Mind of Christ, Pt 2
What do these Bible references have in common?
- Ten Virgins
- Peter, James, John – Mount of Transfiguration
- Peter, James, John – Garden of Gethsemane
- Church of Laodicea
They were all asleep.
Matthew 24:42-51
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
From 2 TC, pg 347
“The brain nerves which communicate with the entire system are the only medium through which heaven can communicate to man and affect his inmost life.
“Whatever disturbs the circulation of the electric currents in the nervous system lessens the strength of the vital powers, and the result is the deadening of the sensibilities of the mind.
DA, Pg 123.3
“There was in Him nothing that responded to satan’s sophistry. He did not consent to sin. Not even by a thought did He yield to temptation. So it may be with us.
How can we respond this way if we do not read and study God’s word?
Continuing with Desire of Ages, pg 123.3
“Christ’s humanity was united with divinity; He was fitted by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. And He came to make us partakers of the Divine Nature. So long as we are united to Him by faith, sin has no more dominion over us. God reaches for the hand in us to direct it to law fast hold upon the divinity of Christ, that we may attain to perfection of character.”
2 Tim 2:19
Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.
God never changes. He is our firm support in all that we encounter. We see this throughout scripture. I am reminded of the beauty of Ps 91 that is specifically important for these last days.
The seal here is that God knows those who belong to Him because they stop sinning. This seal is the following of God’s law, since 1 John tells us that transgression is the breaking of the law. (1 John 3:4)
Mind of Christ:
Phil 2:5
“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:”
2 Cor 10:5
We have discussed this before, how God can give us strength and victory over the strongholds of the mind. These strongholds are where the lusts of the flesh battle with the Spirit of God.
5 TC, pg 177.1
- “An impure thought tolerated, an unholy desire cherished, and the soul is contaminated, its integrity compromised.”
These are cherished sins.
We need to pray earnestly that God will reveal to us where we have hidden, cherished sin in our lives. Then ask Him to give us strength to overcome. We cannot do any of this on our own. We must look to Jesus for the strength to obtain victory.
James 1:15
When we dwell on a thought, it leads to action. Satan can put thoughts into our mind, but we do not have to think on them. It is not sin to have a thought pop in our head. We all get random thoughts throughout the day. Where it becomes sin is when we dwell on these things.
Remember Phil 4:8. Paul tells us what to think on. From out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh.(Matt 12:34)
When we put garbage in, we get garbage out. We will talk more on the brain physiology aspect later.
- If we would not commit sin, we must shun its very beginnings. Every emotion and desire must be held in subjection to reason and conscience. Every unholy thought must be instantly repelled.
- If the thoughts are wrong, the feelings will be wrong, and the thoughts and feelings combined make up the moral character. 5T pg 310
We are in a battle of the mind and heart. Eph 6:12
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Isa 1:18
18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
God wants us to use our wise mind. We are not to react to everything from an emotional standpoint, but to use our reasoning ability also.
- Our secular culture encourages us to follow after our heart, or that sometimes we need to get away to seek the truth in our hearts. However, this is not good advice because our hearts can easily deceive us. Instead of following or trusting our hearts, we should trust in the Lord and follow Him.
Prov 3:5-6
5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
- Adam Clarke Commentary Eccl 10:2
- A wise man’s heart is at his right hand – As the right hand is ordinarily the best exercised, strongest, and most ready, and the left the contrary, they show,
1 Chron 28:9
- “And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast
thee off for ever.”
Upward Look, Pg 89
Never forget that thoughts work our actions. Repeated actions form habits, and habits form character. Then in giving attention to the little things, there is no fear that the larger things will become stained and corrupted.
COL 412
It is in a crisis that character is revealed.
James 1:2-8
2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
June 1, 2021 @ 3:17 pm
I love read your inspirational message.
May 21, 2022 @ 8:07 am
Thank you.