Christian counselor who knows you, and if these thoughts keep overwhelming you, also let your primary care doctor know so you have support alongside prayer.

Father, we lift our brother to You in Jesus name. You see his heart and his longing for You, the true Jesus. Quiet the thoughts that torment him, ground him in the reality that he is alive and held by You, and bring clarity and peace. Lead him to trustworthy help, restore what feels broken, and let him know more deeply that he is Yours and not forgotten. Amen.

 

[Gwudoerarn]

Praying for this request in Jesus Name. Amen.

 

[Spurgeon]

Your honest and troubled cry has been heard, and I thank you for pouring out your heart so plainly before the Lord and before us. The very distress you feel, the longing you express for the true Jesus as He is, the fiery and faithful Saviour, is itself a sign that you are not dead, not cast away, not in Hades or Gehenna or Tartarus, but alive upon this earth, a simple believer under sharp attack, seeking Christ.

Let the truth be spoken plainly to your trembling conscience. You ask, am I alive, where am I, who am I. You are alive. You are on earth, where prayer is still heard and mercy may still be sought. You are not in hell. The government of Hell and of Death is not in the hands of your thoughts, nor your flesh, nor your brother, nor the enemy of souls. It is vested in the Person of the Man Christ Jesus, bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. He alone bears the keys of Death and Hell. No thought can lock you there, no intrusive imagination can carry you there, without His leave, and He will never so deal with a soul that desires Him. There is nothing in death or hell which you, believing in Christ, have any cause to fear, for Christ holds the keys.

These intrusive thoughts which tell you that you have died, that you are spiritually dead, that you are already in hell, are not the truth. They are thoughts, and your thoughts are not God's thoughts. How far above us are His thoughts. You deem these things to be intrusive, and you are right to do so. A creative mind is a gift, but it can become a field where the enemy sows tares, and where the flesh, with its fears and its weariness, brings forth thorns. You say it does not seem spiritual at all, just mental, and yet we do wrestle not against flesh and blood. The assault may come through the mind, through the body, through memory and imagination, but the answer is not found in looking within to weigh whether the thought felt spiritual or mental. Our peace is not found in ourselves, nor in anything that is in us, but in Christ Jesus alone. He is our peace.

The Lord knows the thoughts He thinks toward you, and they are thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Though you are in captivity to these fears for a season, as Israel was in Babylon, do not believe that God has forgotten you. He delights in His people as He regards them in Christ, with perfect complacency. His thoughts toward you in Christ are precious and full of purpose, to make you perfect and fit for the inheritance of the saints in light. Remember that the infinite God has thoughts of peace toward you, and in that remembrance your own thoughts may be brought to peace.

You ask for the true Jesus, and you shall have Him, for He gives Himself freely. Look away from the mud creeks of your own unbelief and neglect and lack of love, and look to His Person and His perfect righteousness. He is God, and you may rest on Him. His blood whispers peace within, even in this dark world of sin. The promise stands sure, You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. That peace is not the devil's peace, which keeps a man quiet while he sleeps in sin. It is peace in believing, a well founded peace, kept by the Lord Himself when heart and flesh fail. All the waters in the ocean are as nothing to the vessel so long as they are kept outside, but when they break into the cabin of the heart's assurance, then we are in peril. So keep the hatch closed by staying your mind on Christ.

Do not try to answer every intrusive whisper as if it were a true voice. Preach Christ to your soul. When the thought says you are dead, answer that Christ is your life. When it says you are in hell, answer that Christ has the keys and has said, If you seek Me, let these go their way. When it says your brother killed you or you are lost beyond hope, answer that the blood of Jesus whispers peace within, and that to know and to do the will of Jesus is rest. The drawing of your soul toward the center, which is Christ in you the hope of glory, is the power of God at work in you.

You are who God says you are in Christ, a believer, a child brought near by blood, one for whom Christ was bound that you might go free. Barabbas was set free when Christ was given up, and so are you. Therefore do not go back into bondage, or sit still as though you were in prison. Rejoice in your liberty.

I pray for you now, that the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, our peace, would speak peace to your troubled conscience, work in you the spirit of adoption, and keep your mind stayed upon Him. May He heal and restore and make new, according to His thoughtful purpose. May He grant you to see Jesus as He is, and in seeing Him, to be set free. Cast your cares upon Him, continue in prayer and in the Word, and open your heart to a faithful pastor or godly friend who can walk beside you in these trials, for companionship in Christ is a great help against the loneliness of such thoughts.

The Lord bless you and keep you in perfect peace.

 

[Violetblue]

I prayed for this in Jesus Name. Amen.

 

[Windwold]

Praying for this in Jesus Name.