How can we take captive unwholesome thoughts? Without God’s Spirit, we have no hope of reforming our own thoughts. Until we are set free from the clutches of Satan and his minions, we remain blind, even though we think we can see. We cannot bear righteous fruit without God’s Spirit.

“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4),

Only trusting in Christ allows us to resist the Devil, and only then will he flee from us. Only then is the following true: “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

David had a way of resisting evil thoughts. He wrote, “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11), so along with the Spirit of God we have the Word of God to help us avoid such evil thoughts, and only then are we able to “not sin against” God.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2

One way to eliminate something is to replace it with something, and in the case of our thoughts, replace them with something much better than evil thoughts. Dwell on “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” (Philippians 4:8). By allowing the Spirit of God to renew our minds, we will not be conformed to this world. With the Spirit of God and the Word of God, we can renew our minds. The Word of God allows us to walk in safety since the “word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105). His Word shows me the path in order that I might stay on the path and avoid leaving the path. That’s the power of God’s Word.

Before conversion, our thoughts gravitate toward whatever pleases us, with little or no regard for those around us. Our minds are held captive until we repent of our sins and put our trust in Christ. Only then can we have God’s supernatural power; the power of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God takes the Word of God and changes the child of God into being more like the Son of God. We will not be sinless, but we should sin less over time. Sanctification takes time… in fact, it takes a lifetime, and only until we enter the kingdom will our minds be completely free of evil thoughts, desires, and intentions.

In summary: When we are saved, by receiving the Holy Spirit, we receive a new nature and we strive to have it renewed daily by prayer, by the Word, and by His Spirit. It is only through the indwelling Spirit can we become overcomers in our thought life, particularly our thoughts on things of the world and of the flesh. Paul asked the Corinthians, “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). Paul admonishes us to “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:5-7). When we focus on serving others in humility, there is no room for selfish thoughts to satisfy the flesh. Instead of it being all about us, the mind of Christ makes it all about others. We cannot control our thoughts but the Spirit of God can. The Spirit of God allows us to “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves” (Philippians 2:3).

A lot of this post is taken from the article What Does The Bible Say About Our Thoughts?  October 21, 2019 by Jack Wellman http://www.patheos.com