Not every thought we have is our own. The devil has the ability to place thoughts in our mind that can have great influence over our whole being if we are not careful. He wants to slip thoughts into our minds undetected so we assume they are our own thoughts. Often the thoughts the devil sends are accusing, shaming, tempting, and spiritually enslaving. These baited thoughts then lead us down a trail of thoughts that takes us deeper and deeper into darkness. The devil wants nothing more than to keep you in bondage to himself by the thoughts he places in your mind which deceive and keep you from the truth of Jesus and who you are as a child of God. We must begin to recognize these "baited thoughts" so we do not take the bait and get hooked into the devil's snare.
A couple weeks ago I went out into the city to take a picture of a construction site for another blog post. Being Saturday, there was nobody at the site when I arrived. I pulled out my camera to take a picture, but as I was getting ready to take the picture, a thought slipped into my mind... "You shouldn't take a picture. You'll get in trouble." I immediately felt shame inside and looked around to see if anyone would see me take a picture. But then in a moment of clarity, I noticed the thought had caused a shameful emotion, but logically reflected, who cares if I take a picture of some dirt? Then it hit me. I recognized it was a baited thought. The enemy placed a thought in my mind to cause shame, guilt and hesitation to keep me from doing what wasn't wrong in the first place. Further, I realized that this pattern has been with me for so many years and I never recognized it. The devil has been baiting thoughts in my mind, and I have been receiving them hook, line and sinker. This began a season of observing my thoughts and realizing more and more how many baited thoughts were thrown at me by the devil.
The devil is a master at staying hidden and placing thoughts in our minds that we normally think are our thoughts. But I want to highlight that not every thought that comes into our mind is from us, they can possibly be from the devil. There are some common themes the devil tends to use.
Some of these thoughts come in the form of accusation. The devil will place accusing thoughts in our minds, attacking us. In Job 1:-12, the devil, also known as the Accuser, comes before God to place accusations against Job; the Accuser slanders Job. Similarly, Revelation 12:10 labels the devil as an accuser; the one who accuses the people of God day and night. The devil is the master accuser. In the same way, the Accuser places thoughts in our minds to accuse us. If we succumb to those accusing thoughts without resisting the bait and taking authority over them, these accusing thoughts will have power over us. These thoughts can cause us to feel negative about ourselves, view God incorrectly and even skew our perspective of people and reality.
Other baited thoughts come in the form of temptation, as the devil is also known as the Tempter (see Genesis 3:1-5, Matthew 4:1, Revelation 12:9). Not every tempting thought is from yourself or your fallen nature; the thought can come from the devil as well. He knows you better than you know yourself and has been on the earth a long time observing humans for thousands of years. So the devil knows exactly what type of specifically tailored thought to slip into your mind to cause the most damage without you even noticing. If we do not recognize the baited thought and stop it immediately, the thought will culminate into thinking more about what the bait triggered until we can no longer resist the temptation and give into the devil.
More baited thoughts come in the form of shame. The devil is a master at orchestrating shame. In the Garden of Eden, one of the consequences of giving into the devil's temptations was the outcome of shame upon Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:7). Before shame, they were able to freely be themselves before each other and God. But after becoming shameful, they had to hide themselves from God and one another. Shame is not about guilt over a wrong action, but shame has to do with perceiving myself as the problem or that I am dirty. The devil loves to wipe shame all over people. Shame is one of the most powerful inhibitors to a human being and the devil knows this. When we have thoughts that make us feel bad about ourselves, worthless, that we are good for nothing, and unlovable or unforgivable, we should be on our guard that these are likely baited thoughts. If we take this bait and believe these lies about ourselves, we give the devil power and influence over us. And if we take the bait, we also get a hook in the mouth just like the fish in the picture above. The hook causes pain and leads to the one holding the other end of the line - the devil.
Ultimately, baited thoughts can lead to spiritual bondage and enslavement. The devil wants nothing more than to have power over you and your life. Some Christians think, "I'm a Christian, the devil cannot have power over me," but Scripture says otherwise. For example, Ephesians 4:26-27 tells us that if we allow anger to fester in our souls, then the devil will have an opportunity to gain a foothold in our lives. A foothold is the beginning of having power over your life, just like establishing a beachhead which gives an enemy ground on national soil. Ultimately, the devil wants to establish a stronghold (evidenced in Mark 3:23-37 and 2 Corinthians 10:4). A stronghold can be established if over time, we allow baited thoughts to become a routine and common occurrence without dealing with them appropriately. Eventually, these baited thoughts can cause ruts in our minds just like cars that drive in the same spot on a dirt road. The tire tracks will finally cause ruts that the wheels cannot get out of because they are so deep. Similarly, our mind can develop patterns, or ruts, because we take the bait of baited thoughts so often. These habitual thought patterns begin to develop automatic thoughts because the mind is so used to thinking them. We must begin to choose to think differently to not allow baited thoughts to form patterns or ruts.
But Jesus gives us hope. Through His blood, the power of the Holy Spirit and our God-given will, we can guard against baited thoughts. Scripture encourages us to "renew the thinking in your mind by the Spirit" (Ephesians 4:23), to "take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:5) and to "not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2). We should not allow our minds to remain neutral or allow baited thoughts to rule over us, but take an active role in the renewing our thinking by the Holy Spirit. As we read Scripture and actively partner with the Holy Spirit to resist baited thoughts, our thinking will be transformed to thoughts that align with how God wants us to think (see Philippians 4:8). We should also take these baited thoughts captive by not allowing them to settle in our minds. It is like a bird landing on your head, you just don't want it there long enough to build a nest - so give it a whack! You can choose what you think. Do not allow baited thoughts to dominate or build nests that invite more birds and more poop! Lastly, when we partner with the Holy Spirit and turn from baited thoughts to the thoughts of God in Scripture, our minds are transformed and renewed. The goal is a renewed mind in which the thoughts of God are active and dwelling.
If you recognize that the devil has really done a lot of damage with baited thoughts, I would highly recommend reading Victory of the Darkness by Neil Anderson. This book has been paramount for me and so many others who have read it. It will address baited thoughts and how knowing your identity in Christ is integral to not taking the bait. Also consider reading: Guarding Against the Devil: Shame, Guarding Against the Devil: Temptation, and Praying on the Armor of God to further equip and empower you to guard against the devil and baited thoughts.
Jesus, would you help us to recognize baited thoughts and take the appropriate action by your blood and according to Scripture to guard against devil. Amen
You are invited to share your thoughts and reflections below on the concept of baited thoughts.
No comments:
Post a Comment