RENEWING THE MIND

THROUGH THE WORD

by
Bill Basansky
BEST SELLER A STUDY ON THE RENEWING OF
YOUR MIND BOOK III OF A THREE-PART SERIES (over
70,000 in print)

Contents
Chapter I
Inferiority Complex
Chapter II
Inability To Concentrate
Chapter III
The Spirit Of Condemnation
Chapter IV
Obsessed With Prejudice
Chapter V
Compulsion to Perfection
Chapter VI
N arrow-Mindedness
Chapter VII
More Symptoms of the Unrenewed Mind
Chapter VIII
Controlling Your Mind
Chapter IX
The Will, the Intellect, and Emotions
Chapter X
Pulling Down Strongholds

I
Inferiority Complex
It is my desire to challenge and awaken every
Christian to ask himself this question, "Is my mind renewed
in the Word of God?"
I am not asking you whether you are Spirit filled, but I
am asking you, "Is your mind renewed in the Word?"
Do you have any symptoms of an unrenewed mind?
I am going to discuss (in this booklet) several
symptoms of the unrenewed mind in a Christian. As you
study these symptoms and learn how to resolve them in
your Christian walk, you will live a more victorious life.
Jesus has promised every believer a victorious life who
recognizes undesirable symptoms in his life, humbles
himself before God and asks to be made free.
To be a mature Christian it is very important for an
individual to understand and recognize symptoms of an
unrenewed mind. Having recognized undesirable
symptoms in your life you must RENOUNCE them and
not fellowship with them. (Don't give in to them.) Then
renew your mind by CONFESSING what the Word of God
says you are in Christ Jesus. I Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore if
any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed
away; behold, all things are become new," and 5:21, "For he hath
made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made

the righteousness of God in him."

The first symptom on an unrenewed Christian mind
that we will discuss, is the inferiority complex, or a feeling
of unworthiness.
Many Christians say, "Well, I don't FEEL WORTHY,
and I am AFRAID."
If you are a born again Christian, redeemed by the
blood of Jesus, and being made the righteousness of God,
then fear, unworthiness, and an inferiority complex
should no longer be a part of your Christian life. The
Word says that fear does not come from God. "For God hath
not given you the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a

II Timothy 1:7.
If you have fear to make decisions and step out for
God, then, you have an inferiority complex, which is a
symptom of an unrenewed mind.
To say, "Well, I don't think I could do that, I don't
know how," or "I am embarrassed," does not mean that
you are not saved or Spirit filled. It does mean that your
mind needs to be renewed with the Word of God.
I can understand how you feel when you say, "I can't
do it," but I cannot agree with you, for the Word says that
we can do ALL THINGS through Christ who strengthens
us.
So when your mind tells you to say, "I can't," or "I'm
not worthy," that is the moment you should say out loud,
"I CAN DO ALL THINGS ...," then you will possess
sound mind"

exactly what you say.

The Bible says that Jesus is loved, by the Father
equally, with you and me. "I in them, and thou in me, that they
may be made perfect in one and that the world may know that thou hast

loved them, as thou bast loved me (John

17:23). God the Father loves you as much as He loves
Jesus. And if God loves you as much as He loves Jesus,
then the power that He gave to Jesus, He also gave to you.
Jesus could raise the dead and so can you. That's right,
YOU! Because the Bible says,
sent me, and hast

"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" (John 14:12).

We should not take this statement lightly, but believe

the Word and then practice DOING and CONFESSING
what God said we can do, for God does not lie. Numbers
23:19: "For God is not a man that He should lie ..."

II
Inability To Concentrate
Another symptom of the unrenewed mind is the inability
to concentrate. Are you unable to read the Word of God
without falling asleep?
Please understand, this is not a sign that you are not
saved. However, it is a sign that your mind needs to be
dealt with by the Word of God.
You say, "I can't stay awake."
How many times have you desired to read the Word?
You plan to take a shower, or a bath, turn your night light
on, go to bed and read your Bible. You had very good
intentions to do that. But what happens when you get into
bed?
You really meant to "study and show thyself approved unto
God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the

(II Timothy 2:15). The first thing you knew,

you woke up in the night, or the next morning, and to
your surprise you found your Bible on the floor. All of a
sudden, when you started to read your Bible, a sleep that
you could not control came upon you. You just had to go
to sleep.
Have you had that problem? Do you know what I'm
talking about?
If you do have the problem, then you need to renew
your mind through the Word of God.
word of truth"

You see, I know these things because I have

experienced them also. I am trying to tell you that when
you start to read your Bible, "... then cometh the devil, and taketh
away the word out of their hearts" (Luke 8:12). The devil will use
every trick that he knows to take the Word out of your
heart and keep you from receiving the truth.
He will succeed unless you learn how to come against
him.
You are going to have to say, "Devil, I know you. I take
authority over you! I command you in the Name of Jesus,
to depart from me."
You have to command (say) to your mind and your
thoughts to "stay awake, be alert and attentive to the
Word."
I know it's real! It works for me, and it will work for
you, too, if you understand what to do about it. When you
take authority over Satan, and you command him to leave
in the name of Jesus, he has to go and your mind will be at
peace.
"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee:
because he trusteth in thee" (Isaiah 26:3).

III
The Spirit Of Condemnation
When you as a Christianeven a Spirit filled
Christian
recognize some of the symptoms of an unrenewed
mind, you should not run away from them or be
condemned by them. You need to come and ask Jesus to
deliver you and cleanse you with His blood. The Bible
says in Romans 8:1, "There is therefore now no condemnation to
them which are in Christ Jesus..." If you are a child of God, don't
listen to the condemnation.
Condemnation is another symptom of the unrenewed
mind.
How can a Christian know if it is God talking to him,
or if it is the devil condemning him?
Does God condemn? Of course not!
First of allwe read in the above scripture, "there is now
no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus." If you are a born
again believer, then you have the wisdom of Christ Jesus in
you, and you will know that it is not God condemning
you. It is the other spirit that we call the devil. God does
not condemn.
If you do something wrong, don't run away from God.
Run to God. The Spirit of God will gently show you that
you were wrong, and He will lead you to repentance. You

will then know that it was wrong and there is now no

condemnation, because you repent, and God says that
you are forgiven. You are washed in the blood of Jesus
Christ. That's the difference. The Spirit of God does not
condemn you. He points out the things wrong in your life,
but He brings no condemnation with it.
The spirit of the devil brings condemnation, loneliness,
oppression and rejection in your mind. The way to be free
from the attack of the devil is to know who you are in Christ
and what authority He has delegated to you.
You are to resist all temptations and symptoms with
the Word of God, regardless of how you feel or what you
see, and the devil will depart from you, just like he
departed from Jesus.
However, if you allow the devil to tempt and rule you,
he'll come around and put you under condemnation
because he likes to see people tormented.
Remember, the Word says in Isaiah 26:3, "Thou wilt keep
him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in

God said He will keep us in perfect peace, whose

mind is upon the Lord. God trusts you and you are going
to have to trust Him.
How are you going to keep your mind on the Lord?
I will use this as an example. You know how a
computer works. A computer is fed with information and
you have to put the proper key into the computer in order
to receive the proper answer. If you put the wrong key into
thee."

the computer you won't get the right answer.

Nowlet's say that same computer is in your mind.
What is going to happen when you wake up in the
morning and look at your wife (or husband) and say, "Oh,
no!" Or you look out the window and say, "Oh, no, it's
going to rain again!"
When you wake up in the morning and the first thing
to come out of your mouth is a negative statement or
condemnation, what do you suppose is going to happen
all day to you and those with whom you come into
contact?
You have set the wheel of your mind in motion with
condemnation. When you get up with a sour face, what do
you think is going to happen to every person you see?
The same thing is going to happen to them. They may
have a smile on their face, but when they look at you their
smile drops, too, because your spirit of condemnation and
heaviness is infecting them.
If a person were to come into your room and that
person had a big cigar; if he lit that cigar and took just one
puff you would smell the cigar smoke, wouldn't you? You
would especially notice the smell more strongly if you do
not smoke.
The same thing happens when an evil spirit is being
released from a person. It is just like that smoke, it spreads
throughout and attacks those who have joy.
You are going to have to realize, in a family especially,

that when you get up in the morning, you must put a

smile on your face, whether you feel like it or not. You
smile, not because you feel it. You smile because He is worthy.
When you do this, you have renewed your mind; you
have programmed the Word into yourself, as a computer,
and out comes the joy of the Lord. Condemnation or
anything that is not of joy will be rejected by your
computer, and now you are walking around spreading
joy to other people because the Spirit of the Lord is
working in you.

IV
Obsessed With Prejudice
B e i n g "Obsessed With Prejudice " is one of the
symptoms of an unrenewed mind. You would be
surprised at how many Christians are obsessed with
prejudice.
I am not necessarily speaking of racial prejudice,
although it could well be.
May I give you the definition of the word "prejudice?"
The dictionary says that "prejudice" is a "preconceived
and unreasonable idea, judgment, or opinion; intolerance,
suspicion,
malice; skillfully trying to look for an
opportunity to find things wrong about a person, and
make him feel lesser than you are." That is a prejudiced
person.
How many times have you walked into a supermarket
and found yourself wanting to go around to a different
aisle? You didn't want to go through a particular cash
register line, because you didn't like the 'checker' who was
standing there.
Have you gone to a store, or perhaps a bank, and you
don't like the teller, or the clerk? Have you ever seen a
person coming down the street, and you would turn
around and walk a block out of your way so you wouldn't
have to meet him? He hasn't done anything wrong to you

especially but there's just something about him that you

don't like.
If that is the case, then you need to renew your mind,
because that is "prejudice" and judgment.
We are so quick to judge other people, and to
pronounce our judgments. Then we feel miserable! The
Bible says in John 5:22, "For the Father judgeth no man, but hath
committed all judgment unto the Son:" If God the Father does not
judge you, what right do you have to judge another
person?
If we try to take the authority away from our Lord Jesus
Christ and judge other people, our judgment is not just.
No wonder so many Christians are miserable.
How many times have you seen people in different
denominations condemn other denominations by their
words and their deeds?
They are "Obsessed With Prejudice." Their minds are
not renewed. Romans 2:1 says this, "Therefore thou are
inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou
judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doeth the
same things" And Romans 14:4
judgest another man's servant..."

tells us this,

"Who art thou that

You see, we have no authority to judge anyone. The

only authority that we have is to pray one for another, and
to love one another.
"A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as
I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men
know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another" (John

13:3435).

What is He telling us?

He says for us to love one another and if we love one
another, then all men will know that we are disciples of
Jesus.
Can you see why so many Christians are miserable?
It is because they are taking the position of a judge,
and not as son or daughter. They know in their spirit that
they do not have that authority, thus bringing
condemnation upon themselves.
Christian friend, if you are "Obsessed With Prejudice,"
you need to RENEW YOUR MIND WITH THE WORD.

V
Compulsion to Perfection
Another symptom area of the unrenewed mind that
causes many Christians to suffer is the "abnormal
compulsion to perfection."
They expect an unreasonable amount of perfection in
themselves but they are never able to achieve it. They also
expect perfection of everyone around them, or those who
work with them, and because they do not find perfection
in everyone, they are intolerable.
Some Christians have abnormal compulsion to perfection
in their homes. I've been in some homes where you
wouldn't dare to sit down on the couch unless they put
some kind of quilt over it. I've been in some places where
you couldn't walk on the kitchen floor unless you took
your shoes off in the garage. I've been in places where they
have silverware that cost a great deal of money, but the
family would not use it more than once or twice a year.
These people have the compulsion to perfection, when
they would say, "Don't touch my china. Don't sit on my
couch. Don't touch my tools! Don't get into my car with
those dirty hands!" This is not a complete list by any
means, but each should search his own heart to see if he
has such compulsion to perfection symptoms.
It is miserable to have a father, mother, or children who

are obsessed with a compulsion to perfection. One cannot

enjoy life around them and they cannot enjoy it
themselves.
God dealt with me concerning my car and my
children. My children are worth more to me than the car.
My house was made to live in and to enjoy, and not to die
a living death, which is brought about by the compulsion
to perfection.
Your house, too, ought to be a home, and not just four
walls. Your floor was made to be walked upon and not to
be flown over.
The furniture that you buy is supposed to be used to sit
on and to enjoy. If it gets dirty, it can be cleaned. We
should enjoy what we have. Paul says, (I Timothy 6:17),
"Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who
giveth us richly all things to enjoy."

I'm not saying for you to bring dirt into the house, on
purpose. But, if it accidentally happens, don't blow your
cool. In spite of all your relationship with Jesus, if you blow
your cool, you've lost every joy, and you will cause the
people around you to lose their joy. When you have a
symptom of compulsion to perfection, and you go to pieces,
the devil is right there to work on you and everyone
around you.
About the worst hell on earth is to work with someone
or to live with someone who has the compulsion to

perfection. Now, I'm not saying that a person should not be

neat. I'm sure you understand what I'm saying. I'm talking
about those people who follow you around with a dust
rag, and each time you get up they wipe off where you
were sitting. You feel that you are sitting on pins and
needles, and your muscles are so tense that you can't
relax. The opposite is just as true, when an individual is
negligent and does not pick up or clean up his own mess.
This too is a symptom which is not of God.
Have you known persons like that?
Christian, if compulsion to perfection or negligence is
your problem, you need to renew your mind. It is not a
sign that you're not saved, but you need to renew your
mind with the Word of God. You need to put priorities
where they belong. God does not require that your things
be perfect, but that your heart be perfect toward God and
people.

VI
Narrow-Mindedness
As a Christian, I am not asking if you are saved, or
Spirit filled. I believe that you are washed in the blood of
Christ. I am asking you to think about your mind. Has your
mind been renewed with the Word of God, or are you suffering
from "Narrow-Mindedness?"
Can you listen to other people's opinions? Can you
stand it when other people attack your pet theories or
ideas? Or, do you cut them off, give them the cold
shoulder? Do you refuse fellowship with them, don't go to
see them, or talk to them?
Narrow-mindedness is a symptom of the unrenewed
mind. You can be saved, but your mind is not yet
renewed. This is why you don't know the perfect will of
God. When your mind is unrenewed, God cannot direct
you.
Narrow-mindedness appears in many areas. The beliefs
in doctrines is an area where narrow-mindedness
abounds. One person may say, "Once saved, always saved,"
and another may say, "Saved today and going to hell
tomorrow." You can get involved with doctrine instead of
getting involved with Jesus.
For example, a father had two sons. One son went to
one school and the other son went to another school. One

son learned, "Once saved, always saved." The other son

learned, "Well, you're saved today, and if you sin tomorrow,
you go to hell."
The father, who was a pastor of a particular church
saw his two sons graduate. They each received a diploma
from his particular school, and now they both are pastors.
They came home to their father's church and one Sunday
one son taught once saved always saved. The next Sunday
the other son taught, saved today, and going to hell
tomorrow. The father was away for two weeks. When he
returned the third week, the whole congregation was split
wide open, confused, and many left the church.
Narrow-mindedness is a tool that the devil uses. Instead
of you getting involved with doctrines, you ought to get
involved in loving Jesus.
One of the most dangerous things to get involved in is
the discussion of doctrines. It is not important to which
denomination you belong or what doctrine that you
believe in, but what is more important is, "Who is your
Father, and to which family do you belong?"
In the Old Testament, when God the Father gave a
command to Moses, what did Moses do when he went to
the king Pharaoh? What did he tell him? Did Moses say,
"Pharaoh, let me come into your chambers and discuss the
commandment of God?"
Instead of saying, "Let's discuss the problem," Moses
said, "Let God's people go."

God spoke to Moses. He had the will of God in his heart,

and when he spoke to Pharaoh, he said, "Let God's people
go! And if you don't, God will judge you, your people, and
your nation."
Moses did not discuss the Word. He went to proclaim
the Word of God. When he proclaimed the Word of God,
things began to happen, because God is behind His Word,
and He hastens to perform it.
We need not discuss the Word of God. We need to go
and proclaim His Word. As we proclaim the Word of God,
it's up to God to do the rest.
I know that many Christians have difficulty with
symptoms of narrow-mindedness and I am not claiming
to have achieved perfection. But we have to realize that
when we do wrong, it is for us to humble ourselves before
God and ask for His forgiveness, and then the Word will
deliver us from our symptoms.
Soon after I and my wife were both saved and filled
with the Holy Spirit, my wife disagreed with me about one
of my decisions. I, in my own narrow-mindedness,
refused to receive her thinking and became angry with
her. I went to bed pouting and throwing a tantrum. I
wouldn't talk to her. I didn't say "Good-night" to her. I
tried to sleep, but I couldn't. I was miserable and full of
anger. She was still in the kitchen taking care of the dishes
and she didn't know the attitude of my heart concerning
her, for I hadn't even told her. I was lying in bed and I

huffed, and I puffed, and I even thought of leaving the

house.
I'm telling you about a Spirit filled Christian who,
through his narrow-mindedness, willingly gave his mind
over to the devil to be tormented.
The same thing happens to you when you give your
mind and your thoughts over to the devil. He comes into
your mind, starts tormenting you and will not let you
sleep. He won't give you any peace.
This is what happened to me. I tried to sleep and I
couldn't. At last, I closed my eyes and did sleep for a few
minutes, but before long something began to happen on
the inside of me. There was a spiritual battle and I
suffered the most for my stomach began to turn and toss.
Then shortly, I got out of the bed. I was weak because of
the spiritual battle that was taking place. I began to crawl
from my bed toward the bathroom. I finally stuck my head
into the toilet bowl, and sat and vomited for about an
hour. I tell you I felt as if my toes were coming out of my
throat.
When I finally got to my senses, I said, "Lord, what's
wrong?"
When you ask God to show you something, you can be
assured that He won't lie to you. He will tell you the truth!
He'll show you and guide you to the area of repentance.
The Word came to me as plain as the nose on my face,
Ephesians 4:26 says, "Be angry and sin not: let not the sun go

Those words kept going over and

over and over in my mind.
I said, "But Lord, I didn't sin, it's her fault. You know
it's her fault. It wasn't me."
And the Lord said, "Have you looked at yourself in a
mirror to see if it could be you?"
I believe it would be worthwhile for us to examine the
motives of our hearts before we accuse anyone else of
wrong doing. If we think we're so righteous, and if we
think we're perfect, then it would help us to see the
possibility that we could be wrong and that the other
person may be right. This was a shocking revelation to my
system.
When I humbled myself, stood up and looked at myself
in the mirror, I saw myself in the spirit. It was as though a
neon sign was burning across my forehead, saying, "You
are wrong, you are wrong, you are wrong, you are
wrong!" It didn't take me very long to realize that it was I
who had to repent and not my wife. As I repented and
asked God's forgiveness I immediately felt better.
By that time my wife heard me groaning in the night
and came to help me. After all, being in the toilet bowl for
an hour, it was easy to find me! I confessed my faults to
her and asked for her forgiveness. She forgave me and led
me to our bed.
Well, that's the way the devil is. He'll put your head in
a toilet bowl. He'll put you where it stinks. That's where
down upon your wrath."

he wants you. But Jesus doesn't want you there. He wants

you to prosper and have an abundant life.
In bed she brushed her hand over my forehead and
said, "Lord, give him peace," or something to that effect.
I fell asleep right away. When I got up in the morning, I
was completely recovered, in my spirit, soul and body.
Narrow-mindedness expresses itself in many different
ways and areas. For example, you may become resentful
when God starts blessing someone else, or you may be
jealous when another brother is being used by God. You
may find yourself undermining his ministry, or whatever
it is that he may be doing, by talking about him and trying
to put him down. You may see a church that God is
prospering and you may say, "Oh, if those people didn't
have a gimmick every Sunday, they wouldn't have so
many people attending their services."
People with unrenewed minds are always trying to
find fault in someone else, but if God blesses their church,
well, it's a completely different situation.
That is narrow-mindedness and we need to renew our
minds with the Word of God.

VII
More
Mind

Symptoms

of

the Unrenewed

Uncontrollable thoughts, vile imaginations, impure

pictures, wandering thoughts, confused ideas, and
doublemindedness are symptoms of the unrenewed mind.
We will discuss each of these symptoms in this chapter.
Uncontrollable Thoughts
How many times have you gone to bed and couldn't
sleep? How many times have you had problems with
thoughts that you couldn't control. Uncontrollable
thoughts are just coming at you and bombarding you, and
you have no victory.
I've had that problem and I'm sharing with you some
of the things that have happened to me.
There is no way for you to control these thoughts if you
don't want to face them. You say to yourself, "I don't want
to think about them any more," and yet you keep thinking
the disturbing, or bad thoughts. Who is giving them to
you?
If someone else is giving these thoughts to you and
God does not control the mind of His people, then who
would it be?
If you are saved and Spirit filled, but you have these
thoughts that you cannot control, it is evident that you are

not in charge of your mind. When these thoughts

bombard you and you cannot control them, then someone
else has the control of your mind.
If you are a Christian you should realize that you are
in Christ Jesus. You should take authority and take the
thoughts back, and take back your will from whomever
has stolen it from you, or to whom you have surrendered
your mind, will, and personality.
If you cannot control your bad thoughts, and God is
not giving them to you, and you say that you don't want
to think these thoughts, then who is giving them to you?
Who is putting them in your mind? If they are not coming
from God, and they are not coming from you, then they are
coming from the devil himself.
Someone asks, "Well, how can a Christian be
tormented by demons?"
A Christian can and is tormented by demons just like
Jesus, Peter, Paul, and others who were tormented by
them. These are the spiritual forces. That's why the Bible
says, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh
for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through
God to the pulling down of strongholds. Casting down imaginations
and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God,

thought to the obedience of Christ" II

Corinthians 10:3-5. Where are these imaginations?
Where are these strongholds?
They are in your mind.
and bringing into captivity every

It's time that you recognize how the enemy will come
to attack, and rob you if your mind is not renewed in God's
Word, and you are not in charge.
Vile Imaginations, Impure Pictures, Wandering
Thoughts
Is your mind controlled or troubled constantly by vile
imaginations, impure pictures, or wandering thoughts?
These are signs or symptoms of the unrenewed mind.
Isaiah said, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is
stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee" (Isaiah 26:3). In other
words, whoever keeps his mind upon the Lord, him will
the Lord keep in perfect peace. You need to keep your
mind upon the Lord.
Whenever the devil begins to bombard you with these
thoughts, you can control them. Here is how I overcame
these symptoms.
I knew that those thoughts were not from God, and I
had to take charge of them, so I began to think, talk and
sing about the Lord. We have a picture in our house,
showing Jesus and two of His disciples walking on the
Road to Emmaus. As I looked at that picture, I visualized
myself standing next to Jesus, looking face to face. Or I
saw myself translated into heaven with Jesus. I could see
Him sitting on the throne, and I was looking at Him and
talking to Him. I tell you when I started thinking like that,
in the spirit, those impure thoughts left me. I recognized
that it was the enemy, trying to rob me of my relationship

with the Lord.

Confused Ideas or DoubleMindedness
There are born again, Spirit baptized people who have
confused ideas, and they are unable to think clearly,
because of doublemindedness.
If you don't have a clear-cut picture when you decide
to do something, your mind is confused and then you
need to take authority over that situation by confessing
that you have the mind of Christ and you are waiting
upon the Lord. He will direct you in all things.
When you know God's will in your decision, then
stand!
When you have confused ideas, even though are are a
Christian, recognize that they are from the enemy and
start reading the Word.
James 1:16 tells us, "But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering.
For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and

Verse 8 of the same chapter says, "A doubleminded man

This is speaking about Christians.
When a Christian does not know which way to go, he
cannot make up his mind, the Bible says he is unstable in
all his ways. Verse 7 says, "For let not that man think that he shall
tossed."

is unstable in all his ways."

receive anything of the Lord."

When a Christian is unstable in all of his ways, and he

can't be trusted, the Bible says that that person is not
going to receive anything from God.
You are going to have to rely upon God, and no matter

how big the mountain is, your job is to climb the

mountain. And it is His job to give you the strength to
overcome it. Know this, He has already overcome the
mountain and given you power, and now you are more
than a conqueror in Christ Jesus.
If you don't want to think evil or bad thoughts, why do
you think them?
I'll tell you why. These are the thoughts of temptation
that the enemy has brought into your mind, but only you
can accept or reject them. You are to take control of your
mind by casting down these thoughts and imaginations
and confessing to your mind those things which are true,
honest, just, pure, lovely and of good report (Philippians
4:8) cause yourself to think on these things. The power of
Christ is with you to do this.

VIII
Controlling Your Mind
Are you in control of your mind?
God does not possess or control the mind of His
people. God gave you a mind, and you are a free, moral
agent. You have to make up your own mind and decide
for yourself what you wish to do, and under whose
influence you are, and to whom you are going to submit
your mind.
The devil's desire is to get after your mind to control
your mind and your thoughts. Once he has entered into
your mind, then he will wait for the proper moment and
strike at you when you least expect it.
That's how the devil operates in the mind, which is in
the soulish realm.
When you admit that you don't want to think bad
thoughts, then it is obvious that someone else controls
your mind, and puts those improper thoughts into your
mind.
If it is not of God, and you say it is not you, then it has
to be of the devil.
If you are a Christian and you are being tormented by
the devil, how are you going to overcome him? James 4:7-8
tells us how we can overcome the enemy and live a
victorious life with Christ, by submitting ourselves to God
and resisting the devil. "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist

the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw
nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye

You can be saved and Spirit-filled and still

have evil spirits controlling your mind, thoughts and
desires.
If you are saved, I know that the devil is after you to
destroy you. He will tempt you in every area. Because he
tempts you, you need to control your thoughts and guard
your mind.
I know there are some who say, "Well, I don't believe
that the evil one can control my mind or my fleshly
desires."
Jesus says: "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the
doubleminded."

world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes,

(I John
2:15-16). In other words, don't place your eyes upon the
things of the world. Because when you place your eyes on
the things of the world, you have to take your eyes off
Jesus. Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, "But seek ye first the
and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world."

kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be

He is telling us to keep our eyes and our

minds stayed upon the Lord.
He says, "If any man love the world, then the love of
the Father is not in him." He is saying, if any man thinks
about the material things more than he thinks about God,
if he takes his time away that he should give to God, and
puts it into the world, a person, a home, or whatever, then
added unto you."

the love of God is not in him.

I am not saying that you should not have nice things. I
think every Christian ought to have and live the abundant
life. You may not have a million dollars, but you ought to
live like a millionaire. This is the will of the Father;
however, our eyes should not be on the things of the
world, but on the Lord, not because you have to, but
because He is worthy and you love Him.
This is the difference between a religious person and a
Christian person. A religious person is told what to do,
and he has to do it, and in many cases he does it whether
he wants to or not. A Christian person does it because he
loves to do it. God doesn't take your mind and say you
have to go to church. God speaks to your heart, and
because of your love for Jesus, you do it with joy. But,
when an organization dictates to you what you have to do
that is religion. Here is the difference between a will
that God controls and a will that someone else controls.
The mind of man is sovereign to man, and God has
respect for the mind of man. But there is one who does not
respect a man. There is one who doesn't care what
happens to you. There is one, the devil, who wants to
possess your mind. Satan wants to get into your mind and
do a lot of harm, because he knows that once he gets
control (of your mind) he will turn you anytime he wants
you to turn, just like a rudder on a ship.
Some people will say, "Well, that's impossible. It's

unthinkable."
Well, let me tell you, I have seen some saved and Spirit
filled cheaters. I have seen some saved and Spirit filled
liars. I have seen some saved and Spirit filled Christians
who can't get along with anyone. They just had bad
dispositions. Some people are difficult to get along with.
I ask you, "Are you difficult to get along with? Is that
the Spirit of the Lord?" It just couldn't be!
What about the spirit of jealousy, arrogance,
backbiting? What about getting on the telephone and
gossiping about someone else? Is that Jesus? These are the
signs and symptoms that someone else is in control of
your mind.
If you have these problems, you should recognize them
and go to the Lord and say, "Lord, here are my problems. I
bring them to you because you care for me and I ask you,
Jesus, to forgive me and deliver me from them" (Joel 2:32).
Then renew and cleanse your mind with the washing
of water by the Word (Ephesians 5:26).

IX
The Will, the Intellect, and Emotions
Satan is after your will. In order to get to your will, he
has to get to your mind. In your mind there is the will, the
emotions, and the intellect which is only one part of you
these three are in the soulish area.
Visualize with me a whole person.
1. This person has a mind (or emotions).
2. This person has a will.
3. This person has an intellect.
Man of course is more than just soulish - man is spirit,
soul and body. However, in this chapter I wish to deal with
the soulish part of man.
Sometimes people say, "How come you are so
emotional?"
Well, I'll tell you "how come!" When a person has
surrendered his mind, his will, and his intellect to the Spirit
of God and he gets emotional, he doesn't care what the
people think. He only cares what God thinks of him.
Satan is after your mind for one reason. He knows that
if he can get to your mind, and get you to think like the
world does, and if he can get you to thinking like
everybody else does, then you have given him a legal right
to enter your mind and dominate your will.
That is why people, even some Christians, many times

cannot control the things they do. They know that what
they are doing is not pleasing to God. But their answer is,
"I just could not help it."
If you can't help it, then you are going to have to
recognize that this area has been weakened, and there is
someone controlling or influencing your will. But when
you call upon the Name of the Lord, He will answer you
and help you to get your will back from the one who stole
it from you, or to whom you gave it.
Your mind, your will, your intellect, and your emotion
are in the soulish realm. Your soul does not have direct
fellowship with the Father. That is to say, it is your spirit
that has direct fellowship with the Father. Your spirit
receives the revelation from the Father by the Holy Spirit.
It is the spirit of man within you that is "born again" and
not your soul.
Therefore, the object is to cause our soul (the
unrenewed mind) to be subject to our spirit. For in our
spirit, by the power of the Holy Spirit comes the influence
to our soul to do good. And then, of course, the body has
no choice but to line up with the Word of God.
There are certain things that we can do with our
intellect. But spiritual things come from God the Father.
They come into our spirit.
As an individual, you must recognize where the
thoughts are coming from. You have to recognize who
controls your will.

If you are a Christian and have a problem in this area,

you must renew your mind with the Word of God, and use the
spiritual authority and weapons that God has given you
and pull down the strongholds that attack your mind.

X
Pulling Down Strongholds
"For though we walk after the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God
to the pulling down of strongholds;) 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." (II
Corinthians 10:3-5).

If we are going to pull down the strongholds of Satan,

we will need to know our position and authority in
Christ. Also we need to appropriate proper weapons that
God has given us to fight the enemy. You must locate the
strongholds of Satan and attack them with the Word of
God.
Where are the strongholds of Satan, and where do the
imaginations occur?
Imaginations occur in our mind when the mind begins
to think and imagine things contrary to God's Word. You
must then take your will and emotions, or intellect and
confess the Word of God to help you expel the negative
imaginations which are happening in the mind. You must
cast them out.
It is very important that you as a Christian understand
these processes. You should know that the enemy is going
to attack you in the mind area, and that he will try to get
your will and your emotions, to keep you from living a

victorious life.
You must put on the full armor of God and be on the
alert all the time.
Your spirit should always be active and in charge, so
that when Satan tries to get into your mind, your spirit
will notify your mind and you will resist him with the
Word of God.
That is what Jesus did when the devil tempted Him in
the wilderness and also through the words of Peter. You
see, the Spirit of God that's from within Him, told Him
what Satan was trying to do. Jesus didn't read a book
about that. He heard the Father's Voice, which came from
the depths of His heart to His head. Having recognized
the attack of His enemy He willed to rebuke him with His
mouth saying: "Satan, get thee behind me."
Think for a moment of your mind as a computer, that is
capable of storing positive or negative information for
later recall. You can store the Word of God which has
faith and power, or you can store the lies of Satan which
are unbelief, fear and doubt.
Whatever you listen to, willingly as an individual, will
be stored in your computer (heart).
When you allow an individual who is filled with
doubts, negative thoughts and confessions that are
contrary to the Word of God to dominate, you, and you do
nothing to stop them, you are exposing yourself to the
great danger of becoming as they are. In Proverbs 23:7 it

says, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he ..." Matthew 23:7

reads, "... for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh."
Now suppose you get up in the morning and
immediately make a confession contrary to the Word of
God. Where did it come from?
I'll tell you where it came from. It came from your heart.
Why?
Because you have allowed the mind and your will to
permit negative thoughts to come in and abide in the
computer area.
The Bible says: "By thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy
words thou shalt be condemned."

If I am going to be condemned by my words, and be

justified by my words and the thoughts that come into my
mind, then I can choose what I want to say. I can say that
which will cause my edification, or it can cause me to
come to destruction (in my thoughts). I do the choosing
with my will. I will to speak. I will not to speak. Can you see
that? I will to listen, or I will not to listen.
Satan is after one thing, and that is to destroy your
spiritual relationship with the Father. However, in order
for him to get to your spirit, he will have to go through
your mind first. Having gone into your mind, he will now
try to take over your will and destroy your spirit.
That is how the enemy tries to come in and dominate
persons lives. Watch your confessions, because "Thou art
snared and taken captive with the words of thy mouth."

Be very careful, not only of what you say, but also of

how you say.
Any time that your soul is in control instead of your
spirit, confusion occurs. It is just as though a woman is
placed in charge of an entire household. It is not her full
responsibility, but many times she is forced into such a
situation. When this occurs, nothing seems to go as it
should.
The soul is not supposed to be in charge of your whole
life. It helps the spirit fight the fleshly desires and to live
life victoriously. The spirit is supposed to be in charge, just as
the husband is supposed to be in charge of the entire
household, with the help of the wife, and they work
together to produce successful, happy family living.
You must confess whatever you desire, and confess
this through the Word of God. Psalm 37:4 reads: "Delight
thyself in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart."

Mark 11:23-24 reads:

"For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this
mountain, Be thou removed, and be cast into the sea; and shall not doubt
in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come
to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you,
What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive
them, and ye shall have them."

That is why Satan wants to destroy positive thoughts

in your mind and keep your heart empty. He knows that
when the heart is filled with God's Word, it will come out
of your mouth!

Again, I ask you, where are the strongholds of Satan?

Why is he trying to acquire that position? Some
Christians, even Spirit filled Christians, have allowed
Satan to make a beach-head landing in their minds, right in
the area where he wants. If a saved, Spirit filled person
has evil thoughts controlling and dominating his mind,
that person can be taken over at will by the devil
whenever he desires.
While in the Armed Forces I was taught that when you
hit the enemy beaches you must dig in and establish a
foothold.
Once you move in and get a foothold on the beach, you
can be sure that you will rouse the enemy, and if the
enemy is going to roust you, he will have to destroy your
foothold and get you off the beach.
Don't you know that Satan works from within just like
a fifth column?
Some centuries back (Joshua 2:9-l 1) a servant of God
attacked a walled city that no one else was able to defeat.
As he and his armies marched to the walled city, I am
almost sure that he was asked how he proposed to take
the city, and he replied, "I will take it with a FIFTH
COLUMN," and the reply was: "what do your mean with
a FIFTH COLUMN? Your troops are to the North, South,
East and West. What is this FIFTH COLUMN
BUSINESS?" He said, "I am sure, in the city we have our
troops. They are in disguise, but they are there

nevertheless, and that's how we are going to take the city,

when we want to." The devil says, "I am going to take you
when I want you, but I am going to take you through a
FIFTH COLUMN."
Yes, you are saved and Spirit baptized, but your mind
i s unrenewed, so the devil can take you whenever he
wants to.
There are many persons who are bound in their minds,
and the devil has a foothold.
If I were just to tell you that you are not saved, you
would probably say, "OK, let's get saved," but tomorrow
you
would
still
have
your
symptoms
of
narrowmindedness.
Getting saved is not the answer to the needs of the
mind. Of course, it's the FIRST step. How can anyone
renew their thoughts if they are not born again (saved)?
Let me define a thought: A thought is a mental process
when your mind reaches out and grasps at things because
it wants to learn and to know.
When your mind is grasping at things, you are doing
some thinking and learning. But when something else
such as a FIFTH COLUMN starts grasping your mind, it
is the devil.
People that are being troubled by the confused ideas,
wandering thoughts, jealousy, envy, gossip and many
other different symptoms, are being bothered by the FIFTH
COLUMN, by the strongholds of Satan.

Satan's power and forces are designed to put evil

thoughts into a man's mind and create situations where
the evil thoughts will materialize. These forces will try to
block off thinking processes to keep you from getting
through to God, by putting an evil thought into your own
heart. John 13:12 reads:
"And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the
heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son to betray him."
There is no doubt in my mind that Judas loved Jesus,
and had a ministry of casting out devils, healing the sick
as did the others.
Jesus loved him also and allowed him to be the
treasurer, a position of trust. The Bible reads in Matthew
6:21: "For where your treasure is, there will you heart be also."
Here we can see that they loved and trusted one
another and yet the devil having put into the heart of
Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus. It is very clear that the devil
was given permission to put an evil thought of greed into
the heart of a believer.
Now if the devil can put a thought into a believer's
heart, he can also take the Word of God out of the
believer's heart when he is given an opportunity. Luke
8:12 reads: "Then cometh the devil and taketh the Word out of their
hearts lest they should believe and be saved."

But the devil cannot inject or put a thought into your

mind when you are in control of your mind, and do not
have selfish desires and lust after things of this world as

Judas did (John 12:4-6).

You can see, I am sure, that Judas was not in control of
his mind and Satan destroyed him. Are you in control of
your mind? Where do you stand today my friend? Is there
an area in your life that needs to be dealt with?
God does not control the mind of His people. If He did,
He would violate His own Word!
The Bible says that God is Love! Love thinketh no evil;
love believeth all things; love worketh no evil; love casteth
out all fear.
Well how is it that the evil spirits can attack
Christians?
Very simplythe Christian allows them to attack
himself by giving Satan a foothold in his mind. However,
no demon or the devil can have a foothold in our minds
when our hearts and minds are renewed according to the
Word of God. You are not at the mercy of the devil when
you are doing the Will of the Fatherbecause greater is
He that is within you than he that is in the world.
You are the overcomer, through the Word of Christ
Jesus (I John 5:4-5), but when you give ground to Satan in
your mind then you become a servant of Satan, even
though you claim to be saved (Romans 6:16; John 8:34-35).
I would say that one of the greatest needs for
Christians today is to renew their minds. I have never
seen, or known a work of God destroyed from without, but
I have seen a work of God destroyed from within the body

of the believer.
You will find that Satan will work on one person with
a n unrenewed mind, and that person, by the very law of
attraction, will attract other unrenewed minds to himself
and very soon a poisonous plot is spreading in the
congregation bringing death and destruction to
everything it touches.
I have known individuals, and I do know some today,
who have lost their healing, even their salvation, because of
their unrenewed mind.
How can you have a defense against the devil? Satan
knows when your mind is renewed and when it is not,
and in order for you not to give ground to the evil forces in
your mind, you must renew your mind with the Word of
God. Then you can strongly attack with the Word, the old
areas of Satan and tear down his strongholds. Then, and
only then, can you have victory in your life.
Jesus also had problems with the devil. Paul had
problems with the devil. Paul said this in Romans 7:19,
"For the good that I would I do not; but the evil which I would not, that

The things that he did, he didn't want to do, and the

things he should have done, he did not do. He said, "I'm
having difficulty and the thing that causes me to do these
things that I don't want to do, it is the evil in me."
I know, so well, that Paul had problems. I too, have
problems, but praise God! I am more than a conqueror
through Christ Jesus. I can overcome through Christ,
I do."

because He has promised a way over our problems.

When bad thoughts are coming into your mind, then
the devil has a foothold in your mind. If the devil does
have a foothold in your mind, no matter how saved you
may be, there is work to be done in your life.
I Corinthians 10:13 says, "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."

That means He will not allow you to be tempted above

what you can stand.
You may ask, "Well, how do I know that Jesus will
deliver me from all these temptations, from this fear?"
If you desire Jesus to deliver you from these
temptations, fears and these evil thoughts, then go to the
Bible. He has given us the promise that He will do this. He
is showing us such a beautiful passage that I must rejoice.
I asked the Lord this question, "Lord, how do I know
really, that you will deliver me?"
If you come to Jesus and you are sincere with Him, it
says that He will deliver you. Here is that Scripture that
He gave to us,
"Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of the flesh and blood,
he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he
might destroy him that had the power over death, that is the devil"
(Hebrews 2:14-18).

Here Jesus is telling us that He willingly came, and He

willingly died, that He might take away the sting of death.

He broke the sting of death, so that we may have victory

through Christ. He said that He has delivered us. He said
that He took the power of death from the devil. And in
Hebrews 2:15 it reads: "and deliver them who through fear of
death were all their lifetime subject to bondage."

If you are in bondage with the fear of death, if you have

bondage that you are going to die of a particular disease
remember that Jesus died that you may live without fear.
He set all of His people free from the bondage of death,
because there is no more death for you. You have eternal
life.
Why should anyone be afraid of what is going to
happen to the flesh?
If the devil is working on you, or me in the area of our
minds, we can stop him, if we understand that there is no
fear in the spiritual realm, but the fear is in the soulish
realm. And Satan is after you, trying to put thoughts in
your mind, that you are going to die from some kind of
sickness.
In Hebrews 2:16 Paul states: "For verily he took not on
himself the nature of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham."

Jesus did not take upon himself the nature of angels, for
He came here in the flesh, just as you and I. In Hebrews
2:17 it reads: "Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made
like unto his brethren." Jesus was just like you and I, because
we are His brothers. It behooved Him to be made just as
we are.

Why?
So that He too could be tempted in all areas. Yes, Jesus
has been tempted with everything the devil had. But Jesus
said to him, "It is written." Jesus knew the Word. He came
at the devil with the Word, BECAUSE THERE IS POWER
IN THAT WORD. Jesus came at the devil with the Word,
but He walked in the flesh just as you and I. When he was
nailed to the cross, it hurt Him in the flesh, in His hands
and in His feet, and in His side.
But He said, "... Father, forgive them, for they know not
what they do."
Can you and I display such love as did Jesus?
He was just as human as you are today, and yet He
was just as much God as He was human. He knows how
you and I feel. He knows the temptations. Jesus suffered
that you might be set free.
Jesus overcame all of that in the mind, because He
surrendered His will to the Father. He wasn't thinking as
the world thinks. He was thinking as His Heavenly
Father thinks for He says, "All things are possible
through Him that sent me."
Then He said in Hebrews 2:17, "... that he might be a
merciful and high priest in things pertaining to God, to make

Jesus is your high priest.

Jesus is the one who understands you better than
anybody else. He understands you better than you
understand yourself. That is why He is like He is and is
reconciliation for the sins of the people."

where He is.
Hebrews 2:18 tells us,

"For in that He himself hath suffered

That is
why I know that Jesus will provide a way for you and I to
escape, because He too was tempted. He is able to secure
them that are tempted and make them free.
John 8:31-32 reads:
being tempted, He is able to succour them that are tempted."

"... If ye continue in my Word then ye are my disciples indeed. And

ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free."

I am completely convinced that it is not the magnitude

of man's intelligence that gives him problems when God
begins to deal with his heart and the symptoms of the
unrenewed mind, but the lack of development in that area.
God has promised to transform our hearts and
illuminate our intellect when we become His disciples. He
will continue to renew our mind as we continue in His
Word, and the joy of the Lord will be our daily strength.

Bill Basansky, born in the Soviet Union, was taught early in life that
God does not exist Lenin is our God. When the Germans invaded
the Ukraine, his family was force marched to labor detention camps
from which they were released at the end of World War II.
After the war, Bill came to America. He served in the U.S. Air Force
4 years and as a police officer in California six years. He received his
teaching degree and taught languages in a public high school.

In 1969, because of a back ailment which had caused a paralysis in

his legs, Bill contemplated suicide. With the last strength in his body he
reached for the phone and called his brother-in-law in Detroit, a
dedicated Christian and prominent business man. Joe prayed for Bill
who was immediately surrounded by the calming force of the love of
God. Joe then called a pastor in a town nearby to go and minister to
Bill. As the pastor prayed for Bill, God healed him and delivered him
from eight years of drug and alcohol addiction.

After five years as professor of Russian at Oral Roberts University,

Bill is now traveling internationally as author, lecturer, convention
speaker, evangelist and teacher.