For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 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, 2Corinthians 10:3-5 (NKJV)
In Part I of this devotional series, we looked at the teachings of Romans 12:2, and Matthew 6:19,20. We learned that when we go through trials, tests, and tribulation, that it might be God speaking to us, and reminding us that this is not our permanent home. Were not to lay up treasures here on earth, but in Heaven. And that we should be transforming our minds by reading the Word of God daily, so that when we go through times of testing, we are better prepared to deal with and understand why.
In this next part, we are going to look at why it so important to read the Word of God if we are to have any chance of winning the spiritual battle that is going on for our minds that occurs during these challenging times.
I want to preface something very important here. We have already won the war. By accepting Christ, and making our profession of faith in Him as Lord, we have secured victory from the enemy, and we can be fully confident that we are fighting these battles against the enemy from a position of victory.
What I am stressing in this devotional is that the enemy, Satan and his fallen angels (Demons) are actively attempting to steal that message of victory and they are trying to keep us from living a victorious life, and sharing this message. This is the battle for our minds, and its known as Spiritual Warfare. If Satan and his emissaries can get you to think upon the thoughts that they are throwing at you, then they know you will be stopped in your tracks with regards to living a life of a victorious Christian. We must understand that this battle will continue as long as we are in our earthly bodies. The enemy only has power if you believe their lies.
"They do not want us full of hope and happiness.
"They want us to think that this world is what we are to be living for.
"They want us to think that true happiness and satisfaction is found in the things of this world.
"They want us to be focusing on our misery, or all that depresses us because of the tests, trials and tribulations we face.
"They want us to fear death, and be depressed over affliction.
"They want to keep us so busy that we dont take time to read the Word of God and to pray and speak with Him.
But we can clearly see from the scriptures above, that were to pull these thoughts captive. In other words, bind them up, and put them away, and contain them! Dont let them roam free so you can continue to think upon them. Eventually, these lies will ware you down, and you will believe them and eventually act upon them. You will begin to fear, worry or doubt your future, or maybe even what God has done and is continuing to do in your life.
Let me encourage you with some practical application here. Dont talk about all your problems! Dont continue to speak about those things that are plaguing you such as sickness, weaknesses, afflictions or even attacks that have left you hurt mentally or physically. We need to remember, that when we complain, whine or become dejected because of our trials and tests, the enemy is gloating in his victory.
Besides, who wants to hear about the hope we have in Christ when we are freaking out, complaining, or even yelling at the top of our lungs that what is happening to us isnt fair. Thats not a testimony of faith that is enticing to anyone.
Instead, we should be reading scripture, and speaking it aloud. We should be reminding ourselves and filling our minds with Gods Word, because this is the truth, and it will expose the lies of the enemy. We spoke forth truth when we made our profession of faith in Christ, and we should be using that same system in fighting the enemy when we have to battle the defeating thoughts that enter our mind.
We need to decide whether we will use our week human ways to fight the enemy, or whether we will use Gods mighty weapons. These weapons are prayer, hope, faith, love, His Word, and the power of the Holy Spirit. The choice is ours-Gods ways, or the worlds.
God has made us great promises that we can build upon during times of affliction, and we need to memorize some of these scriptures to keep us looking at the tests well face with a proper perspective. Lets become transformed by the renewing of our minds (See Rom 12:2).
STUDY QUESTION: According to the scriptures above, can you see how mighty the Word of God is when used in fighting the lies and evil thoughts that make their way to our mind?
PERSONAL INVENTORY: Are you pulling every thought into captivity, and into the obedience of Christ? Or are you letting the go, and as a result, worrying, fearing, and doubting?
APPLICATION: Take every thought captive! If they are not the type of thoughts that are listed in Philippians 4:8-9, then get rid of them and replace them with those types of thoughts.
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