December 19 – Disciplining the Mind (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”(2 Corinthians 10:5)

IN WORD:
Paul made this assertion to a church that was struggling with false doctrine and fleshly disobedience. It was attacked from without by philosophies contradicting the gospel, and it was attacked from within by internal divisions and petty arguments. And though he was speaking primarily of church life, all of the dynamics the Corinthians were facing in their fellowship are also dynamics we face in our own minds. We struggle with disobedience, we stir up mental discord with others, and we wrestle with false ideas about God and about life. Paul would heartily agree to applying this verse to our minds as well as our fellowships.
What we learn from this concept of taking every thought captive is that God wants us to think correctly. He wants us to know Him in truth. He wants us to treat others according to who they are in Christ, or at least who they can be in Christ. He wants us to forsake the thoughts that are built on lies — the ones that say, “God won’t protect me or provide for me; my future is in doubt; my enemies might get the upper hand; I’ll have to take matters into my own hands.” And He wants us to embrace truth: “God is my Father and He holds me securely in His hand; His people are my people and I will fellowship with them forever; His Kingdom is my only citizenship; and eternity shapes my present.” The mind must be retrained to accept these truths. We must eat, drink, and breathe them.

IN DEED:
How can we do that? There are 4 imperatives: 1.) We must ask God to make us aware of our faulty thinking; 2.) We must ask His Spirit to conform us to His image; 3.) We must consciously deny the wrong things we think; and 4.) We must consciously replace those wrong thoughts with truth. The Word of God must shape us, the Spirit of God must fill us, and the purposes of god must become ours. Our minds must be renewed.

“There is no salvation save in truth, and the royal road of truth is by the mind.” -Martin Cyril D’arcy-