Paul’s phrase of renewing our minds is a well-known phrase to disciples of Christ. This daily devotional looks at what that means and to what the transformation leads.
Nuggets
- Renewing our minds – in fact, all of us – means changing ourselves to be more like God.
- The transformation brought on by renewing our minds should lead to perfection.
To read devotions in the Redo for Godliness series, click the appropriate button below.
Devotions in the Transformed to Perfection series
We’ve talked before how the mind plays a big part of our relationship with God. We have to make a conscious decision to submit to God.
What comes into play is that the mind can be malleable. Irwin called it “… impressionable, pliable, [and] susceptible.”
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One of the first things Paul said after he got off the doctrine chapters was that we need to renew our minds. Let’s dig into what that means.
Let's Put It into Context #1
Here is a running list of what we’ve discussed previously.
Let's Put It into Context #2
We’ve looked at Romans 12: 1-2 before — pretty extensively. We broke apart the phrases in the verses when we developed the first job duty for our Disciples’ Job Description.
The Disciple’s Job Description
We looked then at what we were supposed to do. Let’s look now more at the end result — perfection means being.
Transforming Our Minds
“Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God” (Rom. 12: 2 CSB)
Renewing our minds – in fact, all of us – means changing ourselves to be more like God.
What does renewing your mind mean? It is easy to think that is limited to our thought faculty. Maclaren felt it meant all of our inner selves. In another sermon, he clarified that to include affections and will — “… a new set of views; or … a new set of convictions.”
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Irwin thought Paul told us how. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!” (II Cor. 5: 17 CSB).
Candlish notes whose mind we will have. He wrote, “The renewing of your mind is your being brought to have the same mind which Christ had.”
There were some excellent points that Candlish brought up.
- We receive Christ’s nature but do not become mini gods.
- Jesus became a servant so that we could become sons and daughters.
- We become transformed by believing in His transformation.
- We must voluntarily humble ourselves as Jesus did to do His Will.
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Irwin put that to practical application. He wrote, “there is a new way of looking at things. Things which we once took pleasure in have no attraction for us now; duties which we once thought irksome now become our delight. This is the result of the Holy Spirit working in us, producing in us likeness to God, transforming us into his image, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Jesus Christ.”
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There is no way we are going to be able to renew our own minds on our own. “Jesus replied, ‘Truly I tell you, unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God’” (Jn. 3: 3 CSB). This can only be done through salvation.
- Salvation is the gift of life through the deliverance from evil and the consequences of sins to replace them with good and eternal life.
- The consequences of sin are spiritual death and physical separation from God.
- Spiritual death is the spiritual separation from God that occurred as a consequence of Adam and Eve’s original sin. The spiritually alive are those who have ABCDed, so they are no longer separated from God.
- Eternal life is the promise of living eternally – even if we have died in this life – because we have admitted our sins, believed Jesus as Savior and Redeemer, and confessed God as Sovereign Lord.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to
live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Glossary
Salvation starts the process. Sanctification takes over then.
- Sanctification is the transformation of mind, body, and soul, which begins with regeneration, gradually changes our nature through the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and ends with perfected state of spiritual wholeness or completeness.
- The perfected state indicates the combination of the spiritual graces which, when all are present, form spiritual wholeness or completeness.
- Spiritual graces are worldly morals that have been submitted to God to further His kingdom instead of enhancing this world.
Glossary
Maurice made an interesting observation. He said that “the substance is not altered, but it is quickened.”
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Well, yes. Our characters aren’t scrapped because we are already made in God’s image. But the problem is we are also made in Adam’s image. So, we need all the sinfulness cut out so all that is left is God’s character in us.
Glossary
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
Since we are renewing our minds, what does that look like? Short said it means a redo of our thoughts. After conversion, disciples are to concentrate on being a new creation. We concentrate on thinking right.
Glossary
Maclaren stated that the renewed mind must lead to a transformed life. It is still us and our personality. We transform to be like the Perfect God.
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To me, that means the transformation is imperative. But to what do we transform?
Transforming to What?
"... so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God” (Rom. 12: 2 CSB)
The transformation brought on by renewing our minds should lead to perfection.
I loved what Maclaren said. He wrote, “The present salvation points onwards to its own completion, and in that way becomes further a source of joy.”
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The completion of salvation is “… the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God” (Rom. 12: 2 CSB). Well, do the math.
Salvation + Regeneration + Sanctification = Perfection
Perfection is what God wills for us, and it pleases Him when we achieve it. We achieve it by doing good as opposed to evil.
- Good, in the biblical sense, is the workings of God within His people.
- Evil is equated with sin because it is that which goes against God and His purposes.
We have an idea of what this might be like. Let’s look at Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration.
“And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.’ He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.’ When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only” (Lk. 17: 1-8 ESV)."... so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God” (Rom. 12: 2 CSB)
Candlish noted that this is Jesus’ Second Coming body. “He will transform the body of our humble condition into the likeness of his glorious body, by the power that enables him to subject everything to himself” (Phil 3: 21 CSB).
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But what does all of that look like?
- “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (II Cor. 5: 17 ESV).
- “Instead, his delight is in the LORD’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night” (Ps. 1: 2 CSB).
- “So I always take pains to have a clear conscience toward both God and man” (Ac. 24: 16 ESV).
- “I say, ‘The LORD is my portion, therefore I will put my hope in him’ (Lam. 3: 24 CSB).
- “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Coll 3: 2 ESV).
- “And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Mt. 22: 37 ESV)
- “As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him?” (Ps. 42: 1-2 NLT).
- “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Ps. 27: 1 ESV).
- “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Mt. 11: 29 ESV).
- “I tell you that on the day of judgment people will have to account for every careless word they speak” (Mt. 12: 36 CSB).
- “But as the one who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct; for it is written, Be holy, because I am holy” (I Pet. 1: 15-16 CSB).
We are transformed into obedient children of God. We humbly want to serve Him.
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Making the Connections
Binney said the whole reason we do the transformation is so that we experience the Will of God. We find out what Romans 8: 28 really means.
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Candlish noted that “the will of God needs to be proved.” We have to experience His forgiveness and provision. We have to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He will never leave us.
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This is where, in the midst of a trial, God shows us His nature. He wants us to understand — as much as we can — Who He is.
We respond with obedience.
How Do We Apply This?
- Seek God, specifically read and hear God’s Word.
- Meditate on His Word to apply it to our lives.
- Be in constant communication with God.
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Searching for and Seeking God
Hearing His Word (Rom. 10: 17).
Reading His Word (Rev. 1: 3).
Praying to Him (Heb. 4: 16).
Studying His Word (Ac. 17: 11).
Meditating on His Word (Ps. 1: 1-2).
Memorizing His Word (Ps. 119: 11).
What? You say I am sounding like a broken record? Well, the answer is never going to change. We find God in His Word and by communicating with Him.
I think a lot of times we are looking for these self-help props to organize us and encourage us. They are good, don’t get me wrong.
But we have to be buried in Him. In His Word. In His house. There is no substitute for that.
We just have to choose to do it.
Father God. We can only transform to be like You when You transform us. You only transform us when we prove that we are sincere in seeking You. Change us, Lord, to be like You. Amen.
What do you think?
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