Release The Negative & Embrace The Positive

Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

2 Corinthians 10:5

There are two important steps in our Christian walk that must be taken daily… The first is that we must cast down imaginations; everyday of our lives we are tempted by oppositions or the lust of the flesh, Paul calls for us to stand firm in the faith… Second, once we free ourselves from temptation we must set our minds on the thoughts of Christ… The psalm writer said, “I have hid thy word in my heart that I might not sin against thee…” We must cast down evil while we cleave to good… Paul tells us in his letter to the Church of Rome, the 12 chapter that we are not to be conformed to this world, but that we are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds… Your mind is one of the most powerful tools that you posses… The bible says that if we believe and not doubt we will be saved and can move mountains… Believing involves your heart and mind (remember Paul said we wrestle not against flesh)… We must focus our thoughts on things of God or we will fall short in every trial or obstacle that we face… Today Paul reminds us that this war we fight daily is not physical, but spiritual and mental. Our thoughts lead to actions and actions lead to results that could be fatal… We must learn to remove negative thoughts that labor in our minds daily (cast down imaginations) and bring into our thoughts the obedience of Christ; that is, learning, studying and applying His word within our lives… First we must cast down imaginations and high thoughts; in short we must pry ourselves away from the worldly view and physical gains on this earth. The three P’s (Power, Prestige and Pride) of life are the biggest hurdles that we must overcome in order to abide within the perimeters of this passage… Power is a vice that all too often people will do whatever it takes to obtain, when we seek vain glory and positions of authority we are focused on Prestige, the accolades associated with a title and this leads to a haughty attitude which is better known by its five letter name Pride… So many of us have become so prideful and power hungry that we have eased away from God and have a false since of confidence that we have now placed in the flesh. That’s why Paul says to cast down imaginations, we are imagining the safety in money, and we are imagining the safety in man, or in wealth, when we need to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Every high thing could be positions of authority, it could be items that cost a substantial amount of money, or it could be relationships built upon everything but God. Notice that Paul says these things go against God, how many things in your life have tried and or become more substantial to you than knowing Jesus? This walk as a Christian begins with you, Christ is standing with open arms, but we must humble ourselves by casting down the evils of this world, and the schemes of the devil. Once we have hurdled the obstacle of self value and ego, we must cling to the word of God. Notice this verse say to bring into captivity. Not only must we turn from evil, but we must cleave to that which is good… The Israelites were in bondage for hundreds of years in Babylon, to bring into captivity is to capture, and never let go! We have to capture God’s word within our hearts, we have to put the word of God into bondage within our temple and never let go! Jacob wrestled with all night long and said, “I will not let go unless you bless me…” Again, I believe the Psalmist said it best when he said “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you…” It is not good enough to read the bible every now and then, or go to church every now and then, because we are not being equipped for the battles ahead. Think of it this way, everyday that you go without reading Gods word is a day you have lost in the battle. We say its okay, and I am too tired to study tonight, or that God understands. The ironic thing about saying that is that these words are the false imaginations that Paul is writing about to us today that must be cast down!

BE BLESSED!!!