July 11, 2021
The Greatest Battlefield | 2 Corinthians 10:3-5
Introduction
On July 11, 2021, Pastor Eric spoke on the believer’s Greatest Battlefield.
Our greatest battlefield is closer than we think: it’s in our minds.
The apostle Paul says there is a constant battle raging in our minds. Our enemy, the devil, wages war in our minds through feelings, convictions and opinions that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God. He inserts thoughts into our minds in an attempt to affect or alter our thinking and then our behaviours. Paul identifies three challenges our minds are up against:
- Strongholds
- Arguments
- Every lofty thing or anything that sets itself up against the knowledge of God.
What is a stronghold?
A stronghold is a mindset or attitude that is extremely difficult to break free from. It is similar to being a prisoner in a maximum-security prison. It is also a place where a sin or belief is strongly defended or upheld. We can be taken hostage in our own mind, by believing lies about ourselves, life or the world around us. God wants us to reject the deceptive thoughts and beliefs that hold us captive. He wants us to demolish the walls of resistance in our minds and to strengthen our knowledge of the truth.
Arguments
The word argument in Greek, logismos, means speculation, reasoning and thought. We must demolish the faulty arguments that work against us and replace them with biblical truth. Understanding the true knowledge of God’s Word leads to correct thinking, which leads to obedience to Christ. Our thoughts are impacted by what we believe.
Eve believed the lie which became truth to her. She then convinced Adam that eating the fruit was the right thing to do.
Like Adam and Eve, some of us are deceived by the enemy. We readily accept the lies he whispers to us and accept them as truth. Those lies affect our view of ourselves and of God and our outlook on life. Our emotions, actions, thoughts, character, attitude, actions and speech are all interconnected. We must nourish our mind and safeguard it; otherwise, the devil will attempt to create downward spiralling thoughts that will hold us captive and affect our relationship with God. Pastor Craig Groeschel nailed it when he said:
Our lives move in the direction of our strongest thoughts.
We are to cast out all thoughts and beliefs that are contrary to the Word of God, before they enter our hearts and become a part of our mindset.
How do we demolish strongholds and arguments?
We are to grasp hold of our sword.
When Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness, He replied, by quoting the Word of God. He used the sword of truth. We are to do the same. We are to reject the devil’s lies, and fight all deceptive thoughts, strongholds and arguments by firmly grasping hold of the sword of the Spirit of truth, our mighty weapon, so we may be able to stand strong against the devil’s wicked schemes.
We are to pray.
We are able to tear down strongholds, arguments and pretensions by quoting the Word of God in prayer. Battles are won on our knees. Through prayer, we tell God that we are helpless without Him and that we have absolute confidence in Him.
Prayer is a powerful weapon that guards our minds, by helping to keep us focused on Jesus.
We are to take up the shield of faith.
When the devil introduces worry in our minds, it is the shield of faith that is our protection. We are to believe God’s Word, so we do not become preoccupied with our problems, rather than focusing on biblical truths. Faith is not only a gift; it is also a choice. We are to choose to believe the Bible. We are to reminisce about what God has done in the past, what He will do now and what He will do in the future.
We are to nourish our minds.
Proverbs 15:14 says,
A wise man is hungry for truth, while the mocker feeds on trash.
Have you ever heard the phrase “garbage in, garbage out”? If we feed our mind trash, in other words, if we follow worldly trends, watch worldly movies, read worldly books, no wise words will come out of our mouths. Life will be nothing but doom and gloom.
In addition, Philippians 4:8 states,
The mind is the precursor of our behavior. When the devil wants to entice us to sin, he uses our mind. Instead of waiting for Satan to act, we are to feed our minds with positive and godly things.
Let’s choose to reject Satan’s lies and let’s focus on God’s truth. By doing so, we can catch thoughts and attitudes that are contrary to God’s will and keep them from gaining control of our mind.