“God Gives You a Sound Mind – Guard It”
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
“God has not given us the Spirit of fear but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). Last week I spoke about what God did not give us. God did not give us a Spirit of fear. This week I want to speak about what God has promised to give us and that is a Spirit of power, love and a sound mind. Question, “Who or what are you allowing to shape your mind?” We read in Proverbs 23:7, “So as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” The full verse reads like this: “For as he thinks within himself, so he is. He says to you, ‘Eat and drink!’ But his heart is not with you.” What you see in this verse is a person who is saying one thing with their mouth—but their heart is in a completely different place. The thoughts and inclinations of the heart shape the reality of who you are. They shape your thinking which will ultimately shape your actions. That’s why what you think matters, because it forms the basis of who you become. Proverbs 4:23 tells, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
The Reasons – The apostle Paul said: “but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members” (Romans 7:23).
The Resources – Again, Paul writes, “for though we live in the world we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds” (2 Corinthians 10:3-4)
The Ramparts – A “rampart” is a defensive wall, like around a castle or a fort. We can set up a rampart around our minds to protect us from the enemy. Paul wrote to the church at Philippi, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).
“The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the spirit is life and peace” (Romans 8:6).
Discussion Guide
Tell the group about a time you allowed an undisciplined thought life to trip you up, hold you back or even make you believe something that was not true? When have you read a person or a circumstance all wrong?
What are some practical ways to guard your mind against unwanted thinking? How do you guard what you watch and what you listen to? (Philippians 4:8) How do you guard your mind against the spirit of fear? How do you guard your mind against sinful thoughts?
How can this group pray for you today?