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SOUNDING
OUT:
Filtering Our Thoughts
You have probably heard
the sage old advice from the familiar proverb: "Think
about what you are thinking about." Today, I’d
like to encourage you to be mindful of your minds…
to cogitate on your cogitations… to consider your
considerations… to contemplate your contemplations…
to deliberate on your deliberations… to meditate
on your meditations… to opine your opinions…
to ponder your ponderings… to recollect your recollections…
to reflect on your reflections…. There is great
benefit to consciously controlling what our minds are
being fed. Indeed God commands us to “prove all
things and holdfast that which is good (I Thessalonians
5:21).
Many people spend lots of money to purify their
drinking water, but make little effort to clean up their
thinking. We can avoid many headaches and heartaches
by simply filtering our thoughts. Even our cars come
with air filters, gas filters, and oil filters as standard
equipment. God suggests a first-rate filtering system
that is guaranteed to work for those who install and
faithfully use it.
Philippians
4:8:
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever
things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever
things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever
things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and
if there be any praise, think on these things.
Do we want our minds transformed
by God’s Word or conformed to the devil’s
world. It is our choice, not just chance.
Things the world calls trivial, God
calls tragic. Things the world presents
as fascinating, God calls fatal.
If we don’t choose to control our thinking, our
minds will be driven by the currents of the world. Instead
of being focused we will be floundering. Instead of
being concerned and convinced with the Word, we will
be confused and convulsed by the world.
Let’s look at each of these eight filters by which
we are to prove all things:
-
WHATSOEVER
THINGS ARE TRUE:
Things that are true contain no deceit, no error,
no falsehood. Jesus identified God’s Word as
truth (John 17:17). Truth is not relative. It is not
a function of our perception. Truth doesn’t
limit or confine us. Rather, it frees us (John 8:32).
- WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE HONEST:
Things that are honest are venerated for their character.
They are honorable and worthy of respect. In I Timothy
3:8, “honest” is set in contrast to those
who are double-tongued, given to wine, and greedy of
filthy lucre. What should we venerate? What should we
hold up as worthy of respect? That which is not should
be filtered out of our thinking.
- WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE JUST:
“Just” refers to things that are right or
correct, things that justice demands. Things that are
just are righteous, upright, virtuous, innocent, faultless,
and guiltless. “Just” is used of one whose
way of thinking, feeling, and acting is wholly conformed
to the will of God.
- WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE PURE:
Things that are pure are unpolluted and undefiled. They
do not contain some goodness and some evil. They are
holy and sacred altogether. This filter keeps impurity
out of our minds.
- WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE LOVELY:
Things that are lovely are acceptable and pleasing.
This is from God’s point of view, of course. This
is the only use of prosphiles (with brotherly love)
in the N.T.
- WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE OF
GOOD REPORT:
Things that are of good report are worth talking about.
They sound well or ring true when spoken. Many things
are not worthy of our time and effort to speak of them.
These things are.
- IF THERE BE ANY VIRTUE
(And there surely must be!):
This refers to excellence in people and things. It refers
to people and things with moral integrity and goodness.
That is what we should think about.
- IF THERE BE ANY PRAISE (And
there surely must be!):
All the things we just mentioned are worthy of praise.
First we need a “ready
mind” (Acts 17:11; II Corinthians 8:19; II Peter
5:2) and a “willing mind” (I Chronicles 28:19;
II Corinthians 8:12) so that we, like the men of Berea
receive the Word and search the scriptures so that we
prove all things and hold fast the good.
We are bombarded with thoughts all the time. We
can’t always stop them from coming, but we can detect
and eliminate those that are not true, honest, just, pure,
lovely, of good report, virtuous, and praiseworthy. We
do not want to incubate thoughts that should be filtered
out. They will hatch actions we will only regret.
As we are faithful to filter our thinking through
the Word of God, we will have a “right mind”
(Mark 5:15; Luke 8:35), a “sound mind” (II
Timothy 1:7), and a fervent mind (II Corinthians 7:7).
So think about what you are thinking about by taking a
“check-up from the neck up.” We seek God by
keeping Him in our thoughts (Psalms 10:4.) We can avoid
so many headaches and heartaches by simply keeping our
minds on the wonderful matchless Word of God.
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