2014 02 02 A The Battle for the Mind Dr Steven J Lawson 211142044412

well it's time for us to look together into the Word of God and for us to have the Word of God wash our minds and our hearts we have now completed our series on the miracles of Christ in the Gospel of John and I have said what I feel the Lord would have me to say and I want to bring just an isolated message that has nothing to do with where we are but I think it's very important for the spiritual life of this church I invite you to take your Bibles and turn with me to Philippians chapter 4 Philippians chapter 4 but today I want us to look at verses 8 and 9 the title of this message is the battle for the mind of course I want to begin by reading the text the passage that will be the focus of our exposition in this message and I want to underscore how greatly everyone in this house of worship needs to hear this message begins with me as the pastor my mind must be at a certain place and of a certain condition if I'm to be the pastor that you need and for your own spiritual life as your mind ghosts so we'll go the entirety of your spiritual life Philippians chapter 4 I want to read verses 8 and 9 this is our focus this Lord's Day finally brethren whatever is true whatever is honorable whatever is right whatever is pure whatever is lovely whatever is of good repute if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise dwell on these things the things you have learned verse 9 and received and heard and seen in me practice these things and the God of peace will be with you John Stott the noted British pastor and author who recently died at the age of 90 has written quote the Battle of the Christian life how would you complete that sentence the Battle of the Christian life is the battle for the Christian mind close quote how critically important it is that our minds are fixed and filled with that which is right and proper and true the way your Christian life works is what comes into your mind affects your heart or your affections and all of the decisions and choices that you make are actually determined by your affections every choice that you make is the choice that you want to make and what is governing and controlling your desires is what is feeding into your mind your will is simply the handmaiden of your affections as your affections go so will go your will that was the central theme of Jonathan Edwards book the freedom of the will which RC scroll says is the greatest book ever to be written on American soil and in any century and what is controlling your affections is your mind garbage in garbage out truth and purity in truth and purity out Solomon said it so long ago in Proverbs 23 verse 7 for as a man thinks within himself so is he the reality of your Christian life the sum and the substance of it is really what you are thinking inside your mind high thoughts of God lead to high living and high worship and and a high and Noble life and low thoughts of God quite frankly Lee two trivial lending a living ultimi ultimately it can lead to gutter living but as your mind goes so goes your life and therefore our minds are critically important in the Christian life they are the the initial frontline of the battlefield upon which our Christian life is being contested Romans 12 verse 2 Paul writes do not be conformed to this world that means do not be squeezed into the mold and into the thinking of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind the only way we can be transformed from the inside out is by the renewing of our minds control your thoughts and it will govern the direction of your life and the decisions that you make Ephesians 4 verse 23 Paul writes be renewed in the spirit of your mind and that is an ongoing process that must be taking place continually and constantly we must be renewing and elevating our mind jesus said in Matthew 22 verse 37 you shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all of your soul and with all of your mind how important is our mind to our spiritual growth in grace first Peter 1 verse 13 Peter commands all believers and he calls commands us prepare your minds for actions in other words you're not ready for anything in your Christian life until you first prepare your mind Paul writes in Colossians 3 and verse 2 set your minds on things above and not on thing on the earth it is this emphasis upon the mind and our inner thought life that Paul underscores in these verses this text calls for thinking pure godly thoughts before we look at this text let me put it this way you will become like what you're thinking about like produces like filthy thoughts produce a filthy life it's inevitable there's no end run around that and godly thoughts and evidently lead to a godly life and what Paul says here in Philippians 4 verse a is a call for pure thoughts and right thinking and these verses really provide a grid and a template over what we should allow but to be put in front of our eyes what we should allow to enter into our ears what we should allow inside our mind legalism would be for me to give you a long list of what that is and the Bible never does that to what the Bible does give is the guardrails that should be on the perimeter of the narrow path that we live upon which we live and these verses really are a grid and a template that should be an overlay for our daily lives and these verses really provide the parameters for television watching for movie attending for music listening for computer surfing for magazine looking for book browsing for concert attending the Bible is the most relevant book that has ever been written it addresses the important issues of our lives and there is no way that we can be one person here on Sunday morning and here the exposition of the Word of God and then go back to our homes or go back to our dorm rooms or go back to wherever it is we are and allow other things to be coming into our minds and assume that you know I'm bulletproof and my Christian life will just continue on a very high path no Solomon wrote in Proverbs can a man take a fire into his bosom and be not burned it's a rhetorical question implying the obvious answer to any thinking human being that if you take fire into you you're gonna be burned even grace does not separate a cause-and-effect relationship so today I really want to address us on the pursuit of holiness I want to address us on the pursuit of godliness because our church will be a great Church in the eyes of God in large measure to the extent that we are a church that is pursuing godliness and holiness I want to work through this text I'm trusting that I'll have time to work through it but I don't want to leave anything on the table I want you to note first beginning in verse 8 the people addressed verse 8 begins finally brethren it becomes very obvious to us that what follows in verses 8 & 9 is directed to all the brethren you can see that in your own Bible all Christians and all believers in all places in all generations on all continents are being addressed you and I are being addressed we are a part of the Brethren what follows is not merely for some of the Brethren or for new brethren or for female brethren or male brethren now this is addressed to each and every one of us who are born into the family of God born again and God has given us a new mind the moment that we were converted to Christ he's given us the mind of Christ and it is incumbent upon each and every one of us that as we have now received a new mind that we guard this mind and we sit and watch over this mind so the people addressed is the brethren that would be you and me second I want you to note the purity required as we continue to look at verse eight it says whatever is true whatever is honorable whatever is right whatever is pure whatever is lovely whatever is a good repeat if there is any excellence if there is one drop of excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise this and this alone is what you are to dwell on dwell on these things I want to begin by commenting on the end of verse eight dwell on these things when he says this the word dwell on means to think about to be focused upon mentally he's saying think on these things focus on these things set your mind on these things be important for us to know today that this verb is a command it's an imperative God is commanding us to dwell on these things this is not optional for any believer in this room this is not just true for the teenagers here today this is not true just for those in their 20s here today this is not just true for those who are in the middle of life it's true for across the board for every Christian here today and it comes as an apostolic order this word dwell is a Greek word I'm going to pronounce it only because you will hear the English word inside of it look it's oh my you can hear logarithms or logic in this verb when you do logarithms you're gonna have to think and you're gonna have to fix your mind it's a this is a mathematical term and carries the idea of careful calculation and study something that requires great concentration the word means to to take into account and it's come down to us in the scripture to mean to think very carefully about to reckon to evaluate to consider in what Paul is saying to the Philippians in to us his believers are to mentally focus and intellectually dwell upon certain things that fit within the parameters of what is lawful and what is proper and what is right also we need to know that dwell on that verb dwell on these things is in the present tense meaning 24 hours a day seven days a week we're to be ever and always dwelling on these things there's never a day off from dwelling on these things there's never a sabbatical from dwelling on these things this is a constant ongoing lifestyle it is it requires continuous activity every moment of every day we must be always dwelling on these things we must be habitually thinking about these things now these things at the end of verse 8 are the things that he has just mentioned previously as he has carefully defined and the immediate in the preceding part of this verse what is a green light for us outside of this is a red light not even a blinking yellow lights a red light you've left the highway outside of what these 8 things require and so I want us to to walk through this list as Paul catalogues eight godly virtues which should govern what we set before our eyes what we allow into our ears what we read what we allow to be our entertainment so let's begin to look at this list these mark the parameters of a wholesome thought life of one who is growing in the Grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ with that without these in place one will be spiritually stunted at best are be spiritually devastated at worse it begins by saying whatever is true that's what your mind needs to be fixed upon whatever is true this word for true means real genuine it means authentic that which is reliable that which is faithful as distinguished from that which is false or that which is a lie he's saying do not let your mind be focused upon that which is a distortion of the divine standard that which is a compromise of what God clearly lays out in his word and the reason that he says this is that focusing upon what is true leads inevitably to true Christianity and results in authentic godliness but drilling upon what is false the the antithesis of what is true dwelling upon what is false leads to false Christianity and pseudo growth in grace if you dwell upon a lie your life will live a lie if you dwell upon what is a deception your life will become a deception second whatever is honorable this refers to what is worthy of respect this word honorable means noble of high and lofty quality dignified that which is revered majestic August the very opposite of what is honorable would be that which is dishonorable in the eyes of God Paul is saying get your mind off low base things and focus your mind upon lofty honorable things get your mind out of the gutter Paulo saying get your mind off of trivial frivolous things put your mind on high lofty elevated heavenly transcendent things that pull you up that don't take you down think about those things that are ethically pure and meet a very high standard by God's Word think about those things that are principled that are decent that are moral morally good that are upstanding and that are upright focusing upon what is honorable leads to honoring God focusing upon what is honorable leads to living an honorable life a respectable life a blameless life but dwelling upon that which is dishonorable dishonours God it's all a battle for the mind be careful what you allow behind the steering wheel of your mind because it will take you perhaps somewhere you do not intend to go third whatever is right the word right here means that which conforms to God's standard the idea same root word of righteousness it's the idea of of really scales and a balance and and with scales and you put a balance on one side of the scales and you pour out grain into the other side of the scale until the scales are balanced that's the idea here with the word right or righteousness and on one side of the scales is the holiness of God's pure character and on the other side of the scales is our mind and what goes into our minds needs to be that which is in proportion to the holiness of God all other things are not right this refers to that which is in harmony with God's holy character and God's holy being this word right whatever is right first to that which is proper that which is law-abiding squares with Scripture is trustworthy fair it doesn't mean that we can only think about the Bible 24 hours a day seven days a week but whatever else were thinking about outside of the Bible needs to square with the Bible and not contradict what the scripture clearly lays out if we focus upon what is right we will live right and conversely if we focus upon what is wrong we will live wrong there is this inseparable connection between what we think about and how we live right thoughts produce right living it's that simple wrong thoughts produce wrong living we cannot focus upon what is wrong and expect to live right it just can't happen the deposits that are being made into our mind are yielding a compound return with our withdrawals forth whatever is pure I'm sure the church it Philip I would have loved for Paul to have gone ahead and stated for them a long list of you can go here this orator but you cannot go to this theatre you could go to this festival but you cannot do this they would have loved to have had it all spelled out the only problem is those things are just in constant flux and are constantly changing and so what Paul provides here are timeless transcendent principles that stretch over the centuries that stretch over the cultures that stretch over the continents that are applicable and relevant for every one of us here today he says whatever is pure this word for pure comes from the same root word that is translated holy or holiness here it refers to ethical purity moral purity fill your minds with what is pure and holy that which is wholesome virtuous unstained by the world's corruptions unblemished by fallen man this word refers to what is not mixed with immorality moral impurities this refers to that which is uncontaminated by man's depravity that which is unmixed with filth that which is not adulterated with moral corruption that which is flawless that which has been filtered or censored if we are to live a purer life then we must dwell upon things that are pure do you want to live a purer life it's an open any question do you want to live a purer life how pure of a life do you want to live marginally pure are actually pure then that necessitates that we dwell upon whatever is pure if we're to live a pure life we must dwell upon those things that are pure but if we dwell upon what is impure given enough time we will live an impure life because we have become in pure v whatever is lovely he continues to to expand this and and with each one of these descriptives that he adds he is really putting a fence around that which we ought to be allowing in our minds and giving fuller definition or whatever it's lovely now this word lovely speaks of that which is pleasing attractive that which reflects Beauty the beauty of holiness ethical beauty it represents that which is sweet and gracious and generous not that which is raw and crude and ugly it is that which is beautiful in the eyes of those who are pure we as believers must focus our thoughts on what the Bible says is pleasing to God that which is attractive to God that which promotes peace to the contrary the world attempts to seduce us and hoodwink us and bait the hook to pull us into that which is unlovely and that which is unattractive to be adorned by any believer 6 whatever is of good repute the word here for good repute means to be highly regarded it literally means fair speaking or good speaking it is that which is well spoken of by God and by God's Word that which is morally attractive and should be spoken highly of it refers to that which is reputable that which is respectable that which is credible at the very opposite of this would be like Ephesians five verse four which warns against what this verse says Ephesians 5:4 let there be no filthiness or silly talk or crude jesting be named among you which is not fitting it's just not fitting it's it's it's not fitting for anyone who has a high and holy calling upon their lives number seven he says if there is any excellence these final two marks really provides something of a summation that they begin if there is if there is and really have kind of a bottom-line summation feel to it if there is any excellence anything of mental excellence anything of moral excellence anything that is virtuous anything that reflects high moral standards anything that reflects that which squares with and reflects the holiness of Almighty God he will say dwell on these things that which is morally excellent and pleasing to God only dwelling upon that which is excellent will lead to living an excellent life such a simple proposition to set before you if you dwell upon that which is excellent you will live a spiritually excellent life it's just a matter of time until it saturates the whole of your being and fills your affections and your heart and then directs your will but it all starts at the highest level and then it's a trickle-down effect if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise that which is to be commended before God that which is to be applauded in the presence of God and not to be applauded in some frat house or sorority house in the the midst of a of a dark time not some backroom alley applause but that which can be applauded in the pure light of the holiness of Almighty God that's what you need to let your mind be set upon William Hendrickson the great commentator writes on on this nothing that is really worthwhile for believers to ponder and take into consideration is omitted from this summarizing phrase in other words he says it's comprehensive here if it doesn't pass this test turn it off if it doesn't pass this test close your computer if it doesn't pass this test you're not going to that concert you're not going to that place you're not reading that book or you are inviting trouble for your life he goes on to say anything at all that is a matter of moral and spiritual excellence so that it is the proper object of praise is the right pasture for the Christian mind to graze in in other words by this imagery everything within these eight descriptives just come on into this pasture and eat and graze if it passes this test if not you're eating rocks and stone and dirt and filth and trash and it will affect your spiritual life Hendrickson then concludes it's a very emphatic statement he may be one of the all-time most trusted commentators that God has given to the church in fact as I look out I see a couple who comes down from Michigan who I've preached in that pulpit where William Hendrickson preached nothing that is of a contrary nature is the right food for thought it doesn't hit if it does not meet this test it should be off-limits to the believer now here's our problem one we live in a world that is just inundating us with so many stimuli and so many signals and so many messages that are contrary to this that's one problem I mean we're swimming in a in a cesspool of iniquity the likes of which civilization has never faced the access now to moral filth to immorality is is unprecedented just carrying around a cellphone you can pull up anything and everything and have the wrong stuff coming into your mind cable TV where you can have hundreds of options surfing the internet we're gonna have to be on guard we're going to have to set up a firewall around us or we're going to get burned and we're fools to think it could be any other way and some parents wonder why their kids win astray and where did that all begin I'll tell you where it began it began with the mind that didn't come out of thin air it came into the mind and some house somewhere along the way there was put into the mine filthy crude raw thoughts and it and it came back in a harvest of immorality and it creeps me those who continue to stress grace grace grace grace well I love God's grace but I'm going to tell you you're gonna get burned and they're going to be memories for the rest of your life the mind is a powerful thing so all these eight characteristics define what our minds should be dwelling on one this certainly begins with Scripture does it not let the word of Christ richly dwell within you too this certainly is true about the Lord Jesus Christ he is the embodiment of the incarnation of all these things such your mind on Christ look to Christ love him with all your mind 3 whatever in everyday life meets this mark is acceptable for whatever in the world fall short of this grid is unacceptable it would be better for you to take a dropper with cyanide in it and just drop some drops into a glass of water and drink it that would only destroy your body but the real you is the soul within your body let us guard our minds because we will soon become like that upon which we are thinking third the pattern followed how do we put this into practice how does this look like I want you to note verse nine verse nine is inseparably connected to verse eight do you see how verse nine begins the things do you see how verse eight concluded on these things there there is a bridge from verse eight to verse nine one of the most noted commentators Peter T O'Brien writes at this point it is inappropriate to drive a wedge between verse 8 and verse 9 there is a direct connection between the things at the universe 8 and the things at the beginning of verse 9 and O'Brien adds verse 9 is closely conjoined with the preceding and so the Philippians are to be those who emulate Paul look at verse 9 the things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me practice these things so Paul is calling the Philippians to imitate him to follow his example specifically of that which he wrote in verse 8 and they should pattern their lives after what Paul sets before his eyes and what Paul says and how Paul lived now you'll note in verse 9 there there are four things that they are to put into practice that they see in Paul's life what they have learned what they have received what they have heard and what they have seen this is how they are to implement verse 8 Paul is to be the poster child of this before the watching eyes of the Philippians what are the each of these distinctives mean the things you have learned that is what Paul taught them and preached to them when Paul was there the things that they received refer to what Paul wrote to them even this epistle and this letter the things that they heard is what they heard about Paul from others others who were there with Paul and what they observed in Paul's life how he's responding to this Roman imprisonment in which he finds himself how Paul is responding to adversity how Paul is responding to to unjust suffering it is Paul retaliating with vindictive czar as Paul leaving it in the hands of God and turning the other cheek and responding with grace to those who would curse him that that news is is spreading like like wildfire and has come all the way to to Philip I and the report that they are hearing about Paul in Roman imprisonment and how Paul is living his life how Paul is conducting himself it's Paul being drugged down or is Paul continuing to live above the fray and live a high and holy life whatever the message is that it's coming to them Paul is confident enough to say you need to mimic me and then he adds and seen the things that you have seen that those things that Paul modeled in their presence that which they observed in Paul's life he underscores the fact that it is what they see in him because in this next prepositional phrase he says in me it's crystal clear what they see in Paul's life what they see in Paul's attitudes what they see in Paul's actions what they see in Paul's walk what they see in Paul's talk Paul is saying you need to live like me more than that he says practice these things it's in the imperative mood is a command it is in the present tense it is to be an ongoing patterning of their lives after Paul the word practice means to do to execute to to perform and he is saying you need to live in a manner consistent with my life and with my teaching Paul has modeled his own message and become a visible example to the Philippians of how they should live in their pursuit of holiness and so it is in the local church those who are pastors and those who are elders in the church are the shepherds of the flock and you should imitate what you see in their life to the extent that they are truly following Christ you need to keep your eyes on them you need to keep your ears open to them because they will be a guide to you how to live in a god-honoring way now someone might argue and say well is it this egotistical on Paul's part or isn't this promoting a man is it just putting a man ahead of Christ well I want you to turn if you would back to the book of 1st Corinthians first Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 16 and we covered this when we preach through the book of 1st Corinthians but in 1st Corinthians 4 and verse 16 Paul clearly writes you're a lot of pages that's good I exhort you I plead with you I beseech you I entreat you I exhort you be imitators of me so it is critically important the spiritual life of the one that you're following come to chapter 11 first Corinthians 11 and verse 1 now it becomes even more clear 1st Corinthians 11 and verse 1 Paul says I'll give you just a moment Paul writes be imitators of me and now the qualifier just as I also am of Christ you need to have spiritual leaders who are following Christ you need to have spiritual leaders who who exert an influence by how they live and what they say because you need to have your eyes on them and be following their example as they are an incarnation of what God is requiring of your life in other words he's saying it's as much caught as it is taught and this word imitator is a Greek word I'm going to say it because you can hear the English word in it Mehmet ace Nimet ace mimic here to be a copycat you are to mimic the priorities and the passions and the life and the attitudes of those whom God has placed before you come back to Philippians turn to Philippians 3 and verse 17 Philippians 3 and verse 17 he begins this just as he does Philippians 4 verse 8 brethren this is an in-house discussion among believers brethren and when he says brethren there's a pleading in his in his voice that comes through his pen brethren join in fall my example and he says it it's not just me he goes on to say and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us those who are imitating us very closely you are to walk in that same manner you know what this is called this is called discipleship Luke 6 verse 40 Jesus said every one after he has been fully trained will be like his teacher so how were the Philippians to know how to put this in practice how were they to implement in their own spiritual lives by how they observe how they see how they read how they hear about their own spiritual leaders which is why God places such a high moral standard on those it would be elders and Shepherds in the flock because everyone else is to copy them and mimic them now finally what's the result of this come back to Philippians 4 verse 9 what's the result of this we've seen the people addressed the purity required we've seen the third heading the pattern followed I want you to see the peace enjoyed this leads to blessing in your life you know it's the devil who says God's holding out on you if you can find your thought life to this which is pure andhrite God's really holding out on you well that's exactly what he said to Eve as God said that you can't eat from all the trees nope I didn't even say that but God is so good God withheld the poison of other things to preserve the spiritual health and prosperity by confining yourself to what he says is lawful and desirable and so it is for the Philippians and so it is for us that if you will let your mind dwell on these things and if you will imitate the spiritual examples that are set before you in the church this is what it leads to this is the fruit this is the result he says and and the idea of the and is it inseparably leads to this and we could say and then and the God of peace will be with you this is referring to the subjective peace of God this is referring to not peace with God but the peace of God in our own hearts and in our own souls in lives God has all peace there is no there's not a drop of peace for any human soul in the world outside of receiving it from God himself he is the God of all peace and he will be with you and the ideas Paul writes this is that God will be with you to give you his peace Paul has just addressed this subject just three verses earlier look at verses 6 and 7 remember we study the Bible in context location location location notice what has immediately preceded verse 6 be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God and this is what it leads to and then the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus he's saying if you will commit everything to the Lord in prayer you will have his peace and he is also saying in verse eight if you will keep your mind clean and pure you will also have this peace it surpasses all comprehension and the implication very clearly is the day sin is in peace moves out because sin and peace cannot coexist in the same mind and in the same heart at the same time and when sin comes in and is invited in and it begins to soil and and blemish the inner life peace will not hang around peace will pack its bags and move out and move without leaving a forwarding address and it will lead to discouragement it will lead to to to loss of joy it will lead to depression and instead that where that person has one of two choices either I repent I confess my sin and when we do peace moves back in but if we don't do that what we do is we want a higher buzz we want more of the thrill so if we don't repent and if we don't confess we're going to push the fences out a little bit more to have the the temporary pleasure of sin that Hebrews 11 talks about and there is a temporary pleasure to sin and it is a false joy it is a fraudulent joy but there is a buzz in the moment and then the conscience is convicted and accused and there is guilt and rightly so praise God for the guilt people feel that's like pain to the body it tells you you have a broken ankle stop I was driving in from the airport last night from Pensacola no more got out of 10 the middle of nowhere and the flashing lights come on cool it out stop ASAP there's a sense in which there was bad news but in reality that was the best thing for me to hear because if I had kept on driving my car would have gone up in flames it was smoking as it was that's what guilt brings to the soul it tells you stop ASAP stop you're killing yourself pull over but if you don't pull over if you don't repent if you don't confess and if you push down on the gas pedal you're gonna blow up your life but if you will set your mind on what is true and what is right and if you will follow the example of godly men the God of peace will be with you that's a promise and no one here is above the rules no one here does this not work for them this is here for every church for every believer in every decade in every century on every continent until Jesus comes back so how important do you think your mind is how important do you think the battle for your mind is and you wonder well where did so-and-so lose it I'll tell you exactly it started in the mind something entered the mind something was allowed to come into the mind that was not wholesome it was a pure it wasn't excellent it wasn't worthy of praise it was morally loathsome and piece moves out and the pursuit of sin accelerates I want to conclude this message where I began the battle of the Christian life is the battle of the Christian mind you will become like what fills your mind godly thoughts will produce godly living holy thoughts will lead to holy living but conversely base thoughts will lead to base living so guard your mind set your mind on the written word of God set your mind on the Living Word of God and the most powerful word in your vocabulary today just may be no and to just walk away or turn it off and for the purity of the mind to be preserved this is every believers responsibility God must give us the grace to do it for temptation is strong is it not but nevertheless the responsibility lies at the feet of every believer in the body of Christ brethren we must live in a distinctly pure and godly way

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Length: 57min 39sec (3459 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 02 2014