Welcome to part three of our series on your authority in Christ. We last took a break over the holidays, after seeing how we have divine authority to accept or reject any thought that comes through our mind… I truly hope that meditating on that truth during the holiday break has blessed you, because it’s an extraordinarily powerful truth!
And now, in this segment, we’re continuing along this line to dive deeper into how this power over thoughts manifests and can be used to achieve victory.
Let’s get started!
Jesus Is the Standard
As we saw in part two, we have the spiritual authority in Christ to accept or reject any thought which comes our way. We don’t need to take every single thought. Not every thought is good, not every thought is from God, some thoughts and ideas are from the world, and some are evil and demonic.
Now, generally-speaking, an evil thought isn’t going to be brazen and announce loudly “Hey, I’m an evil thought!” — No, it will come with subtlety, it will be crafty, it may be disguised as something good, or even from yourself, or from God, that’s typically why so many people are confused and fall victim to evil thoughts. So the question is, how can we know, whether a thought is evil or not; how can we reliably discern whether a thought should be accepted or rejected?
The answer is quite simple: Jesus!
Jesus is our standard to discern whether a thought or idea is good or bad. When a thought comes your way, ask yourself this question: does this thought align with my identity in Christ, or not? And your answer to this question will tell you whether to accept or reject that thought.
In 2nd Corinthians 10:3-6, we see the following:
“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 strong holds;)
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts 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.”
These verses are describing the battle, that happens, not in the physical world, but in our minds.
Notice that we are to bring every thought captive, not through willpower, or through clever arguments, but to the obedience of Christ. That phrasing, is very interesting! Let’s look deeper into it.
Christ’s Obedience
Notice that the phrase says the obedience of Christ, not obedience to Christ. This isn’t talking about obedience to Christ, but the obedience of Christ. That is, His perfect obedience, all the way to the cross. This is your foundation, and this is your standard. There’s no security or safety if you’re focused on your own obedience, because the moment you slip, in even the tiniest measure, the house of cards comes crashing down in spectacular fashion.
The obedience of Christ, His obedience, is what we bring every thought captive to— so let me give you some examples of what this might look like, and how it works in daily life.
How This Works
I think it’s fair to say that there’s a lot of people struggling with feelings of sadness, depression, and hopelessness today. So if a thought comes your way, suggesting that you are worthless, or unloved, you can immediately ask the question: does this align with who I am in Christ? And by looking straight at Jesus, and recognizing who you are in Him, You rightly and righteously reject those thoughts, and feelings. Because Jesus bought you at a very high price. (1st Corinthians 6:20, 1st Peter 1:18-19) and He sacrificed Himself for you, because you are loved by God Himself. (Romans 8:35).
This is how you bring every thought captive, by exposing it to Christ’s obedience, and thereby, casting it down.
Now please understand that this isn’t just replacing bad thoughts with good thoughts… this is not some kind of thought-warfare – no; this goes much deeper than that. This is about owning your true identity and status in Christ Jesus. Really possessing the truth of who you are in Him, personally, and living in that place.
Now you have the foundation of your authority in Christ, and from this foundation everything else can begin to flow.
I look forward to thriving with you again.
Be blessed.