Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
W e are called to being transformed by the renewing of our 'Mind'.
The words 'Transformed' and 'Renewed are interesting Greek words,with interesting applications.
1a : change of physical form, structure, or substance especially by supernatural means b : a striking alteration in appearance, character, or circumstances
2: a typically marked and more or less abrupt developmental change in the form or structure of an animal (as a butterfly or a frog) occurring subsequent to birth or hatching
See metamorphosis defined for English-language learners �
Examples of METAMORPHOSIS:
We have watched her metamorphosis from a shy schoolgirl into a self-confident businesswoman.
a company that has gone through a series of metamorphoses
The government has undergone political metamorphosis since his election.
the metamorphosis of tadpoles into frogs
The class learned about how caterpillars undergo metamorphosis to become butterflies.
Do we not renovate homes,cars,and other daily items which we use.
Seeing the importance of being Transformed and Renewed,why are some in the body of Yeshua being told that the mind is not necessary in relationship with Yeshua.
How then are we to discern-prove-test-and try the will of GOD without using the mind,which YHWH has give to us to use.
Is there any place in the Scripture where we are told to forsake the use of our minds.
I have been to a few Evangelical fellowships where the people have been told,that the Word of GOD needs to make the 18 inch journey from ones mind down into the heart,
These men almost always point to the heart within their chest.
Yet is not this very heart the one the LORD says this about.
Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Jer 17:10 I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.
But the LORD does give us a new heart (spiritual).
Yet,why does He not give us a new mind,why are we called to be transformed,by the renewing of our mind.
logically, we dont want to give a homeless person the $10 we have in our pocket/purse but my heart goes out to him and I just do it without thinking about. I know if I put to much thought into it I wont do it cuz logic will take over.
Our history forms our thoughts, so our thoughts need to be re-newed. The bible says in 2 Cor 10:5 to take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
I have to do this all the time!
it has been said that the mind is the devils playground.
A child who has been abused grows up thinking they do not have any worth or that the abuse was their fault. when we come to Christ, He wants to change that about us. Those are not His thoughts toward us in fact, it's the opposite.
*God expects us to grow, develop and mature in our walk with Him. Many Christians are missing out on this sanctification-transformation process that is available to them through the power of the Holy Spirit. This sanctification process is what will really lead you into true inner peace, happiness and fulfillment that everyone is looking for these days.
Unfortunately, once you are born again absolutely nothing will change in your life unless you begin the process of renewing your mind, or changing the way your mind operates.
This is because your fleshy body is still being controlled by your mind. Your body does what your mind tells it to do. Renewing your mind is the same thing as changing your mindset, and it is this renewing of the mind that lets a born again believer have brand new Godly attitudes, goals, ideals, opinions, desires, and ideas.
Romans 12:1-2 tells us what we must do after we become born again believers. "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove to be what is good and acceptable and perfect in the will of God."
As I mentioned earlier, when you were born again God gave you a brand new Godly heart, as it tells us in the following verse.
Ezekiel 36:26-27. "Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new Spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you".
However, it is when you combine that new heart with a brand new mindset that you will have awesome and incredible Godly changes taking place in your life. For this is when you will suddenly find yourself well on your way to surrendering your entire life over to Jesus Christ. But renewing your mind involves two things that most people hate to do. Renewing you mind involves a great deal of work and effort. Renewing your mind takes a great deal of hard work on your part.
If you think about it, you cannot even start on your road to spiritual growth and spiritual maturity until you have a whole new mindset. You must renew your mind. Remember that your mind is the thing that has control over every single one of your actions. You mind controls your thoughts. Your mind tells your body exactly what to do. It tells your mouth what words to speak. It tells your eyes what to look at. It tells your ears what things to pay attention to and what things to tune out. It tells your brain what to think about. It tells your entire being how to respond in every single situation.
So until you renew and change your mind, the world and your flesh are still going to control you because your mind is being so greatly influenced by the flesh and by the world. Until you are willing to put your born again experience into daily, minute by minute practice by changing the way your mind looks at everything, you will see little if any improvement in your physical or spiritual lives.
When you were born again you made the conscious effort to surrender your entire life over to Jesus Christ. That means giving to Jesus complete control over your body, heart, soul, and mind. And in order to do that you must stay in contact with Jesus Christ 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Everything you do has to go through and be approved by Jesus Christ. In other words, if you have a desire to have a few drinks, then first talk to Jesus about it. If you want to watch some filthy programs on TV, first ask Jesus his opinion. If you want to hang around with some godless friends, first ask Jesus what he thinks about it. He will definitely talk to you. He will talk to your heart and mind. He will talk to your moral fiber. He will talk to your character. He will talk to that part of you that wants to lead a Godly life. He will talk very loud and very clearly to everything that goes into making you a child of God.
And you have to keep on doing this until your mind no longer wants your body to commit that sin. And you do the same thing not only with each sin, but you must do it with each bad memory, each depressing feeling, each and every thing that takes your focus off of God and places it on you and your problems. See what I mean about the hard work and all the effort that it takes to renew your mind? It is certainly not easy to renew one's mind.
However, when you were born again Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit came to live within you, and they are incredibly powerful forces and their greatest desire is to help you. But, they want to see effort on your part. They need for you to keep the lines of communication open and to make sure that they stay open, and you do this through prayerful conversation with them all day long. Constantly listen for Jesus and the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart, your mind, your conscience, your sense of moral righteousness and fairness, to your sense of what is right and Godly.
And those times when you do sin, talk to Jesus about it immediately. Ask him to help you analyze why you committed that sin, what are the circumstances that bring that sin on, what is the situation that is present at the beginning of that sin, what are the factors that allow that sin to walk through the doors of your life, and what steps can you take to prevent any future occurrence of that sin. And you have to do this each and every time you sin with each and every sin. And you have to do it over and over and over.
If a believer does this, then soon the believer will begin to understand the meaning behind a great many verses in the Bible. Verses like 1 Peter 1:14.
1 Peter 1:14 "Now that you are obedient children of God do not live as you did in the past. You did not understand then, so you did the evil things you wanted."
As you can easily see, renewing your mind is not a one time event but rather it is a life long process. It's a lifestyle. That is why the renewing of a person's mind, is only possible for a believer who sincerely wants to live a Godly life. Renewing of the mind is only for the believer who truly wants to surrender their life completely and fully over to Jesus Christ. Renewing of the mind is only for that believer who truly loves change, but only if it is in harmony with the Word of God.
Renewing of the mind is not for the part time Christian or for the Christian who obeys God only when it suits him. Renewing of the mind is a waste of time for those people because there is no hunger or thirst for Jesus Christ in their hearts. Jesus Christ is not at the center of their lives.
So the important thing when it comes to renewing your mind is to stay in a constant state of prayerful communication with Jesus Christ. You cannot take your eyes off of him for a second. Not in this world. Not when sin is pressing in on you from every conceivable angle. But, if you constantly and continuously keep your focus on Jesus Christ, then sin for the most part will be eradicated from your life.
