If you’ve ever watched war movies, or historical epics with battle scenes, one of the most exciting portions of the movie is when the good side attacks and overpowers the enemy’s fortress, and the battle swings to their favor. Sometimes that fortress is very strong and well-armed, and it takes a lot of strength and well-planned battle strategy to subdue it. Though you may not realize it, if you are a Christian, you are in a battle, a battle against a formidable enemy. In our brief Scripture today from the Apostle Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, Paul gives us some important instructions for this battle.
As our Scripture passage begins, Paul tells us that this battle is not a battle in the flesh. Although we are human, and still remain here on earth, our battle is not a physical battle, but a spiritual one, fought primarily in the mind. It is a battle against the forces of evil, against Satan and his minions. Satan’s goal is to destroy us. Paul taught that we cannot fight spiritual battles using human ingenuity, worldly wisdom, or clever methods. These methods are powerless against the forces of darkness and satanic assaults.
Paul continues by reminding us that the weapons that we use are not the weapons of the world (vs. 4). We aren’t armed with physical guns, knives or grenades. Nor are we armed with other types of “weapons” that the world might use against believers and followers of the Lord Jesus, such as worldly wisdom, philosophies, or intellect. The Bible lists our spiritual weapons in the Book of Ephesians (Ephesians 6:10-18). We need to always be equipped with our spiritual armor, and ready to wield these weapons, not just on Sundays, but every day of the week. We need to stand guard against our enemy, the devil, and not give him a place of entry into our life.
Paul had many enemies throughout the years of his ministry, enemies that were guided by Satan and the spiritual forces of evil. They fought against him with bullying, belittling, gossip, lies, and also physically with beatings, floggings, and imprisonment. Paul knew not to fight with the same actions. His weapons were the meekness and gentleness of Jesus, his testimony, prayer, giving thanks, and obeying God’s will.
We are instructed to pull down the strongholds the enemy has set up in our life. A stronghold was another name for a fortress. Here, Paul refers to a stronghold armed by demonic forces, and can only be demolished by spiritual weapons wielded by godly believers. Ancient cities set up walls to keep things out. Satan will get us to try to set up walls around our mind, a mental barrier, to keep God and His Word out. These strongholds are areas of our life that are held in the grip of the enemy. God tells us to take captive every thought that doesn't line up with His Word.
Thoughts, ideas, worldly reasoning, human philosophies, and false religions are types of strongholds or forts in which we can barricade ourselves against God and the Gospel (vs. 5). What we focus our mind on has spiritual ramifications. Thoughts lead to actions, actions lead to habits. Habits will affect our character, and our character will lead to our destiny. We are to reject everything in our thoughts that does not honor Jesus.
How are we to bring our thoughts into God’s captivity? One way to take captive our thoughts is to read and meditate on God’s Word, and to dwell on the good in our life (Philippians 4:8-9). We need to guard our heart (Proverbs 4:23). When a negative, condemning, self-centered, and unredeemed thought comes into our mind, through the power of the Holy Spirit take that thought and bring it into submission to Jesus Christ. When we take the thoughts in our mind captive, we will have power over them. When we do, that will also bring our behavior under His control, because thoughts lead to behavior.
As we have learned in this Scripture, we are all in a warfare against the forces of evil, and a lot of that battle is fought in the mind. As believers, we do not wage warfare like the world does. With God’s power we are to bring into captivity every thought that opposes God and His Word, the Bible. God’s Word has the power to demolish strongholds within our mind. Let’s take up the weapons the Holy Spirit has given us, and take captive every thought to make it obedient to the Lord Jesus Christ.
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