Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin. Romans 7: 25, NIV (Emphasis provided).
Dear God, we want to do Your will. We want our minds to be under Your influence, and Yours only. In this quiet hour please come and guide our study, and teach us how. In the name of Jesus we earnestly pray. Amen.
Today we are going to be looking at the power of our thoughts. We are merely going to touch the surface of this topic. There is so much to say, and so much to learn, about the power of the mind! I am not an expert in this field; far from it! But I am passionate about the study of the mind. We would be amazed at the changes we would experience in our lives, if we underwent a change of mentality! I am begging the Lord to impress upon our minds just how vital this topic is – especially for our spiritual life! Perhaps you may have heard me say before that the final great battle will be fought in our minds! That is a thought worth pondering! Perhaps we are not aware of it; but daily, our minds become the battlefield where the cosmic battlele between good and evil is being fought. God and the Adversary engage in fearful combat for the control of our minds.
One outstanding difference that is worth noticing, is the fact that God will ask your permission to enter; He will “knock” (Revelation 3: 20). Not so with the adversary; he will enter whether you invite him in or not; and he will usually bring company (Luke 11: 24-26)! Is it any small wonder then, why so many victims in Christ’s days were “demon-possessed?” I would not be surprised if many of the people in our world today, that are being treated for divers maladies, if Jesus were here, would heal them, by casting out an evil spirit!
This is not the most prestigious topic in the Bible, and most churches would rather not deal with it; but whether we talk about it or not, that will not make it less true. Things that we do not understand will continue to happen. I pray that, unlike the people in Jesus’ day, who, when a topic was not to their liking or understanding, would turn away from following Jesus; I pray that even if you do not fully understand this topic, you will not turn away. Prayerfully study God’s Word, and let the Holy Spirit teach you.
My emphasis will be on “guarding well the mind;” for “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” For the purpose of the study I will paraphrase it to read, “A mind is a terrible thing to lose.” I chose the word lose, because someone, whose mind has come under the influence of the evil one, is no longer in control of their mind; for this reason, they will do things, that they would never have thought of doing before. Someone observing this uncanny behavior might remark, “he or she has lost his or her mind!” That is absolutely right! He or she, has lost his or her mind, to forces that are greater than him or her(self)!
You may become anxious, and begin to ask, “How can I be safe from the forces of evil, if they impose themselves upon you without even asking?” That is a worthy question; so let us go to Luke 11, and seek an answer. Jesus has cast out a “mute” demon out of a man, and the Pharisees accused Him of doing it in the name of Beelzebub, the prince of demons. At a later date we will consider in more detail the parable Jesus spoke. But for now, there is one particular answer that Jesus gave that should offer much comfort to all of us. He says, “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe…” (21).
My friend, if you and I belong to Jesus, and Jesus alone; we are His possessions; and we are safe. We will continue tomorrow.