SATANS TARGET: YOUR MIND nuggetsoftruth/spiritual_warfare_and_how_to_win.htm - A. When Satan wanted to lead the first man and woman into sin, he started by attacking the womans mind (See 2 Cor. 11:3 and 1 Tim. 2:13-14). - B. Why would Satan want to attack your mind? -Because your mind is the part of the image of God where He communicates with you and reveals His will to you. - -Because your thought life according to Proverbs 4:23 controls the rest of your life. Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life. Heart in the Old Testament deals with your thought life in over 200 of the 800 times heart is used. Verse 23 could read, guard your thought life with all diligence because it will determine how you live. - -Because your thought life dominates and shapes your attitude. -----Your thought life leads to an attitude. -----Your attitude leads to an action. -----Your action leads to an achievement. - C. Its important that we protect our thought life because we can become no bigger, no better, no finer, no more successful than our dominant thoughts. As a man thinketh in his heart (deeply) believes) so is he (Prov. 23:7). - -What the mind attends to it considers. -What the mind does not attend to it dismisses. -What the mind attends to continually it believes. -What the mind believes it eventually does. - II. SATANS WEAPON: LIES A. The mind is the battleground where spiritual warfare is won or lost. - -Satan realizes that if he can change or influence what you think then he can change or influence how you behave. - -Satan tries to influence what you think by the strategy of enticement and deception. This is what he did to Eve in the garden. - B. Satan came to Eve as the serpent, the subtle deceiver of the mind. -He cannot touch our wills so he comes against that which influences the will ---our thought life. -A persons thought life so affects the will that they are said to be a product of their thinking. (See Prov. 23:7 again). -Your body may be built by food, but your personality and character are built by thought. -Gods nature is to influence our life with truth. Satans nature is to influence our life with lies. - C. Notice the steps Satan took in getting Eve to believe his lie. -He questioned Gods Word, indeed has God said.... -He denied Gods Word, you shall not surely die... -He substituted his own word, you will be like god.... - D. How did Eve respond to Satans approach? She responded by making three mistakes that led her into sin. -She took away from Gods Word. (In verse 2 she omitted the word freely). -She added to Gods Word. (We do not find the words or touch it in Gods original command). -She changed Gods Word. (God did not say lest you die. He had said you shall surely die). - III. SATANS PURPOSE: TO MAKE YOU IGNORANT OF GODS WILL. - A. Why did Satan attack the Word God had spoken to Adam and Eve and try to change it? - -Because God wanted Adam and Eve to know His will and Gods Word reveals Gods will. -Apart from the Word of God we have no understanding of the will of God. -If Satan can get the mind to question the Word of God then that person will never discover Gods will. - IV. YOUR DEFENSE: THE INSPIRED WORD OF GOD - A. John 8:32, You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free. -Only the inspired Word of God can reveal and defeat the devils lies. -Jesus used the Word of God to defeat Satans attack on the Mount of Temptation (Matt. 4:1-11). - B. If we are to win the battle of the mind we must - 1. Love Gods Word 2. Know Gods Word 3. Memorize Gods Word 4. Meditate on Gods Word 5. Believe Gods Word 6. Use Gods Word 7. Do Gods Word - C. If we follow these 7 steps, we will be able to Cast down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God and bring into captivity every though to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor. 10:5).
Posted on: Sat, 13 Sep 2014 13:06:56 +0000
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