Good question, right?
Ann was wrestling with some thoughts last night and shared what she learned about them with me this morning.
Can I enter God’s rest by continuing in my own thoughts about this or that? Am I really surrendering these thoughts to Him, to His plan for me if I continue to think about this or that and how I want them to work out? Is mulling things over and over keeping me from His rest?
Am I responding to God – to His Word, to the Holy Spirit – with disobedience or obedience? If you’re rebellious, you’ll probably be angry about the Word and respond with a legalistic thought towards it. If you’re not rebellious, the Word will be easy to entreat and you’ll desire the benefit from doing the Word.
“Lord, help me to take thoughts captive so I can stop being tormented with this (these) painful, defeating, oppressive thought.”
God, I don’t want to be loose about some things in my life, in my thought life. I want to be finally free in those areas of my life and thoughts so I can experience Your times of refreshment in those things.
Not taking thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ is being disobedient.
A rebellious heart will respond to the command to take every thought captive in a defensive way thinking it’s legalism. An obedient heart will respond with, “Oh, yeah, You’re right Lord. Thank You for reminding me that I can and must take every thought captive.”
Ann was taking some fiery dart thoughts…She could even be imagining nice ideas. She said, “God, please help me with these thoughts” when God told her, “To obey is better than sacrifice” meaning she could still be having some nice thoughts (imagining how things could be) but that she was still not taking those thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ.
Obedience to God, to His Word, will lead us into freedom and deliverance. Disobedience is sin and sin is always bondage. The church is so deceived today throwing “legalism” around so it can stay in sin and suffer in its bondage.
In everything give thanks and all things work together are right. Pray without ceasing is right, too. It reminds me of the Bible story in Luke 18:1-8 where the woman who kept going to the judge was right. Lord, show me how to walk all of these out.
22 And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.
24 And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.
1 Samuel 15:22-24
When I obey God’s Word, when He points something out to me that corrects what I’m doing in order to set me more free, I feel a release in my spirit and mind. Truly, it is better to be obedient to His Word.
Thank You, Lord, for setting me more and more free.
God bless,
Ann
Note: While we may not agree with everything a particular church or Christian group teaches or believes, there are times when we can be blessed by something outside the realm of our current understanding of God.