captive vs. captivity

One of my greatest heartbeats and passions is watching, encouraging, coming alongside others as they choose to walk in the greater life and freedom that is only found in, and offered from, Jesus Christ. I was recently celebrating over a friend who is making choices to allow God to move, uproot lies, break bondage, and plant deep-rooted truth as HE ushers him into a better way - a Christ way, a way of greater life and freedom.

Do you want to know what happened just moments after celebrating over the changes and freedom that was beginning in my friend's life? Mr. Nasty slithers in and presses harder with what he thinks is his crafty work. I think we can sometimes forget that we have an enemy and an adversary who won't relent. Some people choose to only acknowledge him in the context of where and how one's eternity will be spent. We are not invincible folks. No matter where you fall on the line of elect versus free-will, satan is real and he's still out to take you down. This goes beyond the question of your salvation. We read Job was one of  God's faithful [seems to me he knew his eternity would be spent with the Almighty] and yet satan was allowed to have his way with Job.

The ways in which God designed marriage to be a representation of His relationship with us is driving down deeper and deeper within me as I get greater glimpses of the intimacy, covenant, love, and passion that's involved. If marriages are God's design to reflect Himself and His heart for, with, and to us, where do you think satan is going to put much of his energies? Marriage. I once heard someone say, "We live out our salvation through all the 'one another's in the Bible." Love one another. Comfort one another. Teach and admonish one another. One another = community. Community = relationship. We see Christ in one another. We reflect Christ to one another. Relationships is another targeted area for our enemy who wants to keep us bound in tangles of lies, and blind to the truths HE came to teach, reveal, and free us in.

I think C.S. Lewis did a great job presenting us with an allegory of what's going on beyond what the eye can see in his book, "The Screwtape Letters." Satan is such an instigator. He thinks he's so sneaky coming in and whispering lies to us; accusing us to one another. If he can succeed in causing division between us then he's keeping us from seeing, hearing, and experiencing more of the heart of God by keeping us from one another. The twists and perversion he throws in our words, understandings, and perceptions really angers me. Ok really, it pisses me off. We already have our own hurts, filters, and skewed perceptions due to evil in the world and the fact we're a fallen people, and then satan comes in and does what he can to smash us a little further down, keep us from truth that sets us free [in relationships, in our internal freedom, and in our intimacy with God], and detour us from salivating over and enjoying the hope and life found in the freedom that's just one head turn away - toward the blood shed on the cross.

More often than not, when I've heard reference to the scripture, "take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ," it's been used in reference to self-control, namely lust. This morning I saw my friend [choosing to take steps toward greater life and freedom] being fed whispers of lies and accusations. I saw satan begin to freak out and scramble in recognition that another child of God is choosing to no longer live in a tangled web of lies and bondage. I saw him amp up his attempts to keep my friend down. I saw my defenses rise and heard the chinking of my armor as I stood firm knowing who's side of the battle I'm on. I heard His word in a new way.


Ephesians 6 reminds us, "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." I puffed up my chest, got in satan's face and reminded him of who we are thanks to the blood shed on the cross. We are victors.

In 2 Corinthians 10 when Paul says, "We take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ," he was saying EVERY thought. Where does satan begin with us - in our thoughts. Where does he come whispering lies and distorting our perceptions - in our thoughts. Where does he begin to accuse us to one another and cause us to interpret things through a perverted filter - in our thoughts. Where does he begin to plant seeds of distrust, doubt, fear, and questioning the LIFE-GIVING words of the Lord Almighty - in our thoughts. We are to TAKE EVERY THOUGHT CAPTIVE to make it obedient to Christ. Obedient to Christ. What does that mean? Christ is incapable of lying. Thoughts obedient to Christ = lining up with what He says. His words are trustworthy and true. 

I encourage you loved ones, take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ... take your thoughts to Him and test them. Do they line up with what He says? Do they line up with HIS words? Do they line up with HIS truths of who HE is and who HE says you are? Do they line up with the work Christ has done on the cross not just for you personally, but for those in our lives? We have victory. We are already set free. We are given and shown the ways to greater life and freedom if we but stand in our armor and walk the path already paved for us through Jesus Christ. Is it an easy path? No, it will be a battle at times, but our role is to simply take every thought captive and let him proclaim truth over, in, and through it.

It's our choice. Are we going to continue to allow our enemy to divide, instigate, accuse, and lie to us keeping us in captivity and bound to the sin we were never meant to live in, or are we going to choose to take every thought captive, stand firm in our armor, and live a greater life. A life of victory. A life of freedom.

2 Corinthians 10: 3-5, "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

Ephesians 6:13-17, "Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."


I'm choosing life. I'm choosing freedom. I'm choosing to stand against satan and his whispering lies to cause division, plant seeds of distrust, and accuse you to me. I'm choosing to take every thought captive and link arms with you as we stand to fight together.  I'm choosing to walk out who HE has already proclaimed us to be - victorious warriors. I'll see you on the battlefield!