Managing Your Thought Life

March 15, 2015
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The key to living a victorious Christian life is revealed in Romans 8:5 with this phrase, “set their minds on.”

The precursor to Spirit-filled living is Spirit-filled thinking. This message discusses four principles that must be understood in managing our thought lives.

(1) You have a choice about what you will set your mind on
(2) The thoughts you embrace will drive your behavior
(3) With your thoughts you cultivate desire
(4) Personal transformation occurs as your mind is renewed.

This is a supernatural process of the Holy Spirit that involves the believer’s cooperation and obedience. Want to live in the power and strength of the Holy Spirt? Managing your thought life is crucial. Let this message help equip you to do that successfully.

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OUTLINE

Intro:

  1. Text: Rom. 8:5 (NIV)
    “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those wholive in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.”
  2. Key to Victory = phrase “have their minds set on.”-Greek: phroneo is in Present Indicative Active

    -To live in victory, I must learn to manage my thought life.

  3. Five principles for doing that:

I. You have a choice. Two sources of thought flowing into our lives.

  1. Flesh sends sinful signals to our brain.Can embrace or dismiss.
    2 Cor. 10:5 “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of

    God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (KJV).

  2. Holy Spirit prompts thoughts according to will of God.We have a choice concerning those thoughts as well.
    The more we obey the voice of God, the easier it is to hear Him.

II. The Thoughts you Embrace Drive your Behavior.

  1. Emotion is provoked by our thinking.

  2. External influences excite thoughts. We decide what input we turn on or turn off.
  3. Thought life is not visible to anyone else directly.Examples of Eve and David
  4. The precursor to Spirit-filled living is Spirit-filled thinking—right choices about the focus of our thought life.

III. With your Thoughts you Cultivate Desire—whether it be good desire or bad desire. (1) You can cultivate greed by setting your mind on having more.

You can cultivate joy by meditating on God’s goodness to you.
(2) Phroneo, is more of a mindset than a single thought. It is the direction of thinking you assume.

Mark 8:33, Phil. 2:5 “Let this mind (phroneo) be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” KJV.

IV. Personal transformation occurs As the Mind is Renewed.

(1) Rom 12:1-2 “…Do not conform… to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (2) We actively cooperate with the Holy Spirit from beginning to end. “Without faith it is impossible to please God.”

This is transformation, not just behavior modification (Ivan Pavlov).

Questions for Discussion

1. Do you think Christians have the power to choose their thoughts? Why or why not? What has been your experience in attempting this?

2. Do you think thoughts drive emotions? Why or why not?
Do you think our thought life drives our behavior and thus the course of our lives? Why or why not?

3. How do external influences (TV, friends, etc.) affect our thought life? How do you manage this?

4. If thoughts cultivate desires, how do we cultivate hunger for God and righteousness? How do we avoid cultivating lust, anger, greed, etc.?

5. How do we actively participate in this process without developing a “works” mentality?
Why can’t we just be passive and let God do it all? Will it happen if we neglect our responsibility?

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