Many Christians struggle with unhealthy or sinful thoughts and feelings. Like thoughts and feelings of guilt, worthlessness, anger, lust, worry etc.
The Bible tells us how to overcome destructive thoughts like these.
Cast sinful or unhealthy thoughts down and put them under subjection to Christ
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;”
How to do this:
Command the thought to go away in the Name of Jesus Christ
This is the initial casting down and subjecting the bad thought to the obedience of Christ.
As Christians we have power over sin and the Devil in the Name of Jesus. Most bad thoughts are just lies that the Devil is telling us, especially when it comes to self destructive thoughts like guilt or worthlessness.
The Devil wants to destroy us. the Bible says that he walks around like a lion looking for people to devour. ( 1 Peter 5:8) He does not want us to be joyful Christians, so he will whisper many lies into our ears to make us sad.
We do not have to suffer his torments!
We have the power in the Name of Jesus to cast down Satan’s lies and him. Just command them to leave in the name of Jesus.
John 14:12 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.”
Then pray and ask God to keep bad thoughts away.
John 16:24 “Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.“
John 14:13 “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”
1John 5:14-15 “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.”
Mark 11:24 “Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.“
James 1:6-7 “But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.”
it is God’s will for our joy to be full, so He will keep bad thoughts away, if we ask Him too, and believe that He will.
Then replace the bad thoughts with good thoughts
Here are 3 easy ways to do this:
1. Claim God’s promises:
If you are struggling with guilt:
Remember if you have repented, then God has forgiven you, and He will never mention your sin, not even on judgment day.
1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
1 Corinthians 11:31 “For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.”
Judging ourselves means that we repent of our sin before God has to judge us. Not that we punish ourselves or keep telling ourselves how bad we are. Once we repent we need to believe that God has forgiven us and then forgive ourselves, and move on with our lives serving God.
Ezekiel 18:21-22 “But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.”
1 Corinthians 6:11 “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”
Justified means: Just As If I’d Never Sinned.
If God has justified us, and He is not going to mention our sins again, we should not rebuke ourselves for them anymore either.
If you are struggling with thoughts of worthlessness:
Remember God loves you, and you are so valuable to Him that He sent His only begotten Son to die for you to save you.As Christians, God says we are his children, we are more than conquerors, and we are royalty!
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Romans 8:15 “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” Abba in Hebrew is an endearing term like “Daddy.”
Romans 8:37 “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”
Revelation 1:6 “And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”
So hold your head up and live a holy and joyful life like the priest and the king or queen God says you are.
If you are struggling with thoughts of anger:
Remember not all anger is sin, but it becomes sin if we dwell on it too long. The Bible says that we are to forgive and get rid of our anger before the sun goes down that day.
Ephesians 4:26-27 “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil.”
Furthermore, we must forgive others in order for God to forgive us.
Luke 6:35-37 “But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:”
Now, forgiveness does not equal trust. Forgiveness means you are no longer angry with the person. It means you do not hold a grudge against them. However, if the person is a danger to you or others you need to put up barriers to keep yourself and others safe from them.
Also, remember thatGod will avenge you.
Romans 12:19 “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.”
If you are struggling with immoral thoughts:
Remember we have power over sin in the Name of Jesus, and God promises to give us what we ask for according to His will. It is God’s will for us to have pure minds. Command the sinful thoughts to go away in the Name of Jesus and Pray and ask God to renew your mind and keep sinful thoughts out.
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;”
Romans 12:2 “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.”
James 1:5-8 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”
If you are struggling with worry:
Remember if you are saved God will never leave you and He cares for you. Furthermore, if you are striving to live for Him and are giving to others then He will meet your needs.
Hebrews 13:5 “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and becontent with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
Philippians 4:16-19 “For even in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity. Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account. But I have all, and abound: I am full, having received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, wellpleasing to God.But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
Luke 6:38 “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”
1 Peter 5:7 “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
2. Sing and Praise God
Listening to Christian music and singing Christian songs will help you to keep your mind on God. If you keep your mind on God, it is much harder for sinful or unhealthy thoughts to come in.
Ephesians 5:19-20 “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;”
Writing a list of your blessings will also help you to have an attitude of thankfulness.
3. Help others
Getting your mind off of yourself and helping others is a great way to keep bad thoughts away.
Romans 15:2 “Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.”
Acts 20:35 “I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.”
4. Think about good things
Actively thinking about good things will help keep bad thoughts away.
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.”
God wants us to be joyful and have pure minds. By following these steps you can achieve that.
When a person truly gets saved the Holy Spirit will keep them from doing really bad sins like murder and adultery (see post “Sins A Saved Person Cannot Fall Into”), but true Christens can still struggle with lesser sins, which the Bible refers to as besetting sins.
Hebrews 12:1 “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,”
These besetting sins can include things like:
Impatience
Having patience towards others is a command.
1 Thessalonians 5:14 “Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.”
Impatience shows a lack of love for others.
When struggling with the sin of impatience put yourself in the other persons shoes, and think of how you would want to be treated if you were them.
James 2:8 “If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:”
Also think of how patient Jesus is with you.
John 13:34 “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.”
Worry
Worrying shows a lack of faith in God.
When struggling with the sin of worrying remember worrying does not please God.
Hebrews 11:6 “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.”
RememberGod cares for you.
1 Peter 5:7 “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
RememberGod seeks your good not harm.
Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
RememberGod promises to supply your needs.
Philippians 4:19 “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
RememberGod cannot lie.
Titus 1:2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
Complaining
Complaining shows a lack of contentment.
When struggling with the sin of complaining, write down all the blessings God has given you, and then thank God for them.
1 Timothy 6:8 “And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.”
Also remember, Jesus is always with you.
Hebrews 13:5 “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
And if you humble yourself to God in hard times, He will deliver you.
1 Peter 5:6 “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:”
Apathy
Apathy is when we do not work for God like we should, and it shows a lack o care for God and for others.
Apathy is when we neglect things like praying, studying the Bible, witnessing to others etc.
The Bible commands us to:
Pray
I Timothy 2:1 “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.”
2. Study The Bible
2 Timothy 2:15 “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
3. Witness to Others
Mark 16:15 “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”
I see a lot of Christians falling into the sin of apathy right now, because they are discouraged.
The world is evil, and they have lost hope that serving God would do any good, so they are ready to give up on trying to change the world and save it.
2 Timothy 2:1-5 “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.”
Even though we are now living in the time where people will not endure sound doctrine, we are still commanded to work for God by witnessing to others, and to make full proof of our ministry.
We are to continue to work for God in these hard last days, because we love God and we want to please Him.
Plus the Church has the power to overcome the world. If all Christians were working and praying to save the world, we could save it! God says it is His will for all to be saved. 2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.“
And He says that anything we ask according to His will He will do it for us. 1 John 5:14-15 “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.”
We can save the world, but it is not going to be easy! We must continue working and praying. We cannot give up! The one sure thing that will destroy this world is the Church giving up!
When struggling with the sin of apathy, hold onto God’s promise that His Word will not return void. If you work for God long enough, someone will get saved, although you may never know it until you get to heaven.
Isaiah 55:11 “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.”
Also remember, God does not judge you on results, just on your faithfulness to do the work.
Matthew 25:23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
Now, this is not a complete list of sins that Christians struggle with, but it is some of the more common ones.
Just remember any sin hurts Christ and we do not want to hurt Him.
Our #1 Priority is to Please God.
Also, if we just focus on always doing our best to love God and others, then it will be easier to overcome these sins.
Don’t dwell on the sin, dwell on the solution for the sin.
If you dwell on not doing the sin you will become discouraged and miserable. If you dwell on the solution you will remain hopeful, which will help you get victory over it.
More Tips for Overcoming Besetting Sins:
Pray that you do not enter into temptation.
Jesus said in Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
If you ask God to help you overcome sins, He will.
Matthew 7:7 “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:”
You should also ask Him for wisdom on how to overcome your besetting sin or sins.
James 1:5-7 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.”
Take The Way Of Escape
God always give a way of escape for temptation.
1 Corinthians 10:13 “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”
If you find yourself tempted to complain, or already complaining, immediately stop, pray (ask God to forgive you if you had already sinned), and start thinking God for his blessings.
If you find yourself tempted to be impatient, or you are already being impatient, immediately stop, pray (ask God to forgive you if you had already sinned) ask God to give you peace, and then maybe excuse yourself from the situation for a while if you can. If you can’t leave the situation, ask God for wisdom on how to properly handle the situation in the moment.
If you find yourself tempted to worry or already worrying, immediately, stop, remember how God has delivered you and others in the past, and pray (ask God to forgive you if you had already sinned) asking God to give you peace, thanking Him for His former deliverances, and thanking Him that He will deliver you this time as well.
If you find yourself being tempted to be apathetic or already being apathetic stop, pray (ask God to forgive you if you had already sinned) asking God to give you strength to continue working to save the world, even if you do not see results, and peace that at least some will listen and be saved, and that it is God’s will to save the whole world, so therefore it is Possible!
We will never be completely sinless until we get to heaven, but we should always try our best to not sin, by focusing on loving God with all of our heart, soul, and mind; and loving others as Jesus loves us. This will really help to cut down on our sinning.
The Bible says in Revelation 16:15 “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.”
Your garments become dirty by sin.
Jude 1:23 “And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. “
Therefore, we are to watch for Christ’s coming by being diligent to not sin and by quickly repenting wen we do sin.
The Consequences of not watching for Christ’s Return.
Revelation 16:15 “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.”
This mean that if we are committing a sin at Christ’s return, then Jesus will expose our sin to everyone and openly judge us for it. Everyone is going to know about it, we will lose rewards, and we will be ashamed.
Now, the Bible teaches that any sins we have repented of Jesus will not judge us for, nobody will ever know about them, and we will not be ashamed.
The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 11:31 “For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.”
The Bible says in 1 John 4:17 that we can have boldness in the day of judgment.
Boldness is the exact opposite of shame.
Moreover, A true Christian cannot fall into really bad sins like adultery, murder, theft, bearing false witness against someone, drunkeness, or drug addiction, because the Holy Spirit will not allow them to fall that bad. He puts God’s love into our hearts and makes it impossible for us to commit the worst sins. Someone who falls into those kinds of sins has never been saved.
However, A true Christian is capable of falling into sins like: impatience, crankiness, apathy, worry, gossip, pride unforgiveness, selfishness, leaving their first love (no longer seeing Jesus as their Dearest Friend. Meaning they are serving Him, but they see it as more of a Master/Servant Relationship instead of truly serving Him out of love like in a Dear Friendship. Revelation 2:4), etc.
For example, if Jesus comes back and you are arguing with your spouse over something that either does not matter or you are in the wrong, then you are not going to have time to repent before judgment. Jesus is going to openly expose that sin and judge you for it, everyone is going to know that you were arguing with your spouse, you are going to lose rewards, and you are going to be openly ashamed.
Therefore, we need to be watching for Christ’s return by being diligent to not sin and by quickly repenting when we do sin, so that we are not ashamed.
Every Christian has the power through Jesus Christ to have victory over sin.
When a person receives Jesus Christ as their Savior He not only forgives them of their sins, but sets them free from the bondage of sin.
John 8:31-36 “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
We are crucified with Christ and dead to sin.
Romans 6:6-7 “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.”
Since we are dead to sin, we should not even want to sin, we should completely disdain it.
It may take some work to fully achieve this attitude, but by reminding ourselves that we hate sin, when we are tempted, we will be less likely to fall.
Don’t ever say that you like sin or that you want to do a particular sin, or you will be more likely to fall into it. Always remind yourself that since you are a Christian and dead to sin, then you hate it, and you don’t really want to do it, because it would displease God.
The Bible does say that even the thought of foolishness is sin.
Proverbs 24:9a “The thought of foolishness is sin:”
Therefore just saying that you would want to do a sin, is a sin in itself.
We are dead to sin, but alive unto God.
Romans 6:11 “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
God gives us the Holy Spirit at salvation to help us not sin.
Ephesians 1:13 “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,”
The more we allow the Holy Spirit to control us the less we will sin.
Galatians 5:16 “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.”
Ephesians 5:18 “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;” This means that we are to allow the Holy Spirit to completely control us.
If the Holy Spirit completely controls us, we will only do good things.
Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
We are no longer servants to sin, but to righteousness.
Romans 6:15-18 “What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.”
In addition, Jesus also said to watch and pray in order to avoid temptation.
Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
The Bible also says to physically avoid temptation, and take the way of escape.
Proverbs 4:14-15 “Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.”
1 Corinthians 10:13 “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”
Put God in all your thoughts.
Psalms 10:4 “The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.”
If the wicked does not have God in all of his or her thoughts then the Christian should have God in all of his or her thoughts.
If God is in all your thoughts then you will not fall when tempted.
James 1:13-14 “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.”
When you are drawn away from God like that, then God is no longer in all your thoughts.
If you keep God in all your thoughts then the devil will still try to tempt you, but you will not fall, because you will not be drawn away to fall.
Then the Devil will flee from you.
James 4:7 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
How to keep God in all your thoughts.
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.”
Only think on these good things, and this will keep God in all your thoughts.
Surround yourself with good things.
Listen to a lot of Gospel music
Study the Bible and pray every morning and night
Go to a good KJV Bible teaching church
hang out with mature Christian friends
Doing these things will help you to have victory over sin.
Because we have a sin nature, we can never reach sinless perfection until we get to heaven, but we can get to the point where we never intentionally sin. This is what the Bible means when in says that Job was perfect in Job 1:1, and this is called being a mature Christian today.
