Close Encounters of the 12th Kind

In my effort to find the founding predators, oh I’m sorry, I meant the predecessors of Narcotics Anonymous, I ran across Mr. Bill Wilson who is one of the men who actually started Alcoholics Anonymous; then I ran across a video of his spiritual experience and here he describes his experience this way:

“If you are an alcoholic, you have an obsession that condemns you to drink; an allergy that condemns you to die. Your only resource is a spiritual experience. If there is a God, will he show himself! And then came the miracle. The room instantly lit up, in a blinding glare of white, white light. I was seized by an ecstasy such as I have never known. It seemed to me that I then stood on a mountain top, where a great clean wind was blowing. I thought to myself, but this is not air; this is spirit. This is the God of the preachers. I felt myself filled with the consciousness of the presence of spirits, of God.”  What!!!!! Does he mean he was in the presence of 'spirits' or in the presence of 'God'. So I guess he just walked right pass Jesus as if he’s irrelevant…As if he has more authority than Jesus Christ in the Spirit realm.

[But Bill never once mentioned Jesus in this experience, but Paul had a similar experience on the road to Damascus and he was persecuting the believers in the beginning] Selah!!!
So what spirits seized him in ecstasy? This sounds so familiar to me. Hmmmmmmm!

As I remember the story of Jesus being led by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil, I noticed that this man’s description of this occurrence sounds more like an “Ecstasy” trip. In Matthew 4:3-4, it says, “Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Now look at what Mr. Bill is saying above, “If there is a God, will he show himself!" And then came the miracle. The room instantly lit up in a blinding glare of white, white light.” Not once did this man use the words “It is written” as a defense against this spirit. The written word of God is the only defense against satan.

So in essence, the enemy already knew by the words that proceeded out of his mouth that he questioned if there is even a God to begin with. He just opened the door and has given place for the enemy to operate. So the devil knew that it wouldn’t take much to tempt and deceive him, because Mr. Bill didn’t know who he was from the start. But 2 Corinthians 11:14 says, “And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.” [Remember that white, white light he described] I like the way he describes how he stood on a mountain top, where a great clean air was blowing. Now listen to this, he says he thought to himself this is not air, but spirit. Well what do people do with air? They breathe it in, so in actuality he is describing the inhaling of this spirit. Many might say I have gone overboard, but I beg to differ. Listen to it for yourself @ www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNmFjszzrKo&feature=related.

Truly I can say that this deceiving spirit comes straight from satan. It says in 1 John 2:22, “Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.” Not only this scripture, but it also says in 1 John 4:1-4, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every (human) spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every (human) spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.” So if his spiritual experience was from God, then why does his literature only tell people to get “a god of your own understanding” The literature not only expresses a form of the antichrist, but it says this is the “spirit” of the Antichrist” and the spirit of a thing is what pushes or gives power to the thing itself. It’s like the engine of a car; the engine is what powers it and makes it run. In other words, “the spirit” of the Antichrist is the disposition or influence which fills and governs the soul of any one, as translated by Greek the definition. So why are people so bent on following and practicing these philosophies and high sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ? Are people so desperate to be clean from drugs that they will try anything; even at the risk of humiliating themselves even more by confessing that they are what they have done and that they will be this way forever, or are people simply tired of the consequences of their drug use, but want to continue to live a sinful lifestyle? I am not by in large speaking of all members of Narcotics Anonymous. I am speaking of the deceiving spirits, half truths and flat out lies that people have conceived as truth and try to push it on others as if NA is the only way to be free from addiction, and have the nerve to tell people that “Those who do not recover are people who cannot or will not completely give themselves to this simple program” (AA, How It Works Chapter 5) but as the word says in 1 John 4:4, “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” I stand on the “Word of God”, not on the words of a man who believes he had an encounter with God, but has never confessed Christ as the way, the truth or the life. He only writes about “A God of your own understanding” and people eat it up like it’s something good to eat. Another thing bothers me about what I found in Narcotics Anonymous, It Works How and Why, step one, pg. 7 it says, “The spiritual part of our disease, the part we may recognize only by a feeling of emptiness or loneliness when we first get clean, is perhaps one of the most difficult aspects of addiction for us. Because this part of our disease affects us so profoundly and so personally, we may be overwhelmed when we think about applying a program of recovery to it. However, we need to keep in mind that recovery doesn’t happen overnight for anyone.” First of all, this is describing what a person experiences spiritually and mentally once their bodies have been clean from drug use, and the feeling of emptiness and loneliness is most liking what I call "A God shaped whole" that only Jesus can fill. I have experienced these same feelings, but the only difference in this description, as it pertains to me, is that I did not apply a program of recovery to it. “IT” being what NA calls the “spiritual part of the disease” [stronghold]. But for the true purposes of recovery and restoration through Christ, I will explain what I see in this statement. As it states in Matthew 12:43-45, “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came. And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.” Here lies the root of the problem. The unsaved, unbelieving members have no way of fighting against this spirit that influences the stronghold of addiction. Instead people are being led to believe that the 12 traditions and steps of recovery can fight against an unseen enemy of their souls, so they apply the program to “IT” and therefore people remain powerless against the enemy. NA’s literature is not spiritual in nature. Their literature is merely basic worldly principles and steps written by a man who himself struggled with his addiction and claimed “powerlessness” over it and by the way, Mr. Bill admittedly states he felt the presence of spirits. [plural] Keep in mind that John 4:24 says, "God is a "spirit" [singular], and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." Let me break this down for you. Spiritual warfare is an invisible war in which we cannot fight with carnal weapons. There are only two divisions in the invisible war. Jesus said, "He that is not with me is against me" (Luke 11:23). You cannot be neutral in this spiritual war. You are on one side or the other. Please take a look at John 6:63, it says, “It is the Spirit [singular] who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.” The Greek translation of the word “spirit” in the text refers to a way which emphasizes his work and power (the Spirit of "Truth"). Without the working of the Holy Spirit and the Power He gives to overcome the addiction, people are left empty and feeling hopeless and for this reason, I can see how this would affect people in a profound and personal way because people want to be free and the fear of using again does enter our minds, and people long for something to fill them with the Power that can free them from this stronghold. Mentioning God as a higher power and actually confessing Jesus as that Power by using and referencing His word are two different things. I have never seen such foolishness in my life, except when I was in active addiction…This is nonsense and the word clearly tells us in Hosea 4:6[a], “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” Well, when are God’s people going to wake up and hear the voice of the Lord? As a Believer, I know by faith that the only way to get to God is by way of Christ. I have steadied myself in this fight to expose the enemy in recovery for the purpose of setting the minds of people free from deceit, half truths, and flat out lies; And the only way to do that is to reveal the Truth of God’s word, but as it says in John 6:44, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.” I am confident, just by reading 2 Timothy 2:17-19 where it explains the spread of profane and idle babbling from mere men, and how their message spread like cancer; for these men actually strayed from the truth, but it goes on to say that by spreading these untruths they have overthrown the faith of others. In my opinion this is what Narcotics Anonymous is doing to people in this day and time. But let’s not forget what it goes on to say in verse 19, I love this part. “Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” Since the solid foundation still stands, I will to. Once the Truth is conceived in the hearts of the individuals who have been deceived and lied to, I believe they will depart from sin and leave disconnect themselves from the unfruitful works of darkness and truly seek God through Christ to be resurrected, renewed, revived and restored by the Power of the Holy Spirit.

Be Blessed!!