Defense Mechanisms
Many people do not realize it, but they have defense mechanisms that are preventing their emotional wounds from healing. Holy Spirit is eager and ready to heal you, but when you do not receive it, then there is a reason /something blocking or hindering that healing from manifesting. All too often, that reason is a defense mechanism that is in place, serving as a wall or blockage which prevents or hinders the light of Christ from penetrating and healing the wound in you.
Once Satan has that “wound” in you, he wants to ensure that it does not heal. That is where he works hand in hand with fleshly defense mechanisms to keep your wound from ever healing.
What is a defense mechanism? A defense mechanism is an ungodly reaction in a person that is designed to prevent a person from further harm. It can be fear, unforgiveness, rebellion, etc. Think of it as a wall which keeps out both the bad guys along with the good guys.
Defense mechanisms are rooted in your human flesh and are not inclined to trust God. That is why a defense mechanism can cause a person to find it difficult to trust God. We would rather act upon our fears or unforgiveness to protect us, than to lay our burdens and concerns before Jesus’ feet and trust Him to take care of them. In reality, defense mechanisms are fleshly ways of dealing with and handling things that God has told us to trust Him with.
How do we recognize a defense mechanism? Be watchful for emotions which tend to “rise up” within you when you are faced with certain situations which put you at possible risk of being re-hurt in a particular area of your life. Defense mechanisms can come in a variety of forms, but the two main categories involve fear and unforgiveness. Fear is afraid of being hurt, and unforgiveness says, “I will not allow myself to be hurt.”
Unforgiveness and fear both have children. Unforgiveness is the root that leads to resentment, anger, hate, and even murder. Fear has a family all on its own, including plain old fear, worry, insecurity, dread, panic, and so forth. Fear is just as much of a defense mechanism as unforgiveness.
If you struggle with issues of anger, rebellion (blaming others), resentment (rooted in unforgiveness), and so forth, then you are up against a defense mechanism. A defense mechanism will rise up when it perceives potential harm in an area of a person’s life.
Understanding defense mechanisms
Defense mechanisms are usually there because a person (you) has been abused, hurt, etc. All these mechanisms know is hurt and pain, so they take it upon themselves to protect the person from further hurt and pain. Some people will even make a vow such as, “I will never let anybody get close to me again!” Such vows bind a person’s soul and invites demonic bondage. Demons are more than eager to work alongside defense mechanisms to create bondages to things such as anger, resentment, fear, and so forth. In such cases, the defense mechanisms need to be addressed, and the emotional damage healed. Now not only do you have a defense mechanism, but an inner vow as well.Self-pity can cause you to actually hold onto your hurt and pain in order to gain love and acceptance from others. Self-pity can be rooted in rejection because you are attempting to find love and acceptance. Where there is self-pity, there is usually a sense of rejection from others.
Someone who has built defense mechanisms will often find it difficult to talk about certain things or receive correction about their attitude or conduct. There is often a feeling of, “Do not go there!” rise up within the person. They want to stay away from addressing the root as if it were poison.
The whole idea of defense mechanisms is to protect from further harm or pain.
Tearing down defense mechanisms
It is important to realize that defense mechanisms will attempt to put up a roadblock to outsiders, regardless of it furthering harm or the healing power of Jesus. This will prevent Jesus from even reaching the wound so that it can be healed. We must make way for God to heal the wound!Roadblock #1: Unthankfulness. Being that defense mechanisms are there because of pain and hurt, they are generally unthankful. Thankfulness is definitely an important key to receiving healing for damaged emotions. Stop dwelling on what was done to you and all of the fleshly reasons why you are unthankful and begin to dwell upon the things which God has given you.
Roadblock #2: Blaming others (including yourself and God). Defense mechanisms are generally prone to blame yourself, others, or even God for what has happened. Blaming yourself opens you up to bondages of self-hate, self-resentment, self-unforgiveness, self-rejection, etc. Regardless of who your defense mechanism is blaming, it is enforcing a wall which is blocking your healing. It is keeping your eyes on the problem, and off of the solution (which Christ has provided). It is of the utmost importance that you accept personal responsibility for your own ungodly and hateful reactions (in your heart).
Roadblock #3: Fear. In many cases, defense mechanisms make us afraid of being hurt again, therefore we are operating out of fear. This fear will cause you to dodge situations which may expose you to further pain, rejection, and so forth. God’s Word tells you to cast all of your fears upon Him, for He cares for you (see 1 John 4:18). Not knowing the love of God will make it difficult to trust Him. It is difficult, if not impossible, to trust somebody, we do not really know who loves and cares for us. Therefore, an important key to overcoming these fears is to learn of the love of God for you and meditate on His goodness. Fear also draws you inward, which makes you dysfunctional in genuine relationship building, and can even render you useless in ministering to others.
Roadblock #4: Unforgiveness. We will deal with Unforgiveness in great depth later in this class, but the issue with unforgiveness is actually rooted in a distrust of God’s justice. When you refuse to forgive, you are afraid that nobody else (including God) is going to do anything about the wrong that was done against you, therefore you will hold onto it and see to it that the person receives justice (in their heart). You do not believe that God is going to ensure that justice happens. Forgiveness is a form of trusting God to handle the situation and bring justice. Did you know that you can actually prevent a person from receiving justice? It is true that if you fail to give Him that place, then you cannot expect Him to act on your behalf and bring justice. Romans 12:19 tells us, “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. “One of the keys to living a life of forgiveness, is getting it down into your spirit that God cares for you and everything that was done and said against you and will bring justice to those who wronged you as we trust Him with those situations.
Roadblock #5: Incorrect perceptions. A particularly important key to inner healing, is the tearing down of strongholds. Strongholds are incorrect thinking patterns or perceptions that have been burned into our way of thinking. When you perceive God as a cruel, distant, and unloving taskmaster, then it makes it difficult for you to trust Him and cast your cares upon Him. When you perceive that you are dirty and have shameful failures, then you will not be confident in your relationship with God, and your faith will be severely crippled. You will draw away from Him, rather than to Him (where the flow of healing is).
A word about trust versus forgiveness: Often times, these two things are confused and misunderstood as being the same. That is not true. Extending forgiveness is always required of you (see Matthew 6:14-15) but trusting the person who has offended you is another story. Let’s say that you were raped or abused physically, mentally, or even spiritually by a church/pastor; while it is vital to forgive that person who has done this terrible thing to you, it may also be very unwise to allow ourselves to be alone with them again (thus putting you in harm's way).
While you do not have to trust others who have harmed you, you do need to trust God with every area of life. Trusting God requires a knowledge of His love. The Word tells us that perfect love casts out all fear, why? Because when you know His love, it is a cinch to trust Him with every area of your life! Another factor that hinders your ability to trust God, is not feeling confident about your relationship with Him. Many Christians are plagued with guilt, shame, and feelings of condemnation. Somehow the devil tries to make you think that your failures are greater than the Blood of Jesus, which was shed for the removal of your sins. Are you problem focused (your sin and failures) or solution focused (what Jesus did about it)? Is the Blood of Jesus, which was shed for the sins of the whole world, so weak that it cannot wipe away the failures in your life? If that is what you are thinking, then you are grossly underestimating the value and power of the Blood of Jesus!
It is also helpful to verbally confess your choice to tear down ungodly defense mechanisms:
“I now take down the ungodly walls meant to protect me. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me and can endure whatever is necessary that lies before me.
