When Jesus was deep in the wilderness, and Satan came to tempt Him, the Lord answered each temptation by talking back with Scripture:
Then the tempter approached him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:3-4).
Satan was defeated with the “sword” in Jesus’ mouth.
Given the Lord’s example, early Christians developed the practice of talking back to temptations by quoting Scripture.
We think of our thoughts in secular terms as a matter of psychology, brain chemistry, and developing habits of positive thinking.
Early Christians understood their thought life in terms of engaging in a spiritual battle against “the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens” (Ephesians 6:12) and other mental “strongholds” that resisted Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). Satan is still attacking the mind; hence Peter said, “Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour” (1 Peter 5:8). The answer to Satan’s prowling is sober-mindedness.
When unwanted and unworthy thoughts torment you, don’t entertain them, ignore them, or even try to wrestle with them, but talk back to them with Scripture. In other words, replace the tempting thought with the absolute truth of Scripture.
For example, you might struggle with insecurity. Here’s how you can talk back to those lying thoughts.
1. “No one loves me.”
“For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
2. “I’m not important to anyone.”
“Consider the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they?” (Matthew 6:26)
3. “No one notices me. I feel invisible.”
“Aren’t five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. Indeed, the hairs of your head are all counted. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows” (Luke 12:6-7).
4. “People will reject me when they find out what I’m really like.”
“Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out” (John 6:37).
5. “Everyone is better than me.”
Let each person examine his own work, and then he can take pride in himself alone, and not compare himself with someone else (Galatians 6:4).
6. “Things may be good now, but I feel like something bad is just around the corner.”
For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).
7. “If I’ve achieved anything, it was just luck.”
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, who does not change like shifting shadows (James 1:17).
Send your questions or comments to shawn@freegrace.in.
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