Part 1: The Battle for Your Mind

Intro

Thank you!

Painting by Byron Pickering

Bear with me. :D

What’s this sermon?

How would we live… if Scripture is true?

If Jesus showed up right here, would anything change?

Then are we living like this isn’t for real?

I won’t answer this question in this sermon.

We won’t have time.

I don’t wanna hit too many points at once.

You’ll be lucky to remember 1 of them, haha.

But we’ll get there eventually!

Why this sermon?

You will never pour 100% of yourself into something you don’t 100% believe in.

God is calling us to a life of adventure. To sail the seas and slay the dragon. How well will you do if you don’t believe in water? How well will you do if you don’t believe in dragons?

How well do you think Noah would have done in the flood if he waited for it to rain before deciding to build the ark?

If he said “yeah God, I believe you,” but didn’t act?

Obviously he didn’t actually believe it!

The difference between Jesus being your religion and Jesus being your reality is immense.

Faith is not keeping food with you because you hope it might be useful. Faith is eating it because you know you need it. Faith is making something a part of you instead of keeping it around you.

The Problem

Is Jesus our reality? Do we live:

Like we are held accountable by God.

Revelation 20:

11 Then I saw a great white throne and the one who sits on it. Earth and heaven fled from his presence and were seen no more.

I use GNTD US for sharing; it’s colloquial (not everyone grew up in church w/ “lest”) like original Bibles. I use LEB + interlinear for study.

Side effect: pronouns are not capitalized, but neither were they in the original holy scriptures.

12 And I saw the dead, great and small alike, standing before the throne. Books were opened, and then another book was opened, the book of the living. The dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books.

Like we can have a relationship with a living God.

Revelation 3

20 Listen! I stand at the door and knock; if any hear my voice and open the door, I will come into their house and eat with them, and they will eat with me.

Matthew 23

37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times I wanted to put my arms around all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me!

Matthew 18

20 “For where two or three come together in my name, I am there with them.”

1 Corinthians 3

16 Surely you know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you!

Ezekiel 16 is great for the relationship aspect of faith.

Like there is a spiritual war trying to keep us from that.

Ephesians 6

10 Finally, build up your strength in union with the Lord and by means of his mighty power.

11 Put on all the armor that God gives you, so that you will be able to stand up against the Devil's evil tricks.

12 For we are not fighting against human beings but against the wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers of this dark age.

13 So put on God's armor now! Then when the evil day comes, you will be able to resist the enemy's attacks; and after fighting to the end, you will still hold your ground.

14 So stand ready, with truth as a belt tight around your waist, with righteousness as your breastplate,

Why do you need armor? Because you’ll be attacked!

Specifically, notice the belt of truth is first.

Are we living like Scripture is true?

Or are we living like it might be?

Maybe Jesus is right...

But… Maybe Darwin is right…

Can we actually know?

Yes. We. Can. (Obama-kun)

A few years ago I started this journey.

Romans 1

20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,

I thought, “If this is true…!”

So how can we know?

We’ll get to that in another message

What’s causing the problem?

Why is it that we aren’t 100% in?

Doubts.

When we don’t feel confident we’re right.

Deceit.

When we feel confident we’re right… but we aren’t.

This is what this sermon will be about.

(don’t name specific doubts (aliens, whatever), don’t want to plant seeds that aren’t ready to be handled).

Doubt and deceit can be caused in many ways.

Ignorance.

When we hear there might be more but we ignore it.

Bitterness.

When a bad experience pushes us from the truth.

Social pressure.

Sometimes we feel it’s not ok to question something.

Etc.

Doubt is like being stuck in a crashing sea.

James 1

6.5 Whoever doubts is like a wave in the sea that is driven and blown about by the wind.

(great stuff in James, we’re not there yet though)

We are all on a journey, in our little boat.

Bad drawing is secret teacher’s trick

Your boat is your reality.

It’s what you have control over.

The waves, currents, and wind are like outside influences.

From people and spirits and angels--or even circumstances--that push the direction of your life in one way or another.

Doubt is like being pulled in every direction by the world, by the crashing sea.

You don’t know which way to go. There are so many voices around you, but you don’t know which one is the right one.

Deception is like being in a crashing sea but you believe that it’s normal.

You either silenced your doubts or the deception was so good you didn’t have any.

Like being at sea so long the storm becomes a part of life. Eventually, you do get used to the seasickness.

It becomes your new normal. Something doesn’t feel right, but it’s not enough to take action.

Or you have a cozy ship & don’t feel the waves.

In either case, you’re left in a world without peace, where the water isn’t still. You’re being pulled in different directions by God’s truth and the world’s lies.

Just like 2 currents in conflict cause a wave, or 2 weather fronts in conflict cause a storm, the reality you live in is in turmoil as God’s truth and worldly deception come into conflict with each other.

But is that the way it should be?

What does God want for us?

Galatians 5

22 But the Spirit produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23 humility, and self-control. There is no law against such things as these.

Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I have everything I need.

2 He lets me rest in fields of green grass and leads me to quiet pools of fresh water.

3 He gives me new strength. He guides me in the right paths, as he has promised.

4 Even if I go through the deepest darkness, I will not be afraid, Lord, for you are with me. Your shepherd's rod and staff protect me.

NKJV Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.

3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

God wants you to find still waters… even in the middle of crashing waves.

However, there is a conflict for our minds.

The false reality Satan has created vs God’s reality.

What do you mean, the false reality Satan created?

Who owns the kingdoms of this world?

Matthew 4

8 Then the Devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their greatness.

9 “All this I will give you,” the Devil said, “if you kneel down and worship me.”

John 12

27 “Now my heart is troubled—and what shall I say? Shall I say, ‘Father, do not let this hour come upon me’? But that is why I came—so that I might go through this hour of suffering.

28 Father, bring glory to your name!” Then a voice spoke from heaven, “I have brought glory to it, and I will do so again.”

29 The crowd standing there heard the voice, and some of them said it was thunder, while others said, “An angel spoke to him!”

30 But Jesus said to them, “It was not for my sake that this voice spoke, but for yours.

31 Now is the time for this world to be judged; now the ruler of this world will be overthrown.

Jesus Himself mentions “the ruler of this world” 3 times.

Revelation 12

7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, who fought back with his angels;

8 but the dragon was defeated, and he and his angels were not allowed to stay in heaven any longer.

9 The huge dragon was thrown out—that ancient serpent, named the Devil, or Satan, that deceived the whole world. He was thrown down to earth, and all his angels with him.

Ephesians 2

1 In the past you were spiritually dead because of your disobedience and sins.

2 At that time you followed the world's evil way; you obeyed the ruler of the spiritual powers in space, the spirit who now controls the people who disobey God.

1 John 5

19 We know that we belong to God even though the whole world is under the rule of the Evil One.

20 We know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we know the true God. We live in union with the true God—in union with his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and this is eternal life.

21 My children, keep yourselves safe from false gods!

2 Corinthians 4

4 They do not believe, because their minds have been kept in the dark by the evil god of this world. He keeps them from seeing the light shining on them, the light that comes from the Good News about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.

5 For it is not ourselves that we preach; we preach Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake.

6 The God who said, “Out of darkness the light shall shine!” is the same God who made his light shine in our hearts, to bring us the knowledge of God's glory shining in the face of Christ.

There is a war for your soul!

So who owns the kingdoms of this world?

Satan.

So who owns our worldly media, news, education, etc.?

Satan.

So who gave us our first reality/worldview? Satan.

Ephesians 2

1 In the past you were spiritually dead because of your disobedience and sins.

2 At that time you followed the world's evil way; you obeyed the ruler of the spiritual powers in space, the spirit who now controls the people who disobey God.

So who gave us our original view of God? Satan.

So of course we are bound to face doubts.

The question isn’t if, but what do we do when.

Sometimes Christians, not lost people, ironically, get stuck on this: if Satan owns the kingdoms of this world, how come good media exists?

Satan owns the kingdoms of this world.

God’s truth is not of this world.

John 18

36 Jesus said, “My kingdom does not belong to this world; if my kingdom belonged to this world, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish authorities. No, my kingdom does not belong here!”

37 So Pilate asked him, “Are you a king, then?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. I was born and came into the world for this one purpose, to speak about the truth. Whoever belongs to the truth listens to me.”

So the world can have good things in it, but they are from God, not from the world.

Some also get hung up on this point, because it sounds defeatist. But understand: Satan owns the kingdoms of this world… but God owns the world.

Psalm 50

9 And yet I do not need bulls from your farms or goats from your flocks;

10 all the animals in the forest are mine and the cattle on thousands of hills.

11 All the wild birds are mine and all living things in the fields.

12 “If I were hungry, I would not ask you for food, for the world and everything in it is mine.

Satan owns the waves, winds, and currents of this world… but God owns the air and the water.

And remember: Satan owns the kingdoms of this world. If you are a follower of Jesus, you are not of this world.

1 John 4

4 But you belong to God, my children, and have defeated the false prophets, because the Spirit who is in you is more powerful than the spirit in those who belong to the world.

There is a battle for your mind. A battle to keep you from truth.

And until you overcome the wind and waves, you cannot live with confidence in Jesus.

If Jesus showed up right now, would anything change?

We will never pour 100% of ourselves into something we don’t believe 100% in.

God wants you to be free from crashing waves.

But first: you need to be vulnerable with yourself and with each other about the waves hitting you.

Next time, we’ll talk about:

If we really can know the truth.

How to know the truth.

I’ll say now, it’s a journey, sometimes a long one, and it’s not easy. But that’s a good thing, and you’ll understand why.

If you were hoping we would cover all that today, I’m sorry.

If you were hoping you would leave feeling really comfortable where you are, I’m sorry.

But if you left comfortable, you wouldn’t chew on this.

This topic is important!

My challenge:

Ask God this week:

Do I have any doubts?

Do I really believe with all my heart in you?

If you appeared tonight, would my worldview change?

Are you willing to silence the noise?

If Satan owns your world, are you willing to shut Him up for a while and get to know God?

If I have doubts, am I willing to put the effort out to work through them?

Pray this with me:

God, do I have doubts?

I surrender my doubts to you.

I will do what it takes to know You.

Please give me the wisdom to.

Please silence the voice of Satan in my life.

If you meant even a little what you just prayed… Get ready for an awesome adventure!