The Benefits of Taking Every Thought Captive | Rev. Paul

What if the greatest spiritual battle you're facing isn't happening around you, but inside you? Every fear, temptation, resentment, and act of faith begins somewhere. The question isn't whether thoughts will come, but whether we'll surrender them to Christ or allow them to shape us. Freedom, maturity, and spiritual victory begin when we learn to take every thought captive and bring it under the lordship of Jesus. 

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Transcript

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Welcome to the podcast of Christ Methodist Church in Memphis, Tennessee. Join us as we dive into this week's sermon that challenges our hearts and minds to grow closer to Christ. We pray that your heart is inspired and transformed by God's Word.

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It's great to see you. Let me invite you to open the Bible, 2 Corinthians

Mind as Battlefield

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chapter 10. We're in a series on the book of 2 Corinthians. And so we'll begin chapter, obviously chapter 10. We're going to read the whole chapter again. So let's take a deep breath, read God's word, and then we'll teach God's word. So here are the words of the Apostle Paul. I myself entreat you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I who am humble when face to face with you, but bold toward you when I'm away, I beg of you that when I am present, I may not have to show boldness with such confidence as I count on showing against some who suspect us of walking according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience when your obedience is complete. Look at what is before your eyes. If anyone is confident that he is in Christ, let him remind himself that just as he is Christ, so also are we. For even if I boast a little too much of our authority which the Lord gave for building you up, not for destroying you, I will not be ashamed. I do not want to appear to be frightening with you in my letters. For they say his letters are weighty and strong, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech is of no account. Let such persons understand that what we say by letter when absent, we do when present, not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves, but when they measure themselves by one another, compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding. But we will not boast beyond limits, but will boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us to reach even to you. For we're not overextending ourselves as though we did not reach you, for we were the first to come all the way to you with the gospel of Christ. We do not boast beyond the limit of our labors of others, but our hope is that as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be greatly enlarged, so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond you without boasting of the work already done in another area of influence. Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord, for it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends. Let me pray for you before we begin teaching. Jesus, as you're honored, we pray now that through the power of the Holy Spirit that you have sent to empower and illuminate your people, that Lord, your presence, your power would increase as we continue to worship you and that you would illuminate your word supernaturally. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So, church, one of the most important battles that you will ever fight is an unseen battle. It's not apparent to people around you. Nobody else can see it. It's a battle that's not fought in a courtroom or a boardroom or on a battlefield. It's a battle that's fought in your mind, the believer's mind. And so it's true that every temptation begins there. Every fear begins there. Every resentment begins there. Every act of faith begins there. And what Paul the Apostle writes about in this segment section is the greatest victories and the greatest defeats of our lives often occur before anyone else even notices, because it's going on in the mind or heart of a believer. Most of these battles that Paul's describing take place in our thoughts, which is why he says, verse 5, we destroy arguments in every lofty opinion, raised against the knowledge of God, and take thought every captive to obey or unto the obedience of Christ, depending on your Bible translation. And he writes this to the church at Corinth because he is addressing believers there who had begun to adopt the values of the culture rather than kingdom values. They, the Corinthians, were impressed by things like appearances, status, influence, eloquence, worldly success. And because of that, great theologian named D.A. Carson once wrote this commentary on this passage. Let me give you this quote. In short, the Corinthians were quick to seize every emphasis in Christianity that spoke or seemed to speak of spiritual power, of exaltation with Christ, of freedom, of triumph, of victorious Christian living, of leadership, of religious success, but they neglected or suppressed those accents in Christianity that stressed meekness, servanthood, obedience, humility, and the need to follow Christ in his suffering if one is to follow him in his crown. They glimpsed what Christ has done, yet failed to contemplate what remains to be done. They understood that D-Day had arrived, but mistook it for victory day. They love Christian triumphalism, but they did not know how to live under the sign of the cross. Now, church, I'm not saying anything that you all don't know when we affirm that if as you follow Jesus and you do life, there are seasons we encounter of pain and suffering. This is why Tim Keller writes these words. It is only when things go badly that you can see your heart truly. And that's because it is only when suffering comes that you realize who is the true God and what are the false gods of your lives. Now, the reason that's so important is because the Corinthians wanted a Christianity of crowns without crosses. They wanted victory without surrender. They wanted power without humility. And loved ones, I want to submit to you, this is very dangerous. Very dangerous. Because you will grow a mile wide and an inch deep without understanding what the Apostle Paul is getting at here. Because what he's getting at is that as a believer being developed, you can live in the flesh, you can live in your old nature and not grow up, not mature. You can live with the influence of the devil throwing temptations at you. And if you're a child of the king, you're going to be tempted. In fact, I want to, there is a kind of a positive side to temptation in the sense that if you're being tempted, it is a symptom that you're alive spiritually, because the enemy is going to fire arrows at believers. So take some odd comfort in that reality. But also, as a believer, there are fallen people around you who are going to say things at times that rub you the wrong way. They're going to do things that rub you the wrong way. It might just be me, none of you, but it happens. And a part of God developing you is developing you in the distinction of how I respond to those moments rather than reacting to those moments. Am I responding to those moments in a Christ-like way, or am I reacting out of the flesh, out of my old nature, and I'm stunting my own development as a follower of Jesus? And so what's happening here is Paul's reminding Christians, and God through the Apostle Paul is reminding us that you're not going to be developed through using worldly weapons, that it's through what Paul describes in this passage and other passages, utilizing the tools of spiritual warfare. So listen to these words again. Verse three. Paul says, For though we walk in the flesh, let's stop right there. I want to affirm again the Bible has nothing good to say about our flesh. Did you know that? Again, if I wanted to have a cheesy moment, I would say, turn to your neighbor and say the Bible doesn't have anything good to say about our flesh, but we don't do cheese here. So let's let's keep moving. So though we walk in the flesh, our old, we're, we can live in our old nature. We're not waging war according to the flesh. So, in other words, for you to grow and develop as a follower of Jesus, it's not going to happen living out of your old nature. Then he arrives at one of the most important statements in all of the Bible. Here it is. Take every thought captive to obey Jesus. Take every thought captive unto the obedience of Christ. So, in light of that, here's what I want to say to you on the front end. This is beneficial. This will be a, this is a when a man or woman in Christ does this, this is a blessing. It's going to develop you. And so what I want to do is I want to outline three benefits just for a moment. Okay,

Spiritual Victory

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just till just a little while. Here we go. All right. Number one, first, taking every thought captive produces spiritual victory, or what I would call spiritual development, develops you as a follower of Jesus. Look with me at verse four. Paul says, For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but they have divine power. It's not coming from you, divine power to destroy strongholds. Now notice that Paul does not say that Christians are living in a playground. He says, Love ones, this is heavy but real. He says, We are in a war. Okay? Let that sink in. You're in a war. And the enemy knows that if he can influence your thinking, then he can influence your living. You're in a war. The enemy knows, by the way, I will just add again, he studies your game films. He knows your tendencies. I'm not saying you read your mind. He just knows your tendencies. And so, in light of that, the arrows are going to come. And when they come, he's trying to influence your actions. But it always starts with your thoughts. And that's why we used that axiom of old that says a thought becomes an attitude, an attitude becomes a habit, a habit becomes a lifestyle, and a lifestyle becomes a destiny. And that is true. But the battlefield is the mind. That's what Paul's outlining here. It's your mind. This is where the battle takes place. It affects the heart, but it begins in the mind. It reminds me, many of you have heard of the reformer Martin Luther. Martin Luther wrote a lot about temptation. But one of my favorite quotes in all that he wrote goes like this You cannot keep birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair. And he's writing that about temptation, because temptation is going to come. Tempting thoughts will come, fearful thoughts will come, angry thoughts will come. The issue's not whether or not you're going to face temptation. That's going to happen. That's a given. Jesus faced temptation, and you're not the exception. The issue is whether or not we're going to entertain the temptation when it comes. And it's important so that we stay free. A passing thought is not a sin. The issue is when the passing thought takes up permanent resonance in the mind, that's where danger begins. And so, as we've noted, the enemy has a strategy. And the apostle Paul speaks, he uses a strong word here, he speaks of strongholds. Strongholds. What is a stronghold? Let me give you a few definitions. First of all, a stronghold in the natural is a fortified military position. In other words, it's it's fortified with walls and protection and defenses, on and on. And so Paul is using that as a metaphor of what can happen in your mind. That is, spiritually speaking, a stronghold can become a fortified pattern of thinking that you get defensive around if somebody brings it up or you're reading the scripture and you go kind of skip over something. It's a pattern of thinking that has become deeply entrenched. Let me give you some examples, and there are thousands of examples. So you've come to know Jesus and you have a pattern of gossip. And somehow in your mind, you think that that's okay to follow Jesus and gossip about people, but you've been doing it so long that, and it seems so natural to you that it's become fortified that if somebody or the Bible points out that, and I'm not, I'm just quoting the Bible here, gossips do not enter the kingdom of heaven, that you defend yourself against it. And you kind of go Leonard Skinner, Lord knows I can't change.

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And it's just kind of it's a stronghold.

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Resentment, envy, and jealous toward jealousy toward other people. If it's an ongoing pattern, you've come to know Jesus, but it's entrenched, that's a stronghold. Bitterness, which often results from unforgiveness. I I can't forgive her. I can't forgive him. Where the scripture says to you, believer, that God has given you mercy toward your sin, and you're forgiven in Christ, and so you'll receive from God, but you won't give to others what God's given you. Do you deserve God's forgiveness? Rhetorical question. You don't deserve it. That's what grace is about. Does your friend that betrayed you or lied about you deserve your forgiveness? This very grace, the very mercy you have received from God, you give to others. But when I can't forgive, it's a stronghold. Now let me give another definition. Stronghold is a pattern of thinking that has become deeply entrenched that does not align with the will or the way of God. Sometimes, and again, there are thousands of these loved ones. It it can be anything that doesn't align with the will and way of God. It could be, God can't forgive me. That's that is a stronghold. God not only can God, if I may say reverently, in Christ, God's busting to forgive you, but you just meet the condition, confess it to him, repent. Or I will never change. That's a stronghold. I I cannot change. That is a stronghold when you say, I cannot change, because it's Christ who does the changing in you. My worth depends upon my success. That's a stronghold. Your worth is that you are in him and whose you are, or I must control everything, or I deserve better than this. We can go on and on. But three, because these lies, what Paul's saying, they become mental fortresses, mental fortifications. And so many of you are aware World War II, there was D-Day when the when our troops, Allied forces, landed on the beaches. And historians remind us that that was a decisive battle in World War II. Yet there were months that passed before victory day came. When Jesus Christ died on the cross and bled for you, rose from the dead, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and the Bible says, you have such access to Jesus, you're seated with him in the heavenly places. Too good to be true, too true to ignore. So we know that what Jesus has done, that ultimately sin is defeated, ultimately death was defeated because Jesus said, if you're in me, even though you die, you'll live. That's an incredible promise. Satan's defeated ultimately. But let's keep it real. We live between D-Day and Victory Day. But the war, it's been decided, but there are battles that remain, and the battle is in the mind. And one of those occurs regularly in the mind. And every time we reject the lie and embrace God's truth, we are living in Christ's victory that He's already attained through His death, burial, and resurrection for you. So take every thought captive unto spiritual victory. In the name of the Father and Son, the Holy Spirit, amen. But we got more to say. Here we go. Secondly,

God-Centered Maturity

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take every thought captive, taking every thought captive deepens your spiritual maturity. Now, this matters, loved ones. The scripture says to pursue holiness without which no one will see the Lord. As a part of being a Methodist Christian, this is the grand deposit of what that means: to be developed into maturity, to be a full orb follower of Jesus. Not only to grow in the life of Christ, the fruit of the Spirit working in and through my life, the gifts of the Spirit expressed in ministry, and living on mission, whether it's locally or globally, but living for the cause of Christ. That's what it means to be a full orb follower of Jesus. And we call that in Methodist history, Methodist circles, we call that holiness, sanctification. So the point is, is what we're talking about today is a part of the key of our development. So look at what he writes. Paul writes, again, verse five, we're going to revisit that. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God. Now notice this phrase, against the knowledge of God. So what that tells us is that our development development is not rooted simply in like, I'm going to be a positive thinker. That's not what he's teaching. Paul's teaching us that our transformation is rooted in God-centered thinking. That as I'm doing life, I'm thinking about what does, how does Jesus want me to look at this circumstance? So think about contrasting that with what the culture teaches us. Our culture tells us, follow your heart, follow your heart, sweetheart. Just follow your heart. And that the Bible says, Jeremiah 17, 9, the heart is deceitful above all things. Our culture says, hey, just live your truth. You know, you do you, I'll do me, live your truth. But Jesus says, hey, the way. I'm the truth. And he weds it by declaring when you live in this way, it results in life, Zoe, life from the inside out. You'll come alive. Your heart, your spirit is animated. So the Christian life is not about discovering our truth, it's about surrendering to him and his truth. I remember years ago, Missy and I took a vacation out uh west, and I was looking at the Tetons for the very first time in my life. And I'm standing there, and Missy's at my side on the left, and I'm I'm looking at this incredible mountain range, and I began to weep because of the beauty. And then I heard this family get out of their vehicle back in the parking lot, and I could tell one of the kids was running toward ahead of them, you know. And I this young man, and when he got next to me, I I think he had Down syndrome, and he was just standing there next to me, just going, Wow, wow, mom, dad, wow, and I began to realize that I had been standing there for a considerable amount of time, and I was reminded that this young man is made in the image of God, and he's an image bearer, and then I realized what I was doing that I was looking at all of this creation in awe, and Pastor Paul wasn't thinking about the creator, I was just caught up in the what more than the who. And that, loved ones, is what was happening at Corinth. Became so focused on superficial things that they were not focusing on the one who created all things. And there's always a temptation to make it about the thing, the accomplishment, the experience, the success, the possession. And we can become captivated by the what more than the who. And the Corinthians had done exactly that. They became captivated by gifted speakers, impressive leaders. They became captivated by getting caught up in spiritual experiences in which the focus was not on Jesus. And in the process, they lost sight of Jesus. And this is why Paul is teaching them, and God is teaching us to take every thought captive continually in a way that redirects our mind and our heart back to Christ. You realize that in this passage, there are signs of spiritual maturity that the Apostle Paul is outlining it and inferences for us. A mature believer asks a different set of questions as he or she follows Christ. It's not the question, what do I want? It's the question, what does Christ want? It's not what will make me successful. It's the deeper question, what will make me faithful and fruitful? It's not at the deepest essence, how do I look? No, it's how is my life glorifying God? And maturing happens when Jesus increasingly begins being the focus wed with his word in our lives.

Humble Freedom

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Thirdly, Paul writes about taking every thought captive, leading to humility and freedom. Now, loved ones, a lot of people would not understand that humility and freedom are deeply wed together. But what Paul's doing here is he's lifting up the example of false apostles that are present trying to influence the church. We will teach on this next week because he delves more deeply into it in the next chapter. But in the latter part of verse 12, look at these words with me. Paul says, when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding. Comparison is the great thief of joy. And loved ones, this is so relevant for us because Facebook, Instagram, social media has turned comparison into a national pastime. Someone always has a bigger house, a nicer job, a nicer vacation, a larger platform, a more successful this or that. And what the Corinthians had done is become more and more fascinated with outward success. And Paul reminds them that God's standards are different. So I want you just for a moment, imagine that a group of people are trying to determine who is tallest. But instead of using a ruler, each person stands next to somebody who's just shorter than they are. And that away everybody appears impressive. Church, that was Corinth. And Paul says that as they're measuring themselves by looking at one another, Paul says, this is foolish. It's foolish because the only true measuring stick is Jesus Christ. And when we compare ourselves to him, what happens is pride disappears quickly. I appreciate what the late Tim Keller once said around this. Humility is not thinking less of yourself. Humility is thinking of yourself less. When our thoughts are taken captive to Christ, we stop defending ourselves constantly, we stop promoting ourselves constantly, we stop comparing ourselves constantly. And what happens out of the root system of humility is we get set free. And Paul says, in light of that, verse 17, let the one who boasts boast in the Lord, because the mature believer understands that every gift comes from God, every opportunity comes from God, every success comes from God, every blessing comes from God. Therefore, all glory belongs to God. And taking every thought captive leads us to freedom that's rooted in humility. So loved ones, as we wrap up today, the greatest thought that was ever taken captive was not ours, wasn't yours, wasn't mine. The greatest thought ever taken captive was taken captive by Jesus Christ Himself. It took place in the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus faced the agony of the cross, knowing what awaited him. Listen to what he prayed. Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will. Every emotion fully surrendered to the Father. And because Jesus surrendered his will, then we can surrender ours. And because Jesus conquered sin, we can conquer sinful thinking, reject the lie, and embrace the truth. And because Jesus has defeated death, you'll walk in victory if you're in Christ. Even though you die, you will live if you're in Christ. So I have a question to ask you as we close. What thought in your life needs to be taken captive?

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I just want you to pause and reflect on that this morning.

Captive Thoughts

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Maybe it's fear.

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And when life throws you a curveball, is fear the perverse place you go? Three hundred and sixty-five times the scripture says fear not. One for every day of the week. You're in a pattern of fear. But the Bible defines it a lot differently. You know, one of the symptoms of pride is prayerlessness. Prayerlessness is my declaration of independence from God. You're in a pattern of pride. That without words you can say to God, God, I've got this. So I don't need to commune with you, I don't need to spend time with you in prayer and your word. And please understand that God's not a tyrant, that your spending time with Him is for your benefit, your development, and for the development of the body of Christ and your family and beyond. You know, for some of us, it may be lust. Could I speak to the women for a minute? I want you to know I'm going to double up on the men in just a second. I'm saying that so you won't feel picked on. But you know, when the guy at the office is paying a little bit more attention to you than maybe your husband is in a certain season. Take thoughts captive. Fight for your heart. Take thoughts captive. Now, men, I've got a little more to say to you. Remember the story of Joseph and Potiphar? What did Joseph do when he was facing sexual temptation? Somebody say it out loud. He ran. Do you see the example? Don't enable it. Take every thought captive. This is why Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount, he said, when it comes to lust, he uses hyperbole. He says, cut your hand off, gouge your eye out. Now you know he's not being literal. I need to say that because there are young people here that are impressionable. He's not being literal. What he's using is hyperbole. And what he's teaching us is to take extreme action to keep your mind and heart pure. And so if you're one of those that you battle in your mind thoughts of lust, take those thoughts captive. Get busy doing something else. Maybe it's self-condemnation. Self-condemnation can be a stronghold. Self-condemnation arises when you think that there's some sin you've committed that God can't forgive you. I remember I had a brother that I ministered to years ago who used to say something like the following for a season. He had come out of drug addiction and it really had disrupted his family. And he said the words to me more than once for a season. I know God can forgive me, but I can't forgive myself. Church, I want to remind, if that's you, remind you if that applies to you. What's happening in that statement is a person is saying, God, I know you're big, but I'm bigger. Let go. Recognize that in Christ there's no condemnation. That's Romans 8:1. Reject the lie, embrace the truth. The truth sets you free. And truth is a person. His name is Jesus. Some of you may have a stronghold of unbelief. There was a time where your heart was on fire for Christ. But two degrees at a time, you've allowed in your thought life these little places of doubt that have been nurtured. And as you've nurtured them, they've grown. And now you're in a place that you weren't years ago, maybe months ago. And I want to encourage you, take those thoughts captive. Let Christ not only forgive, but cleanse and renew you and restore you. You know, what we're learning out of this passage is that God's not teaching us merely to manage our thoughts. He's teaching you us to arrest them, take them captive, bring them before King Jesus, and to begin to operate with a filter. Part of what we prayed when we opened this service and prayer teams had been praying this week and this morning for all of you, that these truths that we're looking at in chapter 10 would become indelible upon the hearts of the people called Christ Church and Pine Cove for the glory of God. So that what we're learning out of God's word would not be a one-off, that we literally would walk out of here with a holy determination that for the rest of our lives, God, we'll step into this pattern that you teach in Scripture of denying what is false and embracing what is true and take our thoughts captive for the glory of Christ. And ask the good questions like, does this thought align with God's will for my life? Does this thought align with God's word? Does this thought honor Jesus Christ? Does this thought help me obey Jesus? Does this thought help me reflect Jesus to a lost world around me? And if it doesn't, surrender it. Surrender it to the king. Because life, a life of victory and maturity begins when every thought bows to Jesus. And when our thoughts are captive to Jesus, our hearts become free. The truth shall set you free, is what Jesus declared. And it's true for you. And not to believe that may be a symptom of a stronghold that God wants to set you free from. And so Paul the Apostle says, verse 5, we destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive in obedience to Jesus Christ. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. May it be true for all of you. In Jesus' name. Amen. Let's pray for just a moment. So, Jesus, I'm going to take a moment and pray over the body of Christ. What I prayed over the body of Christ in the 8:30 service. Not to pray a repetitive prayer, but because I love you and I love your people. So the psalmist said, Deep cries out to deep. And we confess there's a depth in us that's so deep we don't even understand it. Neurologists study consciousness and then begin to say there's a level we don't understand. God, there's a depth in us we don't fully understand. There's a depth in you that we don't fully comprehend, yet we see. And we pray that the depth in you would minister to the depth in us, down deep in our heart, in our motives. And we pray that you work your will and your good pleasure through Jesus, who's not out to condemn us, but redeem us. A purity of motive, a purity of heart to take every thought captive. Temptations are going to come. But God, teach us how to war and battle and come out victorious. And when a believer stumbles, I pray, O God, the words of 1 John, that if we confess our sins, you're faithful, you're just to forgive us. Though a righteous person falls seven times they get up, I pray, O God, for believers that get up and grow strong in the Lord, the power of your might. Pray that you do your indelible work within your bride of Lord, picking up these new patterns that will be applied for your namesake. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.

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Thanks for tuning in to another episode of the podcast for Christ Methodist Church in Memphis, Tennessee. We pray that today's message has inspired and encouraged you in your walk with Christ. To stay connected with our church community, visit us online at ChristchurchMemphis.org. We hope to see you this upcoming Sunday for worship as we seek to glorify God and make disciples of Jesus Christ among all peoples.