CHOOSE TO LOVE

“You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him.” (Deuteronomy 30:20 NLT)

Today we’ve bought into this myth that love is uncontrollable, that it just kind of happens to you.

In fact, even the language we use implies that we can’t control how we love. We say, “I fell in love” — like it was a ditch! I was just walking along one day and — bam! — I fell in love. I just couldn’t help myself. But is that really love?

Attraction and arousal are uncontrollable — no doubt about it. But attraction and arousal are not love. They can lead to love, but they are not love.

Love is a choice.

During a wedding ceremony, a man and a woman stand before each other and say their vows. They say to the other person, “I choose you above everybody else in the world, and I choose you for the rest of my life.” They make a public statement of their choice — that’s a commitment.

You can’t force somebody to fall in love with you, and you can’t force him or her to stay in love with you. Why? Because love is a choice. Love cannot be forced. This is true of all relationships, including your relationship with God.

Deuteronomy 30:20 says, “You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him”(NLT). You must choose to love God. God isn’t going to force you to love him. You can thumb your nose at God and go a totally different way. You can destroy your life if you want to. God won’t force you to love him, because love is a choice.

What will you choose to do?

Talk It Over

Why do you think God made love a choice?

How do you show someone that you have chosen to love him or her?

How do you show God that you have chosen to love him?

What about your life shows that you have made a commitment to God to love him?

WE LOVE BECAUSE GOD FIRST US

“We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:19 (NIV)

The Bible says in 1 John 4:19, “We love because [God] first loved us” (NIV). God is always first in everything. He takes the initiative. The only reason you can love God or anybody else is because God first loved you. And he showed that love by sending Jesus Christ to Earth to die for you. He showed that love by creating you. He showed that love by giving you everything you have in life. We love because God first loved us.

If you want to learn how to love other people, you’ve got to first understand and feel how much God loves you. When you feel that unconditional love, you’re going to start cutting people a lot of slack. You’re not going to be as angry as you’ve been in the past. You’re going to be more patient. You’re going to be more forgiving. You’re going to be more merciful. You’re going to show other people grace.

The reason why you see people who are judgmental, sarcastic, angry, self righteous, and always putting other people down is because they’re putting themselves down. They don’t feel good about themselves. They don’t feel loved. They don’t feel forgiven. They don’t feel grace. They feel guilty. They feel bad about themselves. And if they feel bad about themselves, they certainly don’t want you feeling good about you.

Maybe you’re one of those people. Maybe you’ve been hurt by parents or peers or partners. Maybe you’ve been abused or misused or rejected or abandoned or betrayed. You’ve got some scars on your heart.

You cannot give to others what you have not received yourself. Unlovely people are unloved people. Hurt people hurt people. If you’re filled with anger and impatience and you don’t feel loved, guess what? You’re not going to be able to love anybody else. You have to learn how much God loves you and let it heal your heart so his love can flow through you. It is impossible to love others until you really feel loved yourself.

The Bible says, “We know and rely on the love God has for us” (1 John 4:16). Do you know the love of God? Do you rely on the love of God for you? You will have a hard time loving other people until you have God’s love coming through you.

Talk It Over

Would you say that you love others with the love of God?

How do you show that love to others?

Why would understanding God’s love help you show grace to others?

What hurt from your past is keeping you from accepting God’s love and showing it to others?

TO GET GOD’S POWER, GIVE HIM YOUR TRUST

“For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13 (NLT)

A right relationship with Jesus is foundational to every area of your life. Your physical health is no exception.

Through a secure relationship with Jesus, you can grow and change in ways it’s impossible to do without one. In truth, we can’t accomplish anything having to do with our health without God: “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength” Philippians 4:13 (NLT).

Getting healthy, like any major change we make in our lives, can seem like an impossible challenge. Of course, it is impossible for those who try to do it on their own! But in our inadequacy, God’s strength for the person of faith is made perfectly evident.

That’s why it takes faith to maintain your health the way God desires. You’ll never be able to do it on your own. You were never intended to be able to! Anything you can do in your own willpower doesn't require faith, and when faith is not required, we’re living faithlessly.

When you come to Christ in acknowledgement of your weaknesses, he often turns your greatest weakness into your greatest strength. God loves to turn our greatest weakness into our greatest strength. If you feel you have a weak faith or even no faith, depend on God, and let him turn it into your greatest strength.

But that only happens through God’s power. The Bible tells us there’s a direct connection between faith and power. The more faith you have in God, the more power and the more blessings you will have in your life.

Jesus illustrated this in Matthew 13, where he went for a visit in his hometown, Nazareth. The Bible says, “Jesus did not do many miracles of power in his hometown because of their lack of faith.”

God blesses people who are not afraid to trust him completely. When you give him your trust, God fills you with his power. In the Bible, Abraham is considered the father of faith. It says, “He didn't doubt God's promise out of a lack of faith. Instead, giving honor to God for the promise, he became strong because of faith.” Romans 4:20 (GW).

Without God’s power in your life, you’re just running on your own energy. And God never meant for you to do that. It’s like having a laptop that’s unplugged; the battery will eventually drain and all the power will be gone. Why would you live like that?

Think of it like this: You’ve got a small battery in you. You can run through life on your own power, which means you’ll be tired all the time.

Or you have access to God’s power plant, provided you just plug in and admit you need God’s help.

It’s really a pretty easy choice.

Talk It Over

When is the last time you attempted something that could only be done by the power of God? 

How did you see God work through that situation?

What are some of the differences between getting healthy in your own power and getting healthy through God’s power?

What are some warning signs in your own life that you’re trying to do something on your own power rather than God’s power?

The Battle for Your Mind

“Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what the nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires ….” Romans 8:5-6 (NIV)

There is a battle going on inside you between your old, sinful nature and your new nature that comes from Christ. If you want to win this battle, you’re going to have to change the way you think.

Why? The way you think determines the way you feel, and the way you feel determines the way you act. If you act depressed, it’s because you feel depressed. And if you feel depressed, it’s because you’re thinking depressing thoughts. If you want to get out of that depression, or whatever issue you’re struggling with, you need to ask the Holy Spirit to give you better thoughts.

Satan gives you thoughts – they are temptation. And God gives you thoughts – they are inspiration. Which are you going to choose? Romans 8:6 says, “The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace” (NIV).

I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t choose life and peace over death. But the truth is you have self-destructive thoughts all the time. So what do you do?

Here is how the Holy Spirit frees me from uncontrolled thoughts: It’s the principle of replacement – whatever you want to change in your life, don’t resist it; replace it.

If you’re watching television and a show comes on that you know is bad for you to watch, change the channel to something better. If you want to quit smoking but you keep thinking about cigarettes, focus on something else. The Bible says you have to replace the old mindset with the new mindset.

Ask the Holy Spirit to give you new ideas to think about that will replace the old, bad thoughts. You’ll find that he’ll answer your request. And when you start thinking about something positive instead of something negative, something good instead of something evil, the old will lose its appeal and won’t have its allure anymore.

So invite the Holy Spirit to have free access to your mind to help replace those uncontrollable thoughts. Ask something like this: “Dear Holy Spirit, I give you permission to give me thoughts any time you want. I’m wide open and I will accept them. I have an open mind to you.”

THE SPIRITUAL ARMOR OF GOD IN SPIRITUAL WARFARE

Luk 22:31 "And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired (to demand - for trial) to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:"

The Spiritual Armor of God in Spiritual Warfare

     When Christians make a commitment to trust their lives to the promises and power of God, they are still living in hostile territory that presently is under the influence and power of Satan, sin, and a fallen world. This leaves the Christian at a disadvantage, in which we are cautioned in God's Word to put on the whole spiritual armor of God, because like it or not, we are in spiritual warfare.  As Paul has revealed to us, the true nature of this battle is against supernatural evil. The purpose of the armor of God is to equip us with the power of God, in order to stand against the evil schemes and deception of the devil, who has blinded the minds of those who believe not. 

     The power of God is released, as we utilize every piece of the armor of God against evil spirits, who are labeled by Paul as principalities, powers, rulers of darkness and spiritual wickedness on high.  We are asked to prepare ourselves as soldiers in spiritual warfare, because as a forbearer of God's truth and power, Christians and God's work are targets of the devil for destruction. The intense hate of the devil, and his devil spirits against God's creation is unimaginable, but nonetheless real, he is cruel and merciless; however, he cannot defeat God, and therefore he uses trickery and deception to defeat believers, or draw them into vulnerable positions. Some of these positions are: fear, doubt, confusion, condemnation, temptation through pressure or pleasure, spiritual blindness, pride, affliction or persecution, intended to frustrate the purposes of God through His people.  He is cunning and attempts to oppress us in our weakest areas (through our thought life or other people and circumstances), in which the "unaware" are led into chains of depression and other forms of bondage. 

     The Apostle Paul tells us that we actually wrestle against these forces of evil; Many times we will find ourselves in a literal struggle from within and without, described by Paul as hand to hand combat (direct contact) in order to overcome them.  However, this wrestling is spiritual, in which the devil and his demons will take many forms in order to attack or distract us in our thought life, and disarm our faith and the power of God.  If we believe their lies, then they succeed in gaining their foothold. The devil and his evil spirits have the power to manipulate the realms of the world and the flesh, in an attempt to obstruct God's truth. God has not left us defenseless, and as we will see, He has provided us with a greater power, providing everything we need to stand. 

     Let's take a look at our Christian manual on spiritual warfare, and the Apostle Peter's conflict with the forces of darkness.

Our Christian Manual on Spiritual Warfare

     Ephesians 6:10-18 is often referred to as "the Christian’s manual for spiritual warfare," our instructions for victory.  We need the divine strength of God to overcome the supernatural power of evil. 

How do Christians begin to prepare themselves for spiritual warfare?

First - Understand that our strength lies in the power of God.

Eph 6:10 "Finally be strong in the Lord and the power of his might."

     We will become the sport of the enemy if we rely on our human strength in the fight against supernatural evil. Christians, who have experienced the intensity of the spiritual conflict, between good and evil, come to realize that only the power of God will suffice, and guarantee victory over the powers of darkness. The intensity of a struggle will vary, however, if we rely on our strength, we will fall into an endless pattern of defeat, being victimized by the same snares or traps. Often, unpleasant circumstances may reoccur because the spirit forces behind a situation are left undetected, and by relying on our human wisdom and strength, we are left without a solution to our problems. We must attempt to identify the area of the enemy's infiltration, whether we are struggling with our own flesh, other people, or a direct hit into our thought life, or any combination of these three areas.  We need to keep in mind that we are never told to remove the armor of God; it is a way of life for the Christian.

Second - Understand that the battlefield is in the mind. 

We fortify our minds with the knowledge of God as Paul instructs us in 2 Corinthians.

2Co 10:4-5 "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds (dominated or occupied by the enemy); 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."

     It is necessary to study the Word of God, and align our thinking accordingly in place of our own understanding and sense knowledge. Whether our minds are being fed with fleshly thoughts, or thoughts influenced by the devil, we settle the matter with the thoughts of God. The power of God will destroy the strongholds of the enemy in the life of a believer.  In this, we take back the ground that the enemy has stolen, and weaken his influence upon ourselves and others.

 2:11 "Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices." 

For example, Jesus healed a woman suffering from a physical infirmity, in which Jesus identifies the source of this infirmity, as the work of Satan. We read in the gospel of Luke, 

Luk 13:10-13, 16 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

13:16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?

In this instance, it was the devil who afflicted this woman for 18 years, and although the symptoms manifested in the physical realm, it was a spiritual problem.

Third - Understand that the whole armor of God is required in our daily spiritual warfare. 

 Eph 6:11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 

     Paul instructs us to put on the whole armor of God,  in order to "stand" or continue to hold up against the "wiles" (trickery or cunning schemes), in which the devil lies in wait to deceive us.  We have an unseen, spiritual enemy, but once the enemy is detected, he is stripped of his greatest weapon of power, "deception."

     In addition, the devil often operates by using surprise attacks, as does the "roar of a lion." He seeks to intimidate his prey by paralyzing them with fear. These attacks can leave one with a sense of defeat if left unguarded; it takes the full armour of God to have the advantage in every circumstance.

     For example, out of fear, the Apostle Peter denied the Lord on more than one occasion; this threw him into a spiritual battle of fierce conflict, in which the Lord already warned him, "Satan hath desired to have you ... to sift you as wheat." Peter, who was the first disciple to acknowledge the Messiahship of Christ, and boldly confess his willingness to die for the Lord, was overcome by the power of fear in those excruciating moments of denying the Lord. Our human frailties are often the target of the enemy. In this situation, the devil used fear against Peter in order to enslave him in condemnation and failure.

Fourth - Know that our spiritual warfare involves entities that are extremely powerful.

 Eph 6:12 "For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." (See post #2 on "Principalities, etc." for a thorough explanation of this verse).

Principalities-Powers-Rulers of Darkness-Wickedness

Fifth  Understand that God has provided everything we need to stand, and when we put on the armor of God, we have done all to stand. 

 Eph 6:13 "Wherefore take up the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and, having done all, to stand."

     This is the second time we are told to take hold of the whole armor of God in order to resist and oppose evil; wherein, the importance of wearing full armor is established.

Sixth - Identify each piece of spiritual armor and put them on.

Our spiritual armor of God for spiritual warfare consists of the following:

Truth (belt), righteousness (breastplate), the gospel of peace(shoes), faith (shield), salvation (helmet), Word of God (sword of the spirit) and prayer (intercession for all saints).

I. Truth:

Eph 6:14 Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

     To gird our loins is to fasten the belt of truth around our waist. The word fasten indicates the typical use of a belt to support clothing, or to store tools and weapons. Our lives are supported by the truth of God as it was given to us by the Lord Jesus Christ; whereby, we acknowledge, believe and live by this truth. 

Joh 1:17 For the law was given through Moses: grace and truth came to be through Jesus Christ.

     With all that encompasses God's truth in His Word, honesty with ourselves is pertinent toward protecting ourselves from Satan's deceptions. We examine our thoughts and motives honestly, and lexamine them in the ight of God's truth.

                       God's light is a liberating light:

Joh 3:21 "But the one doing the truth comes towards the Light, so that his works shall be revealed, that they have been done in God." 

     We can deceive ourselves into thinking we are more than what we really are, in which the devil relies on our self-deception. The truth or light of God reveals to us those things that need to be changed in our lives.  By acting on the illumination of the Holy Spirit and God's Word, we experience spiritual growth and liberty. We become less vulnerable to the infirmities of the flesh and the powers of darkness. This is part of the Christian victory; however, if this process is viewed negatively, then the temptation to repress the truth for fear of condemnation or a fragile self image, will keep us in bondage. 

Knowing our strengths and weaknesses are essential components of spiritual warfare:

     The Apostle Peter, in a sense, was not in touch with himself; he boldly declared he would die for Christ; however, quite the opposite occurred.  Satan sought to sift him as wheat for his human failings.  Later, Peter was restored to his faith by the power of the Holy Spirit, and spoke the good news with all boldness. Our human frailties vary individually; however, honesty is the best policy, and understanding and dealing with our own human nature realistically, gives us a healthy advantage, and allows us to strengthen those areas in the grace and power of Christ.  

Joh 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

      As we grow in the knowledge of God and His Word, and exercise that knowledge, we learn to discern truth from error.  Scripture states, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6).  We will be alert  to the many distortions in the interpretation of God's Word, yesterday and today, intentional or unintentional. 

   

     "Spiritual abuse is a real phenomenon that actually happens in the body of Christ. It is a subtle trap in which the ones who perpetrate spiritual abuse on others are just as trapped in their unhealthy beliefs and actions as those whom they, knowingly and unknowingly, abuse."

II. Righteousness:

      Righteousness is our breastplate of armor against the enemy. We no longer identify with our fallen nature but with the image of Christ.  We no longer call ourselves sinners, but we call ourselves saints.  Paul addressed the Christians in his letters as "saints" of God, not as sinners (see 1 and 2 Cor., Eph 1).  We never read "to the miserable and worthless sinners of Christ."  We have two natures: the old sinful nature, and the new nature (called the new man in the Bible) given to us by the Holy Spirit.  We don't need to fix the old man (he is dead), but we need to put on the "new man."

We read,

Rom 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

Eph 4:24 and put on the new man, that after God hath been created in righteousness and holiness of truth.

Col 3:10 and have put on the new man, that is being renewed unto knowledge after the image of him that created him:

     We are righteous in God's eyes through His Son; therefore, we walk by faith in the righteousness that He has freely given to us, and are transformed into His image. When we fail, we acknowledge and forsake that sin, and the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all unrighteousness.  Putting on the breastplate of righteousness means staying in fellowship with God.  God's righteousness protects the vital organ of our hearts, and as we walk in His righteousness, our hearts are assured before God. We read in first John, 

1Jo 3:21 "Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God."

III. The Gospel of Peace:
 
  Eph 6:15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

     The shoes are the preparation of the Gospel of peace, and are indicative of  preparedness to stand on, and deliver God's message of reconciliation to humanity, through the work of Jesus Christ.  Peace means "to join" in a harmonious relationship to God. Military sandals were made of strong leather, and thickly studded soles with hobnails for a sure footing, in order to stand firmly against the enemy (Manners and Customs of the Bible, Freeman).  

IV. Faith:

 Eph 6:16 withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one.

     The shield is the barrier between the body of the soldier and the weapon of his foe. The shield protects us from the enemy's attempt to seriously or fatally wound us, as indicated by the "fiery darts (missile. spear or arrow)." Our faith allows the power of God to extinguish that weapon or attack directed against us. Trust in God and faith are exact opposites to both doubt and fear. Both are powerful beliefs, in which the appropriate outcomes are experienced. Regarding the Lord's message to Peter mentioned above, He further adds,

Luk 22:32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

Jesus taught about the power of faith. When His disciples failed to expel a demon from a person he explained, 

Mat 17:20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

V. Salvation:

Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 

     Since the greatest point of vulnerability for a soldier in combat is his head, he protects his head from injury by wearing a helmet. Salvation is the helmet for the saint in spiritual warfare, and our preservation from destruction. We are not only assured of our complete salvation at the 2nd Coming of Christ, but we wear or put on that salvation.  We have already been delivered and liberated from the power, and destruction of the enemy, in the name of Jesus Christ. We seek our victory based on this mindset.

Psalms 140:7

  O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.

VI. The Word of God

     Our sword is to "speak the Word of God in faith," and a very real weapon in the destruction against the onslaughts of supernatural evil in spiritual warfare. We speak the promises of God and His truth in faith as it applies to the situation. God magnified His Word above all His name, and Jesus Christ is the Word of God in the flesh (Ps. 138:2). Our sword of the Spirit includes both the power of the Word and the "name of Jesus Christ."

     Note: To those who believe that Scripture is not the inspired Word of God, you have already laid down your sword, your offensive weapon in spiritual warfare. It is important not to confuse man's interpretation of Scripture with the inspired Word of God as originally penned through the vessels of God.

Jesus spoke the Word of God as His weapon against Satan in response to three temptations recorded in the gospel of Matthew. (Matthew 4: 1-11) 

Mat 4:3-11 "And when the tempter [Satan] came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 

Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 

Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 

Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him."

VII. Power of Prayer: 

 Eph 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

We remain in God's peace and strength through the power of prayer. 

Phi 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. 

To be "careful" for nothing is to be "anxious" for nothing. We are protected from worry and anxiety through prayer, in which we cast our care upon God who cares for us. 

1Pe 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 

In addition, we offer supplication for all the saints, and again we see the example of Jesus in His prayer for Peter, He said, "But, I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not . . .."

The Lord loved Peter, and in observing his need, He intercedes to God on his behalf, He prayed for Peter's victory. 

The saints prayed for Peter when he was in prison: 

Act 12:5 Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. 

The results of their intercession for Peter, 

Act 12:7 And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands.

A note on the shield of faith:

Key Words - Above all  (take the shield of faith) and all (the fiery darts of the devil). 

     Faith is in operation for all of our defensive and offensive weapons of spiritual warfare. Truth, righteousness, reconciliation of the gospel of peace, salvation, the Word of God and prayer are all effectually operated in faith. In addition, it is by faith that we quench ALL the fiery darts of the wicked one.

     As soldiers for Christ, we need to continually grow in the power of God, and fortify our walk with the complete armor of God. We never underestimate the power of the enemy, nor his attempts at destruction; he remains a formidable foe!

YOUR CHRISTIAN BATTLEFIELD IS YOUR MIND

“(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)”
(2 Corinthians 10:4)

Someone said, “Christianity is all in your mind.” There is much truth in that statement. The mind is primarily responsible for growth in the Christian life. Let us notice what the Scriptures say about your mind:

GOD KNOWS ALL YOUR THOUGHTS

Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

God is keenly interested not only in our actions but also in our thoughts. It is estimated that you have 10,000 thoughts a day. To God, your mind is a window without curtains.

YOUR CHRISTIAN BATTLEFIELD IS YOUR MIND

The world, the flesh and the devil fight for your mind.

Romans 8:7, “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.”

Colossians 1:21, “And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled”

Hebrews 12:3, “For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.”

Man is a very complex creation. Have you ever seen a suicidal puppy or a depressed canary? You say, “What makes thoughts so difficult to control?” Secrecy and the absence of restraint. A parent can control a child’s actions but not his thoughts. God is very interested in our thoughts because thoughts produce actions. God destroyed the world by flood because man had unrestrained thoughts.

Genesis 6:5, “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

In Romans 1:28 God speaks of the reprobate (rejected) mind in the downward progression of a civilization.

In Romans 7:25 Paul says: “...with the mind I myself serve the law of God;...”

The mind is the control room or computer of the Christian life. The control room must be guarded. Lot never guarded his mind.

2 Peter 2:8, “(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)”

SEEING AND HEARING

When the mind is right, the actions are right. YOU ARE NOT WHAT YOU THINK YOU ARE, BUT WHAT YOU THINK, YOU ARE! (Read that over until it sinks in.)

Proverbs 23:7, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.”

In order for a Christian to alter his behavior, the thinking must be changed! You must plan and guide what enters your mind. An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.

That is one of the things wrong with hypnosis, drugs, and liquor. They put the mind in neutral so the devil can jump into the driver’s seat. Keep a busy mind!

Ezekiel 16:49, “Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.”

“Behind every human tragedy there is a slow process of evil, wicked thinking.” No one ever falls into sin. They have been falling a long time. We only saw them when they landed. Sin began in their thoughts.

THOUGHTS produce ACTIONS

ACTIONS produce HABITS

HABITS produce LIFE-STYLES

What you put into the computer comes out. Put in 48 hours of television a week and you’ll have someone who acts, talks, and thinks like television personalities. Put in 30 hours of rebellious radio music per week and you’ll have someone who has philosophies and rebellion like the groups he hears. What have you been programming into your computer?

True, you can’t help but have some evil thoughts cross your mind from time to time, but do you entertain them? Someone said if you nurse sin on the knees of thought it will grow into a giant. You will never regulate your passions until you regulate your thought life.

TRANSFORMING YOUR THOUGHTS

Romans 12:1-2 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

A transformation is an inward change that produces an outward change. A biologist cannot change a caterpillar into a butterfly-it has to come from the inside. So it is in the Christian life. Worry and depression are not solved by psychiatrists, but by thinking what God wants us to.

Isaiah 26:3, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”

In Philippians 4:8, God gives us a list of things to occupy our thoughts: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

Sad to say, the average mind is like a toilet. To keep it clean, it needs constant flushing with godly thoughts, much prayer, much Scripture, and much grace.

THE THREE MINDS

There are three types of minds mentioned in Scripture. You have one of them. There is the natural mind, the carnal mind, and the spiritual mind.

NATURAL MIND — UNSAVED

1 Corinthians 2:14, “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

This is a non-Christian. He has no spiritual appetite for the things of God. He cannot comprehend spiritual truth. He is dead in trespasses and sin (Ephesians 2:1). He may be outwardly religious and morally clean but cannot comprehend the Christian life. His thoughts will be what is right in his own eyes, situation ethics, humanism. The natural mind thinks whatever comes natural to a lost person.

CARNAL MIND — WORLDLY CHRISTIAN

Romans 8:7, “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.”

Carnal means “of the flesh.” The carnal mind is a saved person who lives for the flesh. The church at Corinth was full of carnal Christians. Paul called them babies. He said they could only swallow the milk of the Word. They had to be taught when they should have been teaching. They were cliquish, immature, divisive, and easily offended.

The Christian with a carnal mind is not satisfied in Christ alone. He chases after things, amusements, and delights rather than in the things of God. He is quarrelsome, touchy, and often is the source of chruch problems. He has feeble digestion and cannot get his own food spiritually. Deep Scriptures do not interest him. There is very little difference, if any, between the natural man and the carnal minded man.

The lost see no difference and have no conviction when around a carnally minded Christian. The carnal mind needs to get right with God, be serious, and fill itself with scriptures! (See also 1 Corinthians 3:1-4; Romans 7:14-15; James 4:4.)

SPIRITUAL MIND-SPIRITUAL CHRISTIAN

1 Corinthians 2:15, “But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.”

This is the Christian who is filled with the Holy Spirit and has a mind full of Scriptures. He is mature, has understanding of spiritual things, has the ability to teach other Bible truths, and is fruitful. He has the mind of Christ.

Philippians 2:5, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:”

If you think the thoughts Jesus did, you will live the way Jesus did. To do that we must think Scriptures—meditate upon them. Because of that, our minds will be going forward, will not be in neutral and will not have a chance to go backward (backslide). The spiritual minded man needs to make sure he does not get satisfied. (See also Hebrews 5:12, 14; 1 Corinthians 3:3; Galatians 5:22-23.)

LET US NOT BECOME SATISFIED!

WHY DO I STRUGGLE WITH SINS I'VE REPENTED OF? HOW CAN I OVERCOME SINS?

Christians throughout the ages have fought against sin and human nature. What are the keys to overcoming sin and living a Christian life?

Answer:

Overcome sin by staying close to God in prayer and Bible study.

Many have struggled with committing sins that they had repented of and for which they had asked God's forgiveness. In order to understand what's happening, we have to understand the process of successful overcoming.

God promises to forgive those who repent, confess their sins, turn from those sins and turn toward a life of obedience. Most people stop at just feeling sorry when they get caught, but that is not enough. We also have to exercise the will to stop doing what's wrong and put forth effort again to do what is right. The process of conversion and living the Christian life requires work. We need to know what we've done wrong and what God calls right or righteous. While most assume they know these matters, the truth is, most do not! People who truly want God's help must become educated about His will.

What happens after repentance and God's forgiveness? Because we still live in this present evil world and still have human nature, we will sin again. The apostle Paul candidly spoke of his ongoing struggle against human nature in Romans:7:14-25.

The necessity to fight this battle should not discourage us, for, as Paul brings out, we can count on victory through Jesus Christ.

Many people do not realize that God's forgiveness does not remove our human nature, the negative tendency within all people to commit sin. Our human nature is a product of sins that we committed in the past and the effect on our lives of the sins committed by others as a result of the influence of Satan over the entire world.

Using the strength of God's Spirit to struggle against negative pulls helps us to develop godly character. By way of analogy, pulling against resistance is the only way to strengthen muscle tissue. On the other hand, muscle tissues atrophy and weaken if they have no weight to pull against. The human spirit is similar in that a struggle to do what is right strengthens one's character. But a person who never encounters struggles in life will be weak. Further, having to do spiritual battle motivates us to continuously seek God and His help. That's healthy, lest we become proud and independent. When Christians sin, we need to repeat the initial repentance process: acknowledge the sin before God and ask for His forgiveness and help to change (1 John:1:8-10).

Christ inspired Paul to write: "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled" (2 Corinthians:10:4-6). Of course, this refers to our own inner struggle.

Christ is telling us plainly that the battlefield on which we win or lose against temptations is the battlefield of thought. We have to learn to recognize wrong thoughts, whether generated by our own natures or inserted into our minds through any one of numerous aspects of "this present evil age" (Galatians:1:4).

Many believe that all they need to do is pledge their lives to Christ, expecting Him to simply take over for them. However, this is far from what the Bible teaches about conversion.

In conclusion, here are four simple but effective things that all Christians need to do in order to be able to overcome:

(1) Pray to God instantly when you find yourself tempted—before you actually sin.

(2) Pray regularly in order to maintain a relationship with your heavenly Father.

(3) Study the Bible every day to learn and be reminded of His will.

(4) Meditate often, focusing your thoughts on a specific subject for several minutes, thinking about mistakes and picturing yourself doing better.