Crisis Intervention Christ-Is Intervention: Volume I

By Anthony Benjamin Cosenza Ph.D.

Crisis intervention/"Christ-is" intervention, Volume I, is a carefully researched guide for personal and professional growth that systematically enables an individual to shift from a crisis to healthy and valiant living. On a 25-year quest for the meaning of "self-value," the author/psychologist unveils the biblical origin and characteristics of "spiritual valueness." The relationship between spiritual crises and imbalances of values is biblically researched. Specific types of spiritual crises with their eight subtypes are explained so that individuals can assess these crises through practical applications and appropriate questionnaires. Drawing from principles and analogies in mathematics, chemistry, physics, and sports fitness training, Dr. Cosenza shows individuals in spiritual search how to shift the balances of their values on the spiritual seesaw of life so as to maintain spiritual valor in and out of crises. Using a step-wise spiritual fitness training model, he unfolds a spiritual model for crisis intervention or "Christ-is" intervention, which utilizes biblically based balance training exercises to prevent, evaluate, and correct particular critical conditions This unique form of spiritual fitness has major applications for individuals in need as well as spiritual leaders, mental health professionals, pastoral counseling, and health/fitness trainers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Jun 2, 2006
• ISBN: 9780595760596

Anthony Benjamin Cosenza Ph.D.

In private practice over 40 years as a psychologist, Dr. Cosenza continues to counsel and serve as a confidant for individuals, couples and families in crises. He is a lifetime member of the American Psychological Association and served as associate professor at a graduate school for two decades. Since 1980, Dr. Cosenza has published several books on counseling, spirituality and crises. Contact the author, Dr. Cosenza: COVALENT COUNSEL (COVA) [e-mail] 1.917.957.4749

Book preview

CRISIS INTERVENTION

CHRIST-IS INTERVENTION

VOLUME I

Reclaiming Victory

Through

Spiritual Fitness Training

Anthony Benjamin Cosenza, Ph.D.

iUniverse, Inc.

New York Lincoln Shanghai

Crisis Intervention

Christ-is Intervention

Volume I

Copyright © 2005 by Anthony B. Cosenza

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any

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taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written

permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in

critical articles and reviews.

iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

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All scriptures used, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the

King James Version of The Bible. Explanatory insertions of scripture verses by

the author are enclosed in brackets [].

ISBN-13: 978-0-595-31238-2 (pbk)

ISBN-13: 978-0-595-78095-2 (cloth)

ISBN-13: 978-0-595-76059-6 (ebk)

ISBN-10: 0-595-31238-1 (pbk)

ISBN-10: 0-595-78095-4 (cloth)

ISBN-10: 0-595-76059-7 (ebk)

Printed in the United States of America

Contents

Foreword

Preface

Acknowledgements

SECTION ONE :

SPIRITUAL VALUENESS

PART I :

In Quest of Valueness

1

Man’s Need for Valueness

2

Godly Valor in Crises

PART II :

The Spiritual Meaning of Valueness

3

Spiritual Dimensions of Valueness

4

Origin of Spiritual Valueness and Valuelessness

5

The Sin Nature

6

Two Sides of the Sin Nature

PART III :

Spiritual Valueness in Christ

7

Children of Valor

8

The New Divine Nature

SECTION TWO :

INSTRUCTION MANUAL IN SPIRITUAL VALUENESS

PART IV :

Spiritual Values

9

Biblical Instruction in Valueness

10

Values According to God

PART V :

Ten Christ Values

11

Supremely Value God, the Father of Jesus Christ

12

Value Jesus Christ, the Son of God

13

Value the Word Concerning Christ

14

Value the Gift of Holy Spirit: Christ in You

15

Godliness is Most Valuable

16

Honor the One Body of Christ

17

Value All Men for Christ

18

Value the Return of Jesus Christ

19

Value the Love of God in Christ

20

Value the Wisdom of God in Christ

SECTION THREE :

IMBALANCES OF SPIRITUAL VALUES

PART VI :

Christ-is: An Imbalance of Christ Values

21

Conversion: A Permanent Shift to Christ

22

Imbalance of Values Toward Christ

23

Balancing One’s Life

PART VII :

Crisis: An Imbalance of Worldly Values

24

Crisis and Values

25

Imbalances on a Spiritual Seesaw

26

Natural vs. Spiritual Crises

SECTION FOUR :

TYPES OF SPIRITUAL CRISIS

PART VIII :

Crisis of "Worship

27

Imbalances of Worship

28

Satan Distracts from the Word of God

PART IX :

Two Types of Worship Crisis

29

Type I: Crisis of Condemnation

30

Faithfulness of God

31

Type II: Crisis of Faithfulness

SECTION FIVE :

SUBTYPES OF SPIRITUAL CRISIS

PART X :

Eight Subtypes of Crisis of Faithfulness

32

Crisis of Righteousness

33

Crisis of Love

34

Crisis of Need/Sufficiency

35

Crisis of Conversation

36

Crisis of Integrity

37

Crisis of Discerning

38

Crisis of Example/Comparison

39

Crisis of Hope

SECTION SIX :

CHRIST-IS INTERVENTION (CII): SPIRITUAL BALANCE TRAINING

PART XI :

Spiritual Balancing

40

Shifting Balances of Values

41

Spiritual Valorization

42

Doctrine, Reproof, Correction

PART XII :

Three Balance Shifts

43

The Glory Shift

44

Glorious Identification with Christ

45

The Game Shift

46

Con Games" of the World

47

The Goal Shift

Conclusion

Appendix A:

Christ-is Intervention: Spiritual Fitness Training Questionnaire/Planner

Appendix B:

Spiritual Fitness Training Goals Checklist

References

About the Author

This is dedicated to the one I love, Almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and God of all comfort.

Foreword 

The Bible clearly offers wonderful keys to all aspects of life. In Crisis intervention/ Christ-is intervention, Dr. Cosenza carefully explores biblical principles on how to prevail in different critical situations. This is not a self-help book but a godly guide that offers individuals the opportunity to grow toward God through the knowledge of His Son, Jesus Christ. Dr. Cosenza relates biblical scriptures concerning Christ to significant concepts from mathematics, physics, and modern-day fitness training. This book takes you on an unusual excursion from spiritual valueness to higher levels of valor through spiritual balance training.

As a mathematician and professor in higher education, I find Dr. Cosenza’s biblical explanation of imbalances of values on the spiritual seesaw of life to be personally and professionally useful and stimulating. I continue to refer to his extensively researched eight subtypes of crisis for practical solutions when faced with undue pressures or circumstances. This body of work is foundational for future biblical research. It will challenge and motivate anyone who sincerely desires to live on a higher ground of spiritual valiance and develop a deeper understanding of spiritual values. Dr. Cosenza’s paradigm regarding the relationship between spiritual and natural crises is startling and confirming. He offers a detailed spiritual fitness questionnaire and planner, which would be useful for counselors, clergy, health professionals, and fitness enthusiasts.

Dr. Cosenza’s explanation of the spiritual dimensions of a balanced life deserves serious consideration and research. He does not compromise in presenting scriptures to define and explain the spiritual balance training needed to prevail over crises. Every time I review the keys to spiritual deliverance in this book, I find myself drawing closer to God with a deeper hunger to comprehend the accomplished believing and prevailing work of Jesus Christ.

Dr. Anthony Portafoglio

New York, New York

Preface 

In a world filled with fears and fighting, often we are faced with unexpected decisions or disturbing crises. In spite of the chaos and helplessness within and around us, it is available to demonstrate the valor needed to overcome and resist critical conditions. This kind of valor must have a strong spiritual dimension in order for us to consistently prevail over crises.

The Bible reveals spiritual truths that shatter age-old perceptions regarding human values, valueness, and valor. Our recognition of these spiritual realities is fundamental to a deeper understanding of human motives, character development, and crisis resolution. Systematic biblical research unveils the following spiritual truths:

•   True valueness has an overriding spiritual component.

•   Values have a spiritual core based upon God and the Bible.

•   Social and emotional challenges are related to spiritual forces.

•   An imbalance or disequilibrium of certain spiritual values can be a spiritually desirable state.

•   Crises have a spiritual cause or outcome.

•   Crisis intervention must include spiritual fitness training to maintain valor.

Through a unique experience of crisis intervention termed, Christ-is intervention, we learn to embrace his spiritual valueness in Christ. As we gain a deeper comprehension of and conviction to the accomplished work of Christ, true healing, deliverance, and valor are realized. Using the metaphor of a spiritual seesaw of life and concepts from sports fitness training, the author provides a disciplined approach to spiritual valor training, which enables us to shift from a crisis (an imbalance of worldly values) to Christ-is (an imbalance of spiritual values concerning Christ). Ultimately, valor becomes a reflection and demonstration of our inner spiritual valueness, as we consistently exercise and practice the spiritual power, spiritual love, and spiritually based mental fortitude of God through Christ.

II Timothy 1:7:

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear [cowardice], but of power and of love, and of a sound mind.

Individuals who desire to know God and are disappointed by present circumstances and worldly answers will find this book to be spiritually life enhancing. All of mankind continues to search for deeper spiritual meaning regarding life and how to live it valiantly. Spiritual leaders, counselors, occupational therapists, nurses, medical doctors, and sports fitness trainers would find this book to be extremely valuable for discerning spiritual causes and types of crises.

Acknowledgements 

I extend deep gratitude to God and those who encouraged me to research the Word of God and write this book on spiritual fitness.

SECTION ONE :

SPIRITUAL VALUENESS

In Part I: In Quest of Valueness, man’s need to be valued and remembered is examined. It is humbling to realize that all of man’s accomplishments cannot provide the true spiritual valueness that is only available from Almighty God.

In Part II: The Spiritual Meaning of Valueness, the biblical origins of spiritual valueness and valuelessness are researched. Man’s inherited sin nature and its impact on self-valueness are systematically unfolded.

Part III: Spiritual Valueness in Christ describes the new divine nature and how to receive it. Without God’s gracious gift of holy spirit within an individual, true spiritual valor in a crisis cannot consistently be manifested. We need to know how to receive this new nature of God in order to have the potential for true resilience and courage.

PART I :

In Quest of Valueness 

1

Man’s Need for Valueness 

To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

Because of increasingly significant tension from within and unforeseen turmoil from without, crises continue to erupt in individuals, communities, and the world. This is a time for spiritual valor, a time to manifest the consistent strength, courage, and resilience of God Almighty.

To understand the seeds of spiritual valor, we have to examine how the basic needs of man relate to the purposes of God. It cannot be denied that man has a need for pleasure, power, and purpose. Indeed, he craves to achieve significance, to be valued, and to be of importance to himself and others. The world often speaks of this need for self-significance in terms of making a mark, leaving a legacy, or being immortalized. Profound concerns regarding self-valueness and self-validation continue to arise. What will people say and think of me when I retire or die? What will be my eulogy? What lasting impact did I make on the world? Was I a good person? Did I do good things? Was I so loving that people will always remember me?

Many of us believe that our inherent worth and worldly contributions will be eternally appreciated and immortalized. People who experience themselves as loving and giving often fall game to overestimating their own ability to love, to be good, and to do good works. They mistakenly think that their love, altruistic deeds, and wisdom will not vanish after they have died. The scriptures offer jolting realities regarding these accomplishments and vanities.

Ecclesiastes 1:2-4:

Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher vanity of vanities; all is vanity [vanishes away].

What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh [performs] under the sun?

One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh; but the earth abideth forever.

For all of man’s lifelong endeavors, how little of his life will be remembered by colleagues, professionals, and historians after months and years have passed. All of his ventures will vanish, including his love, power, and intellectual prowess. The Bible makes a simple yet profound statement regarding a characteristic that will remain endless.

I Corinthians 13:8(a):

Charity never fails [never vanishes away].

This word charity has nothing to do with the love of man. It is the Greek word, agape, which means, the love of and from God in evidence. This kind of love is spiritual. It is God’s love in evidence that never vanishes or fades, not the individual doing the loving. It is a deception to believe that human messengers who truly manifest God’s love will be remembered as the years go by. In Genesis, chapters 37 through 50, Joseph manifested God’s love and wisdom because the Lord was with him (Genesis 39:23). Many generations after his death, however, there was a time when the feats of Joseph were unknown. Acts 7:18 states, Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph. Although Joseph’s manifestation of love and wisdom is called to remembrance by God in the Books of Genesis and Acts (Acts 7:9-10), the focus is not on Joseph’s goodness, love, or good works but on the eternal unfailing love of God manifested by him. It is God’s love exhibited by man that never vanishes, not the man himself. The spiritual reality is that God is the one to be given the glory for true lasting achievements rather than ourselves.

2

Godly Valor in Crises 

For those of us who believe in God or would consider His existence, the truth of His valueness stirs up timeless questions regarding our own sense of purpose and value in times of crisis.

•   Are we born with spiritual worthiness and valueness?

•   Can we make ourselves valued or worthy before God?

•   How is spiritual valueness related to valor in crisis?

•   Are there biblical keys to maintaining valor in this critical day and time?

According to the Book of Genesis, chapters 2 and 3, when the first man, Adam, disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden, he lost his spiritual connection with God and was left in a permanent state of spiritual unrighteousness, unworthiness, or valuelessness. Since that time, all human motives, actions, and their resulting crises have been rooted in spiritual valuelessness. Both the Old and New Testaments affirm this reality.

Romans 3:10-12:

As it is written [Psalm 14:1-3], there is none righteous [worthy; spiritually valued], no, not one:

There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable [valueless]; there is none that doeth good, no not one.

Since Adam’s fall, underlying all of man’s critical conditions is his primary yearning to be righteous or spiritually valued before God. It is this inherent spiritual valuelessness and the need to overcome it that drives man to attempt to establish his own righteousness or valueness. Although he may be uninformed or misinformed of the origin of his spiritual valuelessness, it is this void that propels him into all gradations and degradations of human achievement, relationships, and crises.

The truth is that man can never make himself spiritually valuable or righteous before God. He may try and succeed in feeling valuable and believe that he is valued to himself and the world. However, because of his underlying spiritual valuelessness, all of man’s worldly or religious attempts at self-valueness through good works fail miserably before God.

Isaiah 64:6(a):

But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness [good works] are as filthy rags.

The scriptures reveal that only the goodness of God can lead a man to a change of heart and complete spiritual valueness.

Romans 2:4:

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness, and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

Because of man’s minimal spiritual understanding of the accuracy of the Word of God concerning Jesus Christ, he cannot know or digest the spiritual valueness, worthiness, or righteousness of God. As a result, he can never really manifest God’s valueness and valiance in crises.

The Bible teaches that all crises have a spiritual cause and/or outcome perpetrated by the devil and his worldly systems. In the midst of a crisis, however, God reminds us that He is a God of grace who will establish, strengthen, and settle us.

I Peter 5:6-10:

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.

Casting all your care upon him; for He careth for you.

Be sober be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

But the God of grace, who hath called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that [when] ye have suffered [have been pressured by the adversary], make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

Since man’s fall, God’s prevailing approach to all crises has been and continues to be Christ-is intervention. Because of the accomplished believing of Jesus Christ by his obedience to death, God was able to redeem man from a permanent crisis of spiritual death and condemnation.

Galatians 3:13(a):

Christ hath [past tense] redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us...

To demonstrate consistent spiritual valor and resilience in any crisis, it is available for us to pursue various dimensions of Christ-is intervention. Through a greater comprehension of Christ and the spiritual reality that Christ is in anyone who believes in him, we can consistently shift the balance of our values, thoughts, and hearts from the conning of the world to valor, courage, and confidence in Christ.

When we know and experience that God in Christ has given us eternal spiritual valueness, our primary motive is to be thankful and to live for Him. We glory in His glory. We love so that others can see and experience His love. We overcome crises so that others can see our valor and turn to Him in need. Because God works in us, our reason for living and hope for the future take on new spiritual heights and depths of love. A heartfelt throbbing to love and please God supersedes our will for self-love, self-pleasure, and self-accomplishment. The need for power and control is replaced by a driving will and desire to carry out and see the power of God manifested and glorified. Our search for meaning and purpose in life becomes realized by our identification with Christ through the scriptures.

Christ-is intervention endeavors to help us understand and accept how spiritually valuable and righteous we already are in Christ. Through spiritual fitness training, we can be transformed from devastating deserts of despair to heavenly heights of spiritual resilience.

PART II :

The Spiritual Meaning of Valueness 

3

Spiritual Dimensions of Valueness 

A loving preacher on television recently devoted his weekly teachings to how maladjusted behaviors in adulthood are based upon poor training and relationships in childhood. He described how children from loving families develop greater self-esteem or self-value in the world. Consequently, these individuals become more secure in their adult relationships. The preacher also stated, When a child comes from a family that is punitive or less emotionally attentive, he/she does not feel special or valuable. His conclusion was that this sense of worthlessness is carried into one’s adult life and relationships. The preacher was giving an opinion that would be considered humanistic and psychologically correct. Most of us would agree that everyone wants and needs to feel and be valued. The overriding professional view regarding self-value is that it is vital for healthy emotional development. Synonymous terms in the literature for self-value have included self-worth and positive self-concept. The exact causes for self-value are considered to be obscure. Research and theories suggest that it is a function of an array of variables, including family upbringing, genetics, experiences, choices, and core beliefs.

Although God loves and values all of mankind, the Bible teaches that man essentially is born spiritually unworthy, valueless, and unrighteous before God, as a result of the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. The qualities and manifestation of true self-worthiness, self-esteem, and self-valueness actually depend upon the presence or absence of a deeper spiritual valueness, which cannot be created or developed from natural parent-child relationships or any other human variables. Spiritual valueness is a rightness, righteousness, or worthiness from God that frees us from any awareness of guilt, lack, inadequacy, or condemnation. It can only be provided by a loving God who can make supernatural changes in the character of human beings. If a person is without spiritual valueness or has spiritual valuelessness from birth, he may develop worldly high or low self-esteem and self-valueness. However, these dimensions will be based solely upon the individual’s five senses and perceptions of worldly values and influences regarding self and others. Spiritual valuelessness simply means that a person does not have the spirit of God within him. He operates from a five-senses point of view. Whatever apparent high or low self-concept this man exhibits would have to be a constructive or destructive compensation for his underlying spiritual valuelessness. If a person receives spiritual valueness from God, he too can develop high or low self-esteem depending upon what he knows of God and His Word and how he lives accordingly. It is this spiritual valueness or righteousness that can take us to heights of spiritual valor in crises that could not otherwise