Introduction
We have been cleansed, set free from sin and are being transformed because of the victory that Christ has won for us. However, we cannot fully walk in this victory until we win the war for our mind in the spirit realm.
We must be cognizant that the extent that we allow Satan to access our minds and shift our thoughts, is the extent that we allow him to control us.
This is one of the main strategies that he uses. He wants to corrupt our mind so that he can gain control of our will. He has the ability to blind the minds of unbelievers. This keeps them from seeing the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
If allowed Satan is more than happy to fill your mind with his thoughts. We can see in Acts how he filled the mind of a believer and destroyed him.
(1) But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property. (2) However, he kept back part of the proceeds with his wife’s knowledge, and brought a portion of it and laid it at the apostles’ feet. (3) “Ananias,” Peter asked, “why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the proceeds of the land?
– Acts 5:1-3 CSB
It was in his inner man that the intention to lie took place. The heart is where our emotions, desires, thought, reasoning, imagination and will reside.
Have you ever said to yourself, “Oh, that should be alright.” You should maybe take a closer look. I’m pretty sure that Ananias and Sapphira thought what they were doing was “OK.” But they ended up dead.
They were both believers. They were able to control what filled their heart and mind. Yet, they failed to reject the thoughts that Satan had planted. Ananias yielded to the thoughts in his mind. Sin was conceived and death followed.
(19) “For from the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies, slander. (20) “These are the things that defile a person…”
– Matthew 15:19-20a CSB
Jesus taught that a person could sin in their heart and mind before it became outwardly visible.
(28) “But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
– Matthew 5:28 CSB
Sin is conceived in the heart and mind before it manifests outwardly.
Satan’s Strategy – Gain Access to Your Mind
Satan has no power to make you sin against your will. His strategy is to penetrate the mind to influence your will. He does this through thoughts, desires, and temptations. The result of allowing these things to go unchallenged is that you yield your will and sin evolves.
The extent that I allow Satan to have access to my mind is the extent to which he can exert control over me.
Your mind is the battlefield where the war against Satan must be waged and won. Until we as believers realize where the battle is taking place, we can never win the war.
Take a moment and think about that. We can see evidence of Satan’s attacks in the natural when he comes against our body, finances, family, and a plethora of circumstances in our lives.
The war that Paul describes in Ephesians 6 is a spiritual war with Satan and his principalities. It isn’t happening in the natural realm. It is taking place in the spiritual realm. It is taking place in your inner being.
It is in your mind that the devil will accuse you of failure, bring condemnation, and cause you to doubt and accuse God and His Word. It is in the mind where he will oppose you. In the mind he will sow lies, deceive, and tempt you.
The Devil Attacks With a Blitzkrieg of Thoughts
Blitzkrieg, (German: “lightning war”) military tactic calculated to create psychological shock and resultant disorganization.
Satan gained access to Adam and Eve’s mind and defeated them. The strategies he used then are the same strategies he uses now against God’s people to keep them from living in victory. Take a look in Genesis 3 verses 1 through 6.
(1) Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’? ”
– Genesis 3:1 CSB
Satan, being a spirit, entered a serpent. This was his disguise. The serpent is described as being the most cunning of all wild animals. It was also a creature of great beauty. This allowed Satan to attract Eve and present ideas in a way that she could accept.
The stage was set. Satan then ask Eve, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?”
Notice where the battle was taking place. It was taking place in Eve’s mind. Satan attacked her mind with doubt and deception.
Satan is still using the same tactics. He tries to gain access to your mind by attacking it with unbelief and questioning.
When a Christian receives God’s word for healing their body, Satan will try to bombard their mind with spiritual fiery darts of doubt and unbelief.
When God’s word comes into the heart and mind of a Christian regarding their financial needs being met, Satan will fill their mind with doubt and questions. Does God really care about my needs? Is it His will for me to prosper? If I give the whole tithe, will He supply all of my needs?
Satan’s objective for filling your mind with doubt is to accuse God and cause His Word to be ineffective in your life. It isn’t enough to hear the word of God or even stored in your heart by memorization. The Word must be mixed with faith.
The children of Israel heard God’s voice. They heard his covenant promises concerning their inheritance. but they failed to take possession of it because their hearts were filled with unbelief.
(2) … But the message they heard did not benefit them, since they were not united with those who heard it in faith.
– Hebrews 4:2b CSB
Refuse to Listen
Eve was led to sin by listening to the voice of Satan. Not only did she listen to him, but she actually had a conversation.
(2) The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. (3) “But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’ ” (4) “No! You will not die,” the serpent said to the woman. (5) “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
– Genesis 3:2-5 CSB
Satan lied to Eve. He contradicted God’s word and told her that she wouldn’t die if she ate that fruit. Eve knew what God had commanded. She knew the God had said that if they ate the fruit they would die. But she listened to the lies of Satan instead of rejecting them.
There are thousands of Christians living in defeat today. The reason? They are listening to the lies of the devil.
Instead of recognizing Satan for the liar that he is and taking those thoughts captive and casting them out of their mind, they listen. They reason with it. They entertain his thoughts and take the bait.
Satan spoke to Eve through the serpent. He spoke to Jesus through Peter. He might speak to you through your coworker, close friend, family member, or stranger. He will speak through them to bring accusations against you, God, and God’s word.
Satan speaks through people to tempt you, to turn you aside from doing God’s will, and to get you to sin against God.
He may speak through others to lie to you and deceive you or to oppose you when you try to accomplish the work that God has given you.
The majority of time, however, Satan and his evil forces speak to you by planting thoughts into your mind.
Recognize and Reject the Enemy’s Voice
To live in victory, you must learn to discern the enemy’s voice. Once you discern it you must reject it. Don’t play with it, don’t consider it, reject it. Eve listened and because she did, she gave access to her mind which led to her defeat.
To discern Satan’s voice, you must know the word of God. You must know Christ’s voice. You must know how the enemy attacks.
In Jesus parable of the Good Shepherd, He said…
(3) “The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. (4) “When he has brought all his own outside, he goes ahead of them. The sheep follow him because they know his voice. (5) “They will never follow a stranger; instead they will run away from him, because they don’t know the voice of strangers.”
– John 10:3-5 CSB
The sheep follow him because they know his voice. It is time that God’s people walk in such a close, intimate relationship with Jesus that they know his voice. Otherwise, they will be deceived by false teachers and prophets and led astray.
To discern the voice of Satan your mind must be so filled with the word of God that the moment a thought enters your mind contrary to Gods word, you will instantly recognize it to be Satan’s voice and reject it.
Conclusion
When thoughts accuse you, God, or his word, recognize them to be coming from the accuser. Reject them immediately.
When thoughts cause you to doubt God’s word or his promises recognize that they are from the deceiver and father of lies. Reject them instantly, there is no truth in him. Refuse to listen to his lies.
When thoughts enter your mind that cause you to be led away from doing God’s will, when they hinder you from obeying God, or tempt you to sin, you must recognize those thoughts are from Satan. Immediately cast them out!
As I close this message repeat this with me. Let it bring revelation to your mind.
My mind is the battlefield where the war against Satan must be fought and won.
