Intro: Do you ever think about what you think about? No. Usually we just think.
Turn to a friend and tell them the last thing you thought about last night before falling asleep and the first thing you thought about this morning.
Sometimes we have very little control over our thoughts; they just come to us. If I say, “Don’t think about pink elephants dancing.” What would you most likely think about? Right! Pink elephants dancing.
At other times we do choose our thoughts. At school you listen to your teacher, right now you may or may not be listening. When you choose a TV show, we are choosing what we’ll think about. It’s as if our mind has a gate that lets some thoughts in and shuts others out.
The devil wants access to this gate. However God has provided a way to protect access to our thought life. Paul says take up the Helmet of salvation. The devils goal is to cause chaos in your life. He wants marriages to fail, businesses to fail, families to fight, Children to disobey and Church’s to divide. His weapons that attack you thoughts are doubt, fear, false thinking and depression.
The Devil seeks to change the way we think about God and each other. God provides the helmet of salvation so that our thoughts will be protected and perfected!
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream.”
John had a dream in Revelation 22:20 “I am coming quickly, Amen come quickly Jesus”
I. Our thoughts are protected by the confidence of salvation
The Devil knows if He can control what you think he can control who you are.
1 Thessalonians 5:8 “But since we belong to the day, we must be serious and put the armor of faith and love on our chests, and put on a helmet of the hope of salvation.”
Christian hope is not a blind wish but a sure fact. Jesus is coming back!!
A) You are secured by God’s faithful unfailing Love
My hope comes from God’s perfect love not my perfect performance. If you have truly repented, had a change of mind, you should have a desire to please your heavenly father. My hope, my security, my certainty that He will not abandon me comes from His faithfulness!! It is his ability to keep promises that protects me from the devils darts of discouragement. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness.
There are no hopeless situations; there are only people who have grown hopeless about them. Clare Boothe Luce.
We grow hopeless when we forget about God’s faithfulness. Remember what He promises. I will not abandon you. I am the Lord your _______ you fill in the blank. That is security for the mind. When the mind is stable the body can be as well.
B) Your are secured by Jesus’ faithful unending priesthood
When everyone else fails and bails on you. Jesus stands at the right hand of God and is for you. The Devil says you are all alone. He says no one is ready to stand for you or with you. Jesus stands in heaven and says “I Am”! Satan says everyone is against you, Jesus says I am for you. That is what He does as a High priest he always talks to the Father for you. He sends angels to fight demons, to protect and encourage. People says you can’t! Jesus says with me you can!
C) You are secured by the Holy Spirits unending presence
John 16:13 Jesus promises a main portion of the Spirits ministry will be to reveal all truth. I need to address a lie. Gloria Osteen says God takes pleasure in our happiness. I need to tell you that ignores what God’s word says.
1 John 3:22 “And whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.”
Hebrews 13:16 “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.”
Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”
1 Chronicles 29:17 “I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you.”
How do I know I have the Spirit living in me? He makes me truthful, loving and obedient.
Now I want to show you my Super Secret thought revealing helmet
God knows all our thoughts, even without this funny hat.
Sometimes our thoughts lead us closer to Him.
Other times our thoughts lead us away from God or cause us to hurt others
Our Enemy, Satan, wants us to think about things that will lead us away from God.
II. Our thoughts are perfected by certain focus on Jesus
1 John 3:3 “All who have this hope purify themselves.”
Hope becomes real when it penetrates our hearts and changes our mind and our actions.
Take the helmet of salvation – It’s up to you to have your mind transformed.
A) Our thoughts are changed by taking them captive to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5)
1) We sift our thoughts through the filter of God’s word
2) We surrender our ideas to the truth of God’s word
3) We shatter strongholds through the power of God’s truth!
The Holy Spirit will reveal what needs to be removed if we allow Jesus’ word to live in our minds.
What are some strong holds that need to be destroyed?
Ignorance – of sin
Lazyness --
Appetite – Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of soup. Many have given up the kingdom of heaven for one night of physical pleasure.
Pride
We apply what God says about a matter and it will transform our thinking and tear down strongholds.
B) Our thoughts are changed by thinking right thoughts
We don’t change our thought life by fighting against dancing pink elephants. We put so many right thoughts in our head that the wrong thoughts have no room to take root!
Salvation doesn’t end the day of salvation. There is the work of salvation that happens every day until you die or Jesus comes to take us all to heaven!!
Colossians 3:1-3 “Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Keep thinking about things above, not things on the earth, 3 for you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
Do you realize what it means to be seated with Jesus? God’s grace has deposited everything we will ever need in this life! If we continue to think on the things above we can by faith access all the heavenly blessings.
Philippians 4:8,9 “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is worthy of respect, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if something is excellent or praiseworthy, think about these things. 9 And what you learned and received and heard and saw in me, do these things
When we fill our minds with God’s truth we free our hearts of the devils control. If we give God our minds our hearts and hands will follow.
Conclusion: I want to show you how the helmet of salvation can transform our thinking by keeping harmful thoughts out and let Godly good thoughts in. Use colander and rice and rocks. (Need container to catch rice)The rice will be thoughts that lead us closer to God. What types of thoughts and attitudes lead us closer to God? What types of thoughts and attitudes lead us away from God?
