Treasures New and Old

Spiritual Warfare: Renewing the Mind

I See another Law in My Members

This month is a continuation of the previous article where we examined the first three principles needed to help us in the activity I call renewing our minds. Our base reference verses remain Romans 7:22-25, which are repeated below:

Romans 7:22-25: “For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.”

As a reminder, also, I have included Ezekiel 11:5 which is a clear reminder that God knows our thoughts and intents, and nothing going on inside our mind is hidden from Him:

Ezekiel 11:5 (emphasis added): “And the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and said unto me, Speak; Thus saith the LORD; Thus have ye said, O house of Israel: for I know the things that come into your mind, every one of them.”

Welcome to boot camp. Before we send out any solider, we must get them through extensive training. They must be transformed, renewed, trained on their abilities, weapons, and made to see the mission clearly. You are all now in God’s army and will be expected to behave as such. There will be no washouts, and you can only become a casualty if you approach this mind warfare you are about to engage in casually.

Summary review from last month’s article:

First: A key component or weapon, if you please, is to not love the world, but to love the Lord Jesus Christ!
Second: A key component or weapon is to take on the humble mind of Christ! You can’t do it by yourself, you must do so with His help.
Third: A single focus on the Master is required.

Let’s now add to these first three principles as follows:

Fourth: Where are our minds drawn, and on what do we think about? How do we renew our mind?

Romans 12:1-2 (emphasis added): “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

To be conformed means to be reset into a new frame, pattern – or for computer people – schema or format.
To be transformed, in the Greek, means to go through a metamorphosis (Strong’s G3339). You start out as one thing, but you end up something that looks entirely different. Like the metamorphosis of the butterfly, there is a time period during which you undergo change.
The process of transforming us from one who looks and thinks and talks and behaves like the world is sometimes not easy, and frankly, takes a lifetime. It can become unpleasant, embarrassing, and the world will see us as foolish, and will even hate you.

- Present yourself to Christ daily as a living sacrifice – willing to do His will this day and not your own. Much of the time you’ll find that you will still do your regular daily routine, but having made yourself available, you are more likely to hear that still small voice directing your steps to serve Him. Do this each morning in prayer.
- Understand that such service is only reasonable as Christ has paid your price for sin and has given you eternal life and His righteousness before the Father.
- Strive to prove those things that present themselves to you during the day as either worldly, fleshly, evil, or as coming from God as something He wants that is good (beneficial, kind in service (Strong’s G18)), acceptable (well pleasing and agreeable to the Lord (Strong’s 2101)), and perfect (fully formed, complete, of full age in design (Strong’s G5046)).
- As you practice these behaviors, you will find yourself becoming more discerning about your activities and thoughts and God’s peace will witness with your spirit that you are on the right path. Consider:

Philippians 4:6-7: “Be careful for nothing; [that is, do not worry] but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. [In this case, you are asking God to direct your thoughts and actions for the day]. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

What is Our Goal Then:

2 Corinthians 7:1: “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”

Romans 8:29-30: “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.”

Here the word conformed is like going through a metamorphosis and can mean jointly formed together (Wordsearch’s Strong’s G4832).
Clean out the junk and replace it with truth. Do not leave it an empty house! Begin the process of memorizing Scripture to replace worldly, fleshly, and even demonic thoughts and habits.
When a thought enters your mind, you generally have maybe thirty seconds to reject it. If you do nothing, it will enter your heart and become one of your core beliefs. This is why Scripture tells us to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5). We do this by not entertaining ungodly thoughts and by replacing lies we may be believing with the truths found in God’s Word.

2 Corinthians 10:3-6 (emphasis added): “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.”

Contentment:

1 Timothy 6:6: “But godliness with contentment is great gain.”

Humility:

Proverbs 15:33: “The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honor is humility.”

Patience:

James 1:4: “But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”

Peacefulness:

Psalm 55:18: “He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for there were many with me.”

Strong in the Lord:

Ephesians 6:10: “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.”

Psalm 25:4: “Show me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths.”

Confidence:

Proverbs 14:26: “In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge.”

Knowing God’s Will:

Galatians 1:3-4: “Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:”

1 John 3:16: “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

Seeking God:

Proverbs 8:17: “I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.”

Seeking Wisdom:

James 1:5-6: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.”

Stand in Power:

Luke 10:19: “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.“

Successfulness:

Proverbs 16:3: “Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.”

Psalm 1:1-3: “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”

Obedience:

2 Corinthians 10:5: “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

Ungodly Desires/Lust:

Proverbs 23:3: “Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat.”

Dealing with Pride:

Proverbs 16:18: “Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”

When Choosing People to Associate with:

Proverbs 16:19: “Better it is to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.”

When Spiritually Trapped:

Psalm 31:5: “Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O LORD God of truth.”

When Facing Evil:

2 Thessalonians 3:3: “But the Lord is faithful, who shall establish you, and keep you from evil.”

Fearfulness:

Deuteronomy 31:6: “Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”

Romans 8:14-16: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:”

2 Timothy 1:7: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

When Feeling Weak:

2 Corinthians 13:9: “For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.”

When Feeling Judgmental:

Romans 14:13: “Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.”

Trouble Making Decisions:

Proverbs 16:33: “The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD.”

Add to this list as you need to. It is a very a small partial list of Scripture to memorize and meditate on.

Closing thoughts

1 Corinthians 2:16: “For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.”

We are not in this mind warfare alone!
The battle in your mind will make you think you’re crazy at first until you have what is called muscle memory to reject worldly, fleshly, demonic, or evil thoughts and replace them automatically with Scripture promises.
We have been given the mind of Christ at our rebirth. We are not left in this battle without resources. Call on the Holy Spirit to instruct, teach, and encourage you in your battle.

Maranatha!

Bro. Joe

References

Strong, J. Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries. Meyers, R. (2005). e-Sword. [computer software] . Franklin, TN: Equipping Ministries Foundation. (Original work published 1539)

Strong, J. Strong’s Talking Greek_Hebrew Dictionary. Wordsearch. (2020). Wordsearch Bible. [computer software] . Nashville, TN: LifeWay Christian Resources. (Original work published 1890).

Article Archives

Privacy Policy