by Peg Yarbrough

Part I

The Wonderful Counselor, the Shepherd
and Bishop of your Souls.

And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. Luke 4:17-21

Jesus Christ came to heal mankind. The healing referred to in Luke 4 includes inner healing, healing the broken hearted, setting at liberty them that are bruised.

Proverbs 18:14
The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity (sickness); but a wounded spirit who can bear?

Who can bear a wounded spirit? No one. A person can make it through life with a broken leg, but it is very difficult to make it with a wounded spirit, a broken heart. Jesus came to heal the broken hearted. Every man and woman needs their heart healed, their soul restored, in some area. Past events have caused lies to be sown in our heart that have damaged us, and hinder us from doing God’s will.

THE PROBLEM

• Much of the torment we experience today is triggered and compounded by the lies of our past.
• Current situations “trigger” this lie based thinking, and we say and do things for which we are ashamed.

THE SOLUTION

• We are not helpless. God has given us a way to be released from the lies and torment of our past so that we might be free – free to serve him, and to fulfill our God given destiny.
• The principles are in God’s word, and are there for those who will humbly receive it.
• The choice is ours.

Jesus is the Great Healer. I think we have realized that as far as physical healing goes, but perhaps not for mental and emotional healing. In Luke 4:18 we need to note that the word “heal” in “to heal the brokenhearted,” is the same as our word cure. Jesus came to cure our broken heart. He came to give sight to the spiritually blind. And he came to set at liberty, or to free them that are bruised. A bruise is an inside trauma. The Greek word for “bruised” means, “crushed, broken in pieces, shattered through, broken by calamity.” In other words, Jesus came to set free those whose hearts have been crushed, those whose hearts have been broken in pieces.

Psalm 23:1-4
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

In Psalm 23 the Lord is my Shepherd. One of the things the Shepherd does is he restores the soul. The restoration of the soul heals the broken hearted.

I Peter 2:25
For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

Jesus is the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, and he has a continuing ministry. We need shepherding because we live in dangerous territory. Life is tough, and we have all been battered and bruised on some level.

Jesus is also the Wonderful Counselor. Isaiah 9:6 states, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor…” Only Jesus can do a supernatural work in the heart of a man. Only a visit from the Wonderful Counselor can truly change the heart of man.

We must be strong in the Lord, because we do not wrestle against flesh and blood but against the wiles of the devil (Eph. 6:10ff). We are not strong in our own flesh, but in the Lord, and in the power of his might. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;

II Corinthians 10:3-5
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

I have often wondered how to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. This is how to do it.

The word “imaginations” in verse 5 is the Greek word logismos, according to Thayers is means “a computation that is contrary to the true faith.” Much of the pain in our heart comes from false ideas, or lies, that have been planted in our heart somewhere in our past. They are contrary to God’s truth about us. A visit with the Wonderful Counselor can expose the lie, and replace it with God’s truth. It is only by God’s power that these lies, or “strongholds”, can be cast down. Then we are free to obey Christ in that area, to put on the mind of Christ.

In Luke 11:20-26 Jesus had the power to cast out demons and tear down their strong holds, because he was the Messiah, and he was, and is stronger, than any demon! He gives a description in this record of how to cast out demons, and keep them out!

The Lord Jesus himself gave Paul a mission in Acts 26:18, “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God.” That is what Jesus did for people when he was personally present on earth, and now, with his help, we can do it for others. Mark 16 contains a pointed message to ALL those who preach the gospel.

Mark 16:15,17,18.20
And he said unto them [his disciples], Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

Jesus gave this command to “them”, to ALL of his disciples. The greatest outreach that I have ever witnessed in my 30 plus years of ministry, is when these verses actually happened. When the gospel is preached, and the Lord is working with us, confirming the word with signs following.

The Lord knows how badly we need healing, and he is the great Healer. God is the author of all healing, but Jesus is the agent to the Church today, by way of holy spirit. He fulfills the words in Psalm 18:

Psalm 18:16,17
He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters.
He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong for me.

Our enemy is too strong for us, but he is not too strong for the Lord. The Lord will do in us and for us what we cannot do for ourselves. The weapons that we use here on earth are not carnal, but mighty, through God, to the pulling down of the devil’s strongholds. And then the Lord will fill that empty place with the truth and light that only he, the Wonderful Counselor, can give.

Part II

The Truth Shall Make You Free

This year I have been privileged to have great personal deliverance through inner healing, as talked about in Luke 4:18. As with all the things of God, the process was very simple.

To make a long story short, I got together with a fellow believer. We went to the Lord in prayer to ask him what needed healing in my life. The fellow believer prayed with me, that the Lord would take me back, back to where a lie was planted in my heart, a lie that was still causing pain and confusion in my life today. The Lord took me back to a situation in my past and revealed the lie. After the lie was exposed, it was rendered powerless, and the Lord replaced it with the truth, the truth that comes only from above. It was a joyful and a miraculous event! I was free from the bondage of that lie.

John 8:32
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

The word “make” is the word, liberate. Lies from our past have us in shackles, in bondage, because when an event happens in the present that “triggers” the lie from our past, we generally lose control.

We get angry, we get defensive, we feel grossly insecure, or many other negative emotions. Then we say or do things that we truly regret. Generally, we sin. The God given way to change this pattern of defeat is by going to the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, the Wonderful Counselor, who works with us by way of the holy spirit.

John 16:13
Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

This verse speaks of the Spirit of truth guiding you, taking you into the future. But this same Spirit of truth can also bring up your past.

John 14:26
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

The word “remembrance” means to “suggest to the mind one’s own memory”. The spirit can show us something that is in our own mind for the benefit of GETTING RID OF IT’S ILL EFFECTS. The reason that the spirit must take us back is to reveal the lies that have attached to our soul.

The stronghold is not the past event, but the lie attached to the event. Once the lie is exposed, then the spirit can “guide you into all truth.” The amazing result is:

John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Only the Lord can give us this kind of peace. What is a visit from the Wonderful Counselor like? It is the same feeling as when the resurrected Christ spoke to two on the road to Emmaus, “Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way…” It gives you a “clean clear through” feeling. The bad is burned up and replaced with the good.

There is a powerful record in Mark 5:1-20, of the man in the Gadarenes. He had an encounter with the Wonderful Counselor, the Christ. This poor man was so tormented that he lived like a wild animal. He lived in the tombs, howled like an animal, he wore no clothes, and he cut himself with stones. But somewhere in this mass of darkness and confusion there was a sliver of sanity, somewhere deep inside, because when Jesus came into his presence the man ran to him and worshipped him.

Mark 5:6
But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him,

After he worshipped Jesus, then the devil spirits got involved and said, “What have I to do with thee, Jesus, son of the most high God?” Those spirits did not want their stronghold broken, they did not want to be cast out of their home. But that is exactly what the good Shepherd did. (Note: Jesus called himself the good shepherd in John 10:11). Jesus cast out those spirits and spent time helping the man fill his “house”, his mind, with the Truth.

When the towns people came by later they saw the man clothed and in his right mind. This crazed man had had a visit from the Wonderful Counselor, the Shepherd and Bishop of his soul, and he was now in his right mind. He was mightily restored!

Only Jesus is the Wonderful Counselor, no man can do his job. Today, we have thousands of Christians on drugs, in asylums, going through hypnosis, and they are no better! WHY? Because man is attempting to do the Shepherd’s work! Man is attempting to do the job assigned to the Messiah, the glorified Christ.

Only Jesus Christ has been given the job description Wonderful Counselor! And no man can take it from him.

This inner healing, or restoration of your soul, is NOT psychology, psychiatry, “regressions therapy”. It is not even counseling, in the traditional sense of the word. You may have a fellow believer there to pray with you, and help you through, but it the Lord Jesus Christ himself, that does the revealing. You have a personal encounter with the Wonderful Counselor, the Shepherd of your soul, by way of holy spirit.

The information you receive comes to your spirit. It initially bypasses your cognitive understanding. It is the spirit working in you. During this process you will know, experientially, the love of Christ that passes knowledge. You will be touched by the Lord himself.

Ephesians 3:19
And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

Do yo want your heart to burn within you? Do you want to know the love of Christ that passes knowledge? Then you must deal with the Wonderful Counselor, the Shepherd and Bishop of your soul. It will be one of the most wonderful experiences of your life. You will be delivered from fear and bondage. And you will taste and see that the Lord is good.

Psalm 34:4 &8
I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

John 8:32 & 36
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

The truth doesn’t set you free, it makes you free indeed. The Counselor does something in you that neither man nor spirit can touch! You are given freedom from the Lord above. He sets the captives free. What a magnificent gift available to the Church today.

PART III

The Counselor is IN!

Only Jesus Christ is the Wonderful Counselor. When we return to the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, he can lead us beside still waters, he can restore our soul. Then we can walk through the valley of the “shadow of death” (this present evil word) and we will fear no evil. His rod and his staff will comfort us. This restoration brings peace to your soul, and puts you on whole a new plane of living.

III John 1:2
Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.

Both words “prosper” in this verse means “to be led in the good way, success.” That is most assuredly what the Lord desires for us. The word “health” means “to have sound health” but it also means “to be uncorrupted, to have true doctrine.” Which is what inner healing does, it removes the lie from our past and replaces it with uncorrupted doctrine – the truth. This chain of events causes immediate prosperity in your own heart and soul, and then permeates other areas of your life. [Note: My own physical health has improved dramatically after I experienced inner healing.]

Having and encounter with the Wonderful Counselor, with the Good Shepherd, truly brings prosperity to your soul, and healing to your life.

Psalm 102:7
He sent His word and healed them.

Jesus Christ was the Word made flesh. He came to heal us. By his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:4-6; I Pet. 2:24) Because we were like sheep going astray, BUT are now returned to the Shepherd of our souls. Praise God!

I Peter 2:24,25
Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

One of the greatest records I have come across in the Bible regarding the restoration of the soul is in Psalm 51:6. “Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.” God desires truth in our inward parts, and then He will make us to know wisdom (His wisdom). That is inner healing. It comes to us because of His mercy and loving-kindness.

Psalm 51:1
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.
Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

The word “throughly” indicates an inside action. That is how truth gets into our “inward parts”, the Lord reaches in and touches us, and teaches us in a place that no man can go.

Psalm 51:6
Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

When the lie is revealed and replaced with the truth from the Lord, our heart is cleansed, and a right spirit is renewed within. Then the joy of salvation (wholeness) is restored. It is such an awesome feeling. All that I can say is that you have to experience it to appreciate it.

Psalm 51:10 & 12
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.

HOW THE PROCESS WORKS.

The following are the basics to inner healing, or soul restoration:

1. You must have a burning desire to receive deliverance,
2. and humble enough to let the Lord search your heart, reveal the lie, and then the truth.
3. Allow the Lord to tear down the strongholds, and strip the enemy his of power.
4. Retain it by holding fast the faithful word.

Much of what is written about inner healing today skips the last point. I truly believe that once the healing takes place we must hold on to it by faith. Or, as Titus 1:9 puts it, “Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught.”

James 1:21
…receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

We are to receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to “save your souls”. The word “save “means “to deliver or protect.” Inner healing delivers your soul, and protects you from the lies of you past. But the key to this verse is the word “engrafted” which means, “a word implanted by another’s instruction.” Through inner healing the Lord will implant the truth in your heart, and will deliver you from your past. He heals the brokenhearted.

Then, with the Lord’s help, it is your responsibility to hold fast this wonderful truth that the Lord has implanted in your heart. As Jesus said, ” Blessed are they who HEAR the Word of God and KEEP IT.”

Holding fast the faithful word will entail a change in your behavior. When you get in to the same situations that used to “triggered” the negative behavior, you will now have the characteristics of Christ. Instead of anger, you will be able to be loving and forgiving. Instead of insecurity, you will have God given confidence. Instead of fear, you will have faith.

After Jesus forgave the woman caught in adultery he said, “Go and sin no more.” The essence of what he was saying here was, “You are forgiven, now change your behavior.” Throughout God’s word it is important to remember that we need to appropriate, or hang onto, God’s gifts of grace and mercy, otherwise they run out, like in a leaky vessel.

The Lord wants our vessel to be full, full of godliness, full of holy living, full of service to God. Are you living your destiny? God has a purpose and a plan for you. You have to ask yourself, “Am I moving ahead with my destiny calling? Or, am I just barely staying even?”

Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

These are God’s plans for you, to give you hope and a future. Do you feel hopeful? Do you feel you have a bright future? Are there parts of your life that you need to change, but you just can’t seem to? Then you need to pay a visit to the Shepherd, who restores you soul!

III John 1:2
Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.

Do you need to visit the Wonderful Counselor? Do you need inner healing? Ask the Lord to lead you to someone who can help you. It is available!!

Matthew 18:19,20
Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

Where two or three are gathered together in his name, the name of Jesus, he is in the midst of them!

What a wonderful reality. I have tasted and seen that this does, indeed, work. I have had great success, in agreement with another believer, for my own inner healing. Chris and I have seen great deliverance in ministering the same to others.

The restoration of your soul is a gift from God, freely given to the Church. I encourage you to pursue this for yourself, and enter into a new realm of life. Experience the peace that passes understanding. The Wonderful Counselor never misses! And remember, the Counselor is always “In”.