“Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 1 Peter 1:13 “Sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.” (Romans 6:14)
God’s law tells us what is right or wrong, but the Law has no power to help do it or not do it. God wants to give us His help (Grace) to handle every challenge that we face in life. How and why is our thinking so easily affected by Satan’s lies and deceptions? Thinking patterns have usually been established over a long period of time, and have also gained acceptance as many embrace these ideas and promote them. We are all affected by our peers and the popular media.
How then, can we prepare our thinking to live sacrificially for Jesus Christ in a hedonistic world? A shocking example is found in Matthew 16:21-23. Jesus reminded His disciples that He would need to be taken by the mob and killed. The death of Christ on the Cross had been prophesied for many years. Peter was naturally emotionally touched when Jesus said that. He said, “Never, Lord. This shall never happen to you”. The response from Jesus was amazing. He said, “Get behind me, Satan.” In other words, your thinking is affected by your human emotions and Satan’s deceptions. “You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of man.” Accepting the world’s thinking can keep us from understanding God’s wisdom and plan, and keep us from trusting God completely. “A believer must learn to grab hold of his mind and take charge of his thought life and bring it under obedience to Christ.” (Randy Alcorn). Our minds can be easily influenced unless we fill them daily with truth from God’s Word.
“Your Word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105)