The Bible is full of truth about the importance of controlling our minds. In this sermon, Dr. Stanley shares Biblical truth found in Colossians 3 about how our tendencies to think as unbelievers change when we become believers. Christ gives us renewed thoughts and the Bible to guide us towards thinking like Christ—godly and positive thoughts.
we should be thanking God’s thoughts
what does he think
how does he want us to think how does he
want us to live and in the process of
doing so remember this when you’re
thinking his thoughts you’re thinking
the most powerful thoughts there are
when you’re thinking his thoughts you’re
thinking and beginning to see what he’s
thinking about you next on InTouch
taking control of your thoughts our mind
is the control tower of our life
whatever happens in our life starts
right here all of our decisions of air
and the truth is whatever we are today
is the result of what we’ve been
thinking about all those years the Bible
says as a man thinketh in his heart so
is he
so if you don’t like what’s going on
around you maybe you should ask yourself
the question what am I thinking about
what do I think about myself what I
think about other people because what we
think about is really what controls us
for example a relationship to God a
relationship to each other a sense of
direction in life whatever we accomplish
have failures in life all of that is a
result of the way we think and
oftentimes we forget that that this is a
control tower that everything else is a
result of how we think that we can’t
control everybody else in control of all
of our circumstances but we are going to
respond to circumstances in one way or
the other and so when I think about how
this affects us I think about the fact
that many people of where they are
because of the wrong thinking and so
they don’t like where they are other
folks are where they are because of
right thinking because they’ve been
thinking the right way what you have to
ask is this what is it that determines
what I think is it the Word of God or is
it something else I’ll read something
else that I watch and I’ll think about
how many people sit down and open their
mind to our television program what did
the news or what
it might be not realizing they are
sitting there being a programmed in
their mind to think a certain way you
say well does that include preaching too
yes and I want you to listen carefully
because I want you to be programmed to
think the way God thinks program to
understand the Word of God programmed in
such a way that you will live and the
fashion that’s pleasing and honorable to
God and that the very best that God has
for your life you’ll be able to
experience that yes but on the other
hand you’re watching some program it’s
full of sensuality or just crime and all
of these movies and so forth that you
see and programs that I don’t watch them
I can’t name them but I can tell you a
lot of is just pure junk that you do not
need in your mind in your thought life
and certainly it’s a part of your life
so what I want to talk about in this
message is controlling our thoughts
because this controls everything and
that’s where our thoughts are from so if
you turn in your Bible to Colossians
chapter 3 and I want us to read these
first eight verses and look at this
they’re not want to answer the question
how do we control our thoughts which
determines our life and Paul begins in
this particular chapter and he says for
example therefore that it’s based on
what he’s been talking about if you have
been raised up with Christ keep seeking
the things above where Christ is seated
at the right hand of God set your mind
on the things above not on the things
that are on earth
for you have died and your life is
hidden with Christ in God when Christ
who is our life is revealed that is when
he comes then you also will be revealed
come with him in glory therefore watch
this consider the members of your
earthly body as dead to immorality
impurity passion evil desire and
which amounts to idolatry but it’s
because of these things that the wrath
of God will come upon the sons of
disobedience and in them you also once
walked when you were living in them but
now you also put them all aside anger
wrath malice slander abusive speech
from your mouth and so on he goes so I
want to sum look at this passage for a
moment I’m gonna come back to it till
the end of the message but notice what
he says therefore if you’ve been raised
up what in the world does that mean when
you were saved it’s as if the Bible says
you die to your old way of life and you
rose to walk in newness of life
that’s what baptism pictures you died
the old way of life you’re buried in
Christ Jesus risen to walk in newness of
life and these says therefore keep
seeking since this is a new life keep
seeking the things above spiritual
things that doesn’t mean that you forget
everything that’s in this life we have
responsibilities and joys and whatever
it may be but keep seeking those things
above where Christ is seated at the
right hand of God so you understand that
quality of those things set your mind on
the things above not on the things that
are on earth which is an awesome
statement set your mind you’re gonna set
it on something set it on things above
things that are holy and righteous and
good and godly and helpful for you’ve
died and your life is hidden with Christ
in God that is you died your old way of
life when you said I’m trusting Jesus as
my savior you didn’t just say well I
just want to add Jesus to my present
life and I’ll keep going now this is
what people do when they living in areas
of idolatry and they have all kinds of
idols in their house and unless they
fully understand what they do when you
explain Jesus to them they said oh yes
and they’ve got a god to this they’ve
got an idol to this god this God this
God that they want to know what kind of
a lay put up here Jesus add to their
religion know when you trust the Jesus
you died to your old way of life and
when Christ who is our life is revealed
when he comes then you also will be
revealed come with an ink Lord now watch
this next verse
therefore consider the members of your
earthly body as dead to illicit sex to
moral impurity of all sorts passion that
is that drive within you that causes you
to do things that are not right and he
says evil desires greed which amounts to
adultery and in those days in what
you’ll find in the scripture oftentimes
when the Bible talks about immorality he
also talks about greed because he puts
them together and in the days in which
Paul was writing to the Colossians and
to the Romans and so forth that Roman
society adultery and sensuality were all
sort of mixed up together their gods and
their prostitutes in the other temples
and so forth and so it was all a mixture
so he says it’s because of these things
that the wrath of God will come upon the
sons of disobedience and in them watch
this in them you also once walked at
that’s past when you were living in them
that is that was your lifestyle then he
says but now you also put them all aside
that is anger wrath malice slander and
abusive speech that is you change so
it’s time to put away the things that
don’t fit your new life in Christ Jesus
now I’m going to come back to that and
show you something about that passage in
a few moments but I want to see I’m
gonna give you three ideas three points
to this message and I want to end up
with the last one being how do I control
this control tower of my life how to
control my thoughts is it possible to do
so but the first point is simply this
the pathway that controlling our
thoughts begins with an understanding of
our relationship to Jesus Christ you
don’t understand that you’ll never
understand this idea of controlling your
thoughts that’s where it all begins
because he says here we were raised them
with Christ Jesus
referring through our salvation there
was a change that
place when you were saved and as a
result of that God intended for our
thinking to change our mind to change
because this this mind of us controls
everything else in your life you say
well what about all the other parts of
my life we respond to the way we think
and so if we think right we’re gonna
have one response we think wrongly we’re
gonna have another very important that
we understand how that works so this
requires me to understand how to control
my thoughts if I want to think right if
I want to thank God Lee if I want to
thank holy if I want to think
righteously right here’s where it starts
and many people lose it right here
they don’t think right they don’t think
godly they don’t think like they’re
worth anything and they say well you
know I just never had the opportunity or
I just never will be that or I’m just
this and I’m not that this is why people
who are very beautiful can think they’re
ugly and people who are very skinny can
think they’re fat and they refuse to eat
because they think they look in the
mirror and they don’t see what’s reality
and so your mind controls every aspect
of your life in fact what you think
determines how you live what you think
determines how your relationship to God
as we said relationship to others your
relationship to yourself and many people
start out in life defeated because of
the influence of their parents their
grandparents that tell them they’ll
never amount to anything oh this is
wrong with them well that’s wrong with
them and as a result they go through
life what having heard written in their
minds impressed in their thinking if my
mama said it my daddy said it and my
grandmother said it it must be true
therefore and oftentimes people are
ruined
as a result of what they have been
taught of what they have been what
they’ve heard from someone that they
value very highly so with that in mind I
want to come to the second point which
is the challenge to controlling our
thoughts because once you’re saved as I
say your environments the same it could
even get worse
but we’re to live godly in an ungodly
society in an ungodly environment and
some people’s environments worse than
others I’ll think about people who grow
up in families they get saved nobody
else in the family is a Christian that
family uses foul language they never
read the Bible they drank the corrals
may be unfaithful to each other all
kinds of things
and here’s this Godman life that now is
surrounded by very ungodly circumstances
and I think about some situations and
people that I’ve met and they tell me
where they’ve come from and how God has
worked in their life and how they live
where they live in the circumstances
they live in it is very difficult for
them especially unless they’re trained
less they’re taught and I think
oftentimes people go to church year
after year after year and nobody tells
them or explains to them or helps them
understand this is the way you think and
you can only think this way if certain
things are true and so this morning my
goal is simply this to say there
challenges to thinking godly but
thinking godly is absolutely essential
to our success in life learning to live
with ourselves and learning today live
with others and accomplishing whatever
God has in mind for us and when I think
about that I think about two verses of
Scripture for example turn to a 2nd
Corinthians for a moment and look in
this look in this fourth chapter of 2nd
Corinthians and the fourth verse he says
in this fourth verse he says speaking of
the gospel and so forth he says in verse
3 even if our gospel is veiled it is
veiled to those who are perishing in
whose case the god of this world has
blinded the minds of the unbeliever so
that they may not see the light of the
gospel of the glory of Christ who is the
image of God watch this Satan blinds the
mind of the unbeliever so that they
can’t don’t want to have no desire to
see the truth if you turn to the 11th
chapter of 2nd Corinthians and look if
you will in the 3rd verse now he blinds
the minds of the unbelieving but listen
to what he says in the 3rd verse but I’m
afraid that as the serpent
deceived Eve by his craftiness your
minds will be led astray from the
simplicity and purity of devotion to
Christ he blinds the minds of of the
unbeliever and he deceives believers
this is why people who profess to be
Christians oftentimes live a life that
we know is absolutely not biblical
because they’re deceived well so-and-so
says it’s ok Oh so-and-so says it’s all
right
they’re deceived by what they hear by
what they see about what they feel so
Satan works he doesn’t work on your toe
your leg or somewhere else
he works in your mind it’s the
battlefield in every person’s life
whatever goes on right here is going to
affect every single aspect of your life
and so this is why it’s so important and
why Paul is talking about it here and so
what happens is Satan working in your
mind will enable you to recall things
that happened years and years and years
ago maybe things that were bad something
somebody did you somebody molested you
somebody mistreated you whatever it
might be and it’s still there you can
keep recalling it and when you recall it
it’s a bad feeling and so we have the
power to recall but if that mind is
filled with things that are unpleasant
ungodly or ziba says here we’ve been
blinded and so forth then we suffer the
results and so the mind is very
important and can be easily deceived by
the devil unless you fill it with the
truth of the word of God and I’m not
talking about just reading the Bible
once in a while which will – we’ll see
in just a few moments so when I think
about this and I think about what is a
reprobate mind a reprobate mind is one
watch this carefully that has looked at
life looked at particular sin in their
life and decided that’s what I want
that’s what I’m gonna do and I’m giving
myself to that no matter what somebody
else says I want anybody else likes they
can say anything that wasn’t say that’s
what I want to do and that’s what I’m
going to do and it is something that the
scripture teaches there is specifically
it’s an act of disobedience to God when
you give yourself over to a particular
sin and you say that’s what I’m gonna do
that’s where I’m gonna live then what
you have is a reprobate mind it starts
right here only you can decide that
about yourself a reprobate mind I
remember one of my friends who had been
ahead of the Baptist’s in a particular
state where I was and he and I were good
friends and I remember one day we were
eating lunch and he said I remember he
was down a little bit that day and I
asked him what was going on he said you
know he was in the service and he was in
another country and he was there over
there for a pretty good while he said
you know I don’t want to tell you what
but he said in those few years I think
he was there about three years he said I
did a lot of things I saw a lot of
things I experienced a lot of things he
said I just sort of did what I wanted to
do and he said now these years have
passed by and I’m in the ministry and
I’m still suffering the results of my
sins because somehow I can’t get them
out of my mind he said because I was so
indulged to myself and those three years
of doing what I wanted to do what I
thought I wanted to do he said it has
happened me ever since
so I’ll just say this to you it makes a
difference what you think and you may
think of today and think well it’s not
going to ever happen or it’s not going
to hinder me in the future what you that
watch this what you think is imprinted
on your mind well how long does it take
you to forget it it may not take you but
two weeks to forget but remember this it
is still in your mind this is why things
crop up in your thinking that you hadn’t
thought about in years and years and
years and years then on the other hand
something happens this morning you can’t
remember it so the mind is a strange
thing but one thing about it whatever
you put in there is there to stay until
Jesus delivers you from it so the mind
is a powerful part of your body and the
truth is your life is an expression of
what you think if you don’t like what
you’re thinking you can change your
thinking you say well now I don’t know
that I can change my thing
yes you can for example if you’re angry
you don’t you can lay it down if you
feel that you are nobody full of
unworthiness you can lay it down if you
are jealous of somebody you lay it down
and we can just go through a whole list
of pride and and criticism rejection
fear and greed all of these things that
people feel they can lay it down if they
choose to now if you don’t think you can
and you just convinced you can’t you say
well I’ve felt this for years and years
and years remember this one thing and
you listening say Amen you have the Holy
Spirit living in you as a believer when
you trusted Christ as your Savior the
Holy Spirit came to live in your life
and remember what Jesus called him he
said I’m gonna send the helper and when
he comes he’ll be in you with you and
upon you you and I who are believers
trusted Christ as their Savior we have
the Holy Spirit living within us and one
of his responsibilities is to as a
helper is to enable us that is in our
thinking to bring that back to our minds
what we think and how we think and to
help us to remember Scripture and so
forth but he’s there to be a helper and
to help us to think right about God
about Jesus about our life about others
about ourselves he is her helper so you
can walk away you do not have to keep
remembering things that you say well do
you just sit it’ll be there it doesn’t
mean you have to remember it doesn’t
mean you have to bring it back when
somebody says to me well I can’t help
myself yes you can yes you can’t help
yourself and I’ll live long enough to
know the times when I thought I couldn’t
help myself finally God got through to
me say yes you can you are responsible
but what you think and how you think it
because as a believer you have the
Spirit of God living within you to
enable you to think right but it’s
important we understand what God says
how he says it so I want you to think
about this and this will be on the
screen so you can jot it down if you’ll
do it quickly and simply this we saw a
thought and reap in action we’re going
to respond we saw in action reap a habit
because
we keep sewing the same action we saw a
habit and Reaper character because
habits in their life determined our
character we saw a character we become
something we read we reap a destiny this
is who we are and this is our future and
then remember this idea unseen thoughts
produce visible consequences unseen
thoughts produce visible consequences in
their life that was whatever we think
nobody else in the world knows exactly
what you think but the way you think is
going to be visible at some point of the
other and if you feel unworthy you feel
like nobody cares and what it loves you
it’s gonna be visible upon your face
you’re not gonna have any peace at joy
your happiness you think nobody really
cares for you it’s gonna show it’s gonna
be a part of your life but it came from
your thinking don’t think less of
yourself than God thinks and he died for
you no matter what somebody else says
about you you are a child of God once
you’ve trusted Christ as your Savior so
we’re the ones who determine what we
gonna be and so forth because it’s the
way we think and this is why people can
come from nowhere the worst kind of
situation circumstances you’d think
they’d never met anything in their life
and they excel excel excelled the young
even their imagination what they started
thinking rightly about themselves and
about the Lord and about his place and
position in their life so unseen
thoughts produce visible consequences in
their life
now I said all that they can render
saying this how do we control their
thoughts how do we control them well
when the thought comes to your mind
one of several things you’re gonna do
you’re going to accept that thought and
you’re gonna express it in some fashion
or you may just wrestle with it for a
while or you may deny it and this is the
way a signal defeats you if you’re
thinking something and you deny it it
just gets deeper and deeper and deeper
so you can accept it
and express it you can wrestle with it
denied or you can control it because you
have the Holy Spirit working within you
you can control what you think and
that’s if I’m going to control my
thinking I have to understand that you
have within you the power of the Spirit
of God to enable you to think rightly if
you find for example yourself somebody
on your job you don’t like them you
don’t want to be around them you can
change your thinking about them you say
how can I change my thinking about a
mind I think that well you can say Frank
first of all you know God created them
he loves them and I can talk you out of
being bad to them right now in other
words if you just think about you think
about people the way you choose to think
and we are the products of our choices
and how we handle these things in our
life now one of the ways you overcome
whatever that sin is in your life or
whatever’s going on one of the ways you
overcome this thinkI is by asking
yourself some very impacting questions
not just questions but questions that’ll
make a difference in your life and I
would just encourage you to write these
down you ask yourself these questions
about whatever you’re thinking and the
first question you ask is this where
will these thoughts lead me where will
these thoughts lead me if I keep
thinking the same thing
well the littleit it’s gonna lead you
somewhere very important question if I
keep thinking this when’s it gonna lead
me another question is what will these
thoughts get me where I want to go then
you have to decide where do I want to go
where do I want to go in life well what
I’m thinking get me where I want to go
and if you say I’m just not important
I’m a nobody I don’t have any gifts and
talents and skills in life and give
yourself a lot of excuses you won’t get
anywhere so you have to ask yourself the
question if I keep thinking this where
will this get me in life then ask
yourself the question are these thoughts
scripturally acceptable in other words
let’s say for example you sitting in
front of the TV and something comes
along you know it’s not
and the world is full of pornography and
pornography is the world’s photography
they have diluted the truth and they put
all kind of stuff out there for people
to watch and you ask yourself the
question are these thoughts scripturally
acceptable and here’s somebody
committing some sexual acts on
television you know or whatever you may
watch mistake septa will scripture no
they’re not then you shut it down cut it
off you you know once you don’t watch
you do not have to watch what you know
it’s not right you shut it down
somebody says but I’m so weak you’re
weak because you’re talking about being
weak you don’t have to be weak you have
the Spirit of God within you who will
enable you to do whatever is necessary
tell overcome whatever’s there so what
you do yeah what we’re doing is giving
these questions and say let’s look at
reality what’s reality reality is where
will these thoughts lead me I have to
answer that question
well these thoughts get me where I want
to go I need to answer that question are
these thoughts scriptures accepted like
an answer that will these thoughts build
me up or tear me down and they’re gonna
do one of the two they’re not neutral
our thoughts are gonna build us up a
tears down when you sit through this
message these thoughts are to build you
up not tear you down when you look and
listen to stuff that you know is not
right ungodly unscriptural sensual
whatever it might be you know the real
truth is they’re gonna tear you down
spiritually so you have to decide
whether you gonna watch look a listen
listen to your friends or whatever
they’re saying because they’re gonna
have some impact in your life and then
could I share these thoughts with
someone else whatever you’re thinking
could you share with somebody else
always said that one of those thoughts
that no you couldn’t well I’m not saying
you should tell everybody everything you
know in life about yourself or whatever
it might be but on a daily basis what
I’m thinking could I share with somebody
else and they’ll tell you where you are
in your thinking and then where did
these thoughts originate
and some thoughts did not not originate
with the Word of God they did not
originate in heaven they did not
originate in godly living they did not
originate in anything that’s holy and
they did not originate in anything that
is good for you so when you analyze the
thoughts where did this come from why am
I thinking this what’s what’s the source
of this what is this gonna do in my life
watch this all of those questions you
have the right and the power to answer
for your life nobody else can answer
them for your life you have the power to
answer them for your life and we’re just
talking about how you think about
yourself and the power of your thoughts
and you just think just these questions
alone and then the question is do I feel
guilty thinking these thoughts what do
you know the answer to those things you
know for example if you thought about
taking something that didn’t belong to
you how would you think about it
you should feel guilty if you don’t feel
guilty you have a major problem then you
need to think a little deeper if I have
been saved what’s going on in my life so
we said your thought life is in your
mind this is the control tower of your
life and because it is we make the
decisions and we suffer the consequences
or we glean the blessing of making right
decisions in life whether it’s about
money or whether it’s about marriage or
whether it’s about six our friendship
relationships here’s where all starts
and this is this it this is going to
control your life and the truth is all
of us up to this point in their life
where we are as a result of how we’ve
been thinking all these years so have
you been thinking about yourself all
these years have you been thinking about
God have you been thinking about the
Lord have you been thinking about your
friends your relationships about our
nation there was how do you what are you
thinking about all that and you see you
can’t take your mind out and put
somebody else’s in there except Jesus
when he says we have the
of Christ that it watched this when you
trusted Jesus as your personal Savior he
gave us the power to think the way he
thinks that doesn’t mean we’ll be as
wise as he is all that we’ll have all
the knowledge that he has but he gives
us the right and the power to think
godly as his creations so we have the
power to think right we have the gift of
Almighty God and someone to protect us
in the process then you might ask
yourself this question watch this
do these thoughts that who I am as a
follower of Jesus these thoughts did who
I am as a follower of Jesus if not a
follower of Jesus anything goes but once
that trust Christ is my Savior that some
thoughts don’t fit you there’s some
thoughts that do not fit you once you
trust Christ as your Savior they don’t
fit you once you trust the Lord Jesus as
as the lord of your life they don’t fit
you any longer and so you and I make
choices they still watch this who we see
ourselves to be a follower of Jesus
Christ and therefore there’s some things
that don’t fit us there’s some places
that don’t fit you there’s some words
that don’t fit you there’s some thoughts
that don’t fit you there’s some clothes
that don’t fit you there’s some actions
and attitudes and habits that do not fit
us once we trust Christ as our Savior
this one the Bible says come out from
among them and be ye separate says the
Lord I’m to think differently and if I
think differently I’m going to act
differently and probably gonna look
differently if I’m following Jesus into
the world we’re in deeper trouble than
we realize because after you go to a
certain point and then you decide that
you want to you’re gonna you’re gonna
change how long do you think it would
take for us to change our views in this
country of sex how long do you think it
would take could you think he could ever
be possibly turned around that’s just
one aspect but honesty
and truthfulness where’s truth whereas
honestly where is purity
where’s godliness that things that made
us the nation we are we’ve decided and
I’m going to show you a little contrast
in a moment
we’ve decided between two choices and
the choices we are making a choices that
are destructive in their nature and
remember this you can’t change this we
reap what we sow more than we sow later
than we sow and it’s getting at very
late now what I want to do is I want us
to compare the difference between true
genuine love and lust and those thoughts
are they come from the control tower how
do we think and so I want you to jot
these down because oftentimes you hear
people say well I got in trouble because
he or she said they really love me and
if they love me that you’re to bed with
me and so now I’m pregnant and on and on
and on we go I want you to think about
how many precious little children are
born in America without a father it is a
tragedy of tragedies in this country
that sex is so important that nobody
seems to care about well the
consequences so I want us to I want to
give you a little example of the
difference between love and lust so I’m
gonna have a chart now I put up on the
board in just a moment and love is an
awesome blessing of God and lust is
something totally different but when
somebody says but feeling this way if
somebody wants something from you and
they say well look I love you well
here’s some things for you to think
about love is listen love is from God
lust is from the world now remember that
lust
listen lust is desire out of control
that’s what lust is it’s out of control
if you get stronger and strong and
strong and let you deal with it
so you have to decide is this love or
lust love can wait and lust has got to
have it now I think about people who get
themselves in a position this is why you
have to watch where you go watch what
you watch be careful who you in other
words you have to be careful about
choosing your friends well if you love
me you would do the sand so no if I
loved you I wouldn’t dare do it if I
loved you I would not touch you if I
loved you no I wouldn’t think that if I
loved you I want because lust is
destructive love is selfless not
thinking about itself but it’s listen
lust is selfish I want what I want
because that’s what I want it’s all
about me
lust is all about me not about love not
about the other person love for example
is giving now you hear people say well
in fact if you’ll recall probably almost
half a generation ago maybe generations
ago we heard a lot about free love so
once you’re listening carefully there is
no such thing as free love no such thing
let’s start with the gospel the gospel
of Jesus Christ is free but it costs
Jesus his life on the cross there’s
nothing free it’s free to us now by
faith but it cost Jesus his life and
true genuine love has a price tag it’s
not free if you love somebody you may
have to sacrifice you love somebody you
may have to give you love somebody you
met to be in other words it lots of
different ways that love can cost you
something so free love that’s what the
world talks about and usually if they’re
talking free love they’re talking drugs
and other things that go with that
because they’ve given themselves over to
a lie they have been deceived by the
devil and their thinking so love is
giving and lust is taking I want this
then love is purity and lust is sin
it’s just that clear disobedience love
develops and lust destroys destroys
relationships destroys families destroys
people you name it it’s a destroyer lust
is a destroyer because let says I’ve got
to have it I want it and this is why
people commit all kind of crimes they
want something and they wanted now and
then of course the difference is that
love is peaceful and lust is full of
anxiety lust creates anxiety and love is
peaceful lust is anxious I want it now
have to have it now and that’s their
attitude now we have to choose to obey
the commands of Christ that’s going to
take us back to our scripture we read a
few moments ago in these first few
verses because if I’m going to live a
godly life and I’m going to make my mind
the control tower that I want to be I
have to be obedient to God’s Word so
when we talk about what he says in a few
moments we’re not talking about just a
little Bible reading here and there so
listen carefully and what I want to do
is I want to go through the scriptures
and give you a little insight into what
Paul says that’s not always there in
English but it’s there in the language
in which he wrote it and so when he says
for example let’s look at this first
verse therefore if you have been raised
up with Christ he says keep seeking now
he uses he uses a form of the verb that
says keep seeking continually seek and
habitually do it that is keep seeking is
to keep on doing it not just once but is
it’s a lifestyle you read the Word of
God you have bit early and you are
continually keeping the Word of God
before you it’s a part of your life
you feast on it’s a part of your diet
and he says speaking of seeking those
things above well what’s he talking
about he’s talking about for example he
says where Jesus is seated at the right
hand of the Father
seeking things above doesn’t mean that I
don’t have anymore relationships and
then I get holy and hole in I don’t
think about anything else no it means
that I’ve set my mind on things that are
pleasing to the Father keep seeking
those things above that is what did
Jesus teach so if I want to keep seeking
things above I’m going to find out what
he said and how he lived and how he said
I’m to live and I’m gonna keep he says
habitually do it and no matter who you
are the devil will see to it that you
don’t remember much if you don’t read
the scriptures continually I don’t mean
every single day all day I mean when he
says keep seeking those things above
that is well here’s what he’s saying
make up a most in your thinking make a
big part of your thinking what God
thinks keep thinking of those things
above where Christ has seed the Father’s
right hand and what kind of thinking is
that Jesus is always thinking concerning
us personally in your life he’s thinking
what’s best for you what’s the best for
you this morning what’s the best for you
in your job what’s the best for you with
your friends what’s the best for you how
you spend your money what’s the best
what’s the best what’s best for you he
says keep seeking those things above at
the throne of God and then he says not
only that set your mind and both of
these use a form of the verb which means
habitually and continually set your mind
on things above that is as believers
followers of Jesus we died the old way
of life and so we should be thanking
God’s thoughts what does he think
how does he want us to think how does he
want us to live and in the process of
doing so remember this when you’re
thinking his thoughts you’re thinking
the most powerful thoughts there are
when you’re thinking his thoughts you’re
thinking and beginning to see what he’s
thinking about you and when you focus on
what God thinks about you
that he loves you that he’s forgiving
you that he cares for you that he wants
the best for you things begin to happen
in your life and that’s why he says he
seek habitually continually and he says
seek and then he says set your mind then
he says you’ve died now watch this
here’s the difference when he says seek
and set your mind he says seek and say
my habitually when he says you died you
died in your old way that is you were
saved once and then habitually seeking
and setting your mind on Christ like
something that goes on continuous in
your life so why does he say that
because he wants us to think the way God
wants us to think and so we can see what
that’s all about when we read the Word
of God then he says consider the members
of your body dead to these thoughts now
he uses another term of form of the verb
here when he says put it to death notice
how he says it he says therefore
consider the members of your earthly
body as dead watch this
dead to immorality dead to impurity did
the passion strong insatiable desire
evil desires grief but put them to death
you say well what does that mean here’s
what it means let’s say for example that
you just have this you just got to have
more money and you draw maybe you’ve
maybe you’ve seen something you’ve just
got to have you’ve got to have you’ve
got to have it well what do you do you
wrestle with it you can just go ahead
and express it or you can you can put it
to death you can control it watch this
the Spirit of God within you will enable
you to lay it down you do not have to
fulfill temptation if you had to it
would be an absolute awesome gross
mistake on the part of God that he’s
asking me to do something he knows that
I absolutely can’t do it but we have the
Holy Spirit now if you if you don’t have
your mind on the things of God this is
why he says set your mind on the things
of God keep it listen keep them
habitually before you
so when Satan attacks you you’ve got
ammunition one of them is I don’t have
to do that thank you Jesus that you’ve
given me the strength to say no to sin
and to obey you now watch this if you
say well I got to think about it that
the Satan loves that because what
happens when you say I’ve just well I
got to think about it why are you
thinking right here and where Satan
working right here yeah this is a
battlefield you hand your feet nothing
else a battlefield the battlefields
right here and so you decide your
victory or defeat in your mind and your
feet and your hands travel where your
mind has already gone you set your mind
on somebody or something or some place
you set your mind on that and you keep
thinking about that thing about thinking
about next thing you know listen your
mind is not on there but you have fit
you are there your feet are going to
travel where you set your mind and so
therefore we have to guard what we think
then he says consider the members of
your body dead to the out did all of
these things and so he says these things
we once walked in this is the way we
once walked back yonder but remember we
died to that if somebody died and we
brought the casket right in here and set
it down here it could be a hundred
thousand dollar casket you know what
they’re dead and you can do anything you
want you can take the coffin top off you
can talk to them sing – shout Holly and
you know what they’re not gonna move
because they’re dead and there are
things in life and their times in life
when you and I to meet need to be just
as dead to what we’ve seen of what we’ve
heard remember this Satan will bring
back what you’ve seen heard felt touch
experience that you name it and so what
do we do to put that to death thank you
Jesus says no that doesn’t fit Who I am
so we say no and you can say no when
somebody says but I’m so weak listen
when you hears watch this when you say
I’m weak you have thought you have just
cited up of the devil I am weak
and Satan says that’s right say it again
say it again I’m weak no you’re not weak
you choose to think it at the moment but
you have the power of God within you to
make a wise decision then when he says
for example watch this and I just love
this he says the word of Christ richly
dwells in you in the third chapter look
at that look at the third chapter in the
sixteenth or us let the word of Christ
richly dwell in within you with all
wisdom look at this with all wisdom
teaching and admonishing one another
with Psalms and hymns and spiritual
songs singing with thankfulness in your
hearts okay I wanted what an awesome
thing that is he says let the word of
Christ richly dwell on you and I love
this Greek word the word is pluteus and
here’s what it means it means
extravagantly let the Word of God when
he says richly extravagantly dwell in
you that is you’ve got the Word of God
care what you you can’t think about much
without quoting some scripture or
thinking about some scripture or the
Spirit of God will bring to your mind
some verses scripture he says let it
dwelling within you he says he says
extravagantly which means if it’s gonna
drilling me extravagantly it’s gonna
have a powerful effect on my life but
secondly it’s not gonna dwell
extravagant in me by just reading it
once in a while so please don’t raise
your hand it’s a question how many of
you take your Bible home I know that
wouldn’t be true of you take your Bible
home after service and close it till
next Sunday surely nobody this
congregation will do that amen
well some of you don’t sound very
convincing amen you wouldn’t do that you
know that’s not filling your mind
abundantly and as he says in this
passage so beautifully
he says extravagantly the Word of God
filling our mind and heart so that what
we have this awesome reefs
listen when you do that you know what
God thinks about everything that you
confront every aspect of your life you
know what he says and listen when it’s
overflowing in you when the word of
truth is overflowing in you you come
against anything no matter what it might
be what happens you know what the right
response is and if it’s overflowing in
you then what happens is you since the
strength and the power of God to help
you in that situation no matter what it
is but you just read the Bible once in a
while and when I think about that word
richly extravagantly overflowing in you
that’s all to be our lifestyle so we
begin by saying your mind is a control
tower so you have to decide how you
gonna live your life and what you’re
gonna see what you’re gonna read what
you gonna look at and so forth and we
said we make choices not think about
that 119th some a couple of verses I’m
sure I learned a long time ago in the
hundred nineteen summoned the ninth
verse says how can a young man how can
the young man keep his way pure by
keeping it listen according to your word
how can you keep you away pure keeping
it according your word then he says in
that later verse night eleventh first
your word have a treasured in my heart
that I might not sin against God
treasure not just drop it in treasured
super abundantly overflowing overflowing
in our heart the Living Word of God
because what that means is up in the
control tower is truth and the control
tower is the right sense of direction
control tower yet you’re evaluating
things as they are not as they appear to
be and the control tower is what you’re
thinking there are consequences to sin
whatever I do today I’ll reap tomorrow
words you’re gonna be thinking right
superabundant as he says extravagantly
so if there is some particular area of
your life in which you’re having a real
problem ask yourself the question where
come from it didn’t come from this
extravagantly awesome word of truth in
my mind in heart and if it doesn’t fit
that it doesn’t fit me remember this you
decide who you want to be you decide
what you want to accomplish you decide
how you want to live all right here you
decide whether you want to be accepted
or rejected you make a lot of decisions
in your life all right here and I
remember right here’s a battle feel in
your life
Satan’s wants to pull you one way God
the other Satan has never done you any
good he’s lied to you deceived you and
made you promises not a single one of
them has ever come true but the
deception he says you’ll enjoy this but
what he doesn’t tell you is you’ll enjoy
the only for a season there are
consequences there is a cost there’s a
payday someday
you have to decide right there what come
later you’re gonna live what kind of
future you’re gonna have and he says if
you was you’ll make right decisions
you’ll ask those questions that I gave
you about situations that arise in your
life and in the process of making a
decision it’s my prayer you make the
right decision a wise decision and
you’ll be glad if Father how grateful we
are for your love for us and thank you
thank you thank you for your forgiveness
thank you for the gift of the Holy
Spirit to enable us strengthen us
overshadow us and guide us and I pray
for every person who hears this message
especially for those who’ve never
trusted you as they’re saving and living
in defeat that you will assure them that
if they are willing to trust you Lord
Jesus as their personal Savior you bring
about the death to their old life you
bring about the changes in life you
promised it and you always do I pray for
those Lord who have trusted you as their
Savior but they’re living in sin
miserable obeying the devil and
temptation make them so miserable dear
God they’ll turn around realizing I
don’t have to live this kind of life I
want God’s best and this is not God’s
best thank you father you know what all
of us need thank you for y’all some
power to provide it and we praise you
and bless you for loving us the way you
do in Jesus name Amen
[Music]