The Closed Mind
What’s On Your Mind: Discover the power of Biblical Thinking • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 32:26
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Notes
Transcript
Review
Review
Turn to 1 Timothy 4:1-3.
Last week we shifted our focus in our study and looked at what the Old Testament says about guarding our hearts - our inner man.
We sought to answer two questions:
What happens when we don’t guard our hearts?
It begins with a complacent mind
It proceeds with a careless mind
It worsens with a contaminated mind
Thinking biblically is work.
Thinking biblically requires intention. As a Christian, you cannot afford to have an “I don’t care” attitude about your mind.
How do we guard something that is abstract/unseen?
Solomon regularly cautioned his son to listen to his words. That was the key to guarding his heart. Likewise, thinking biblically requires saturating your mind with the Scriptures - the words of your Heavenly Father.
Message
Message
Christian, you don’t want a contaminated mind. Rather, you need a closed mind - a mind that is on guard against any influence that would contaminate your thinking. Tonight we are going to identify several types of influences that you, as a Christian, must guard against:
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A closed mind guards against heretical deception - 1 Timothy 4:1.
Perhaps you are tempted to think that you would never be deceived by false doctrine, but reality is, that could happen to any one of us.
Read 1 Timothy 4:1.
When is the “latter times”? Maybe we think, “Oh, well, that’s us, that’s 21st century America, that’s our time.” And that’s true, but it’s broader than that. The Bible wasn’t written just to 21st century Americans. The apostles thought that they were in the latter times, too.
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Acts 2:17 (KJV 1900)
And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
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1 Peter 1:20 (KJV 1900)
Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,
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Hebrews 1:1–2 (KJV 1900)
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
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Jude 17–18 (KJV 1900)
But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; how that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts.
So the apostles were in the latter days, but more specifically, the context suggests that these terms refer to the time after the apostles, when their apostolic leadership ceased and when local churches would be lead by pastors and deacons.
So yes, we are a part of the latter times, and as such, we must always guard our hearts against heretical deception.
Deception is one of Satan’s greatest weapons. He loves to take what God has said, blend it with just the right amount of error, and then package it as still being from God.
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And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Dr. Goetsch said,
“The devil’s best work is done by those who claim to know God.” - What’s On Your Mind, Dr. John Goetsch, page 74
There’s a lot of people running around in America today who claim to know God. They claim to speak on his behalf. They say, “here’s what God says!” Or, “Here’s what the Bible says!” And they will take a verse or two out of the Bible and make it say anything they want it to. They will make it fit their agenda.
Application: Christian, if our culture likes what they are saying, then they are of the world and not of God! If what they are saying is popular, then chances are, they are of this culture and not of God.
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They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
The unsaved Jews did not like when Christ spoke the truth; don’t expect our unsaved world to like His truth any more today. This is just one of the ways that John tells us how to discern truth from error. Guard your heart against heretical deception and test what you hear by what your Heavenly Father has already written.
A closed mind guards against heretical deception. Secondly,
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A closed mind guards against hypocritical demands - 1 Timothy 4:2-3.
Read 1 Timothy 4:1-3.
Paul warned Timothy that even professing Christians would themselves decide to walk away from Christ. They would be lead away by lies in contradiction to God’s Word. The false teachers would claim to speak on God’s behalf and make demands about how the Christians should live. Paul gives some specific examples that were being taught in their day.
1 Timothy 4:3 “Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats…”
I remind you that abstinence from food and drink was some of the very practices that the Colossians were being taught by the Judaizers. Paul addressed this in Colossians 2:16.
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Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
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The Colossians were being exposed to hypocritical demands. Paul told Timothy to watch out for it also.
There are many influences and influencers in our world. Are we sometimes exposed to hypocritical demands today? Are people still claiming to speak for God and yet getting up and preaching their opinions or ideas?
No one, no leader, is immune from this committing this error - including preachers. Anyone, regardless of their labels, can be guilty of making demands of others that God has not made.
Read slowly:
“We must guard our minds against any teaching that makes demands not found in God’s Word.” - What’s On Your Mind, Dr. John Goetsch, page 77
That’s what the Pharisees were known for, and that’s what we need to guard against in our church family.
Application: Church family, beware of any teaching and preaching that makes demands beyond what God has said. Search the Scriptures! When you hear something being taught as from God, go search the Scriptures!
The Bible does tell us to set standards - set boundaries - in our lives, and I will teach on that, but don’t get tripped up in your mind trying to follow someone else’s demands. God has already set His standard and His name is Jesus! Go be like Him! If you want to talk about a high standard, there He is! But beware anyone that makes demands of you that reach beyond the demands of God’s Word. Be on guard against hypocritical demands.
I recently read an article by another Baptist pastor. He was writing on a different subject, but he made a statement that perfectly describes the mindset we should have when we study the Scriptures and personal standards:
In my experience, there are two different responses from Christians at this point. I should say rather that this teaching exposes two different kinds of Christians. The first kind is Christians who search the Bible to see precisely what God allows so that they may live right up to the edge of that which is permissible. Their approach can be summed up with the immortal question, "But what's wrong with…?" Anything not ruled out is thus fair game.
The second type of Christian responds to the exact same scenarios with an entirely different question: "But what is right with…?" Such Christians do not want to know what God will let them get away with; instead, their heartbeat is to discover what God wants and give it to Him. After all, when you love someone, you do not seek to establish how much you can get away with. No, your goal is to ascertain their slightest wish so that you can grant it to them as an expression of your love. - Tom Brennan
Guard your mind against man’s hypocritical demands. Instead, be conscious of your accountability to God and seek to express your love to Him as much as you possibly can.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Church family, think biblically. Make sure that you have a closed mind - one that is on guard against heretical deception and against hypocritical demands. Study the Scriptures for yourself. Keep your guard up. Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.