Renewing the Mind #1d
We’ve been teaching on the subject of “RENEWING THE MIND” and we’re going to pick up we left off last time.
I) (Romans 8:6) says, “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”
A) The “CARNALLY MINDED PERSON” is a person that keeps their mind on “EARTHLY OR FLESHLY THINGS.”
1) And as the King James translation puts it, it leads to death, bondage and defeat.
2) But the spiritually minded person is the person that keeps their mind on spiritual things.
a) Jesus said in (John 6:63) that his word, which is the Word of God, is spirit and life.
b) When we keep our mind on the Word of God it will produce peace and life.
(i) Which means it will produce life in the fullest sense, the abundant life; which brings with it all the promises of God and victory.
c) The spiritually minded person is someone that always agrees with the Word of God, but goes one-step further than that.
(i) A spiritually minded person is someone that agrees that whatever God says to do is the very best way and so they are also doers of the Word.
B) We also said last time that when you receive Jesus as your Lord and Saviour you are recreated on the inside.
1) (2nd Corinthians 5:17) says, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
a) This is talking about the spirit man, which has been recreated and his brand-new, but your body and mind haven’t changed.
2) In (Hebrews 10:39) it says that believing is able to save your soul.
a) Your soul is your will, your emotions and your intellect.
b) Faith or believing as (Hebrews 10:39) says, is only based on the Word of God.
(i) That means that God’s Word and faith in his Word is able to save your soul.
c) (1 Peter 1:9) tells us that the end result of faith is the saving of your soul.
(i) Again faith comes from the Word of God.
(ii) The Word of God and faith in his Word bring salvation to your soul or mind.
C) Turn to James 1:21.
1) The engrafted Word of course is the Word of God, and it is able to bring salvation to your soul.
a) Salvation refers to the promises of God. Before you ever receive God’s promises a regular basis you’re going to have to be able to stand in faith. But in order for you to stand in faith your mind must be renewed to God’s Word.
b) Our first step in receiving victory our lives begins with us getting our minds renewed to the Word of God.
II) Turn to Hosea 4:6.
A) In this verse he says, “My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge.”
1) A lack of knowledge of the Word of God is going to bring destruction and bondage.
2) But just the opposite is true also. Jesus said in (John 8:32), “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”
a) In the word “FREE” in that verse where Jesus said, “The truth shall make you free” literally means, “FREE FROM THE DOMINION OF SIN.”
b) The problems that we face in this world are a direct result of sin that has been unleashed in the world by Satan, beginning all the way back to Adam.
(i) I’m not necessarily talking about sins you committed, but the sins in the world. And those sins bring bondage.
(ii) Jesus said, “Ye shall know the truth (the Word of God) and the truth shall make you free from the dominion or authority of sin.”
c) No longer do we have to be subject to the bondages that are in this world because we are no longer under its authority.
(i) If we have the Word of God in our hearts and our minds are renewed to God’s Word we’re free from sins dominion and can walk in the blessings of God.
B) Your soul (your mind, emotions, and will) is the key to success in your Christian life.
1) If your soul is poor, your whole life will be poor. But if your soul is prosperous, your whole life will prosper.
a) A prosperous soul is someone that has their mind renewed to the Word of God.
2) Turn with me to Romans 12:2.
a) In this verse he tells us, “Be not conformed this world.”
(i) According to my Strong’s concordance the Word “CONFORMED” means, “To conform one’s self (one’s mind and character) to another pattern.
(ii) Paul is telling us very clearly here that we are not to be thinking as the world thinks.
b) Let me ask you this how does the world thinks?
(i) 1st of all it’s mostly self-centered, but it’s also filled with negativism, bitterness, hatred, envy, strife, jealousy, and lusts.
3) Paul says we are not to think along those lines. As we said before that thinking as the world thinks will bring bondage and defeat.
a) In this verse Paul says there has to be “a TRANSFORMATION or CHANGE.” BUT HOW?
b) And that change only come by, “RENEWING OUR MINDS TO THE WORD OF GOD.”
C) Let me give you some characteristics of the unrenewed mind.
1) No. 1. The lack of knowledge of the Word of God.
a) (Hosea 4:6) says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.”
2) No. 2. They are controlled by the desires of the flesh, like money, food, sex, power, and so on.
a) Paul said, “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh.” (Romans 8:5)
3) No. 3. They are weak and indecisive about doing the Will of God; they choose things contrary to Will of God.
4) No. 4. They’re undisciplined in their mind and fantasize on godly things.
5) No. 5. They refuse to change and seek only to prove themselves right or defending themselves.
a) The Bible teaches us in Proverbs that a wise man will receive correction and become even wiser because of it.
6) No. 6. They are more concerned with things of this earth then the things of heaven.
a) (Colossians 3:2) says, “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” The Word “AFFECTION” in this verse is better-translated “MIND.” “SET YOUR MIND ON THINGS ABOVE AND NOT ON THE EARTH.”
7) No. 7. The unrenewed mind allows their emotions and feelings to decide how the act, rather than God’s Word.
a) (2nd Corinthians 5:7) says, “For we walk by faith, not by sight.”
8) And No. 8 the unrenewed mind continues to worry, fear and think on negative things.
D) According to 3rd John 2 the blessings of God in your life are based on the prosperity of your soul.
1) If your soul is poor, it’ll affect every area of your life; your family, business, faith, health, finances and so on.
E) But on the other hand a prosperous soul or the renewed mind also portrays characteristics.
1) No. 1. The renewed mind is a mind is ready to repent or change any thought at any time according to Word of God.
2) No. 2 the renewed mind will follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, and not the flesh.
a) (Romans 8:5) says, “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the spirit the things of the spirit.”
3) No. 3. A prosperous soul is a person who meditates on God’s Word regularly.
a) (Psalms 1:2) says, “But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.”
4) No. 4. The renewed mind will think on positive things with no worry, fear, or negativity.
5) No. 5. He will also do God’s will, no matter the cost.
6) And No. 6 their emotions and feelings are disciplined to follow after the Word of God and not what they feel like at that time.
F) As John said you’ll prosper even as your soul prospers.
1) Let’s look at that verse 3 John 2.
a) But John didn’t end there in talking about the prosperous soul or the renewed mind.
b) Look at verse 3 and 4.
(i) John brings out that the prosperous soul not only has the truth in them but they also walk in the truth and live it.
III) Turn to Isaiah 26:3.
A) Notice that doesn’t say, “whose mind is on thee once in a while.”
1) But the perfect peace comes on those whose mind is stayed on thee.
2) The words “PERFECT PEACE” in this verse are the Hebrew words “SHALOM SHALOM.”
a) The meaning of the Word “SHALOM” is “PEACE, WELL, PROSPERITY, SAFE, HEALTH, COMPLETENESS, SOUNDNESS, AND CONTENTMENT.”
b) He says these things belong to a person that keeps their mind on God.
(i) But the Bible also says in (John 1:1), “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
(ii) Keeping your mind on God and on his Word brings these blessings.
B) Turn to Joshua 1:8.
1) The book of the law is the Word of God and the person that meditates on God’s Word day and night will be a doer of God’s Word and they are making their way prosperous.
C) Turn with me to one more scripture and that’s found in Psalms 1:1-3.
1) Who is the man that prospers? It is the man who meditates on God’s Word day and night.
W. O. L. C. C. Sunday, October 04, 1998 the messages on Renewing the Mind #2 and #3 do not go together with this series on Renewing the Mind #1-#1d. Mostly from highlights of Casey Treat’s book called “Renewing the Mind.” & Sunday 6\2\02