The Power of Thought

The kinds of thoughts we think are very important. We might say that our thoughts are the essence of our life, of who we are. Thoughts are either good or bad. We have the power to choose to think good thoughts, or bad thoughts. This is important because thoughts precede our words and actions. We make choices, and tend to say or do what we think about (Matthew 12:34). Put another way, our actions are based upon and proceed from our thoughts. Good thoughts lead to good actions. Wrong thoughts lead to wrong actions. Thoughts really do have power.

Some carry this idea way too far, dabbling in fringe areas of philosophy, mysticism, and the paranormal, thinking the mind has powers like psychokinesis, telepathy, etc. But such "powers," where they seem to appear, are really nothing more than the tricks of demonism. Demons are fallen angels who followed Lucifer—now Satan the Devil—and rebelled against God, and their thoughts are deceitful and corrupt.

Some who believe in evolution think we are gradually evolving mental powers. Some think the power of the mind is “part of the creative power of the universe” and that we can create something simply by “repeating the same thought over and over.” Thankfully, God did not enable fleshly human beings with that power. We can only imagine the results if we did.

Just as a small child needs guidance, humans need divine guidance to understand what is truly good and what is not. Sadly, since the beginning of human existence, humanity has wanted to decide for itself what is good and what is evil. The Creator told Adam and Eve not to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:15–17). But, they thought they knew better. So, they decided to rebel against the command of God, just as Satan and his demons had done, and mankind has been suffering ever since. The fruit of mankind’s thinking is violence and wars, rapes and murders, theft and cheating, lies and oppression, drunkenness and debauchery, and a long list of other negatives.

The problem with man’s thinking is that our thoughts come from our heart, meaning our inner being—the “who” that we really are. Jesus Christ said in Mark 7:21–23, “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.” There is our real “selfie” picture, and it is not a pretty picture, is it?

We don’t like to think of ourselves like that. When we catch a glimpse of ourselves in a mirror or candid photograph, we may be disturbed to see ourselves as seen by others. “Ew! I look (fill in the blank: e.g., fat, old, wrinkled, etc.)!” We discover that we have been deceiving ourselves. As stated in Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?”

God knows the problem. “The Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are futile” (Psalm 94:11). God knows the solution is to change our hearts so our thoughts can be changed.

In Romans 1, we learn that the evidence of God is clearly visible. Deep down, everybody knows God exists, but being stubborn and rebellious, we reject God, just like a toddler often rejects father's and mother's warnings, and our foolish hearts are darkened. That has been mankind’s problem since the beginning. Mankind needs a changed heart and mind so we can think right thoughts! “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts” (Isaiah 55:7) and “Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established” (Proverbs 16:3).

Two articles in Tomorrow’s World magazine may be of interest to you: “Mind Your Mind!” and “Play God or Obey God?”