HAVING THE MIND OF CHRIST (1Cor 2:16)

We all have a mind for something in all manners of daily living, whether on the job, in the home, or on the road. No matter where we are, we are constantly called upon to “use your head”. Unfortunately, we all fall short of this important responsibility. A dear lady who had misplaced an important item exclaimed, “I have a mind, but I don’t know what I did with it.”. She was quite correct, because the item was not lost from her; she was lost from the item.

Some lapses of mind can be very dangerous. My daughter was whip lashed by a young man who was foolishly eating Chinese takeout while driving. His distraction caused severe damage to three cars, five people, two insurance companies, civil servants, and an employer’s loss of a good worker. Those with a sound mind must question this young fellow’s senses. We know what was going on in his mind; he was on his way to the beach and decided to save some valuable time and eat while he was driving. Is that so bad? Yes, it is so bad! It is bad to do anything while you are in charge of a matter that can cause damage and/or injury to another, or yourself. It is bad also, to be distracted while you are helping someone with a problem, especially if it is a life-saving event.

Jesus at the age of twelve, you will recall, was separated from His parents for some three days. He was scolded for His carelessness when His parents found in the temple, but He replied: “And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business? (Luke 2:49 KJV) There are two minds involved here, both quite proper. The parents’ mind was for the welfare of their Son; the Son’s mind was to honor His heavenly Father. Here we see the conflict that causes problems among people and their positions of authority.

There is an old saying, “he is so spiritually minded that he is no earthly good”. Here again we see the conflict between spirit and the world. It has ever been so, and will always be. Jesus said, “whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. (James 4:4b KJV) Jesus, being Christ, had the mind of Christ, so what applies to Him also applies to us, meaning that we must, as Christians, see the world as our enemy in our mind. In relation to other people, Jesus insisted that if we are not willing to leave all, home, relatives, and friends for His sake and the Gospel, we are not worthy of Him. Anything that would keep His spiritual brother or sister away from Him is His enemy, yet He loves all men. He also said we are to love our enemy, those who would hold us back from serving and following Him.

“If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26 KJV) Have you ever started on an important project and were detained by one of your family and felt that they were not as important as your project? You hated it because of the delay and everyone involved in it. This does not mean that you don’t love them, but it does set your mind to the importance of your project. If your project was in service to our Lord, how much more important it would be. You see, the Gospel is a matter of life and death for those who hear it preached.

These are a few important facts concerning the mind of our Lord, Christ. The main question for us is, do we have the same mind for the importance of God’s work as our Lord has taught us? If not, we cannot be His disciple. There are many in our churches today who would not miss Sunday lunch for Him. Years ago churches had Sunday and Wednesday evening services, but today it appears that those are less important than television or some ball game. The choice is ours, and our rewards or embarrassments lie before us on that day when we stand before Him. Or worse, will we hear Him say, “But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. (Luke 13:27 KJV)

WTLMinistry http://www.wtlministry.org 5/13/02