Bringing Thoughts Into Captivity Part 3

IV. The government of our thoughts is what determines our actions and character, good or bad. PRO 23:6-7; ROM 12:3. A. The pursued thought (in contrast to the passing thought) of foolishness is sin. PRO 24:9; MAT 5:28. B. It behooves us to guard against allowing temptation to take root in our thoughts. JAM 1:14-15. C. Mind that evil thoughts proceed from the heart, not the brain. There is a moral dimension to thought beyond the cognitive, analytical aspect. MAT 15:19 c/w HEB 4:12. D. As noted already, blanking out God leads to vain imaginations and further darkening of the heart unto uncleanness and a reprobate mind under Satanic control. ROM 1:21-28. 1. Scripture warns about sinning away the voice of conscience. EPH 4:17-19. 2. Scripture warns of a seared conscience under the power of a seducing spirit which forbids one from enjoyment of lawful things. 1TI 4:1-4. 3. Learning of Christ and implementing the same delivers one from such unprofitable thoughts. MAT 11:28-30; EPH 4:20-24. E. Have you ever asked yourself after a failure against better knowledge, “What was I thinking of?” Letting ungoverned thoughts run our lives is a real problem. V. It is vital to remember that the nature of man under sin is such that his very impulses are corrupt and accordingly affect the thought process. A. The power of lust/natural desire is so strong that it convinced sinless Adam to forfeit eternal life and perfect communion with God. GEN 2:16-17; 3:6. 1. If this aspect of human nature could gain dominion over a sinless man’s thoughts and conduct, how much more can it do for us who are by nature sinners? 2. Therefore we should not underestimate the power of the impulses of human desire. B. The heart is highly deceitful and desperately wicked, one of the reasons that God searches it first in judging men. JER 17:9-10. 1. The heart thus cannot be trusted. PRO 28:26. 2. How many put their trust in what God says cannot be trusted and justify themselves rather than Him, or make their heart’s impulse the determiner of God’s will? 3. We are not to trust our heart to understand God but rather PRO 3:5-6. C. The imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth. GEN 8:21. 1. This predisposition unrestrained provoked God’s flood. GEN 6:5. 2. This shows us that not even the greatest judgments change man’s heart. 3. This nature is what necessitated the act of God to change the inward part of man according to His own will and grace, giving him a new heart and nature synced to God. HEB 8:10-12; EPH 4:24. a. This new heart and nature enables God’s child to war against the old heart and nature which otherwise would have undisputed mastery of thoughts. ROM 7:21-25. b. Unaltered human nature cannot make sense of this, having not the mind of Christ. 1CO 2:14-16. c. The conflict of the natural heart v. the new spiritual heart, though a turmoil, at least shows that a new nature is present which can effectively battle base natural thinking. D. Reconsider JAM 1:14-15. 1. It is NOT a sin to be tempted or feel a lust. 2. If that were the case, then Christ was a sinner. HEB 4:15. 3. The sin occurs when the lust draws us away from what is right and we become enticed (stirred up and attracted to action) by the sinful proposition. 4. This is the womb of sin: the evil concupiscence (vehement desire) in the lusts of the heart. ROM 7:8; MAT 5:28. 5. Lust has conceived at this point, per v. 15. 6. What follows is sin and death (in its various facets). v. 15. 7. This is why it is critical to not indulge lust since it will draw the soul away into sin. a. Sin is obeyed in its lusts. ROM 6:12. b. Flee lusts at their inception rather than let them mature to conception. 2TI 2:22. 8. v. 15 sets forth the genealogy of death. a. Lust conceives and brings forth sin. b. Sin brings forth death. c. This is not an endless genealogy (1TI 1:4). It has an end: death. EZE 18:4; ROM 6:21-23. d. This is a stark contrast to the crown of life which is the end of faithfulness. JAM 1:12. 9. (JAM 1:16) Do not err, my beloved brethren. a. The thought of a sinful desire, if held captive to the obedience of Christ, is best rebuked promptly by what Scripture SAYS about that desire. MAT 4:8-11; PSA 119:11. b. Flirting with that thought, or dwelling on that thought is akin to showing your captive the combination to your gun safe as if he would never think of using your arms against you to make you his captive. VI. Peter tells us to “...gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1PE 1:13). A. gird: To surround, encircle with a belt or girdle, esp. for the purpose of confining the garments and allowing freer action to the body. Fig. To prepare for action; to brace up for, to, or to do something. B. The image is of a warrior or runner whose excess garment hinders his progress. So are the myriad of excess thoughts that are part of our being which need to be confined. C. Note the usage of gird in EXO 12:11; LUK 12:35-37. D. Of all the thoughts with which we should gird our loins, spiritual truth is paramount. EPH 6:14. 1. There is much other “truth” that can preoccupy our minds: scientific, philosophical, historical, even dark truth of a Machiavellian bent. But none of these should have dominion in our lives over the truth of the gospel; those thoughts must be held captive. 2. We are not to be wise in doing evil nor concerning evil but rather wise in genuine goodness. JER 4:22; ROM 16:19. E. As Peter wrote, the believer's mind is to be in a state of preparation for the coming of the Lord. Disregard of that great end is to open oneself up to carnal hedonism which lives only for the present world and its delights. MAT 24:44-51; 1CO 15:32. F. Gird up the loins of your mind against the toxic thoughts of futility. MAL 3:14. 1. It may seem that conformity to God’s righteousness and expectations is futile when you are only looking at the immediate picture. PSA 73:13-18. 2. Living for Christ is not futile: the reward is certain. ROM 2:6-7; 2TI 4:7-8. G. Gird up the loins of your mind against the notion of “I’m all alone” and so lose hope. 1. Elijah thought he was all alone but he wasn’t. ROM 11:2-4. 2. Believers are never truly all alone, even in the darkest valleys. PSA 23:4-5; 27:10. 3. The world will mock those who thus trust in God (MAT 27:43) but such believers cope with and overcome this world. JOH 16:33; 1JO 5:4. 4. Faith joins with hope to the end of the visible present which shrouds the invisible future state. HEB 11:1.