We fall victim to false thoughts that hinder us in our daily walk with the Lord and with each other.
These lies come in a variety of forms and affect us in a number of different ways, but most often they accomplish their work by giving us a skewed perception of reality. We hear things like 'You're not good enough,' that 'bad things only happen to you and no one else,' or that 'life is so awful that there is simply no hope.' These thoughts are powerful, they appear all too real, and they are difficult to overcome -- sadly, some people never overcome. But the Bible tells us that not only can these thoughts be overcome, they can be demolished once and for all!
This four-part blog series will address these thoughts in light of Scripture, giving us the knowledge we need in order to think clearly and offensively.
The Bible refers to these false thoughts as “strongholds.”
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 For though we live in the body, we do not wage war in an unspiritual way, 4 since the weapons of our warfare are not worldly, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments 5 and every high-minded thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive to obey Christ.
The Greek word for stronghold, ὀχύρωμα, is a word that describes a fortified, military stronghold; a strong-walled fortress. Other works of antiquity use the word to describe a prison. To many, that is exactly what these thoughts are. They are prisons of our own making, seemingly impenetrable from the inside out, continuously fortified with each passing thought.
But there is hope in this passage and there is hope in Christ! The Apostle Paul tells us that the weapons of our warfare are powerful in God for the demolition of these strongholds, as we demolish those arguments that are raised up against the knowledge of God! When we correct our wrong thinking with the right thinking of God’s Word, these strongholds will be demolished once and for all as we slowly but surely take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
Over the next few weeks, we will correct three particular strongholds of thought that hold us captive to false thinking: issues of identity, victimhood, and hopelessness. May we all discover the peace that comes from the knowledge of Christ.