Thinking Spiritually
. . . so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. - (Ephesians 3:10)
If you don’t know how to function in “heavenly places,” you are going to face challenges in your earthly places. Many believers are trying to “live heavenly” without living in the heavenly places.
In the heavenly places, God and Satan are at war to see who will establish the rules that govern earth. The nature of Satan’s kingdom makes it imperative that you learn to think spiritually. Why? Because if you are not thinking spiritually, you won’t be in tune with what is happening in the heavenly realms. You won’t recognize Satan’s agenda when you see it, so you won’t be able to wage victorious spiritual warfare.
Living and battling in the heavenly places means identifying with a spiritual worldview and participating in a divine frame of reference. You need to learn to put the spiritual ahead of the physical, because your real battle is against a kingdom that seeks to influence and dominate you spiritually. Satan knows that if he can get you hooked into his way of thinking spiritually, the physical will follow. He knows that if he can get to your mind, he can dictate the actions that follow. To wage victorious warfare in the heavenly places, you must set your mind on Christ and His truth.
Reflection: Based on what occupies your thoughts, what has been your first priority today? This week? Are your thoughts focused on temporary, earthly issues or on ones of eternal significance? How can you do a “priority adjustment” toward a focus on the eternally significant?
Lord, I know that my victory lies in the heavenly places. That means I need to think spiritually—from Your perspective and not my own. Give me spiritual eyes to see what You are doing and what Your strategy is for defeating the enemy’s schemes in my life. Open my heart to know when Satan is seeking to defeat me, and grant me joy as I set my mind on Jesus Christ and the pureness of His love and power.
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