Bringing or Taken?

"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, ⁵ casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ..."

2 Corinthians 10:4-5

Much warfare in the life of a Christian takes place in the mind.  It is in the mind where the battle is often won or lost.  By subtle suggestion or by unceasing assault, Christians can be tempted away from Christ and into all manner of sin.  The world offers its dainties, Satan attacks our weaknesses, and a undisciplined mind wavering from the onslaught without looking to Jesus is doomed to failure.  All have been in this place.  Unbelievers relish the pursuit of their sin until it destroys them.  But my focus is primarily on Christians who know they are supposed to have victory in Christ but have fallen short of realising it.  Because of continual failure their minds are beaten and their bodies cave into temptation.  It is as if they lie on the ground hogtied in sin, and have given up bothering to resist.  The freedom Christ has promises seems a vain fantasy better left for others to obtain.

I draw your attention to the phrase Paul uses to describe how Christians are to confront everything contrary to Christ in their minds:  "...bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ."  Memories or visual suggestion can lead our minds down the path towards bondage.  When we embark on an evil train of thought, we give the enemy of our souls a foothold in our minds.  Christians can give Satan the opportunity (which he is happy to oblige) to place us into sinful bondage.  Jesus is the Good Shepherd, but that does not mean His sheep cannot chose to willfully wander.  Wandering sheep are sheep which place themselves at great risk.  They can be attacked and killed by predators, or be trapped in sharp brambles, tumble over precipices, and be caught in deadly currents of fast-moving streams.

2 Timothy 2:24-26 reads, "And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, ²⁵ in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, ²⁶ and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will."  All can be taken by the snare of the devil "having been taken captive by him to do his will."  When we are not faithful to bring sinful thoughts into captivity to the obedience of Christ, we are taken captive into all manner of sin.  The first rule of taking captives is you must first be free!  If I am in bondage to sin, how can I begin to take thoughts captive?  Freedom is found only through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.  It is only when I repent, flee from temptation, and submit to God trusting in Him that I can be made free.  Then I must use my freedom not as an opportunity for the flesh, but to obey God.  Even my thoughts I should carefully monitor.  Every thought which is not obedient to Christ must be brought into captivity to rot and the key turned over to Jesus.

We can be duped into focusing on our physical sin as the problem.  When we stumble by fornicating, telling lies, being drunk, or judging others, we feel guilty when we act out in these areas.  Our conscience makes us painfully aware of our transgression.  We know we are wrong.  Therefore we say, "I will not fornicate, I will not tell lies."  We may even take extra steps to reduce our opportunity to repeat the sinful act.  But in the end, we will fall again and again.  Why?  It is because we have not addressed the core issues:  the divided allegiance of our hearts, and the corruption and bondage of our minds.  When the mind is brought into bondage, the body will eventually follow.  And during all the time outward sin is abstained, the pride of our flesh grows.  "It's been three months since I fornicated or got drunk!"  Then comes the inevitable fall.  We start over at zero and realize our confidence was sadly misplaced in ourselves rather than God.

Take courage in Christ!  Let me remind you:  "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds..."  Carnal weapons are corruptible.  Guns rust and jam, and even nuclear warheads have a limited shelf-life.  But the weapons Jesus Christ gives to Christians are incorruptible, might for pulling down strongholds of all kinds.  A fortress in the mind built of hell's strongest stuff can be pulled down by Christ's nail-pierced hands in an instant.  Demons cannot stand against Jesus Christ, and all the lies of Satan are vanquished with the truth of God's Word.  It is time for us to come to our senses and appropriate the victory and power God has given us to free our hearts, minds, and bodies from the snare of the devil.  Jesus came to set the captives free, and His hand is not shortened that He cannot save.  Repent and trust in Him and be free, o man and woman of God!  Let us decide in Christ's strength to bring all thoughts into captivity to the obedience of Christ and aid others in doing the same.

Redeeming Qualities

Have you ever had a conversation where you look back with disgust upon yourself?  Many times I have looked back and prayed my foolishness would somehow be forgotten!  When we trust in Christ and repent, God forgives and remembers our sin no more.  But the same cannot be said for most people!  I remember one conversation I had with a friend during my high school days I would love to revise.  I was a professing follower of Jesus Christ, and I knew in my flesh no good thing dwelt.  But during a conversation, she demanded I admit I was a good person.  At first I resisted.  Then she insisted.  "Alright, fine!" I said.  Those are words I would love to take back, being in direct violation of scriptural truth.  Psalm 14:3 reads, "They have all turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is none who does good, no, not one."  Jesus once told a man, "There is none good but God."  God is right, I was wrong.

Compliments are always difficult for me to receive.  It is not that I despise compliments:  no, the difficulty is that my flesh LOVES compliments.  The real struggle lies in receiving the compliment in humility but taking no glory in it.  All glory is to be directed towards Jesus Christ.  We are not to make people feel awkward because of a compliment, or to chastise them for sharing their appreciative heart.  We are to receive the person graciously and gently direct their focus to the goodness of God.  When I was about 12 we had a guest singer at our church who showed me how not to handle compliments.  She was complimented on her beautiful singing and said, "Well, I was off on some of my notes."  She might as well have slapped this poor woman who complimented her.  To the woman in the pew the singing was lovely.  The singer could have said, "Thank you very much.  Isn't it a joy to sing to our great God?"  Instead she critically pointed out her own flaws in false humility and in so many words said, "You're too stupid to know good singing when you hear it.  I can do better than the garbage you just heard."  Ouch.

As a Christian, I have come to the conclusion that I am an absolute wretch.  Like the song "Amazing Grace" says, "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.  I once was lost but now I'm found, was blind but now I see."  Any redeeming qualities in me exist only because of my Redeemer, Jesus Christ.  When I sin it is because of sin in me, and when I do what is right it is because of the Holy Spirit's work within me.  I praise God that sometimes, despite all my tendencies towards wickedness, pride, deceit, and judgments, the light of Jesus Christ shines through.  It makes me very sad if people think I am a good person.  I am not a good person.  I want people to recognize that what they perceive as "goodness" is actually Christ living through me.  I strive to live a life pleasing unto God.  But it is only by God's grace, mercy, and love that I can do so.  Even then it is not I who live, but Christ in me.

The next time someone compliments you, I encourage you to give all the glory to Jesus Christ.  Take none of His glory for yourself.  When we do this it robs God and stunts our witness.  A man who swallows compliments and does not give glory to God is like a dog who feasts on sweet chocolate.  Chocolate will kill a dog, even as praise and worship will corrupt and destroy a man.  Reserve no glory for yourself.  Jesus says in Matthew 23:12, "And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  To God be the glory, both now and forever, for wisdom and might are His!

Vanity Fair (in the palm of your hand)

I spent a portion of Monday on the train to and from the Sydney domestic terminal visiting friends.  As I waited on the platform for the stage to arrive, I surveyed the people to my right and left.  The closest three people on each side of me had their mobile phones in their hands and white earbuds in.  Seemingly without a clue of all around them, these six people were captivated in their own little worlds.  As we entered the train, some people picked up books or newspapers, while the young man who shared my seat played Street Fighter II on his mobile, earbuds blasting.  Taking my cue from my fellow passenger, I pulled out my Kindle to read Bunyan's classic, Pilgrim's Progress.

As I read, I came across the passage where Christian and Faithful come to Vanity Fair (not just a magazine!), a place of debauchery and worldliness.  Bunyan describes in the book:  "And, moreover, at this fair there are at all times to be seen juggling, cheats, games, plays, fools, apes, knaves, and rogues, and that of every kind."  Technology has made it possible that we do not need to go to Vanity Fair anymore to partake in the vain pleasures therein.  We have the potential to hold Vanity Fair in the palm of our hands.  This is not to knock modern technology, or even our reliance upon it.  But in wisdom we must soberly consider the risks technology presents.

I have a degree of control over how I use my mobile and my Kindle.  I can choose to use them as a tool for wholesome communication or for evil.  The same mobile that can alert authorities of an emergency can be used to view pornography.  Technology provides valuable tools when used in their proper place, but I must be willing to ask myself the question:  do modern technological conveniences and the "social networking" of today have control over me?  It used to be that a mobile was only used for work or emergencies, but now they are common among young children!  Mobiles, too often, are the equivalent of a "dummy" (Nuk, pacifier) for a teenager.  Take their phone away or ban them from Facebook and see the tantrums and tears!  Like a junkie looking for a fix, it is common for youngsters to sneak phones from siblings, borrow a mobile from a friend at school or use library computers to update their status.  They say one telltale sign of being an alcoholic is having at least one drink every day.  How hard is it to put down that mobile?  How impossible is it for you to turn off the computer?  Vanity Fair is still around, and the danger remains very real.

Like King Solomon the preacher said, there is nothing new under the sun.  The flesh tends towards every kind of excess to its own destruction.  Sin's high-definition graphics and Dolby surround sound are better than ever.  Be sober and watchful, for your enemy knows your weakness.  Praise God He has provided a Saviour, Jesus Chris,t and the light of the Holy Spirit to shine truth upon our often darkened consciences.  If you children are spending their days in Vanity Fair, may your actions say:  "Not on my watch!"  1 Corinthians 6:12 reads, "All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any."  May we all yield to the Holy Spirit's power for the glory of God!

Separated upon Death

This morning a group of us from Calvary Chapel Sydney pitched in at the Castle Hill Cemetery "working bee."  Three times a year, a group of volunteers give their Saturday morning to pick up rubbish, toss dead flowers and broken vases, and remove any debris from the turf around the tombstones.  It was wonderful to share the love of Jesus through a simple act of kindness.

Long mounds of red dirt heaved from the turf over freshly dug graves.  As I walked down the rows of headstones amid the cackles of kookaburras, I noticed something I have never seen in a cemetery before.  The burial plots were segregated based upon different faiths.  There was a Catholic section, an area for Muslims, Jews, Baptists, and Independents.  Many more groups were represented in this graveyard surrounded by tall gum trees on the edge of Fred Caterson Reserve.

The thought occurred to me:  though these deceased folks are in separated in rows according to denominational persuasion, they all have one thing in common.  Every one of those bodies is a vacant husk, which used to contain a living soul.  They have all "gone the way of the earth."  One lived for two years, another for 27, and many for much longer.  That one thing they have in common - death of the body - is a greater similarity than the sum of their unique personalities, talents, and gifts in life.  The only reason why their bodies rest underground in a cemetery is because their bodies are dead - a permanent, irreversible state of corruption all people face.

The fact a body is buried in a certain section of the cemetery has no bearing on the eternal destination of each soul.  No one is guaranteed passage to heaven because a cross or a scripture adorns their tomb.  Everyone must face the grim reality of death, but for those who repent and trust in Jesus understand death is the entrance to eternal glory.  John 11:25-26 reads,  "Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. ²⁶ And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?"  Being Immanuel (God with us), Jesus is the only one who can say this.  He proved His worthiness through His own resurrection.  John 3:16 also confirms:  "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."  The Bible teaches that if we repent and trust in Christ, we have assurance through the promises of scripture that if we were to die this very moment, we will be in the presence of Jesus Christ.

All those folks in the cemetery were created in the image of God for the purpose of knowing Him and glorifying God forever.  On the day of judgment those who during their lives believed in Christ and those who refused Him will be separated, even as a shepherd divides the sheep from the goats.  That moment will define our eternal destiny:  heaven or hell.  Are you afraid to die?  Are you ready to die?  Those who are afraid are not ready, and unless I knew Christ and the promises of God's Word I would not be able to sleep at night!  Death looms ever closer, and it is only through Jesus we can overcome death!

I could care less where my physical body laid to rest.  But the eternal destination of my soul?  That is of utmost importance.  Jesus says in Mark 8:36, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?"  Jesus is a Savior who redeems souls from death.  All who come to Him in humble faith He will by no means cast out!