The Battlefield
“For
those who live according to the flesh set their
minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live
according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.
For to be carnally minded is death, but to be
spiritually minded is life and peace”
(Romans 8:5-6)
Last week’s sermon
spoke of “character” – what we do reveals who we
are, especially when we think no one is looking.
Today, we look at forces in life that shape our
thinking and help determine what we become. I have
wondered for years about the “heroes” of books and
motion pictures, for most of them are not “heroic”
at all. Often, the lead character is attacked in
one way or another by the “bad guy(s)” and he
defends himself. That makes sense, but the
difficulty arises when you consider that the “good
guy” is typically not “good.” The “hero” often has
questionable moral values or none at all, but we
identify with him because he is the “hero” of the
movie. When we emerge from the movie theater,
something of the attitudes of the writer and
director have been placed into us, and we are often
diminished by the “entertainment” we have just
experienced.
Recently, as we
were leaving to return home from Tucson, Arizona, we
had breakfast at my daughter and son-in-law’s
convenience store and deli. Just before we drove
away, Jenni, my daughter, handed me a copy of “Battlefield
of the Mind,” by Joyce Meyer. Jenni asked me
to read it, adding the comment, “Tell
me what you think.”
It’s a little
intense, but it’s also interesting. The book
carries this idea: There really is an enemy who
expresses his dislike of God by attacking
individuals and groups within humanity – people like
you and me. The Bible supports that position,
teaching, “we do not
wrestle against flesh and blood, but against
principalities, against powers, against the rulers
of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts
of wickedness in the heavenly places”
(Ephesians 6:12). We don’t need to be afraid
because God intends peace and wholesomeness in your
thought processes and mine. The enemy, however,
wants just the opposite. The “Battlefield” in this
supernatural war is the human mind.
The book contains
many Scripture verses that support and illustrate
Ms. Meyer’s position and “our” Scripture for today
is from that book. The idea is sound – thousands of
mental images are being presented to us each day,
and it never occurs to most of us that many of them
are being deliberately sent in order to re-shape our
thinking.
Oh, we are aware
of some of them: billboards along the street, ads on
radio and television shows, the “pop-ups” and “spam”
that annoy us when we are using our computers, and
so on. All these are attempts to convert our
thinking so we will buy some product or another that
is sold by the companies who pay for the ads.
The enemy of God
uses a similar process. During an evening of
television, many programs are offered to viewers and
they’re all designed to catch our attention so we
will become “fans.” Dennis Stinson recently said he
discovered that one of his favorite TV shows was
promoting a lifestyle that he now sees as
objectionable. He had continued to watch the show
because he liked it, but then he thought, “this
show is not good for me.” His thinking has
changed because he has changed. Years of reading
the Bible and seeking understanding through the Holy
Spirit has changed him greatly.
Romans 8 has been
a much loved Chapter of mine for many years and it
is a favorite of many who read the Bible. Yet I
never truly focused on our verse for today and it
certainly does say what the author of the “Battlefield of the Mind” says it does. – We will be changed by
the ideas, the images we take into our minds. And
many times the very “entertainment” we seek reveals
a weakness in us that the enemy knows about and
exploits.
The battlefield is
the mind, and even more, it is the human soul. A
key Scripture for this war that rages within
humanity is Romans 10:17 – “So
then, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the
word of God.” We need faith in God like a
thirsty man craves water and the pure Bible will
satisfy your soul. Something similar happens when
you read a novel, but the outcome is different. The
author has an underlying philosophy they are
expressing to anyone who will listen. If that
author has no Christian influence in their life, the
enemy will be reaching through the author’s words,
for he also has a message. The Lord brings faith
through His Spirit and His Word. The enemy
counterattacks with doubt and fear.
Looking back, I
really can’t take credit for any positive changes
that have come into my life. I have loved movies
for decades and was a voracious reader of novels for
a similar period of time. But I’m being changed,
and to be completely honest, GOD must get the credit
for that which is good in my life.
Books and movies
that I would have LOVED in the past, now
surprisingly offend me. If I suddenly realized that
I had not been breathing for the past five years, it
would be a surprise right up there with not reading
novels. And let me share a personal secret with you
(shhh): I don’t read novels anymore – ANY novels!
And He’s been working on me about what I watch as
well. He’s conquering my mind for good, one area at
a time. I still read a lot (I’m a reader), but the
books I read are more wholesome and are
predominantly about the Lord! He has done this, and
here’s how it happened:
Decades ago, God
prompted me to keep a “journal.” I didn’t really
know what a “journal” was, so I just started
writing. For most people a journal is a “diary” – a
record of events. But my journal had two parts: The
first was PRAYER – God focused my prayers by having
me write them. The second was STUDY. I picked
Bible books that seemed “right” and began to write
about them, verse by verse. This was not a
complicated study. Rather, it was how I simply
“felt” about the verses, and He used this journal to
give me “life and peace.”
And now, of course, I practically LIVE in His Word
and am blessed indeed.
Before this
process began to occur, I was always a little
depressed, anxious, worried or fearful about –
something! My earliest memories as a little child
always seemed to include an irritation that things
were not what I wanted. Because of His Word, His
Spirit, there is a growing calmness inside. God
continues to set my mind on “the
things of the Spirit”
and He has brought “peace”
to me. It’s true for all who look to Him, for “to
be spiritually minded is life and peace”
(Romans 8:6). And faith
indeed does come “by
hearing, and hearing by the word of God”
(Romans 10:17) for those who are willing. Let’s
pray:
Father, let me honestly
look at what I am taking into my mind and let me be
willing to be changed by Your Spirit. Fill me with
Your Word, Your peace. In Jesus Name. Amen.
