1 Corinthians 2:16
April 22, 2008 (Tuesday)
I once saw a comedian on TV present a routine in which the parts of the body talked. He gave each body part a voice, a personality to go with it, and invented an entire scene that was hilarious. Body parts argued with each other and a chaotic scene developed as their shouts grew louder. Suddenly, the brain’s voice was heard above all others. I can still see the comedian putting his hands to his mouth, as we do when we create a makeshift megaphone with our hands, tilting his head forward so as to look down at his body, and with a deep melodious yet authoritative voice, intoned slowly, “Now hear this! This is the brain..” Then the parts settled down to listen to the great leader, the brain. Funny.
Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz needed a brain and wanted one badly. We are fortunate. We have a brain. We have a mind of our own. We think for ourselves. We make our own decisions.
We are limited, however, if we depend completely on human wisdom and logic. Paul calls a person with these limitations, a “natural man.” Such a person is unspiritual, being merely human. Without God’s help our minds cannot understand spiritual things and they seem foolish.
Paul wrote to the Corinthian Christians to remind them that they were no longer mere flesh and blood, but were now, by the grace of God, spiritual people. When they accepted Christ as Savior and He became their Lord, they had access to “the mind of Christ” (1 Cor 2:16).
We can learn a lot from the Corinthians. They were told by Paul that the turmoil in their church was a direct result of their stunted spiritual growth. “Keep reminding yourselves,” he urged, “that you are now spiritual beings and you are to surrender your minds to Christ’s way of thinking.”
The challenges to faith today are many. We have been changed by the power and grace of God, and our experience of salvation in Christ qualifies us to reject any teaching which belittles Christ and minimizes the new birth.
Don’t be confused by those who think they have found new truth that makes your faith outdated and irrelevant. Most of the new beliefs are the old errors in new packages. You don’t have to be a Bible scholar to discern the truth and recognize error. The Amplified Bible translates 1 Cor 2:16 in this way: “we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart.” You have the mind of Christ!