All sin starts with a thought.
Every action taken in the flesh starts with a seed of the flesh, rather than a seed of the Spirit.
If not rooted out immediately, this seed can take root in your mind, and grow into a sin in and of itself, before it even begins to manifest in the physical world. These are sins such as adultery, hypocrisy, and ungodly anger.
Before you even know, the enemy would have taken control over your mind, and these thoughts, which were once foreign and filthy, become second nature. Your mind, which was once governed by the Spirit, has now become governed by the laws of sin and death. Everything may look ok on the outside, but in actuality, we have become like the Pharisees; neat and clean on the outside, but putrid from within.
All this is even before any physical sin occurs. Once the battle of the mind is won, the enemy takes action. You begin to tease and flirt with sin that you know full well is wrong, yet you can’t seem to turn away from it. This can be sending a text to a person that God has cut out of your life, picking up that bottle that you swore off, or going to those websites “just one more time”.
And the more this keeps happening, the farther you’ll fall from the true vine that is Jesus Christ. Once you stop abiding in Him, you will also stop producing good works of the Spirit, and therefore, have become a person allied with the world than with Christ.
What was once an ambassador for the King has become His enemy, whom He will crush underneath His heal in the last day.
All because one thought was not uprooted.
The mind is the battle ground of the enemy. It’s where he gains most of the opportunities to gain a foothold in our lives. It’s where he influences us the most, and it’s his first target in the battle for our souls.
This is why it is integral to feed your mind with things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and worthy of praise. It’s integral to fill your mind with things of God, no things of men.
When consuming any piece of media, ask yourself these questions: does this glorify God in anyway? Does it insult Him in anyway?
Based on the answers to these questions, you can probably tell if what you’re feeding your mind is of God, or of the enemy.
Next, it’s also just as important to rebuke sinful and harmful thoughts whenever they do enter your mind.
We are humans after all. And as such, there is not one of us (excluding Jesus, mind you) who has not sinned when it comes to our thoughts. Whether it be of our own accord, or of the enemy’s, sinful thoughts and temptations have entered our minds at some point of our lives (most likely today, don’t deny it).
As such, we must take after Jesus’ example in the wilderness. When the devil tempted Jesus, our Savior responded by using the sword of the Spirit, the word of God. As His followers, we must do the same.
Sharpen your sword of the Spirit by daily consuming the word of God. Not only will this do well in fighting back against the enemy’s flaming arrows, but it’ll also open your eyes to the spiritual warfare that is going on in the world around us. This practice will help you see how scripture or unfolding right before our eyes, and thus, draw you closer to the risen Jesus.
Your mind is the devil’s playground. Dont give him the advantage over the one of the most vital parts of your body. For if the mind falls, the heart is soon to follow.
God bless, Jesus loves you ✝️❤️
