We Have the Mind of Christ

If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ,

if any comfort from his love,

if any fellowship with the Spirit,

if any tenderness and compassion

then make my joy complete

by being like-minded,

having the same love,

and being one in spirit and purpose.

(Paul, Philippians 2:1-2)

 

Do not be conformed any longer to the pattern of this world,

but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Paul, Romans 12:2)

 

For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of  God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may know what God has freely given us. . . . We have the mind of Christ. (Paul, 1 Corinthians 2:11,12,16)

 

 

The gospel has many expressions of the same reality. Some are more familiar than others. "God is light and there is no darkness in him." "For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only Son." "Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions." Perhaps we may also add this little phrase: "We have the mind of Christ."

True, we have much more than the mind of Christ. But we must be sure that we know that we do not have less. We do not merely have his deeds. We do not merely have his great intentions. We do not merely have his company. We also have his mind.

The mind of Christ is the entry point of discipleship and salvation. A disciple needs to do more than parrot his master, he needs to begin to share the master's thoughts and feelings if he is to have any hope of true imitation. Deliverance from this world is first and foremost an inner deliverance of the mind and spirit or else we end up with a merely external, behavioral faith.

The mind of Christ is the focal point of our discipleship and salvation. The watchword for the kingdom of God is "repentance" - metanoia- a turning, a rethinking about our thinking. This is how Jesus changes hearts. He enters through the mind, our thoughts and feelings. Our continuing repentance is a conversion of our thoughts and feelings to the thoughts and feelings of our Lord, our Master, Jesus.

We are given many of Jesus's thoughts through the Bible. If we want to know how and what Jesus thought, we need to become honest and open students of the Bible. There is no better resource. The Bible under the superintending Spirit will open up Jesus's feelings to us as well. Although the fruit of the Spirit is more than feelings, we recognize this fruit by the effect it has on our feelings: love that is joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, gentle, good, and self-controlled.

The problem with many current efforts and discipleship is the tendency to make our conformity to the mind of Christ a servant to another master, such as self-improvement, church attendance growth, material success, recognition by other people, relief from guilt, etc. When formation into Christ-likeness from the inside out becomes anything but the center and the only foundation, we end up pretending Christ-likeness while striving toward other goals. Our faith becomes hopelessly external.

 

The reason that "We have the mind of Christ" is such good news is accessibility. Through our special relationship with God opened up through Jesus, we have access to his mind. Through this access we experience deliverance from sin, wisdom for our days, direction for our life, and companionship through conversation. We find that Jesus did not come just to do something for us, but to open up his life to us to be with us even now.

 

How does enter into the mind of Christ? How do we become disciples who think and feel like our Master? What are the consequences if we neglect this access to the mind of Christ? What are our alternatives?

 

Lord Jesus, we know there are so many things that fight for our attention, some good and some not so good. We find ourselves like children, running here and there, maybe just playing in our lives instead of finding real meaning, joy, and rest. Open our hearts to the needed renewal of our minds and give us space to rest, learn, and grow. We look forward to great things from our Master! Amen.

Unexpected

Resurrection

is the answer

we weren’t expecting

when we called out

for relief.

New life

is not the hope

we looked for

when we wanted to rebuild

the old one.

Abundant life

is not getting our heart’s desire

but a new heart instead 

learning to desire

so much more.

This gift

may not be 

the expected one

but it is Jesus’s life

we are given

this day.

Finding Certainty

   “Keep that light before your eye, and go directly toward it, and then you shall see the gate, at which, when you knock, you will be told what you are to do.”

    So I saw in my dream that the man began to run. Now he had not run far from his own door when his wife and children, perceiving his departure, began to cry out to him so that he might return. But the man put his fingers in his ears and ran on crying, “Life, life, eternal life.” So he did not look behind him, but rather fled toward the middle of the plain. (Bunyan, The Pilgrim's Progress)

 In the Gospel of Luke he begins, "Many have undertaken. . . ." In spite of the many, we all need to undertake this brave venture for ourselves. In spite of the many, we must draw up our own accounts of what has been fulfilled in our lives, what our lives have been filled up with. In the end we all will enter into the account that Luke started from those who saw and heard God made flesh. Our accounts will tell of what we thought of that one account.

So we see that Luke explaining, "I myself have carefully investigated." So, we find we do not undertake this venture in spite of the many before us, but informed by them and even spurred on by them. This venture begins and continues with careful investigation. Those who seek will find. For those who knock, the door will be opened. We do not seek mere facts in order to be right, but signs of God's graceful hand in order to be rescued. And his work shines most brightly in the life, words, and presence of Jesus among us.

All of this, "so that you may know the certainty." The end result of this investigation is not only faith in God, but knowing God the Father and Jesus, whom he sent. Only then will we know we have been taught well. Only in this intimate relationship with Jesus can we find the certainty we long for, a place to stand in a sinking age.

What is the account of your life with God? Is he a forgotten memory, a distant light, or a true friend? How might Luke's account affect your account? What sort of things do you carefully investigate? What motivates you? Are you certain of anything? Do you think you can find certainty in anything?

What Binds It All Together

Your strong love, O True God, is precious.

     All people run for shelter under the shadow of your wings.

In your house, they eat and are full at your table.

     They drink from the river of your overflowing kindness.

You have the fountain of life that quenches our thirst.

     Your light has opened our eyes and awakened our souls.

(Psalm 36:7-9, The Voice)

The pursuit of satisfaction in a world where immediate gratification is top priority seems like it would be easy. If you want it, you not only can get it, you should get it. There is a moral imperative to getting it all. It is now right, good, and even healthy. And yet, we remained unsatisfied. Desire only leads to more desire.

The only way desire can lead to satisfaction is by taking a back seat. The two primary methods of pushing desire back are the essentials of the worship of the true God: thanksgiving and sacrifice. With thanksgiving we take our eyes off of what we want and what we have received to admire and take pleasure in the Giver of all such things. We can experience his love and find true satisfaction. 

With sacrifice, we have our desires frustrated by our own hand or by someone else's. Instead of responding with resistance and anger, we let go of the desire and cling to God the Rescuer. He saves us from run-away desire and focuses our eyes back on him and his ability to take care of us and fill us. We can experience the deep satisfaction of surrender to the One who loves us and that we adore.

All of this is only possible when God's love is the most precious thing in our lives. This is not love as a concept that we admire nor is it a transaction that we cash in. This love is an active experience that we live. We daily find shelter in this love. We sit at the table of conversation with this love. We find continuous kindness that quenches our thirst for deep acceptance. It is the fountain of life. It is the light in our eyes. This is what binds all the pages of desire and experience together into meaning - one soul, one life.

Nothing is sweeter than love,

Nothing higher, nothing stronger, nothing larger,

nothing more joyful, nothing fuller,

and nothing better in heaven or on earth.

For love descends from God,

and may not rest finally in anything less than God.

A lover of God flies high, runs swiftly, is merry in God,

is free in soul, gives all for all and has all in all,

rests in one high goodness above all things,

from whom all goodness flows and proceeds.

The lover of God beholds not only the gift,

but the giver above all gifts.

(from True Serenity, selections from The Imitation of Christ)

The Staff in Your Hands

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”

Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” (Exodus 14:10-14)

photo credit: AMBOO WHO?/FLICKR

The gospel
        sings from the pages
        of the Bible
        even in the Exodus:
"The Lord will fight for you;
you need only be still."

Why can I not
be still?

Be still, my child
         my beloved,
         my joy.
Be still and know
     that all you need is already there,
     that the battle's already won,
     that your life is a victory,
                          not a defeat.
Be still and know that I am God:
      I intend what is good

                    to be done in great ways.

      Your salvation today

               is part of my masterpiece

               as well as my master plan.

      Your enemies are real -

               they oppose you and me

               but you will overcome them.

               My wind is at your back,

               my staff is in your hands,

               their trap will become my path

               their army will become my triumph.

Lord, why can I not

          be still?

Your war has taken your peace.

Your fear has taken your hope.

Your doubt has taken your trust.

Your worry has displaced your prayer.

Surrender to the peace only I can give.

    Remember your hope.

        Build your trust.

            Come near in prayer.

And your stillness

                will lead you forward

                                      into victory.

A City Prepared for Me

They admitted they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country - a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. (Hebrews 11:13-16)

I looked to the hills,

the mountains called out to me.

A spirit of wandering invaded my soul,

but with no spirit of fear in it,

rather a longing

for pilgrimmage.

A stranger to everyone,

I sometimes don't recognize myself,

when such longings find me

and I give them shelter.

They come

and beckon me onward.

They say, "You don't belong here."

Often I have let these voices

move me to self-pity

instead of energize me

to seek that far country,

that fair country,

which is my own

and which owns me.

No, the longing and its voice

calls me outward and onward

and I may need to pack and prepare

for this journey today,

but I do not need to hide and escape

like some criminal or refugee

running for my life

in fear and anguish.

That's not leaving at all

but just delving deeper

into what 

I need to leave behind.

I take in hand my staff,

the discplines that discipline me

for the long walk

by steadying my legs

and strengthening my hands

for a better place,

a richer country

with less things and worries

and more heart and hope.

It's not really a place at all

but finding my place.

The song of mountains and hills

calls out to me

and reminds me

that my place is elsewhere

not forever running away from

what is in front of me,

but running further on

a path set before me,

where the air crackles

with possibility,

where the ground itself moves

me forward,

and the sky announces,

"I am not ashamed of you

or ashamed to be yours."

Pilgrimmage

means there's a place ahead for me

in the here and now,

means I am a stranger

but not an outcast,

means there's a journey,

but not an escape,

means a city prepared for me

not one I have to build,

but one I need seek and discover.

The First Gleam of Dawn

 I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and who ever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this? (Jesus, John 11:25)

Live

even though you are dying.

Live

in the twilight hours

between two ages.

 

Some say

"Life is not a dress rehearsal."

But it is!

In life we can get busy living

or we can get busy dying.

Practice makes perfect.

Is it sunrise

or sunset?

Will you embrace

the coming darkness

or the coming dawn?

Die.

Let it go.

Die

to whatever keeps you from life.

Die

even as you embrace life

in the One who lives.

His words to you

will speak you through

all manner of death

into resurrection.

His breath

to fill your lungs

and his belief

to keep your heart beating.

Always.

And forever.

 

The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn,

shining ever brighter till the full light of day. (Proverbs 4:18)