Your Thought Life Matters to Jesus

If Jesus were to write up a list of common human sins, which sins might you expect to find there?

Well, when it comes to Mark 7, we don’t need to wonder. Jesus provides a list for us, and what he notes first may surprise us. Mark 7, verse 20, Jesus explains that,

“What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts.”

Not evil actions. Not evil intentions. Evil thoughts. Evil mental creations. You know: those dark, private worlds we create within our minds. We tend to think little of evil thoughts. But Jesus doesn’t.

In fact, Jesus says that evil thoughts are part of what defile a person. They spiritually stain the souls of those who dwell upon them, and are therefore a danger to us. 

Christian, what is your thought life like? How would Jesus describe your common imaginations? Would he call, what you often dwell upon, helps to your pursuit of him? Or would he call them evil, and hindrances to your relationship with him?

Prayer of Confession

Father, you have given us minds to dwell upon what is true, honorable, just, and pure. And yet we have used our minds to conceive evil. Forgive us. And, in this moment, forgive us also for the many other ways we have sinned this week — both in body and mind. It’s these that we now confess to you in this moment of silent confession.