Reprogramming Your Thinker

2 Timothy 1:7 NLT

7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

Introduction

If God hasn’t given us a spirit of fear, then why do so many belief systems associate God with anger, condemnation, and the threat of judgment? Part of the problem stems from the confusion of mixing the Old and New Covenants.

Making Yourself Like God

SLIDE - Goodness Only From God

The Old Covenant was designed to prove to mankind that goodness only comes from God. Twice in biblical history, man substituted God’s righteousness for human effort. Adam rejected the goodness of God to pursue the temptation of the serpent, who said, “You can know good and evil.” Adam stepped away from the tree of life, where everything was a gift of God, to take hold of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, to attempt to make himself the source of good through works.

Likewise, when God took His people out of the captivity of Egypt and led them to safety, He required nothing but faith. But the people were focused on human effort. The people called out for the law by saying, “We will do all that is commanded.” They trusted in their obedience as the source of good.

When man tries to make himself an equal to God, the Lord invites him to do so. If you want to be perfectly acceptable to God, here is what good looks like. Give it your best shot. However, when mankind makes himself the source of good, the standard that measures good will be applied. The law is the straight stick of righteousness that is laid beside man to reveal whether he measures up. The law does not make man good. The law is the litmus test that says, are you perfect, or do you fall short?

Our Tutor

This is why the Bible calls the law our tutor (or school master) that brings us to Christ. It teaches man that he is not the source of good, and then points to Christ. Once it delivers us to Christ, the law relinquishes its role. Consider Romans 10:4

Romans 10:4 NLT

4 For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God.

Jesus also alluded to this when He said, “Do not think I came to destroy the law, but to fulfill it.” Once He fulfilled it, Jesus took the penalty of the law that was due us and took it upon Himself. That is why the Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:21

2 Corinthians 5:21 NLT

21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

Becoming Righteous

You are not righteous because of what you do. You are righteous because God has given you His righteousness as a gift of His love, and as an act of love, He also took your sin upon Himself.

SLIDE - FOR God

You are the righteousness OF God. You are not producing your righteousness FOR God.

Do you understand that when you try to become righteous, you are pushing aside the righteousness of God? You are attempting to replace the perfection of God with your own personal efforts. It is a rejection of the completed work of Christ and the gift of righteousness when you try to make yourself acceptable to God.

Snubbing the Work of Christ

>> Me after Prison <<

Do you also realize that when you focus on your sin, you are snubbing the work of Christ? When you receive condemnation, you are rejecting the gift of righteousness through disbelief. How righteous is God? Can you do better than God’s righteousness? If the answer is no, then what are you striving for? You already have the highest form of righteousness possible. You are the righteousness of God! Don’t deny God’s gift by claiming to be a sinner, which God has already said was placed upon Christ.

The Great Exchange

SLIDE - Don’t Swap Back

God has given you the great exchange. Don’t swap back. If you have been taught like most of us, your belief system has been centered around you, instead of Christ. That’s okay. Now is the day to trust in what Jesus called, The acceptable day of the Lord. Turn your mind to faith and start receiving grace instead of condemnation and fear!

Fear can only exist where love is shunned. We shun God’s love because we don’t feel worthy, yet the point of the law was to show us that we can never be worthy. Man, at his best, falls short. Not one person succeeded under the law. What little success you find in the Old Testament is God showing mercy to those who trusted in Him. It was never based on what someone accomplished for God.

We often hear about the Fear of the Lord. We are taught that we should be afraid of God’s harsh hand if we do wrong, but is that really what the fear of the Lord is about? It is not. Let me show two passages that make this clear.

Isaiah 53 is the great messianic prophecy that foretells of Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins. It tells that our savior will be bruised for our transgressions and our sins will be laid upon Him.

Isaiah 54 speaks of the results of Jesus’ work. Because Jesus took away our sin, we have the promise of Isaiah 54:8-10

Isaiah 54:8–10 (NLT)

8 In a burst of anger I turned my face away for a little while. But with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer. 9 “Just as I swore in the time of Noah that I would never again let a flood cover the earth, so now I swear that I will never again be angry and punish you. 10 For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain. My covenant of blessing will never be broken,” says the Lord, who has mercy on you.

Just as Isaiah 53 was fulfilled at the cross, we are now in the promise of Isaiah 54. Under the law, God hid His face for a moment, but through Christ, we have His everlasting kindness and the promise that wrath cannot be revived. Notice the strength of the promise. God has sworn by His own name that He cannot be angry at you and His wrath CANNOT return. It’s not based on you. This promise is based on God’s covenant with Himself. He has sworn an oath that cannot be removed.

Your sin cannot defeat the work of Christ

SLIDE - Wrath is Off the Table

Your sin cannot defeat the work of Christ. Your failures cannot cause God to return to wrath. Wrath is off the table. Once you receive Christ, you can never again be under God’s wrath. If there is anything in God’s word you believe, believe this. God could not have said it any clearer. This is for you!

Since this is an unshakeable truth, what is the fear of the Lord? How can we fear the Lord, without being in fear? It’s one of the great paradoxes of scripture. A clear piece of this picture can be found in Jeremiah 32:38-40

Jeremiah 32:38–40 (NLT)

38 They will be my people, and I will be their God. 39 And I will give them one heart and one purpose: to worship me forever, for their own good and for the good of all their descendants. 40 And I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good for them. I will put a desire in their hearts to worship me, and they will never leave me.

There is more to this promise, but before we look at it, let me draw your attention to the one doing the action. Who changes the heart? God said, I will give them one heart and one way. I will make an everlasting covenant. I will put my fear in their hearts so they will not depart.

This isn’t your responsibility. Your only responsibility is to look at Christ and trust in His completed work. Your only role is to receive the gift of faith, and through faith you learn to trust in God’s love for you and works for you. Even faith is not your responsibility. The Bible says that God deals each person a measure of faith, and that the Spirit gives us more faith as a gift of the Spirit. Not refusing is your only role. But let’s go on. Look now at Jeremiah 33:9

Jeremiah 33:9 NLT

9 Then this city will bring me joy, glory, and honor before all the nations of the earth! The people of the world will see all the good I do for my people, and they will tremble with awe at the peace and prosperity I provide for them.

Being Off Course

How have we gotten so far off course in the church?

SLIDE - Being Off Course

It is the recognition of God’s goodness that causes people to fear. It’s not fear of wrath, but the overwhelming recognition of God’s goodness. The world cannot understand grace, so they fear what they don’t understand.

Praise is born in the heart that sees how much God is expressing His love toward them. You are in the ground shaking acts of God’s love, and those who see God’s work in you shall fear. Are people trembling with amazement of God’s love for the church? Or are they given the false version of worldly fear that God hates them?

When you start experiencing God’s love, that is when you are a true witness for God. But in order to experience the fullness of your life in the Spirit, you must stop thinking like someone of the flesh. The Bible promises you that if you walk in the Spirit, you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. This goes hand-in-hand with the promise that as you behold the glory of Christ, you are transformed into that same glory by the power of the Spirit working in you.

Change Your Thinker

SLIDE - Overcoming

You are already an overcomer. You are already more than a conqueror. The only thing that prevents you from walking in this is your mind stuck in the flesh. Thankfully, the Bible gives us the tools to reprogram our ways of thinking. Let’s take a moment to examine how to gain control of our thought life. Start with 2 Corinthians 10:4-5

2 Corinthians 10:4–5 NLT

4 We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. 5 We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.

Surrender

Here is our first change of thinking. You can’t defeat the flesh and negative ways of thinking by trying to force your mind under your control. It’s not human effort. It’s surrender. Your weapons against the world (including your own flesh) is not carnal. Carnal means fleshly, or by human effort. Your might is in God. He pulls down all strongholds when we trust Him enough to rest in His promises.

Every thought is taken captive by surrendering them to the obedience OF CHRIST. It’s not your obedience in charge here. Jesus’ obedience is credited to you, and when you have struggles, you simply trust them into Christ’s hands. You don’t need to worry about getting your life right. Your life is right the moment you are looking to Christ.

When a thought troubles you, let go of it and trust Christ to bring it into captivity through His work of obedience. When you find yourself overtaken by sin or a sinful habit, release it into Jesus’ hands. Put your trust in Him and claim the promise that God will cause you to walk in His ways. This is reiterated in Micah 7:19

Micah 7:19 NLT

19 Once again you will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!

This is no longer a He will. Now that the New Covenant of Christ has been established, this passage is now a He has. Not only has God cast all your sin into the depths of the sea, but you are also under the promise that God will subdue your iniquities. It’s God’s job to suppress sin in your life. It’s God’s job to subdue your thoughts. It’s God’s job to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. It’s your job to trust Him and allow God to work in you.

Fear drives people to distrust God because they expect anger and judgment, when God has promised compassion and to work for our good. The Bible speaks against fear. Instead, it instructs us to rest in His love. Consider the commands and promises of Philippians 4:6-8

Philippians 4:6–8 (NLT)

6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

SLIDE - 1: Surrender

The command is to be anxious for nothing. The next time fear or bad thoughts plague you, give thanks, surrender it in prayer, and rest in God’s promises. Then you are receiving the promise that God will guard your heart and mind through Christ.

Since God knows our minds can’t operate in a vacuum, He has told us what to set our minds on as we release the negative things to Him. Meditate on these things. Everything here is praiseworthy and good.

When you try to do this, negative thoughts will pop up again. Remember, your researcher is still working on what he thinks is important to you. It’s the things that once ruled your mind. When those thoughts pop up, remember to be anxious for nothing. It’s not a big deal. Release the new thought to Christ. When that blasphemous, lustful, angry, or envious thought pops up, just say, I think this belongs to you and give it to Jesus. Then put your mind on praiseworthy things. You can start with thanking God that this thought cannot harm you. Thank God for putting tutus on your skeletons and disarming fear.

Be anxious for nothing

Sometimes that is exactly what you may have to do.

SLIDE - 2: Be Anxious for Nothing

When a thought won’t stop troubling you, take that thought to Christ and imagine Him transforming it into something harmless. Instead of hiding in fear, take that blasphemous thought and imagine Jesus replacing everything negative with something positive. As you disarm the fear factor, your mind will stop treating these thoughts as something important and it will fade away.

Be anxious for nothing. Since God isn’t angry, you should not fret. Release to Christ and let the fear of your thoughts be disarmed. Instead of using your creativity to imagine fret and worry, use it to transform your mind by meditating on praiseworthy things.

Conclusion

Finally, let’s conclude with Romans 12:2

Romans 12:2 (NLT)

2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

There is a saying, any dead fish can float downstream. To be conformed to this world, just let yourself go.

SLIDE - Course Correction

The reprogramming of your thinker is a course correction. As the world pulls us away, we are re-centered on Christ as we renew our mind. We do this through the word, through prayer, and through meditating on the things of the Spirit.

Don’t allow yourself or anyone to condemn you, when God has declared you as free from the law and condemnation. Don’t allow your mind to be conformed to fear by listening to any teaching that denies the basic principles of what God has declared:

SLIDE - Principles God Declared:

He has sworn that He cannot be angry with you.

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There is therefore no condemnation to those in Christ.

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God is love.

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Perfect love casts out all fear.

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God suppresses sin.

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It’s the Spirit’s job to transform you.

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Hearing the word produces faith.

Transform your mind through the word.

SLIDE - Reprogram Your Thinker

Since faith comes by hearing the word of God, any message that does not draw you to trust God more is a misuse of scripture and isn’t the word of truth. Rest in Christ. Rest in assurance. Transform your mind through the word.

Reprogram Your Thinker!