Imaginations
Pastor Jerry Wilhite,
author
Now understand Jesus said the prince of this world, the ruler of the world and the flesh, was and is Satan.
John 14
30. Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.
Satan uses all the tools of this world to tempt us to follow after him and not God. He is so subtle that most never realize they are following Satan.
Matthew 13
22. He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.
Having things is a balancing act; you can have things as long as the things do not have you. For many people lust grows and most if not all cannot control lust while they are of the world. That is why we are told to be in the world but not of the world. Lust does not mean just sex; it can mean money, things, power, etc. Even pastors, priests, etc can lust and not realize they do. That is one reason power should not be given to religion but be found only in Christ.
Realizing that Satan had power to invade and control his thoughts Paul wrote:
2 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 to cast down any imagination that exalts itself against the knowledge of God before trying to take our thoughts into captivity. Notice Paul did not say cast down ALL imaginations, just those that do not line up with God. There are good and evil imaginations. Good imaginations are those that deal with God, being with God, walking as Jesus did with God, etc. Evil imaginations are those where we have a flash of an imagination, such as a person cutting us off on the freeway and we then imagine doing something to the person or putting fear into them. If we dwell on this imagination we may do something stupid like chase the person or worse.
Imaginations range from sex to power, money to things, all of which under the control of God are good, but if not under His control they are destructive.
So we cast down the evil imaginations and then we start taking every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. An imagination is an intrusion into our mind if it is from Satan, and it is insight if it is from the Lord. The intrusion could be something small or something huge. Examples:
Small
A bird is sitting on a fence singing its heart out to the morning sunshine. You see it and a thought to throw a rock at it intrudes your mind. That imagination is of Satan; cast it down.
Huge
You are paying the monthly bills and the thought intrudes that if you or your spouse died accidentally the family would be well off from the insurance settlement. That is a satanic imagination that must be cast down.
You can take an imagination and dwell on it and make it part of your thoughts; if it is not of God you must cast it down so it will not. If it is of God, keep it and make it part of you and be obedient.
God will give you imaginations that line up with Christ. Examples:
You see the bird singing in the morning sunshine and you start to think about the next life when you will be able to sing like a bird and even fly like a bird soaring high in the clouds experiencing everything God has created. This is an imagination that is worthy of being a full-fledged thought.
You are paying the bills and you start to thank the Lord that there is always enough to cover them with some left over to enjoy every month. You realize how blessed your family is and praise God that you are all alive, well fed, housed and clothed. That imagination is from the God and should become a regular thought.
Imaginations spawn ideas and thoughts that can destroy you if they are from Satan and improve your life if they are from God.
If you start dwelling on throwing rocks at innocent creatures you might start doing it. That could lead to worse things like torturing them or even moving up to comitting atrocities on other people.
An imagination from God regarding finances will not lead to getting wealth from a loved one’s death. It would be more along the lines of receiving a harvest from another source, or a creative, lucrative idea that you could turn into a money making opportunity that would be a blessing for your family as well as others.
Remember Christ is God; God is a Spirit (John 4:23-24) and being of Christ is to be anointed with God, in, on, and through us.
Mark 8
36. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
There is nothing of this world that is worth losing eternity with God and suffering eternal torment. But some still can only see the here and now and not the day after.
Matthew 13
38. The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
It is your choice to be of the good seed or of the tares. You have to choose, but to do so does not mean attending a church of this world once or twice a week, but walking with God 24/7. Remember it must start with hearing from God and casting down evil imaginations. That does not mean keeping good imaginations as this world defines goodness, but only those of God.
Mark 10
18. And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.
One of the worst things Satan did was pervert the words we use so they have little or no real meaning to us any more. The word "good" is derived from "God". Long ago people revered God so much that they did not even say the word flippantly. Now it is tossed around and used in conjunction with curses as if it were normal. Satan is good at what he does.
John 15
18. If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
19. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.