This is the first of three broadcasts dealing with your thought life.

Your thought life is something that must be controlled.  Men and women have trouble controlling their thoughts in this world of pictures, movies, lusts and memories.  2 Cor 10:3-6 is one of the best passages in the Bible to help you with your thought life and the actions that follow your thoughts. Bob Jones, Sr. said, “Back of every tragedy in human character, there is a process of wicked thinking.”

With all of the images and imaginations that are presented to you each day, there is an indelible mark on your mind that causes your thought life to run to places you often don’t want to go. God knows about the effect of those images.  That’s why he warned the Jews to destroy the pictures in Canaan (Num 33:52).  Dr. Ruckman used to say, “The use of the imagination involves images.”

“How can I stop these thoughts from coming into my head?”  The trouble is that they are held in the mind as strong holds according to verse 2 Cor 10:4. And they are not easy to get out. To make any progress with your thought life, you must understand where the thoughts are, what must be done with them, and how to do it. Here’s a simple outline from 2 Cor 10:3-6.

Thoughts in Your Thought Life:

Are in the flesh, 2 Cor 10:3. 

See Gen 6:5 and 8:21.  You received your wicked imagination from Adam and Eve because of their fall.  Jesus said that evil thoughts are in your heart and they defile you.  Thus, they can trouble you until you die.  In Rom 7:18 Paul said. “…in my flesh dwelleth no good thing”.

Exalt themselves against the knowledge of God, 2 Cor 10:5. 

Thus, they are involved in the war between the flesh and spirit, Gal 5:17. When your mind runs to fleshly thoughts, it cannot be thinking godly thoughts at the same time. For instance, during a sermon, Bible reading, prayer or other spiritual endeavor, your mind may often run to something other than the preaching and you aren’t able to remember anything that was preached during that “day dream”.  What has happened is that your thoughts have exalted themselves against the knowledge of God.  They competed with the Spirit and blocked you from thinking about God.

Lead to disobedience, 2 Cor 10:6. 

When you find yourself in disobedience, check your thought life first; that’s usually where the problem is.  Because you know that you cannot act on some of the things you think about in your thought life, you learn to derive pleasure from your thoughts alone.  This happens because of evil concupiscence.  Those thoughts are sin in and of themselves, Prov 24:9.  However, after catering to your lusts through wicked thinking, you may find it impossible to resist acting on those lustful thoughts, Prov 23:7.  You end up compounding the sin.

A Christian girl met a young man and decided to travel to the Bahamas with him. She had been thinking about finding a man. So, she thought it would be alright to travel with him, thinking he was the right one for her.  Yet, she was disobeying God and only following what she thought was right.  She was led into this disobedience by her thoughts.  And your thought life can lead you to do the same thing.

Conclusion to Your Thought Life

In tomorrow’s broadcast, we will see what must be done to these thoughts and imaginations that trouble your thought life.