We have the mind of Christ.

1 Corinthians 2:6-3:4 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; ⁷ but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; ⁸ the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; ⁹ but just as it is written,

“Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard,
And which have not entered the heart of man,
All that God has prepared for those who love Him.”

¹⁰ For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. ¹¹ For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. ¹² Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, ¹³ which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.

¹⁴ But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. ¹⁵ But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. ¹⁶ For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.

3 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. ² I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, ³ for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men? ⁴ For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not mere men?

In today’s text we continue to understand why it is that unbelievers fail or refuse to see and accept the simple truths of God and His word. Paul says:  A natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.   The conundrum regarding the Spirit is that as Jesus says in John 16:8:  “He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.”  So, it is the Holy Spirit who causes conviction, regarding sin and righteousness, which leads to faith in Christ for the forgiveness of and redemption from sin. Yet the Holy Spirit only dwells in those who believe. This may seem like foolishness to those who do not have the indwelling Spirit; or to those who do not as Paul says, have the mind of Christ, but perhaps if we look at the first mention of the presence, the power and the action of the Holy Spirit in scripture it will be easier to understand. Genesis 1:1-3 says:  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.    The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God was moving over creation. It was the Spirit acting upon the word of God that was the power behind creation. The Holy Spirit is the essence of the omnipresence and the omnipotence of God. It is the Holy Spirit that moves throughout creation and it is the Spirit that has the power to change things. The word which is translated as formless and void in the creation account could also be translated as chaos. The Holy Spirit, acting upon the word of God, transformed chaos into order. Like God, the Spirit is unchanging. The Spirit still moves throughout creation and responding to the word of God, the Spirit can bring order where there is chaos, whether the chaos is in the circumstances of the world or in the hearts and minds of people.

Let’s also look at what Paul says from the perspective of how it should affect those who believe rather than only helping us to understand the difficulty of those who do not.   Paul says:  We have the mind of Christ.   That we have the mind of Christ is both a tremendous blessing and a great responsibility. The blessing is as Jesus says in John 14:26:  “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”  In Luke 12:12:  “The Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”   Also, in John 14:12-14, having the mind of Christ, Jesus says:  “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”  Having the mind of Christ we are blessed with wisdom and knowledge and power. The great responsibilty is that as James 4:17 says:  To one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.  In John 14:15, immediately after saying that we would do the works that Jesus did, Jesus says:  “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”   Having the mind of Christ and having the indwelling Spirit of God, what excuse do we have for not keeping the commandments of Christ? What excuse do we have for not doing what we know is the right thing?

Having the mind of Christ these are a few of the things we should do:

Matthew 5:44:   “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”

John 15:12: “Love one another, just as I have loved you.”

Matthew 22:37-39:  “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” 

Matthew 5:16:  “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

Matthew 28:19-20:  “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.”

Mark 16:15:  “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” 

Of course there are more. There are many more things that Jesus commanded us; many more things that having the mind of Christ and the indwelling Spirit of God, we know we should do. The question is will we?

May we begin today, praying the prayer Jesus taught us to pray: Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.  ‘Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.  ‘Give us this day our daily bread. ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.  ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  Amen.’