The serpent said to the woman, “Did God actually say…?” From the beginning, the devil’s method has been to plant something in the mind that will grow against God. He did not strike Eve with physical force. He did not need to compel her with visible power. He gained access through suggestion. He took the word of God, questioned it, twisted it, and placed a seed of doubt in her mind. Once that seed took root, it developed until it controlled her thinking, and it compelled her to act in rebellion. Sin began in her mind before it appeared in her hand. This principle has operated in every generation. The devil sows, his seed grows, and the harvest is death.

The word of God describes itself as seed, and the preacher as the sower. Jesus taught that the word is sown in the heart, and that the type of soil determines the outcome. The devil’s method is to sow falsehood, and God’s method is to sow truth. You do not have to plant doubt, rebellion, or unbelief. You can plant faith. You can put into the mind what will grow into conviction, assurance, and obedience. This is the biblical way to change a person. Fill his mind with God’s word until it takes over his thoughts. Once the word governs his thinking, it will govern his actions.

Faith begins as a seed in the mind. You can plant it by presenting God’s word in its purity, without the mixture of human tradition and the unbelief of false theology. Ask the questions that expose the emptiness of the faithless. Has that theologian really understood this passage? Where is the biblical evidence that miracles have ceased? What about the verses that describe the gifts of the Holy Spirit? What about the accounts of healing? What about the commands to lay hands on the sick? What about the passages that declare the power of faith? The false teacher wants to ignore or distort these things. You must place them in the mind and refuse to let them be removed.

When the truth enters good soil, it will grow. The seed will produce more and more faith until it fills the mind entirely. The person who was once dominated by unbelief will be filled with confidence in God. His thoughts will be occupied with the truth, and his actions will be compelled by it. This is how the power of God takes over a life, through the sowing and growth of his word.

You must do this for yourself before you can do it for others. Plant the word in your own mind. Deliberately challenge false interpretations with the straightforward reading of the text. If the Bible says that the sick will recover when believers lay hands on them, then believe it as it is written. If Jesus says that nothing will be impossible for the one who believes, then take it exactly as it stands. Do not twist it into a weaker statement. Do not explain it away by faithless religious reasoning. Receive it as seed into good soil.

Then plant the word in others. Speak the truth plainly. Confront their assumptions with the question, “What if Jesus really meant what he said?” Show them what the Bible says, and ask if the popular interpretation matches the actual words of Scripture. Every time you do this, you sow faith into their minds. You give the Spirit material to work with.

After sowing, water the seed. Remind yourself and others of the same truth again and again. Pray over it. Speak it out. Refuse to let the weeds of unbelief choke it. The process is simple: sow, water, and expect God to give the increase. It is not human eloquence or persuasion that causes the growth. The seed has life in itself because it is the word of God. Once planted in good soil, it will grow until it bears fruit.

The devil understands this principle, which is why he sows lies. You must understand it better, and sow the truth. The seed you plant today will grow into tomorrow’s conviction. If you sow faith, you will reap faith. If you fill the mind with the word of God, you will reap a life governed by the word of God.