“When we put our trust in Jesus as our Lord and Savior, the Bible proclaims that we have become ‘new creations’; old things have passed away and all things become new (2 Corinthians 5:17). The Holy Spirit comes to dwell in our hearts and we are changed forever. But this is not the end-all, it is just the beginning. It is the beginning of a lifelong journey of renewing our minds and becoming more and more like Jesus. The Apostle Paul exhorts us in Romans 12:2, ‘Be not conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, acceptable, and perfect will of God.’ The devil wants to shape us into people who resemble the ways and philosophies of this fallen world. God has other plans, and it all begins in our minds.
MADE IN THE IMAGE OF GOD
Scientists estimate that there are approximately 8 million animal species on the earth. Yet in all of the vastness of God’s creation, only man was made in the image of God. ‘God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Genesis 1:27). All animals are amazing creatures, but only humans have the capacity for love, mercy, justice, and compassion. Humans also can create, reason, and experience emotions. And one of the most important aspects of being an image-bearer of God is that we are capable of choosing the focus of our mind. We live in a world filled with both good and evil. And although many of our thoughts come and go unbidden, we can control many of them more than we realize. In fact, the Apostle Paul exhorts us to, ‘Take all of our thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ’ (2 Corinthians 10:5b). When obvious thoughts enter our minds, we are to grab them and ask ourselves, ‘Am I being obedient to Jesus if I continue to meditate upon these thoughts?’
MORTIFY THE FLESH
‘If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth (Colossians 3:1-2). Paul exhorts us to seek heavenly things and not earthly things. In fact, in Colossians 3:5 he tells us that we are to ‘put to death’ earthly things. He then mentions a few: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, covetousness, and idolatry. The KJV uses the term ‘mortify’ in place of ‘put to death.’ We get our English words ‘mortuary’ and ‘mortician’ from the same Latin root that gives us mortify. It’s obvious that God doesn’t want us to have a casual disposition toward sin. He wants us to kill it, to end it, to put it to death! This begins by controlling what we choose to think about.
GUARD YOUR HEART
‘Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23). King Solomon exhorts us to guard our hearts. I believe that the main gateways to the heart are our ‘eyes’ and ‘ears.’ What we ‘watch’ and what we ‘listen to’ will affect the state of our hearts, either for good or for bad. What are the issues of life? The issues of life would include our attitudes, desires, affections, pursuits, motives, emotions, and the very words we speak. Proverbs 27:19 says, ‘As in water face reveals face, so a man’s heart reveals the man.’ If you or I were to look into a perfectly calm pond or lake, we would see a perfect reflection of our face. The water would reveal who we are. If God wants to know who we really are, He looks into our hearts. Are you guarding your heart?
THE BATTLE BETWEEN THE TWO DOGS
As previously stated, when we first become a Christian, we become a new creation. However, not everything about us is new. We still carry in our mortal flesh the sin nature of Adam. Thus, we continually have two opposing forces vying for control of our will and emotions: the Holy Spirit and the flesh or sin nature. ‘The flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another so that you do not do the things that you wish (Galatians 5:17). The great Apostle Paul also experienced this internal battle described in Romans 7:18-19: ‘For I know that in me (that is in my flesh) nothing good dwells, for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do, but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.’ We can all surely relate to this ongoing struggle. I like to call it the ‘battle between the two dogs.’ How are you doing in the battle? How can we live victoriously?
THE DOG THAT WE FEED THE MOST WILL WIN THE BATTLE
As we head into a new year, there will be a plethora of things with which we can fill our minds. There will be no shortage of movies, TV shows, video games, TikTok reels, Netflix series, etc. In all of these media outlets, there will be a mixture of good and bad, wise and unwise, sinful and moral. As God’s image-bearers, we have the free will to choose what we will allow to enter our minds. The choices you make will determine the strength of your walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. ‘To be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace (Romans 8:6). When you’re sitting on your couch with the remote in your hand, will you choose ‘death’ or will you choose ‘life and peace’? Which dog will you choose to feed?
THINK ABOUT GODLY THINGS
I love Philippians 4:8. It is a practical list to challenge what we allow into our minds. ‘Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.’ The next time you’re about to make a choice concerning what you will allow to go through your eyes and ears, why not open up to Philippians 4:8 and see how your media choice lines up with obeying God’s Word?
BIBLICAL FILTERS FOR YOUR MEDIA CHOICES
If you’re serious about making media choices that are wise and God-honoring, please consider getting a copy of my booklet Biblical Filters For Your Media Choices. It is filled with sound biblical teaching that will assist you in guarding your heart with all diligence. You can find a link on my website at www.gatewaytotheheartministries.com/biblical-filter-booklet.
