Being Sober Minded In A World Drunk On Lies

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour

1 Peter 5:8

What a good day it is to be alive! If you have breath today, if you woke up today, if you are alive and well today – the Lord has a plan for you and a purpose for you so be sure to be sober minded! It makes me so sad when I see those who follow the Lord have the same amount of fear and helplessness as the world! It can be tempting to live in fear with the world that we live in but we must be diligent in meditating on God’s Truth. We must be sober minded. We must know what the Bible says when it comes to being sober minded!

for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control

2 Timothy 1:7

It is clear that fear is not from God. He is the King of Peace! He gives us a peace that surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:7). However, when we know this but don’t live this out – why on earth would anyone want to be a Christian? We HAVE hope! We have the power of the blood, thanks to Jesus who died for our sins. When the world gets scary, we should be getting excited because it means we are just getting closer to the day of His return. May we have a mindset of “wow I am so excited to see the prophecies that have been told that have yet to happen” , “I am so excited to live out what the Prophets wrote about!”. If we are not living out the fruit of the spirit right now, we need to check our hearts and minds. If we are distracted then we are not sober minded!

To be sober minded goes beyond just being physically sober. While yes, we should not be intoxicated with alcohol, we should also not be intoxicated by the lies of the world. What are the lies you are believing? What has the enemy been good at making you believe? We oftentimes don’t realize just how crafty the enemy is. He is known for taking what is good and turning it into evil. He has been doing this since the beginning of time. If we are not rooted in Truth, we will be swayed, we will be distracted, and we will be deceived.

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.

1 Peter 4:12-19

for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.

Matthew 12:37

We will give an account for everything we do and say. If we are going to be sitting and living in fear and hopelessness, do we even have trust in the Lord, Jesus Christ? Do we even know the Gospels? Do we know what He did on the cross? Are we living in our own world and trying to control and predict everything that will happen? If yes, we are undermining everything He accomplished on the cross. Have we fully submitted our lives to Christ in such a way where He is exalted and He reigns?

Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

1 Thessalonians 4:9-12

I love that he says to “walk properly before outsiders”. There are so many places within the Bible that speak about our time with unbelievers! We must make every moment count when we are with them. But man is it a heart check. “Am I living just like the world”, “ Am I set apart in any way? Or does my life look like theirs?”. We need to shout it from the rooftops that the Lord is faithful!! He told us what is going to happen and he told us exactly how it is going to happen within Scripture. If you are unaware of the text, go to your church and ask! Do not be afraid of asking questions. There is no foolish question when it comes to your eternity!

You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

James 4:4-7

Are you resisting the devil or are you running right back into his arms when you open up your phone because you just succumb to the fear of everything that is happening in the world? What are the ways you are allowing the enemy to distract you and deter you? Ask the Lord – “Reveal to me where I am drunk by the world. In what ways am I being intoxicated by the devil?”. If we are spending more time being drunk on the lies of this world than the Truth from the Bible, then we know that is your pain point . God’s word must be what dictates our daily lives!

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Philippians 4:8-9

There is a cause and effect in that passage. If you do this then this will happen. If you “practice these things” then “the God of peace will be with you”! Do you have the peace of the Lord right now or fear of the world? We may have some unlearning to do as we sober up our minds. My homework for you is to seek the text. Go into the New Testament and find every place where it talks about being sober minded. Then go to the Old Testament and see what happens to the Israelites when they were not sober minded. They were enslaved to their sin but we do not have to be! We are not enslaved to the devil. We have freedom. Freedom in Christ!

After you do your homework, I have linked below a podcast Jordan and I did on unlearning the worlds ways that you can watch or listen to on Apple or Spotify

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