Spiritual Warfare "The Battlefield of the Mind" | Bishop Timothy J. Clarke

throughout the week go back and watch and so we're so grateful for the extension of ministry amen amen well REM Patrick Jackson did such a good job Mike did such a good job this is good job until I'm just embarrassed to read it because he was sounding like the devil and I said he devil and God all of it it was wonderful one who you heard you felt the tension in the text hearing the different voices sometimes you got to do that you got to hear the voices so you pick up what's going on in the text so I ain't gonna mess with it just read verse one in whatever voice you up verse 1 of Matthew 4 let's read it then was Jesus led up of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil just before you sit down turn to a neighbor say neighbor if he was so will you you can be seated in the presence of the Lord this weekend beloved we are beginning a new series of messages Dali that will deal with the issue and the subject of spiritual warfare and Marsha the most condensed definition of spiritual warfare that I can give rahmel is that spiritual warfare is that battle that we are engaged in with the enemy of our soul that seeks to defeat and destroy us both spiritually and ultimately physically now last night in the message I quoted pastor Jim Raley out of Orlando Florida who wrote that one of the great dangers of the modern Church and of Christians today is that so many do not believe in a real or personal devil and Mike really goes on to say that the tragedy of that is Satan likes it that way because if he is not believed in he will not be prepared for okay you missed it if I don't believe in the devil then I will never prepare myself for the devil and so there are many believers and I hate to say this Deacon Ernest Williams but there are many preachers pastors occupying pulpits today who do not believe in a personal actual devil but I've come to serve notice on every child of God that to do that is a mistake of huge proportions in fact the Bible tells us that there are three things about the devil you and I must understand first of all he is real all right Bible says our adversary the devil goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour the devil is real now let me say this let me say this Ronnie I need to hit this one quick lick and I talked about it last night and the devil does not look like the image on the red hot sauce bottle come on Larry not now y'all need to get that because if that is the caricature of the devil that we hold in our mind then watch this we will treat the devil like we will those kids who will ring our doorbell on Halloween dressed in costumes we will think that devil is something to play with the devil is real second thing the Bible tells us about the devil but Mary is that he is at work Oh God the devil is at work in fact I'm gonna say this and I hope you'll get my drift the devil never takes a day off he's working right now in fact he's in this room seeking to distract you seeking to make you not listen whispering in your ear pastors up there talking a bunch of yangyang you're too intelligent for that the devil is real and the devil is at work in fact much of what we see going on in our world today is not the hand of God it is the work of the devil god I want to say something that man that climbed or Galleon an elevator and went up to the 32nd floor of that hotel and shot 500 plus people killing 50 some of them that was not God that what okay yogi inquire because some of y'all been walking around Columbus I don't know why God let that happen I don't know why God did that well I'm going to help you the same reason God let you do what you did now y'all show me some love the same reason God let you go out here and act wild and do stuff you knew not to do and live contrary to how you were brought up we are not puppets on a string we are not put ochio God is not usurping we are not robots or avatars we are made with free will and volition we are moral agents and God doesn't make us do anything nor stop us from doing what we want to do that was the devil that was evil that made that man do that the devil is real the Bible tells us the devil is at work the Bible tells us and the Bible tells us uncle George that he has already defeated I'm waiting for it to rumble through the crowd you years ago Lawrence years ago I can't remember who it was that wrote that book I almost called his name he wrote that book and the title of it is Satan is alive and well and living on planet Earth and I read the book it's a good book except I take one exception to the title he is alive he is at work on planet earth but he ain't well Satan is alive he is active he is working but every since Calvary he's had a very sick existence because the Bible says I feel like preaching this that when Jesus got up from the grave he took the sting out of death he took victory from the grave he broke the back of the devil I wish somebody can help me here so I am NOT dealing with a champion who is undefeated I am fighting our folk that's already defeated I'm just waiting on the bell to ring Satan is real the Bible tells us Satan is at work the Bible tells us and Satan is already defeated the Bible tells us but unconvinced Deacon's that one of the things that will greatly aid and assist us in our battle with the devil because even though he's defeated we still have to fight so sort of like um so like um so like um sort of sort of like um yesterday with the Buckeyes 61 to 40 but in order in order for them to have the gain they couldn't quit because they enrolled up the score they had already won somebody told me the game was over in the first half but they had to show up for the second half to qualify for the win y'all can cry on me the game was weren't properly in the first okay let's admit the game was won when they got off the bus but they had to play all four quarters to qualify for the win I'm trying to preach the somebody that likes football and so here's what you and I got to do the devil's already defeated but we still got to play all four quarters one of the things that will greatly aid us and assist us in our battle with the devil is that we have to understand not just what we saw last night the method means that motives of the devil not just what we saw at 8 o'clock the tactics of the devil to appeal to our innate needs our inner need and our often impulsive Street but we must also understand where this battle is being fought some of us have no idea where the battlefield is and the Bible tells us that the battlefield on which we fight spiritual warfare is the battlefield of the mind god I feel like preaching America now most people when asked or when thinking about the nature and the location of spiritual warfare or the nature and location of temptation will assume that it takes place in the realm of the physical or the emote you know that the battle is in my body or in my heart and my emotions and yet beloved the reality is the spiritual warfare that you and I are engaged in is a battle that begins first in the mind and is only later manifested or revealed in the heart or the body Roberts tells us guard your heart do I have Bible readers guard your heart with all diligence for out of it flows the issues of life and yet beloved watch this those issues that flow out of my heart are born formed and formatted first in my mind whatever is in your heart first came through your mind it can't be about doing pretty good it can't be Russell in my heart unless it passed through my mind let me prove it how many of you have ever been in love you may not be right now but once upon a time in a land far far away you were in this let me see you he say who all a child we got a lot of love parents opinions the four is still in love look at them they just a granted now watch this when you win live guess what you said I love you with all my heart my heart just goes pitter-patter every time I see them but now watch this before you could love them with your heart you had to first of all like them in your mind you had to see them be drawn to them think about them because one of the ways you know you in love is you can't get them off your mind hey Tommy are you with me you mean a lot of funk past Kelly you mean a lot oh stop you when we were growing up you I didn't know you knew a lot of people of the fear of sex I thought about the ones of Melbourne I go back he said go back to the poor finish no I did not anyway anyway so so not now watch this watch this I would almost guarantee you you cannot think of her name right now you say in okis sister Kelly may be watching you Paula can secure her name right now but when you met Trish she never left your mind stay with me and your heart father to California coz your mind was there see I'm not concerned about where your heart is I'm trying to figure out where your mind is because wherever your mind is your heart will follow it and I preach him pretty good for the 99th time this week whatever is in your heart came first through your mind say with me say whatever is in my heart came to my mind first so so here's a question why this is the relevant question of the text why does the spiritual battle of the warfare I am in with the devil why does it take place in my mind because I always thought that it took place in my body my hormones my my sexual my sexual being I thought it took place in my organs that's where I have the biggest y'all I just I just got this thing and I just and lord have mercy and see you dwelling on your body but really all of that churning and churning and burning really is coming from your mind I'm chummy with unforgiveness that's in your mind anger that's in your mind so you got to understand now the devil fights us everyone say the battlefield of my mind that's where this fight is being fought that's where the that's where the war is being waged which is why every believe all to pray everyday throughout the day Lord keep my mind god I felt that he will keep you in perfect peace come on Watkins if you keep your mind stayed on so why why why why Deacon Yarbrough does this battle take place on the field of my mind there are three reasons darling so glad to have you know I called Ollie my noise box I always feel better when dolly hit got no hon Masha always gonna say Amen here's the first thing they there you go get it right on cue here's the first reason that the battle takes place on the field of your mind it's because our minds the mind contains information watch this what's this when we forget something system a cloud what do we say that slipped my mind or when something's not important my memory what do we say that's not even on my mind I am not thinking about that the mind beloved is where information is contained and stored and from where we retrieve it now one more time you don't retrieve information from your heart that's why that's why once my children in love with all their heart don't be impressed that's emotional my mind is where information is stored and when I want to pull up something I don't reach in my heart and pull up a thought I reach in my mind and pull up a thought now we see this in the textbook winter went over and over and over again Jesus when dealing with the devil are y'all still awake refers to scripture every time the devil comes in Jesus he retorts he replies he responds it is written stay with me he can't go this is good he can't do that because scripture has been stored in his mind God I just said some powerful Jesus doesn't have a Bible he done never concordance he doesn't have an iPhone or an iPad where he can open up an app and pull up some and find 50 verses to defeat the devil then have a little card in his Bible he doesn't have a Bible you didn't have Romans Road on a piece of paper there's no Romans Road he's not to make the road but he has stored on the hard frame and main frame of his mind Scripture and he closed them back to remembrance because they are on his mind from a child Jesus has learned the Scriptures so when under attack he calls them back to the mind so how does that work glad you asked you always ask the right questions our minds contain information that come from three places a what we've been taught now I'm going to say something something Marshall I want you to hear me but barely mom bill I'm gonna say something and listen to me and it can be wrong but if you've been taught it it's in your mind Jesus have mercy Jesus have mercy um how many of you are 50 to 70 years old raise you 50 sister see I got these two little fingers up like this Mike did you raise your knee okay I got to keep the Saints honest you know if you're 50 to 70 years old and you're african-american you know that we were taught certain things when I was growing up I was taught your you know the Saints the your parents and people would tell you stuff that was so obvious like they were giving you a revelation from Mount Olympus so they say to me Billy like I didn't know it your dark skin thank you for telling me that and they would say now you don't need to marry anybody as dark as you marry somebody a little lighter watch this to give your kids a chance not not not that sense suddenly right there cuz if if being dog skin doesn't give you a chance I'm in a world of trouble because when we were growing up this was better than this and we were taught that and pop Whittington it ain't true but a lot of us believed it and a lot of us Gary's still struggle with it because once you believe it and get it in your mind it's hard to get it up Thank You Jay what are you benching and every night means you got to go back and ask yourself what have I been taught some of us as men were taught you got to keep your woman in check you don't you be out yo yo yo yo hey bro you let you woman do that you let your woman you better check huh and a whole lotta men ain't married nah cuz they checked her and she checked out said why are you checking me I'm checking out [Applause] what do you what have you been - what have you been taught that's because watch this watch this whatever you've been taught is in your mind your mind is where you store your information your information comes from what you've been taught here's the next one what you've been told now normally what you've been taught is by people who you trust have influenced what you've been told can be buying anybody so you've been told you're ugly now you weren't taught that but you a joke if a teacher told you you're stupid if a teacher told you you can't learn if somebody told you you can't do something you weren't taught it but you are told it stay with me and you you and I mean is this helping anybody and you and I may not realize it but what we've been told is still in our minds here's a third thing what's the first thing what I've been what's the second one and in his seat and what I believed to be truth there's nothing worse than believing a lie and yet most of us believe more lies than we realize we believe that because I'm a certain gender I can't do certain things because I'm a certain age I can't do certain things because I'm of a certain socioeconomic status I can't do this again I'm Hispanic I'm black I'm Puerto Rican I'm whatever so I can't do this and I can't do that but you didn't read the Bible I can do all things [Applause] I'm looking for the rest of my crowd just somebody else ought to be clapping I can do all things through Christ who come on y'all and you gotta believe that no matter what you've been told no matter what you've been taught no matter what you believe to be true let God be true and everybody else a liar and God says you are fearfully wonderfully made and you must believe his report your mind is where you are contain and store infamy that's why the devil fights you in your mind cuz cuz he goes through like a catalogue looking at all this stuff on your mind and he plays whoo I want I'm gonna take myself now he plays that record over and over again and sometimes it's like you know when you had that little cheap record I know he wants a record player that record player and it would get stuck and just keep repeating and you have to put a nickel or quarterly with me because he got stuck in a groove there sure Oh God help me sing it under the anointing they are some of you in this room and some watch it online your mind is stuck in a groove and you keep playing the same stuff over I'm no good I'm a failure I'm sad I can't do this I can't just play it over and over but the Holy Ghost is about to drop a dime on you I move that on to another part of your story tell somebody I am somebody I can do all things through Christ that is my new reality here's the second thing god I thank you the mind not only contains information the mind controls imagination who's right this is good now there are some scholars some biblical scholars who hold that the temptation experience in the text all took place in the mind of Jesus that Satan did not literally take Jesus to those places but he showed them to him in his mind and one of the most powerful things we have been loving is our imagination and that is controlled by our minds here's what we say Lisa I'm not even gonna let my mind go there you ever said that you said I'll let you know something I ain't gonna let my mind go there because you know that your mind could go tit and giving your overly active vivid imaginations there's no telling where your mind would end up the devil fights us on the battlefield of our mind because your mind controls your imagination now your imagination is fueled my imagination our imagination Willie is fueled by three things I want you to write these down a images images images in fact the root word of imagination is image your imagine the imagination is really a collection of images things you saw as a child images I'm a pop Whittington I'm gonna say something I thought they may have to edit it out because you know we are RFD and you know we gotta be careful what we said but some some men in this room [Music] early on we saw you have to just died the other week didn't he did he die mmm whatever they said he won't be buried next to Marilyn Monroe because he said to be next to Marilyn Monroe that lie next to Marilyn Monroe would be heaven on earth whatever some of us as men saw our first images of women in a Playboy book look at me be amante like he looking for something in his phone our first image of a woman was in a Playboy book and that image was seared onto the consciousness of our minds and that is how we see women because of our first image images are powerful and they take our imagination can I teach today which is why pornography is is very dangerous because pornography is not reality you know you see these people going for an hour ain't nobody going for an hour I take it lunch breaks in they move in the cameras and and so you're not satisfied with your spouse cannot teach blaster you know so you're looking at your spouse can beer and how the Buffy does Dallas when that's not real or you're comparing your husband to that dude in the field who's going for an hour that ain't real and your imagination has been polluted by that images you allow my teaching pretty good in the words of those great theologian it's just my imagination once again running away with me everybody images here's the second thing impressions made by those images because uncle George every image leaves an impression I just said some tell me Jesus which is why not only must you watch what you watch you must watch what you're engaged in when you do it prematurely because that leaves an impression which is why you must you must appropriate the blood of Jesus to cleanse you to sanctify your mind with the washing of the water of the word come on I need a church in here don't just ask you to forgive your sin say Jesus of my sins left an impression and I need you to help me deal with these images that have made an impression I need you to watch my and what God can I say this so that I might not be able to not remember but sanctify the way I remember so I don't remember it in a way I want to go back to him I remember it saying I never want to do that again and then the impact made by the images that are interested my god don't dump the images that make the impression impact us so we don't know real intimacy we don't know real love we don't know we don't know relationships we we just don't know because the image made an impact because it made an impression and I'm living my whole life now bouncing around like what's that game with you the ball hits the things what's the car yeah that just and that's how I live my life I'm just bouncing hitting up against stuff and all of it is because I'm fighting the impact of impressions made by images and it's affected my imagination the devil loves to feed on and off of our imagination Church listen to me he seeks to make things seem worse than they are come on you know we on your job in your marriage in your church he makes things seem worse than what they are he wants us to assume the worst about things and people this job on our imagination but hey y'all hey he can't do that know what else he'll do he'll make things seem better than they are look at her she's so much prettier than your wife okay that's that's at work when she take to my eyeballs out take that weave out heal that makeup off you mean looking at the Bride of Frankenstein you be running home thank you God for baby or you'll make no no see we don't believe that you're big things seen better than what they are here's our notice what we say is I have finally found the perfect one see that's wrong right there anybody perfect child she meets all of my needs see I know that's a lot kid nobody meet all your needs come on y'all send me some love I feel hostility come but but he will make things seem better than what they are well let me close this is a sermon yard in war so what you and I got to do dolly is watch what we feed our imagination and what we focus on with our imagination well here's the third point what's the first thing the devil attacks us on the battlefield of our mind because our mind is where information our mind is where there is he met y'all y'all don't know and then here's a third thing the mind creates our inspiration now watch this fed by information fueled by imagination our minds then create our inspiration Jesus is able to resist the devil and reject his tactics because he knows how to manage his mind and his mind management gives him the inspiration to stay the course he is able to manage his mind what he lets in and how he processes it and his ability to do my management inspires him so that he is able to stay the course y'all are missing this that doesn't start in his heart that starts in his mind and his heart follows another word for inspiration beloved is motivation and motivation is always the results of three things here's about if you are motivated to do something you'll do it but motivation feeds off inspiration so there are three things who write these down the first is desire desire Jesus desires to do the will of God stay with me so no matter what the devil brings his way he has made up his mind some of y'all are finally getting it no matter what the devil brought his way Church Marsha listen no matter what the devil brought his way he had made up his mind come on track one more time no matter what the devil showed him he had made up his mind he has a desire to please God more than himself y'all inquired on me that desire produces discipline because you're never gonna do anything with just desire desire must feed your discipline your discipline is the cup man to stay the course no matter what comes against you God did I preach today so you say to yourself I don't care how bad it gets how tight it gives I am NOT getting divorced I am staying I am committed to this marriage and I will discipline myself that I am NOT going to even consider divorce as an option I'm not going to steal from my company I'm not gonna lie to the Saints I'm not going to live a critical life I am determined by the grace of God that my desire will culture they discipline which will produce determination and I want to do I have anybody up in here that's got I made up mine that says I have decided that I'm gonna follow Jesus no turning back no turning back would you look at your neighbors say neighbor you gotta have desire and you have to have discipline but you also have to have determination would you grab a neighbor by the hand and say neighbor or neighbor you gotta make up your mind I'm gonna do what the Lord wants me to do I'm gonna serve God with all of my heart and if it costs my life I'm gonna make it to the city no matter what I have to do is there anybody here that's got a made up mind the old folks said I'm in heaven up all the way up should opposition come should foes obstruct my way to persecution of fire be richer in the ancient day I'm with Jesus by my side this piece up within my soul no matter if the battles harder I mean when the goal my father neighbors say I'm going on in spite of shrivel up in spider trial in slight a temptation I need to go ride autumn until the final trial I'm going order that the neighbors say neighbor I've gotta made a minor because I wanna see for myself I want to hear him say well done and is there anybody here that knows it will be worth it up when your feet strike Zion and you see them for yourself is there anybody here that knows this worth it when you hear him say well done good faithful wants to hear him say wow wow wow [Music] would you grab a neighbor say neighbor I'm not letting you go back I'm not letting you turn back you come too far to turn back now I know you get tired I know you're getting weary but faithful is he who has called you who also will do it and if God is for you he is more than the world against you so you don't have to wait up until you get there you can't praise Him and you can't shout them right now because the battle is already [Music] yeah yeah yeah in the name of Jesus we have the victory who stand before us when we call on that great day she's asleep Jesus II process she's hustling we hire [Music] is already up Thanks vivica who gives us the victory through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ would you turn to a neighbor say you're a widow [Music] [Applause] where does Satan fight this battle it's not in your body I know you thought it was because your body's always acting up but your body is only feeding on what your mind is sending it the other night dr. o Newgrounds showed a clip of some people mountain climbing my mind has never told my body think I want to climb a mountain so my body has never asked me to do it because my mind has never given my body permission to my mind has never sent a signal to my body he really wants to climb a mountain he just doesn't know it and the only thing my body will do is what my mind instructs teacher you're sending your body's signals and you're trying to fight it in your flesh when that's not where the battle is would you move up higher it's in your head it's not in your loins it's not in your reproductive organs they are taking their signals from your mind your mind is feeding your heart and your body messages every day you need to check up from the neck up and get your mind together because that's the battlefield this war is waged on he knows it's where you contain all of your information he knows it is what controls your imagination and he knows it's what creates your inspiration that feels your motivation so he fights he will keep you in perfect peace I don't do this often but I feel led to open the octopus some of you to do some business with God today because the Lord has spoken to you about the battlefield of your mind images and impressions that are made an impact that are affecting your life information you were taught tol or believed to be true that has now affected and impacted your inspiration your desire your discipline your determination all of that is happening because you know what I know you better start moving now before he tells you another word [Music] you better bust a move right now you better bust a move right now because he's talking to you while I'm telling you you know what he just told somebody you did it before it didn't work didn't you tell him but I'm gonna do it again [Music] [Music] what's on your mind what occupies your thoughts what you've been thinking about the battle is fought on the field and that's why you've been struggling so much to win it because you've been fighting it on the wrong field you've been staying under your body I'm keeping my body under subjection and that's what the Bible teaches but you do that by your mind so I Paul says you're transform Romans 12 by the renewing of your mind that's what brings transformation [Music] come on I'm gonna pray in a minute I want you to talk to God because I don't know what to tell God for you need to tell God Lord this is where I'm struggling I was taught certain things I was told certain things I believe certain things to be true and I have all this information stored on the mainframe of my mind and I keep running into this wall it's like a computer that has this security wall every time I try to break free I run into that wall and I need you to decode that for me I need you to help me get my information right others of you it's your imagination you gotta ask God lord help me I've been letting images and impressions impact me in fact Lord they have really impacted in the entirety of my life and I need to deal with this things I saw things I heard things I did and and it made an impression and an impact it's left something and I need you to help me deal with and what's inspiring you today what's motivating you what do you desire I think was it last night the team Minister Monti the team's about my desire what do you desire today what do you desire what do you want because that starts in your mind the image of yourself healthier the image of yourself out of debt the image of yourself mentally emotionally hold that starts in your mind and it tells your heart now receive this your heart can only receive what your mind sends it how you fell in love with that young man and young girl your mind said I like her I like him and you gave your heart permission and then watch this in your hands your feet your mouth followed what your heart did as ordered by your mind so you called them or you wrote them or you stepped up to them it didn't start with your body it didn't start with your heart he started with your mind hallelujah hallelujah thank you Jesus pastor Kelly I want you to come pray come on ask God to move in this place [Music] hallelujah father we come as a collective group but we're here individually because each and every one of us has individual needs we've got concerns and issues on our heart and on our minds but we need to lay at this altar before you Father all of the challenges all of the images all of the things the imaginations that has impacted us over our lives all a result of things that we've allowed to linger in our minds now God we come to you today to submit them to you to sacrifice before you God would you wash our minds would you purify our minds would you cleanse our minds in the name of Jesus God take off all of the things that are on the mainframe of our minds that are not like you everything that's not according to your will that's not according to your word wash us purifiers cleanse us again renew us God in the name of Jesus in the name of Jesus brought out our iniquities and our transgressions take away everything that's not like you that's not according to your will into your word in the name of Jesus we surrender and submit our minds to you Lord wash it with the water of your word today in Jesus name God we lean upon you we rest upon you we submit ourselves to you we surrender to you in the name of Jesus take this Lord all of us Lord not just our hearts but our minds as well as spirits our souls our imaginations I submitted before you in the name of Jesus we thank you Lord we thank you today we thank you today we thank you today that you're restore of the mind we thank you the children north of mind we thank you today the tool revival even of our minds we thank you today God we lift up hallelujah my neighbor's to our wagon to our left got the two it will store them that you wouldn't lift them that you would renew them in their minds in the name of Jesus and now God will place our hands together we celebrate you that it is done in the name of Jesus hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah thank you lord I want you safe right way y'all break it down when Pastor Kelly was praying and now I understood why Lord told me to have him pray because he said something in his prayer and the holy spirit quickened it to me and I need you to do this for me he said something and I thought Lord that is a key if not maybe not the key it's a key almost every one of you who would know every one of you who are at this altar who are saved you gave Jesus your heart today you gotta give him your mind the minute he said it it hit me that's where we missed it we gave him a heart but we didn't give him my mind lift your hand and say father in the name of Jesus today with the same commitment that I gave you my heart I give you right now my mind in Jesus name on the altar as a sacrifice and an offering I give you my mind thank you for receiving it Satan washing it and renewing it in Jesus name now shall amen that was the word give God [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Laughter] [Music] [Music] come on give God praise for his work [Music] if you

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Id: bqvlpHDY0uQ

Length: 63min 24sec (3804 seconds)

Published: Wed Nov 01 2017