Your Mind's Eye

Tonight as we get ready to pray and seek the Lord, I want us to look at a passage in Acts 14 that will serve as our main prayer point. As we continue our journey through the book of Acts in our series First Church, something very interesting pops up in this chapter.

Our passage reads, beginning in verse 1, “At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed. 2 But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3 So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. 4 The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. 5 There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. 6 But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, 7 where they continued to preach the gospel.

Now, there is a lot going on here but there are a couple of things I want us to see this evening. As Paul and Barnabas preached the Word, many Jews and Greeks (gentiles) believed in the gospel message. They chose to follow Jesus. But… there was another group of Jews who REFUSED to believe. And these guys chose to ACTIVELY refuse to believe.

What I mean by that is took moved directly against those who chose to believe. Look at verse 2… they stirred up the other gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. They created a very clear division among the people in the attempt to make it difficult on those preaching and receiving the Word of God.

I want to talk about a dangerous trend… I want to talk about something happening in our western culture that has recently become more prominent in our society… and it is something we need to be mindful of.

First, there are many concerning trends popping up largely due to the COVID 19. Our nation is fundamentally changing… and we should be on high alert.

But at the heart of these changes is the issue I want to talk about. Similar to the issue we just read about in Acts 14, this issue attacks the mind - the way we think.

This message is titled “Your Mind’s Eye.” Your mind’s eye is the mental image you have regarding something, someone, or somewhere. In a sense, it is the picture you draw in your mind based off the information you have been given regarding any given subject or topic.

I never been to Hawaii, but I have a mental picture of what it might look like. I have never been behind the wheel of a super car, but I have a mental picture of what that might be like. I have never physically seen Jesus… but I have an idea of what He might look like.

All of this is based of what I feed my mind. All of this is based of what comes into my processing and reasoning center.

Now, let’s get back to the issue of the day. All of us have this mind’s eye or the ability to formulate a mental picture. And instead of allowing your mind to work freely as God intended, instead of allowing you to create the mental image on your own… our culture is trying to paint the picture for you. People are not encouraged to think for themselves… they are instead told what they must think.

And the more this is allowed… the more we will see fundamental change come to our nation… negative change that cancels anything that disagrees with cultural trends.

Our Passage in Acts 14 shows us that this is not a new trend… but is in fact something that has been a struggle for a long time.

As the Word of God was brought to Iconium, those who refused to believe worked to poison the minds of others. Instead of allowing the people to hear and to make up their own mind… the unbelieving Jews painted a false picture in the minds of the gentiles. And what is worse… they pitted these gentiles directly AGAINST the believing Christians.

And I want us to see what the believers did in response. They mounted an uprising, began to protest in the streets, vandalized homes and offices of unbelieving Jews, and attacked anyone who did not believe like they did.

No… THEY STAYED ON MISSION. They did not allow the obstacles to distort their mental image and understanding of Jesus!!!

They Spoke Boldly the Word of the Lord

This is week number three that point number one deals with preaching the Word. What I hope is sinking in is that no matter the circumstance… we, the church of God, must remain active in the mission of God.

We must not become distracted or disheartened. The more the devil fights against us, the more bold we must become in our teaching. Why? Because if we retreat… we leave the culture subject to being told what to think instead of how to think.

Let’s consider a couple of topics for a moment. Let’s consider the topic of sex. Throughout many years of ministry I have given sermons on this topic and to my surprise, received negative feedback from believers saying, “The house of God is not the place to talk of such things.”

First off, God created sex - it is not a bad thing when a person is following God’s design.

Second, if we don’t teach a biblical understanding regarding this topic, you better believe the world will. We cannot retreat in this matter… but we need to teach what the Bible says.

Let’s consider the topic of family. Fatherless homes are now the majority but is that what God intended for His creation? No!

Children need both mom and dad, period. Mom and dad need to stay faithful to their vows, period. And even more important than that, mom and dad need to be faithful to God… FIRST!

God has given us a design for the family… it’s high time we remind the world of this design.

In both situations, minds have been poisoned regarding the Lord’s design. The enemy is real and is looking to bring destruction on as many people as he can. Now is not a day for the church to retreat… we must speak boldly the Word of God!

Our minds… our way of thinking must be centered on God. We must choose to immerse ourselves in His Word as we choose to inform others what His Word says. And ALL must be done with the help of His Spirit.

Notice verse 3 again… signs and wonders accompanied the teaching of the Word - signs and wonders that were provided by who? God and His Spirit! It wasn’t by Paul and Barnabas’s power - it was by the power of the living God!

Paul and Barnabas had their minds made up! They would not be poisoned nor would they back down. They had their minds fixed on God.

Fix Our Minds on God

How is this done? Well, first, we must CHOOSE to think about the goodness of our God.

Philippians 4:4 gives some incredible insight on the matter. It reads, “4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

First, we need to rejoice. We need not to allow the circumstances of this world to get us down or make us anxious, WE NEED TO REJOICE! We need to give God praise!

Second, we need to pray. We need to be talking to God. We need to be seeking Him more as the days become more difficult.

Third, we need to allow His peace to guard our hearts and minds. We cannot allow the disbelief of the world and culture to poison our minds distorting our mental image of Christ.

Forth, we need to think about the things and ways of the Lord. STOP letting the media and the world tell you how to think! Think on the things of God!

Fifth, put into practice the Word we have received. Live what has been taught for such will strengthen your resolve to think in the way of the Lord.

The mind is a battleground The mind is a territory the enemy wants. DON’T GIVE HIM AN INCH! Do not allow the world to poison your mind with thinking that goes against the Word of God.

Tonight… we go to war. Tonight… we take it to the enemy… with prayer. We take it to the enemy by rejoicing - by praising God. We take it to the enemy by spending time in the peace of God, by fixating our minds on the ways of God, and by living our lives by the truth of God.

And as we come to pray, there are three points to be considered tonight.

Pray for God to guard your mind and heart.

Pray for God to unlock minds and hearts that have been poisoned by the world.

Pray for God to give His people a boldness (The Holy Spirit) to preach and teach the Word of God.