Jeremiah lived in tumultuous times — times of the making and breaking of kings and kingdoms. He began his ministry during Josiah’s sweeping reformation that turned the nation toward repentance from widespread idolatry; yet, Jeremiah continued to prophesy under the reigns of Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah who led the nation back into spiritual rebellion and pagan practices. Jeremiah was called to be God’s spokesman during a period of storm and stress when the doom of entire nations was being sealed. Not only did the smaller states of western Asia suffer as pawns in the power plays of such imperial giants as Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon but also these powerful empires were experiencing reorientation and restructuring so far-reaching that it was almost is if the nations had been tossed into a container, thoroughly shaken, and then spilled out again in a totally new array and order. Nothing was to look the same at the end of Jeremiah’s ministry as it did before he began to prophesy. History had brought the nations to the point that they were no longer able to get by with a “spank on the hand” — they were to be totally reshuffled and reinvented. During his watch, Jeremiah was to experience the kings of Israel being positioned and then removed from their position by the pharaohs of Egypt. He watched as the nation’s rulers were taken captive and tortured by the Babylonian invaders. He witnessed the rape of Jerusalem and the razing of the temple. Additionally, he experienced the crumbling of the Assyrian Empire, the stripping of Egypt’s power and glory, and the rise to power of the Babylonians. Amidst this chaos, turmoil, and upheaval among the nations, God demanded that the prophet speak destiny to the nations and their kings.
See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant. (Jeremiah 1:10)
In our own personal lives, there come times when we need to go through this same kind of radical renovation where our old ideas and actions are not just altered — they need to be obliterated and replaced with new, living thoughts and deeds.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (II Corinthians 5:17)
Root out
Let’s look at each of the verbs in Jeremiah’s mandate so that we can see how they can — and must — be applied to our own lives. First, he was directed to “root out” — a term that signifies dealing with things at their very source. Unlike most of us, God is not satisfied with dealing with symptoms; He wants to get to the root cause of the problem. We humans can spend years of effort and millions of dollars trying to eradicate problems like human trafficking, drug smuggling, and arms dealing — but God knows that the problem doesn’t lie in the illegal and inhumane activities. He knows that the root is the greedy nature of man. “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (I Timothy 6:10) As long as men remain in love with money, every form of evil will continue to flourish in the world. It is only when Jesus is allowed into the hearts of the individuals who deal in human trade, drug marketing, and arms movements that the root cause will be eradicated and change will occur.
In II Samuel 12:1-6, we read how Nathan, the counselor to King David, craftily got to the root issue of evil in the leadership of the nation. He presented a hypothetical scenario for the king to judge. When David pronounced that the man who had stolen the supposed lamb should die for his crime, Nathan pointed to the king and announced that he was the sinner whose wrongdoing had inspired the story. David wanted to deal with symptoms, but the prophet bypassed the distractions to attack the evil root. When David composed Psalm chapter fifty-one as his repentance prayer for this crime, he acknowledged that his true sin was against God — not Bathsheba or Uriah. He realized that what happened in his physical life was only the fruit of the spiritual root of the problem — his loss of relationship with the Lord.
When God led the Israelites into the Promised Land, He directed that all the former inhabitants be totally eradicated to prevent them from becoming a “root that beareth gall and wormwood.” (Deuteronomy 29:18) The people, in and of themselves, were not necessarily a problem. In fact, we see several occasions — most notably Rahab, who actually became part of the royal lineage — who were profitably allowed to remain in the land as the Israelites took possession. However, the paganism that was so inbred into their mentality, lifestyle, and customs was detrimental to the people of God. The people themselves were only a symptom, but their idolatry was a root that had to be eliminated.
Job 5:3 speaks of foolishness as being a root. Hebrews 12:15 tells us that bitterness can also be a root. Certainly, we can deal with the actions that result from our foolishness or our bitterness, but if the root remains, we will only find more fruit popping up time and time again. That’s the reason that Matthew 3:10 proclaims that the axe must be laid unto the root of the trees so that every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit will be cut down and cast into the fire. The Lord isn’t willing that we simply pluck off bad fruit; He wants the very root source of the corrupt fruit dealt with. Notice something significant in the story of the fig tree that Jesus cursed — the tree withered up from its roots. (Mark 11:20) The tree didn’t simply wither — it withered from its very source. This was what the Apostle Jude would call “twice dead.” (verse 12) From the same verse, we can understand that there is a level of death in which we stop producing fruit. This is the kind of death that Abraham and Sarah had experienced when they became too old to bear children. (Romans 4:19) They were very much alive; however, they were defined as dead because they could not produce offspring. Jude takes us a step further when he says that there is the possibility of being twice dead — not only unable to have fruit, but totally devoid of life. He describes this state as being plucked up by the roots. God wants that to be the case in our lives. He wants the roots of foolishness, bitterness, greed, and whatever else leads to bad fruit to be dealt with. He isn’t interested in having us simply stop producing the fruit. He wants us to have the very potential of that error removed and destroyed.
Pull Down
The prophet’s next directive is to pull down — a term that can be associated with the biblical teaching of pulling down strongholds.
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. (II Corinthians 10:3-5)
For many years when I read this passage, I thought that the things that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God were ideas such as atheism that says there is no God or Hinduism that says that Vishnu, Krishna, Ganesh, or any one of the other millions of their deities is God, or Buddhism that claims Gautama to be divine, or even New Age that tells us that we all are gods. Then one day, the Holy Spirit prompted me to realize that even though I rejected all these pagan beliefs I still harbored thoughts that exalted themselves against God. When I questioned Him as to how it was possible that I could possibly have such thoughts, He probed me as to what I know about God. I responded that He is Jehovah Rapha, the God who heals all my diseases. The Holy Spirit then quickened to me the realization that any time I thought that my healing was in the medicine cabinet, a doctor’s office, or a hospital that I was actually entertaining a thought that was exalting itself against what I really knew about God. He then asked me what else I knew about God. This time, I answered that I knew Him to be Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides all my needs according to His riches in glory. Again He challenged me that every time I thought that my provision was in a bank loan, a higher credit card limit, working extra hours, or asking the boss for a raise that I was again entertaining thoughts that exalted themselves against the true knowledge of God. By the time that this little soul-searching session had taken me through several more truths about the Lord, I began to understand what this passage is really saying. It is a truth that can and must be applied to every area of our lives. Our weapons are strong enough to destroy the arguments against the knowledge of God. There are many areas of truth that we should know about God; however, for some reason, we don’t comprehend and live in them. Why? Because there is an idea that has gotten into our heads that keeps the true knowledge of God from getting inside of us. We know that God exists, but we fail to attain a complete knowledge of who God is and what He does.
God is Jehovah Tsidkenu, which means that He is the God of our righteousness. The day that Jesus came into our lives, His righteousness came into us. However, the devil will come to each and every one of us with accusations to combat any awareness we have of this righteousness. If we open ourselves to these accusations, just like David’s stone found that tiny eyehole in Goliath’ armor, the devil will aim for this vulnerable spot. If that lie penetrates into our minds and we agree with it, the enemy begins to build a stronghold against the knowledge of God’s righteousness within us.
God is also Jehovah Rapha — the God who heals all of our diseases — but the devil wants to plant lies inside us saying that our ailment is either too big for God to heal or too insignificant for Him to notice. The truth is that God is just as willing to heal the little aches and pains as He is to heal major diseases. He is just as able to heal the most dreaded plague as He is to cure a minor ailment.
We can go through all the redemptive names and qualities of God to learn what we should be thinking about God. Any time we allow thoughts contrary to these truths into our hearts, we have permitted the enemy to use his deceit to begin a stronghold in our minds.
When we look at our spiritual armor as described in Ephesians 6:14-16, notice the extremely significant relationship that keeps occurring. It always comes back to our mind, our voice, and our spirit man — these are the areas where the devil wants to exert his authority: in our minds, our thinking, and our hearing and speaking.
We have a girdle of truth because truth works in the area of the mind and voice. Our feet are prepared with the gospel of peace; “gospel” also means “good news,” and it relates to our minds and voices. Our shield is one of faith that comes by hearing of the Word (Romans 10:17); faith works in the area of our voice when we speak the word of faith (Romans 10:8). Our offensive stance is taken in prayer and relates to our mind, voice, and spirit. The sword that the apostle admonishes us to take hold of is the Word of God, but not just a general word. The Greek term used here is rhema, which means the specific word on a topic — not logos, which means the general concept behind the topic. When Jesus taught us about the word that was sown in the fields with uncertain results — some was eaten by ravens, some was choked out by thorns, some was scorched by the sun, and only part was productive — He used the term logos. (Mark 4:14) However, when the term rhema is used, the context is always in reference to the word that does not return until it accomplishes the purpose unto which it was sent. (Matthew 4:4, Luke 5:5, John 6:63, John 6:68, John 8:47, John 15:7, Romans 10:8, Romans 10:17, Ephesians 5:26, Ephesians 6:17) Using the rhema word means that we have specific words that are individually tailor-made for each unique situation we face. In our spiritual warfare, we arm ourselves with the specific Word of God specialized for the individual confrontations we meet and we have an invincible weapon that ensures us unquestionable victory.
Until David took the city of Jerusalem, it had never been captured. When Joshua came into the Promised Land, he defeated the king of Jerusalem, but the city itself was never taken. (Joshua 10:23-24, 15:63) The Jebusites boasted that Jerusalem was so secure that its guards were the blind and the lame men. (II Samuel 5:6) Its natural position made it virtually invincible; therefore, it was unnecessary to position the able-bodied soldiers there. These strong warriors were used elsewhere while the rejects defended the city. The city actually defended itself since it was built on the top of high cliffs with deep ravines surrounding it. When an attack would come, all these handicapped soldiers had to do was simply to push boulders over the edge of the cliff upon the approaching forces — they did not need to be marksmen or skilled warriors.
David outfoxed the Jebusites by sending some men up the water duct to take the city from the inside. After David took the city, Jerusalem then became his stronghold. From the city of Jerusalem, we learn a lesson concerning strongholds: their power is in their natural position; we don’t have to have a strong warrior inside a stronghold to be able to protect it because the stronghold itself is its own protection. The devil doesn’t have to be strong. If he is able to fill our minds and hearts with lame ideas and blind assumptions, he can easily defend the strongholds of our lives.
A number of years ago, a contestant in a beauty contest knew that she was going to lose to one of the other entries, so she decided to resort to dubious means to defeat her. Her tactic to get the girl out of the competition was to curse her by telling her that every time she looked in the mirror, she would see how ugly she was. The curse worked, and the front-runner dropped out of the competition. In fact, she totally dropped out of life and spent the rest of her life as a recluse in her house. She spent all of her fortune on beauty products and cosmetic surgeries. No matter how many people tried to convince her that she was still a gorgeous lady, she never overcame the lie that had was planted in her mind during that pageant. It was a lame idea, but it took root in the stronghold of her mind and destroyed her future and life.
One of the unique characteristics of strongholds is that they are positioned so that in the event of an attack, enemies would actually bring destruction upon themselves. In Sri Lanka, I have climbed to the top of Sigiriya, the spectacular “Lion Rock” fortress on top a gigantic rock whose sheer walls rise about twelve hundred feet above its lush green jungle surroundings. This fortress, built in AD 473, was surrounded by huge slabs of stone that were triggered with rope mechanisms so that an avalanche of destruction would instantly engulf any intruding army. In Israel, I was able to climb the equally impressive fortress of Masada that was built by King Herod. This encampment poised atop the thirteen-hundred-foot precipice became the last bastion of the Jewish people against the Roman invasion. When the legion laid siege to the fortress in AD 72, the Romans realized that the only way to take the stronghold was to build a circumvallation wall to allow them to approach the plateau. They forced Jewish slaves to haul in the thousands of tons of stones and earth that it took to build the ramp because the attackers knew that the Jews in the fortress would not kill their national brethren. Otherwise, the Jews holed-up in the fortress would have pummeled their attackers to death with their arsenal of rocks. From my vantage point perched atop Sigiriya or Masada, thinking of the sheer insanity of launching an attack against either of these strongholds, I began to gain a perspective of how well defensible our position in Christ can and should be if we only renew our minds to become strongholds of truth rather than citadels for the enemy’s blind assumptions and lame ideas.
Destroy
Next God mandated Jeremiah to destroy — to totally eradicate — the undesirable qualities of the nations into which he was to prophesy. It is amazing that God never settles for mediocrity when He deals with sinfulness. He repeatedly used the term, “utterly destroy” in referring to the way His people are to deal with sin and sinfulness. (Leviticus 26:44; Numbers 21:2; Deuteronomy 7:2, 12:2, 20:17; Joshua 11:20; Judges 21:11; I Samuel 15:3, 15:9, 15:18; I Kings 9:21; II Chronicles 20:23; Isaiah 11:15; Jeremiah 12:17, 25:9, 50:21, 50:26, 51:3; Daniel 11:44; Amos 9:8). To utterly destroy something means to smash it into so many pieces that there is no possibility that it could ever be reassembled. It is His intent that all who are offensive to His rule are to be literally ground to powder. (Matthew 21:44, Luke 20:18) Once the root is pulled up, it must be crushed so that there is no possibility that there is enough life left in it to ever take root again. Jesus executed this kind of judgment against the devil in His resurrection, and He expects us to continue to demonstrate that same devastation against all the works of the enemy in our own lives.
And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. (Colossians 2:15)
Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. (II Corinthians 2:14)
Throw down
The throw down implies an even stronger and more forceful or deliberate act of aggression that pulling down. For instance, in Revelation 12:10 we hear the announcement of a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” Satan has been kicked out of heaven since time immemorial and has been stripped of his power and authority since the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ; however, this prophetic moment speaks of a final dashing of Satan’s personage in which all his activity is brought to an end. The promise of the scripture is that all the evil influences of the devil and his demonic forces are to be thrown down to “ground zero” under the feet of Jesus. (I Corinthians 15:25-27, Ephesians 1:22, Hebrews 2:8) But more importantly, these diabolic forces are to be under our feet as well.
Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. (Luke 10:19)
And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. (Romans 16:20)
Now we can see a fuller dimension of the statement in II Corinthians 10:5, “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” We are not to simply arrest such thoughts, but we are to actually totally disable them and subjugate them under our authority, stomping them under our feet!
Build up
Next, Jeremiah is commanded to build up — a positive step after all the destructive actions he has been directed to take. This is a very important transition to go through if we expect to see true reformation. Simply destroying the evil in our lives or in the world we are called to minster to isn’t sufficient. We must follow up with restoration. Jesus told us a story that powerfully illustrates this truth.
When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation. (Matthew 12:43-45)
When the evil spirit came back, he found the house clean. Apparently, this gentleman had done a good job of following all of Jeremiah’s mandates so far. However, there wasn’t anything in the house to fill the void left when all the evil had been rooted up, pulled down, destroyed, and thrown down. Since the man’s house was vacant, the devil simply saw the “vacancy” sign as an invitation to take up residency again — only this time he brought in some companions to help him stake his claim even more definitively.
Second Timothy 1:7 tells us, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” He takes away one thing — fear — and in its place, He gives us three things: power, love, and a sound mind. We often spend so much of our spiritual energy fighting the devil to get rid of one negative factor that we overlook our need to receive from God the fullness of His provision — provisions that bring us more and more into the full image of our Lord Jesus. I want to share some simple truths about our warfare against Satan and relate them to some meatier truths about our relationship to God.
We are in a spiritual warfare.
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. (Ephesians 6:12)
Daniel 10:12-14 tells about Daniel’s twenty-one day waiting period while there was a spiritual battle going on between the angels of God and the demons of hell. Luke 11:18-23 tells us about the encounter of the kingdom of Beelzebub and the kingdom of heaven and describes it as a great spiritual struggle or scrimmage. Jesus says that there is a strong man who is armed and guarding his palace when a stronger one — God — comes in to overcome him, take away the strong man’s armor, and divide the spoil. Jesus said, He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth. (Luke 11: 23) There is a spiritual struggle going on, and we are part of it. John 10:10 tells us emphatically that there are two sides. One is the thief who wants to kill, steal, and destroy; the other is Jesus who wants to give us life and life more abundantly. We are either on the winning side that is building, or we are on the side that is scattering and destroying.
We have to have two prongs of action when we move into spiritual warfare. The first is that we have to fight the devil. James 4:7 tells us that we have to resist the devil so that he will flee. But this verse is not an isolated phrase. If we look at it, we will notice that there are conditions that come right before it and right after it. The verse before it says to submit ourselves unto God. The verse after it says to draw near to God and He will draw near to us. We need to note that the battle with the enemy is sandwiched between two commitments to God — our betrothal to the Lord.
For the LORD will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your reward. (Isaiah 52:12b)
And thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy reward” (Isaiah 58:8b.)
When we are walking with the Lord, He is walking in front and He is walking behind. We have to come into that relationship with God. We have to draw nigh to the Lord and let Him draw nigh to us. First, we have to submit to God; second, we have to draw near to Him. It is only between those two close relationships with God that we are able to resist the devil. It is not enough to fight the devil and get him out, the Bible says we also have to fill ourselves with the Lord.
In Luke 11:24-26, Jesus retells a parable about a man who was demon possessed. After the demon was cast out of the man, it came back again and found the man’s house, or his soulical man, swept and garnished. When the demon returned, he brought seven more evil spirits with him. These new intruders were even more evil than the original one, and the end of that man was worse than before. The gentleman who became the host for these demonic forces did not know how to protect himself from being repossessed. We must submit to God and draw nigh to God; then we are able to resist the devil. When we have resisted the devil and pushed him out, we must be sure to put God in that place. In other words, we must have God in the front, God behind, and God in the middle.
Scripture says that the demon came back and found the man’s house swept and garnished. Garnish actually has no functional value to a structure except that it makes it look pretty. Restaurants usually put some little pretty things on the plates to dress them up. The garnish may not be edible, and it may have no functional value to the meal prepared for us, but it is put on the plate just to make it look good. In this parable, the man kicked the devil out and he placed things in his life to make it look good, but they weren’t of functional value. The man’s problem was that he had nice religious decorations, but they had no function. Paul commands us not to do things for show as men pleasers or as eye service, but to do things out of a true heart that serves God (Colossians 3:22, Ephesians 6:6). First Samuel 16:7 says, “Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.” Man will look on the outside to see how garnished we are, but God looks on the inside and sees how we are functioning. First Corinthians demonstrates that even though we may have the outward garnish of the gifts of the Spirit, without the inward stability of the fruit of the Spirit, we are nothing.
Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. (I Corinthians 13:1-3)
We may have a lot of spiritual-looking stuff on the outside, but it is the Word of God and our stability on the inside that makes the difference. If we submit ourselves to God, draw nigh to Him, resist the devil, and fill the void with God, then we will have victory.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. (II Timothy 1:7)
What is that fear? A Readers Digest study indicated that man’s greatest fear is being alone, followed by going broke and speaking in public. Whatever that fear is, we have to recognize it, remove it, and in its place put the godly qualities of love, power, and a sound mind. Franklin Delano Roosevelt said in his first inaugural address, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Many times, people are severely affected by fear of what may happen. Fear of the potential that something might happen can paralyze us more than the actual event. Some people live in fear of death. All their lifelong, they are afraid that they are going to die. Death may only take an instant, but the fear can rob them of years of enjoyment. Many people live in fear of getting sick and worry themselves sick in the meantime. Many people fear things that will never happen; thus, they waste their lives and much of their energy. Usually fear of an event is worse than the event itself. We all remember going to the dentist as a child — or even as an adult. We sit nervously in the waiting room with our palms sweating. When we see the dentist, the actual treatment in the chair is not nearly as bad as sitting in the waiting room waiting for our turn.
The Apostle John was certainly correct when he told us in I John 4:18 that fear has torment. It hurts you more to take a shot when you are afraid of the needle than it does when you are not! You tense up your muscles, making it harder for the needle to go in. Pushing that needle into the tense arm of a fearful person does more damage and hurts more than if the person is able to relax.
Fear is what we might call faith in the devil. A fearful person believes that evil things are going to happen. A person full of faith believes that good things are going to happen. The nature of faith is defined in Hebrews.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)
But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Hebrews 11: 6)
The nature of fear is definable by looking at the reverse of these verses. “Now, fear is the substance of things dreaded and the evidence of things unknown. But without fear, it is impossible to please the devil, for he that runs from the devil must believe that he is powerful and that he is the destroyer of them that get caught by him.”
Fear is believing that the devil is going to get us. The Greek word for “fear” used in II Timothy 1:7 means “fearful or timid in terms of faithless.” God has not given us a spirit of faithlessness. With proper understanding of what fear is, we can easily see that it is not related to God at all. However, many Christians often walk in fear and live in worry. This happens because they have simply garnished their lives or they have tried to resist the devil without submitting their lives to God or drawing near to Him.
There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. (I John 4:18)
What does John mean by not being made perfect in love? He tells us that God is love and we can dwell in Him; therefore, we can dwell in love. We dwell in God, and God dwells in us. Notice that the teaching he gives on fear is sandwiched between a longer teaching on love and the Godward relationships. It is important for us to understand that we have to be drawn into love and that perfect love will drive out all fear.
Instead of fear, God has given us a spirit of power to replace the void that is left when fear goes out. We usually associate the power of God with the Holy Spirit and with the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:8)
How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. (Acts 10:38)
Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. (Romans 15:13)
And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. (I Corinthians 2:4)
Power without love and a sound mind is dangerous. Just think of the times we have seen power demonstrated without love or a sound mind — for instance, Adolf Hitler. He certainly did not have a sound mind, and for sure he didn’t have love. What he did have was power; but without love or a sound mind, it was destructive power.
God has given us a spirit of love to fill the void that is left behind when fear goes out. Love is associated with the nature of God. First John 4:16 says that God is love. First Corinthians 13:4-6 and Galatians 5:22-23 describe love. But love without power and a sound mind is merely sympathy. We feel sorry for someone but do not know what to do to help him. We find ourselves lacking a sound mind and we have no ability. If we see a man lying on the side of the road with a broken arm, all our sympathy will not accomplish one thing in the man’s life unless it is accompanied by knowledge to put on a splint and the ability to act. We have loved him; but we don’t know how to fix him, and we cannot meet his need. Or, maybe we know how to fix him, but we don’t have the necessary equipment to put a splint on him. Just loving him does not accomplish much. It is when we have love, power, and a sound mind — all three of them working together — that we can minister to him.
A sound mind is the mind of Christ.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 2:5)
For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:16)
A sound mind is a renewed mind.
And be renewed in the spirit of your mind. (Ephesians 4:23)
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Romans 12:2)
The Greek word for “sound mind” means “rational as in the knowledge of knowing rather than the knowledge of any specific thing.” It implies wisdom. The sound mind is not one that specializes in a single topic, but one with a rational understanding about all of knowledge. It implies wisdom and direction with the result of knowing how to move forward. Jesus called for this kind of rational mind from His disciples.
For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace. (Luke 14:28-32)
A sound mind can only be obtained when the spirit is in control.
For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:6-8)
However, a sound mind without love and power can be useless. We can know what to do, but have neither the means nor power to do it or the motivation (the love) to do it. James 2:15-16 gives an example of seeing someone else in need of food and clothing. The believer immediately analyzes the problem and figures out the solution, but he isn’t motivated nor is he able to help. He has the sound mind. He sees someone who is hungry, and he reasons in his logical mind, “This man is hungry, he needs food.” He tells the man, “Be blessed. Be warmed and fed,” but he doesn’t have the motivation and the love to really do something for the man nor does he have the power and the ability to actually provide anything for him. When he walks away, what good has he done?
Power and love without a sound mind is foolishness. One zealous young man I knew gave away all his clothes except for one pair of jeans because he was motivated by love. He had the power to do it, but he didn’t have a sound mind. He was a musician, and he was supposed to play the next night at an important meeting, but all he had to wear was a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. He was supposed to represent Jesus to a room full of businessmen, but he walked in wearing a dirty pair of jeans. They hadn’t been washed because he didn’t have anything else to put on so he could take them to the laundromat. He had the power to give away his clothes. He had the love to give away his clothes, but he didn’t have a sound mind. It brought ridicule to his stand of faith, and he knew it by the way the businessmen looked at him. Power and a sound mind are nothing, as we have seen in I Corinthians chapter thirteen. Love and a sound mind without power are failure. We can love a person who is sick, and we can have the sound mind to know that man needs healing; however, if we don’t have power to lay hands on him, we accomplish nothing. We end up saying to that person, “I’m so sorry that you are sick, and I know that you need to be healed; but unfortunately, I don’t have anything to give you.” So the guy walks away still sick and may even die of that sickness. We can have power without love and a sound mind, and it is useless. We can have love without a sound mind and power, and it is useless. We can have a sound mind without power and love, and it is useless.
God says that there are three things with which we must be filled: power, love, and a sound mind. When we are renewing ourselves in our mind with a sound mind, it has to be accompanied with power—Holy Ghost power. It has to be accompanied with love—God’s nature in us. God has given us all three, not just one or two. Until we have all three of these divine characteristics operative in our lives, we will not reach our full measure of the stature of Christ.
Plant
The final stage of the reformation process is labeled as planting — causing something positive to grow in the place where the negative thing once flourished. Notice the words that the Lord later spoke to Jeremiah and their parallel in Isaiah, promising not to stop the process halfway through. God intends to see that whenever He removes a negative, there is a positive result that thrives in its place
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast. And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them, to pluck up, and to break down, and to throw down, and to destroy, and to afflict; so will I watch over them, to build, and to plant, saith the LORD. (Jeremiah 31:27-28)
And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in. (Isaiah 58:11-12)
In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul directed the believers that they not walk in the vanity of their minds as the Gentiles do. (verse 4:17) Of course, it is easy to immediately define vanity as “emptiness” and go on — totally missing what this verse really has to say. To really catch on to what Paul was trying to communicate, we need to review the book of Ecclesiastes where Solomon defined exactly what vanity entails. In verse 1:14, he concluded that all the works or accomplishments that have been done under the sun are vanity. In verse 2:1, he summarized pleasure and entertainment as vanity. In verse 2:11, he concluded that all forms of employment are nothing more than vanity. Intelligence and education find their way to the vanity list in verse 2:15. Verse 2:17 embraced all of life as vanity. Being in a position of management or authority is also vanity according to verse 2:19. Being in a position to leave behind a legacy or inheritance is also vanity according to 2:21. Verse 2:23 adds diligence and a strong work ethic to the list. Living a moral life falls into the vanity category in verse 2:26. Being human as opposed to simply being a product of evolution still leaves us in the vanity category according to verse 3:19. Verse 4:4 tells us that “keeping up with the Jones” is also vanity. Struggling to make it “up the corporate ladder” falls in the vanity category in verse 4:7. Actually making it to that lonely place “at the top” is also vanity according to verse 4:8. Verse 4:16 describes even the “Rocky syndrome” of the underdog making unexpected achievements as vanity. Verse 5:10 pulls fiscal security into the discussion of vanity. Verse 6:2 amplifies this truth by adding that — even when it is obvious that wealth is a blessing from God — it can be fleeting and, therefore, vanity. Even long life and a prominent family do not ensure that one’s life doesn’t end as vanity according to verse 6:4. Verse 6:9 adds desire to the vanity list. Verse 7:6 adds a fool’s comments. The iniquities between good man and evil men fall on the vanity list in verse 7:15. Verse 8:10 tells us that the things that are forgotten as soon as our obituaries are written are nothing but vanity. The fact that just men seem to get the rewards of the unjust and vice versa is obviously vanity according to verse 8:14. Verse 9:9 says that even a happy home can belie the underlying vanity of the relationship. Verse 11:8 adds that even a long life can be only a camouflage for vanity under the surface. Youthfulness makes the list in verse 11:10. And the concluding summation is that everything is vanity is found in verse 12:8.
Well, that leaves us with essentially “no stone unturned.” Business, industry, finance, education, politics, religion, entertainment, family — every area of human interest and endeavor is included as being vanity. Thus, it becomes obvious that the Apostle Paul wasn’t saying that the gentiles don’t have anything in their brains; rather, he was trying to tell us that the things that they occupy their minds with have no substance. Even if their plans and schemes move nations, transfer fortunes, and change the course of history, they are still vanity in God’s sight. In that case, what is it that must be planted so that our minds as believers will not be focused on such vanity? Paul answered this question by sharing his own testimony in Philippians chapter three.
Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ. (verses 3:3-8)
In this passage, Paul gives us a pretty impressive list of accomplishments and pedigrees that would certainly qualify as the “stuff” of success in almost every dimension of life. Yet, he says that all these things are essentially dung — vanity, if you prefer a little more polite description — to him. The one thing that he says is worthy of his consideration is “the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord.” The truth is that the New Testament abounds with confirmations of the fact that the knowledge of God is the essence of the Christian life. (Romans 1:28, 10:2, 11:33; I Corinthians 15:34; II Corinthians 2:14, 4:6, 10:5; Ephesians 1:17, 3:4, 4:13; Colossians 1:10, 3:10; II Peter 1:2, 1:3, 1:8, 2:20, 3:18) It is the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that must be planted in us to take the place of the vanity that will otherwise fill the thoughts of our minds and hearts. (Ephesians 3:17 Colossians 1:23, 2:7)
But does this mean that we must always go about thinking about God and Jesus like monks cloistered away from the rest of the world in a monastery somewhere? No — a thousand times no! Jesus prayed that we would be able to remain in the world while not being part of it. (John 17:15) We must find a place of balance where we can continue to live in and have an influence upon all the dimensions of society — yet not be sucked into the vacuum of their emptiness. The key is to realize that Christ is the true essence of every aspect of life — business, industry, finance, education, politics, religion, entertainment, family, and every other element of life. (I Corinthians 8:6, Ephesians 1:10, Colossians 3:11) The exquisite “Christ hymn” of Colossians 1:14-20 expresses this truth with such grandeur:
In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
In essence, the Jeremiah mission is not accomplished in our lives until we are able to look at every aspect of our lives and see Christ in it. Is there a dimension of Christ in each business deal that we arrange? Is there an aspect of Christ in every political move we make? Is the authority of Christ evident in our homes? Is Christ lord over how we spend our leisure time? Is Christ exalted in our religious activities? Is Christ the center of all we put our hands and hearts to? If not, then there is still something that needs the radical transformation of Jeremiah’s ministry of rooting out, pulling down, destroying, throwing down, building, and planting.