There is a war taking place all around us. It is a spiritual battle. The devil is doing everything he can to steal as many souls from God as he can to hell. It is a battle over truth. The devil wants to deceive people from seeing and believing the truth. The truth leads to God. Anything else leads us away from Him.
You and I have been born again. Praise God! We are saved, sanctified, and considered the righteousness of God. Our names have been written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. While that is true there is still another battle happening in our life; it is the battle for your mind.
The devil knows that he cannot snatch you from the hand of God. He knows that you have been secured through the blood of Jesus. He knows that you belong to God. However, he wants to have control of your life. Why? Because if he can have control of your life, then he can keep you from screwing up his plans of keeping people in darkness. The devil wants to keep you from being ineffective as a believer. He knows that if he has control of your life then he can keep you focused on the wrong things. Of course, no one would rightfully just give the devil control of their life.However, the he knows that if he can trick and deceive us then he can gain control. This all happens in the mind.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
“3 For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.”
We see here that we are in a spiritual battle. Paul says that because we are in a spiritual battle, our weapons are spiritual as well. He says that they are mighty in the pulling down of strongholds.
Strongholds
A stronghold is a fortified city. It is what an enemy will use to guard their territory. That is exactly what the devil does, he fortifies an area of our life and guards it as his own territory. That is what the devil tries to do. He wants to gain a foot-fold in your life with the goal of taking territory in your life and guarding it. Yet, Paul says that our weapons are mighty in the pulling down of these strongholds.
Imaginations
Vers 5 of the KJV says “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exaltsitself against the knowledge of God…” Imaginations take place in the mind. The devil wants to produce vein imaginations in our minds, that is thoughts that are absent of God or against Him.
If the battle for believers is in the mind, then what you think about matters. The devil wants to control your thought life. So does the Holy Spirit. The question is, who are you going to give into?
Points to Ponder:
Winning the battle for our mind happens in 4 steps
Romans 8:5-6 - “5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.”
(Proverbs 23:7 - “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.”)
Philippians 4:8 - “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Joshua 1:8 - “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”
Psalm 101:3 - “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; It shall not cling to me.”
Takeaways:
