Thoughts in Our Mind

Even though the nature of an immortal spiritual being by
definition is spiritual and not physical, all evil spirits seek a mortal
human body to live through. These evil spirits were contrived through
the death of the Nephilim. With the power of an angel and the desire
of a human these spirits plague all of mankind. They seek out a
dwelling place or a house to rest and through the weak-minded human
soul there are plenty of places for them to go. However, a demon
cannot possess a regenerate mind where the Holy Spirit resides. It can
manipulate those of us who neglect our Bible study and prayers. Our
unregenerate soul is similar to the inclination of the demonic realm
where it is uniquely designed to manipulate our uncrucified thoughts.
It masks its character to intertwine with ours and controls our
thoughts and attitudes as if they were its own.

When we accept Christ as our Savior, the Holy Spirit comes into
our mind and starts setting things right, expelling the spirits that lie
within our mind. The Holy Spirit comes into the library of our mind
and sweeps it clean. He rearranges the books of the knowledge of our
life experiences and begins to discard anything that is not according to
the word of God. Then the person goes their merry way and neglects
what got them saved in the first place. They stop reading their Bible
and they stop praying. Daily Bible study and prayer (DBS&P) is the
only way the Holy Spirit can have a work inside you.

When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry
places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, “I will return to my
house from which I came.” And when he comes, he finds it empty,
swept, and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other
spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and
the last state of that man is worse than the first. So, shall it also be
with this wicked generation.1

The demon that was expelled by our previous DBS&P goes out
into the world seeking dry places. Water in the Bible represents the
word of God. Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless
one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of
God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of
the Spirit is spirit.”2 The demon is looking for someone who does not
study their Bible. It doesn’t matter if they proclaim to be a Christian
or not; if they do not maintain a personal relationship with Jesus
Christ through daily Bible study and prayer, they are susceptible to
demonic activity. The mind of this believer is dry, and the Holy Spirit
falls back away from the believer, leaving their house empty and open
to repossession. With the believer’s home empty, the demon comes
back and brings seven more of his friends, so the last state of the
believer is worse than the first.

Believing is the first stage of a very wonderful, lifelong
experience where we commune with God on a daily basis. It is where
we start to conform to His character. If we fail to recognize the need
for a continuous relationship, we remain caught up in the lies of
Satan. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in
God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every
high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing
every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being
ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.3
The word stronghold here means lies.

To overcome the lies that we have believed throughout our
lifetime, we must remove everything that defends our enemy. This is
impossible without the Holy Spirit. These spiritual beings are many
times more powerful than we are and are capable of complete control
of a human being if we occupy our mind with carnal thoughts. These
thought patterns and ideas that flow through our minds affect every
nature of our family, business, and church life. Before we can remove
the lies of Satan, we must stop defending his nature. All of us have
sympathetic thoughts toward evil that must be exposed so we can stop
defending our actions and start changing them. It is the ABCs of
change. A change in attitude, a change in behavior, and a change in
character. If we are not changing for good, we are changing for evil.

Any rebellion we have toward God is a place where an evil spirit
can hide. Many Christians feel like they cannot be deceived because
they have the Holy Spirit. This is simply not true. Once a lie fills a
believer’s mind, their ideas and opinions remain in a state of spiritual
immorality, so demons will attack a person whose thoughts are
immature, making them question the Christian doctrine they have
already received. Any thought that is not surrendered to Christ is an
area of vulnerability.

We humble ourselves to the Lord and have faith that He will
change us for the better. We search out any habit or sin in our life
expecting to find demon activity. Our bad habits and thoughts rob
from us the joy and happiness of the Christian life. Our vain
imaginations exalt Satan above our God, leading to the destructive
practices of sin. When we expose the lies in our minds, we walk in
victory and become instruments in helping others overcome the
obstacles of sin. We must conform to the laws of God for deliverance,
which enables us to bear fruit.

Before we were saved, we were in the complete control of Satan
and every aspect of our life was being manipulated by demons. By
living for ourselves, we lived for Satan. When a strong man, fully
armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace. But when a
stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from
him all his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoils. He, who
is not with Me, is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me
scatters.4

This parable forms part of the Beelzebub controversy, where
Jesus’s opponents accuse Him of gaining His power
to exorcise demons by being in league with Satan. The strong man
represents Satan, and the attacker represents Jesus. Jesus thus says
that He could not perform exorcisms (represented by stealing the
strong man’s possessions) unless He was opposed to—and had
defeated—Satan (represented by tying up the strong man). When we
were saved, Jesus attacked and overpowered Satan, stripping him of
his ability to control us. Yet many times we let him back in because of
our underlying thoughts and attitudes.

Hidden sometimes deep within our thinking patterns are cavities
of unbelief, fear, and sin. This is where the enemy makes his home.
The devil goes into our mind happily and freely but when we try to
remove him, he goes out kicking and screaming. It is a fight for our
very consciousness and the turmoil that ensues finds us in a major
struggle of conflict. You will be at war against a foe who will fight for
every inch of your mind. We must analyze ourselves to discover the
lies that lie within our minds. Some of these lies will be lust, greed,
fear, unbelief, unforgiveness, and hatred.

We need to apply our heart to instruction, and our ears to words of
knowledge. We must recognize our disease and confess to God our
need for deliverance. The highway of the upright is to depart from
evil; he who keeps his way preserves his soul. Pride goes before
destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be of a humble
spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.5
The mystery of our true identity is found in our relationship with
Christ. He is not only our Savior, but He indwells us. “What comes
out of a man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of
men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts,
covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil
eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.6 When Christ comes into our
minds, He conforms us to Himself to fulfill God’s eternal purpose,
which is to make us in His image. It is the presence of Christ from
within that makes lasting change in our hearts because the kingdom of
God is within us.

Therefore, we must look at every thought objectively and conform
our attitudes in the manner of Christ, setting aside all evil and
allowing His presence to grow. Once pride has been dethroned,
unbelief is our next lie to conquer. It is not through our own ability
that we destroy the strongholds of Satan but through the ability of
almighty God. The lie of unbelief hampers our mind from growth. We
can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. We must grow in
confidence and toss aside the lie of failure.

If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness,
we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He
is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of
Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have
no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess
our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make
Him a liar, and His word is not in us.7

1.) Matthew 12:43-45
2.) John 3:5-6
3.) 2 Corinthians 10:3-6
4.) Luke 11:21-23
5.) Proverbs 16:17-19
6.) Mark 7:20-22
7.) 1 John 1:6-10