THE MIND OF CHRIST

I believe it’s been established that we were first created as spirit beings then our earthly vessels were formed in Genesis 2 to contain our spirit. So in reality we are first truly spirit. However because of the fall, before we were resurrected with Christ, our minds had been conformed to the things of this world. Now, when I hear ‘things of this world’, I tend to think of extremely negative things, like stealing, lying, hatred, and so on. So when 1 Corinthians 2:14 says:

“But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

I thought this did not apply to me because I am saved. Rightly so I am saved and the verse refers to this man as the ‘natural man’ and I am now spiritual. But in reality, this ‘natural man’ is not automatically changed to a ‘spiritual man’ because of the years or even decades (depending on when you surrendered your life) we’ve spent learning and being programmed to the things of this world. Now, when I say things of this world I do not just mean the obvious things as listed at the beginning, I also mean the concept of understanding the things of the spirit like discernment, the prophetic, and so on. For instance, even after I had given my life to Christ and was working in the way I believe He was leading me, I had certain beliefs I had to unlearn. For instance, understanding that the way God decides to speak to me did not have to be the way I expected it to be. So when I first became serious with my Pursuit of the things of God, He spoke to me mainly through His word and my dreams. So by default, I looked to those mediums as the way He would speak to me concerning all matters. By doing this I had boxed Him, and as we know He can’t be boxed. Another instance can be the interpretations of said dreams. I heard a sermon recently that spoke on the interpretation of Pharoah’s dream by Joseph and how if we were to interpret the dream the chances of us talking about famine would be impossible if we are not aligned with the spirit. Our natural mind would tend to relate it to the things of this world, which would have led to error and miscommunication.

So 1 Corinthians 2:14 is not just talking about what is sin or not sin, or the obvious things that seem ‘Foolish’ to the natural man but how much we are aligned with God. The good news is we are not left to figure out what God is trying to say by ourselves. In fact, the preceding verse talks about how no one knows the things in a man’s heart except the man’s spirit and since we are made in God’s image, the same applies to Him and He has placed that same spirit (His Spirit) in us (1 Corinthians 2: 11-12) and not only has he placed His Spirit in us but He has also given us the Mind of Christ to which we are to conform our minds to.

“For who has known the mind and purposes of the Lord, so as to instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ [to be guided by His thoughts and purposes]”

-1 Corinthians 2:16 [AMP]

The Bible talks about not being conformed to the patterns of this world, what you consider your reality should not be limited to the patterns of this world. What you consider possible should not be defined by the realities of this world, that was not the plan God had for us when He placed us here. The way Jesus lived here on earth is the plan He had for us, and that’s why he has placed His mind in us, so rather than being conformed to the patterns of this world and its ways, transform your mind into the plan that God had for you from the start.

And do not be conformed to this world [any longer with its superficial values and customs], but be transformed and progressively changed [as you mature spiritually] by the renewing of your mind [focusing on godly values and ethical attitudes], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His plan and purpose for you]

-Romans 12:2

By doing this, discerning the will of God for your life would be easier. Understanding what He is saying to you would be more natural. It is a process, your mind is not automatically conformed when you become a Christian, it took years for you to learn all you have learned, so all of that cannot just go overnight. But like I said, the good news is we are not left to do it on our own. However, it goes without saying that the first step to having a renewed mind is to surrender your life to Him. He is honestly waiting with open arms to receive you. He loves you and there is nothing you can do to change that, accept Him and surrender to Him and watch Him transform your life.