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PROGRAM D-7402
The Apostle Paul tells us that Christians have the mind of Christ within them. That means that we don’t have to be puzzled about what to do, which choice to make, which decision is right, because we can learn to hear the thoughts of God within our own minds, as we allow our minds to be controlled by the Holy Spirit.
Since a Christian has the mind of Christ, does that mean that all our thoughts are God’s thoughts? No, because until we reach heaven, we have two natures to deal with. This new nature was given to us when we were born from above, which gives us the Spirit of God and the mind of Christ. But also we still have our old nature that was born in sin and is still prone to sin. My thoughts will be controlled by one of these two natures, whichever has the greatest control in my life.
Now, if I really want to have the mind of Christ operating within me, then I have to make certain that I continually allow the new nature indwelled by the Spirit of Christ to control me in ever-increasing measure. How do I do that? By feeding the new nature and starving the old one. The one you nourish is the one that will control you.
Which of your natures do you nourish the most? Do you spend time feeding that new spiritual nature with the Word of God, with good books, with good fellowship and messages? Or do you spend more time feeding the old nature with the world’s messages, the world’s literature? Do you pursue things that have no eternal value, or are you focused on storing up treasures in heaven?
If you are earnestly and diligently pursuing a knowledge of God, feeding that new nature and starving the old one, then you are more and more allowing the mind of Christ to control your thoughts. Therefore, as you face decisions, you don’t need handwriting on the wall; you can trust God to reveal his thoughts to you through the mind of Christ, which is within you.
This is step one in making right decisions, and I think it’s a step that unfortunately many Christians never really take. Could that be the reason you never seem to know what God wants you to do? Confusion, we know, is not from God, for he is not the author of confusion or disorder. When we are continually confused about God’s will in our decisions, we need to ask ourselves if we are nurturing the mind of Christ within us. The better we know Christ, the easier it is for us to know what to do in all areas of our lives.