Included in the commandment which Jesus called “the first and great commandment” (inferring it to be the most important) is the love of the Lord with all our mind (Matt 22:37,38). If we are to do this, we must be constantly prepared to cast down (and out!) all imaginations and thoughts that exalt themselves against the true knowledge of God.
As the apostle Paul wrote, the Lord is the One who has provided the necessary resources to pull down the enemy strongholds. A very vital part of living in spiritual victory comes by the renewing of our minds. Every true believer is to be mighty through God in the domain of the mind. Of course, this requires a steady, healthy, well-balanced diet of God’s word, which is the seed that produces the kind of mind that honors Jesus.
The mind of the flesh – that is, our natural, human way of thinking – is corrupt and unredeemable. This fleshly, or carnal mind is deadly because it is opposed and hostile to the mind of the Spirit. Saints, we are unquestionably in a battle, but we are given victory and the ability through Christ to stand.
Our mind is to be in agreement with Jesus, and God’s word emphatically tells us not to rely on our own thinking. Instead, we are to meditate on “whatsoever things are true, … noble,… just… pure,… lovely,… of good report, …any virtue, …anything worthy of praise” (Phil 4:8) that we might have sanctified thinking and attitudes. The fact is, as Paul tells us: “we have the mind of Christ” because the Holy Spirit reveals the things of God to us. We need to pay attention!
As the body of Christ, we must both pray and practice this holy mindset. As individuals, we cannot prevent occasionally getting “the blues” or having some doubts, but we can, through the strength Jesus supplies, knock out those would-be joy and peace thieves and choose instead to meditate on God’s truth. We must be active in this battle of the mind, and discharge whatever is not of Christ.
Remember, saints, you haven’t been saved to walk following your former vain thinking, but in power, love, and a sound mind.
