THEME FOR 2019
Answers: What God has said about important life questions
*MEMBERS STUDY GUIDE 9.22.2019
How do Faith and Reason Work Together?
With all your mind: Discipline, Taking Thoughts Captive
OPENER
Think about the thoughts swirling around their mind on any given day.
QUESTIONS: If you had to describe those thoughts, how would you describe them? Are there good and bad thoughts? How would you distinguish between good and bad thoughts? What is the impact of those thoughts on your day-to-day activities?
Do we have any control over them?
Have you ever contemplated the idea that the thoughts we harbor—anger, bitterness, jealousy, pride, fear, greed, selfishness, impurity, discontent, complaining—will someday become who you are?
Note: The ideas we allow to stay in our minds are the thoughts that we are allowing to shape our lives.
The truth is, you can predict the future “you” by looking at the thoughts you are nurturing, holding on in your mind today.
OBJECTIVE
Our objective is to understand that we can choose the thoughts that occupy our minds. God has given us the capacity to use our minds to choose thoughts that shape us into people who live for His glory by taking our thoughts captive.
STUDY
READ: 2 Cor. 10:3-5
3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
Note: Paul often used the language of battle and struggle, but there is a right way and a wrong way to fight. That’s what we’ll be looking at today.
Question: How does the world (human culture in opposition to God) wage war? What are their weapons?
Question: What are our weapons as opposed to those who do not follow Christ?
QUESTION: What is a stronghold? How might a stronghold be in our minds? Give an example.
QUESTION: What is an argument/pretension? How do we demolish them? What are the weapons we use?
*INFORMATION/APPLICATION/MOTIVATION=OVER TIME=TRANSFORMATION
- Information: The Word of God
- Application: The Spirit of God
- Motivation: The People of God
- The Word of God
Don’t believe everything you think! ID thoughts that are wrong.
Question: How do you know if a thought is wrong?
Question: If this is not true already, what would it take for you to see the Bible as essential for right thinking and right thinking as essential for successful living?
- The Spirit of God
Know that the Spirit of God is indwelling us. He is faithful to bring conviction regarding sin when our thinking veers off course. He empowers you to win. Repentance is key. Repentance is a gift, but we can drown out the Spirit’s offering of this gift by the noise of our own rebellion.
- The People of God
Believe the people you should trust. When we refuse to listen to others who lovingly suggest that what we are believing, thinking, or doing is wrong, we are foolish. If you are not living in a connected community, you are not safe in this fight.
Think about: what you can do starting now to have victory in the battle for your mind by using Gods weapon systems of God.
APPLICATION: Romans 2:4 “God’s kindness leads you to repentance.”
Repentance=change of mind leading to a change of direction. In His kindness, God continually offers us the chance to return to Him, to turn from the folly of our minds back to the beautiful wisdom of His…repentance. *Glance at your sin—Gaze at Christ!*