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Kingdom Dynamics

A Christlike Mindset

A.        INTRODUCTION

God’s desire is that you be like Christ.  The one aspect of your personality that He will measure constantly for Christ-likeness, is your mind.  God helps in your growth by revealing through His Word the expectations He has for your mind.  Through His Word, His work, His grace, and His Spirit, you can have the mind of Christ.

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Welcome to The Mind of Christ. You are beginning a lifelong process of developing the mind of Christ.  Right now, that thought may be too comprehensive to understand.  Through Paul, God has commanded His people to “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Phil.2:5).  The mind of Christ!  We are not told to have a good mind, not a mind purified by discipline, not a sharpened intellect, not even the highest of human attainment in godliness and virtue – but the very mind of Christ Himself!  We are not merely to resemble Jesus.  We are to think His very thoughts.  This is not a wish but a command.  We are to have the mind of the only perfect human who ever walked our earth – the mind of the God-man, Jesus Christ.  Can you see why this will be a lifelong process?  Let’s get started.

 

B.        SIX CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CHRISTLIKE MIND

 

Six definite attributes, characteristic of the Mind of Christ, can be determined from the New Testament :

 

1.  Alive

 

Paul tells us, “The mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace” (Rom. 8:6, NASB).  Our first and last characteristics – alive and peaceful – come from this verse.  Without Christ we are dead (Eph.2:1). In Christ we have everlasting life (John 3:36). Jesus went further than saying we live.  Jesus said that He came in order that we might have abundant life (John 10:10).  You demonstrate this life (of death) constantly by the choices you make.  When you set your mind on the Spirit, you experience life.

 

You can choose what you will think about.  That is why the will is so important.  “The mind set on the flesh is death” (Rom. 8:6, NASB).  The mind that is set on the Spirit is alive and active.  Life is distinguished by activity.  The mind of Christ is not lazy.  It enjoys occupation.  At times it reflects on the Person of God.  At times it prays.  At times it brings the intentions of God into our dialogue with another Christian or with a non-Christian.  The mind that is alive chooses the spiritual in preference to the fleshly.

 

2.  Single-minded

 

A second description of the mind occurs in 2 Cor. 11:3:  “I am afraid, lest as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ” (NASB).  In other words, the mind of Christ is single-minded in devotion to Christ. One of our spiritual problems is becoming distracted or being “led astray.”  Concentration is difficult because the mind is bombarded by so many distractions.  Most of our minds dart off in hundreds of directions in the course of a day.  Single-mindedness is an act of the mind.  The single-minded Christian pays attention to Christ, His commands, His Person, and His ways. Your mind must be preoccupied with sincere and pure devotion to Christ.  Single-mindedness is the discipline of attention.  We will see in more detail in future lessons the great importance of your will.  You can direct or control your attention with a focus on Christ and His kingdom.

 

3.  Lowly

 

Paul gives another description of the godly mind in Philippians 2:3:  “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” The mind is to be lowly.  Humility, a twin of lowliness, will be treated later in the study of servant hood.  One cannot be humble unless he is lowly.  Humility follows lowliness of mind.  Humility speaks of a relationship to others and to God.  Lowliness is a state of mind. The opposite of lowliness is haughtiness, pride, or arrogance.  Lowliness is a trait, which must be cultivated.  Members of the body of Christ learn to submit to one another by lowliness.  We can foster lowliness by concentrating on a genuine appreciation for the Person of God.  We start there.  Lowliness must come first, in order for the perspective to be right. Those who encountered God in the Bible almost always first experienced genuine terror or fear before Him.  This is a godly fear, not a canal fear.  Those who met God knew of the need for lowliness.  They immediately recognised the vast difference between God and themselves. A clear view of God’s greatness will lead you to a proper view of yourself.  The lowly Christian has the security of understanding his position under the greatness of God.

 

4.  Pure

 

Paul speaks about the mind in Titus 1:15:  “Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.” Purity is depicted as the natural state of the Christian.  Impurity is reached by corruption of the mind and conscience.

 

The natural spiritual state – one that is filled with God’s Spirit and growing in Christ – is difficult to maintain.  One reason is the constant assault of information on our senses.  Tempters have opportunities to take us into realms of thought never known before.  Television, for example, can channel impurities right into the privacy of our homes.  Lust is grander.  Jealousy is more treacherous.  Greed is simply the road to an important position, and anxiety is more fashionable.  Sin is everywhere.

 

In order to overcome the temptations toward impurity you must want to be pure.  Until this desire becomes your passion, you will be overwhelmed by the impressions flooding into your senses.  If your desire for purity is sincere, God will provide you with the way of overcoming impurities.  Your safest course is to escape temptation entirely, which is not possible, yet you can reduce it in living a disciplined lifestyle.  The psalmist used this approach when he said, “I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes” (Ps.101:3).  Strength comes prior to temptation, not during it.  Overcoming is a prior act.  It involves making a decision to remain pure before the temptation comes.

5.  Responsive

 

When Jesus appeared to His disciples on the evening of the resurrection, “He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures” (Lukes 24:45, NASB).  The Lord could not open some minds today!  When Jesus chose the disciples, He recognized in them a quality that made them fit subjects for three and a half years of intensive training. The disciples did not always learn quickly, but they were teachable.  They at least wanted to learn.  We might call this quality open-mindedness, but modern connotations of that word give it a meaning foreign to the quality with which Jesus was working.  They were responsive to His teaching.

 

We see the opposite of responsiveness in  2 Cor. 3:12-16.  Speaking of the Israelites in the desert, Paul says “their minds were blinded (v.14).  Paul tells us that  “Unto this day, when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart” (v.15).  In Christ, however, the covering is taken away (v.14). The spiritual dullness of the Pharisees and Sadducees was wilful.  They were smug in their self-righteousness and missed the coming of their Messiah.  To be unresponsive to God is to be spiritually dull-witted.

 

Responsiveness must be to God.  We must not be responsive to anything and everything.  The disciples were sensitive when they asked, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). In this petition, they were not merely envying the enormous ability of Jesus to perform miracles (earlier they had been given authority to heal the sick and cast out demons).  Rather, they perceived in Jesus a relationship to His Father that they wanted to imitate.  Jesus was intensely spiritual and they wanted that quality of spirituality in their own lives.

 

Responsiveness to God is indispensable for progress in your spiritual life.  You need to be sensitive to God’s Holy Spirit.  How can you cultivate that sensitivity?  One way is to spend time in God’s Word.  Specifically, Jesus opened the minds of the disciples to Scripture.  God wants you to understand His Word, but you cannot understand it if you do not spend time in it.  Prayer also sensitizes your spirit.  When the disciples wanted to imitate Jesus, it was His teaching on prayer that they asked for.

 

6.  Peaceful

 

Romans 8:6 already have given us the insight of how to apply this to the spiritual mind.  It also gives another word:  “The mind set on the Spirit is life and peace.” The spiritual mind is peaceful.  Peace is a fruit of the Spirit  (see Gal. 5:22), not an attainment.  Your work is setting your mind.  God’s work is providing the peace.  Jesus had peace.  His life was completely free from sin and the ravages of the world system.  He promised rest to the weary and burdened (see Matt. 11:28).  You find rest by taking His yoke.

 

C.        THE CHRIST-LIKE MIND IN PHIL 2 : 5-11

 

This passage in Philippians, stating the Christ-like attitude and mindset, can be broken down into six parts :

 

Part 1  Christ’s Freedom

“Let  this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (v.5)

 

Part 2  Christ’s Lifestyle

“Who,  being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be to equal with God”  (v.6)

 

Part 3  Christ’s Servanthood

“But made Himself of no  reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant” (v.7)

 

Part 4  Christ’s Humanity

“And was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man’s. (v.7-8.)

 

Part 5  Christ’s Holiness and Love

“He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even to death of the  cross” (v.8)

 

Part 6  Christ’s Name

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a Name which is above every name:  That at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, and of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth: And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (v.9-11).

 

The previous pages describe six characteristics of a Christlike mind.  They describe God’s ideal for your mind.  As we study carefully our primary text for this course, Phillipians 2:5-11, we will discover six parts in this passage  Each of the parts describes an aspect of Christ’s life and mind.  As we study each of those parts, God will be working to develop in you the six characteristics of a Christlike mind.  During this lesson, we will identify how each chapter part is related to what God will be doing in your life.  God’s kingdom (rule) is being realized as you become like Christ.  The inner work God does in your mind will find expression outwardly in the way you live your life.

 

Now let’s look in more detail at each part in Phil. 2:5-11 and what God will be doing to develop a Christlike mind in you.  The format we will use includes a chapter part and a title related to the mind of Christ.  Beside each title is listed in accumulation the unit(s) related to that part of our chapter.  Next you will read that part of the chapter text.  Finally you will see the Christlike characteristic God will be developing in you.

 

1.  Christ’s Freedom

 

Christlike Characteristic: Alive. Christians can experience mental battles occurring

when the desires of the flesh clash with the desires of the Spirit.  Christ intends to set you

free from the dominion of sin in your life that causes such battles.  Genuine freedom can

occur only where spiritual life exists.  Life is not fully spiritual until it is fully free.  God will

be working to give you life and freedom in Christ.

 

2. Christ’s Lifestyle

 

Christlike Characteristic:  Single-minded. The human mind tends to waver like a ship on a stormy sea.  Distractions are plentiful.  The world works to shape you into its mold.  Single-mindedness means that you set your mind and heart on seeking first God’s  kingdom.  As you determine to put His kingdom first, God will begin to give you the

virtues of godly wisdom and the fruit of the Spirit. We can also call this the fruit of a self-surrendered lifestyle.

Once your  surrender to His kingdom, you are a surprise to yourself and others. Now you have fulfilled the deepest law of the kingdom of God: “whoever would save his life will lose if and whoever loses his life for My sake [in a higher cause, the Kingdom) will find it” (Matt. 16:25 RSV).

 

 

3.  Christ’s Servanthood

 

Jesus  “made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant” (Phil. 2:7).

Christlike Characteristic:  Lowly. Pride has been a foe of right living since Adam and Eve sinned in the garden.  God

despises the proud, but He dwells with the lowly. Lowliness does not mean belittling yourself.  Rather, it means

esteeming others.  God will be working to help you see His greatness.  With a lowly spirit you will take on the

characteristics of servanthood.

 

4.  Christ’s Humanity

 

Jesus “was made in the likeness of men; He was “found in fashion as a man” (Phil.2:7-8).

Christlike Characteristic:  Pure. When God became man, He demonstrated His intention that human beings have great

authority and nobility.  To have these two attributes, you must be pure.  This purity will show in the way you express your

humanity: in your emotions, in your relationships to things and people, and in your daily walk in the Spirit. God will be

working  in you to cleanse the impurities of your life and establish right patterns for living.

 

5.   Christ’s Holiness and Love

 

Jesus “become obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8).

Christlike Characteristic:  Responsive. Jesus  “becomes obedient unto death.”  His obedience purchased for us our holiness.  Which death did Jesus die?  “Even the death of the cross.”  This was the ultimate expression of God’s love.  Because of what Jesus did, we gladly obey Him.  Responsiveness is not “doing your duty.”  In being responsive, you choose to share Christ’s nature of holiness and love.  God will be working to make you holy and to teach you to love with a Christlike love.

 

6.  Christ’s Name

 

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:  That at  the

Name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth and things under the earth;  And

that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9-11).

 

Christlike Characteristic: Peaceful. Jesus’ love, bought peace for us.   Peace is not the absence of conflict, but the harvest of love.  Christ’s love took Him to Calvary.  But in His death Jesus bought peace for us – peace with God.  The resurrection was Christ’s victory over sin and death.  His victory made peace a reality.  Through Christ’s death, resurrection, and exaltation we can experience genuine peace.  Peace doesn’t come while your flesh battles God for control.  The peace comes when you finally bow your knees to Christ and allow Him to be absolute Lord of you life.   God will be working to exalt Christ before you so you will surrender completely to His lordship.

 

D.        DEVELOPING THE MIND OF CHRIST: THREE STAGES

 

The New Testament uses three verbs concerning the mind.  Becoming like Christ is accomplished in a process.  If we were to think of the operations of the mind as a process, the three verbs can neatly classify themselves as beginning, middle, and ending parts of the process.  I define these three stages in the following way:

 

 

1.             The Will Principle

 

 

We call this stage the Will Principle.  You must set your mind.  You must decide, choose, or determine the focus of your mind.  That is where you start in developing the mind of Christ.

 

The opposite of will is instinct or unwilled reactions. Decision making is not a problem with animals.  But with human beings, the will is that part of your mind over which you have control.  The will enables you to obey in spite of your feelings or intuitions.  Often you cannot control your emotions, but you always have control over your will.  What you want to do is take “every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:5,).  Giving God your will is the first step in having the mind of Christ.

 

In the Beginning Stage you set your mind on Christ.  You give your will to God and seek His will as you own.  Christ repeatedly identified His will with that of His Father.  In the last week of His earthly life, as He faced the cross, Jesus said, “Now is my soul troubled: and what shall I say?   Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.  Father, glorify thy name” (John 12:27-28). Jesus openly confessed that His emotions were one place, but His will was in another.  This decision to let His will rule over His emotions or feelings also is seen in Christ’s plea in Gethsemane, “Father … take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt” (Mark14:36).  Jesus’ performance was flawless, because He set His will from the beginning.  Jesus’ mind was given to God.  Therefore, His actions worked out the implications of a blameless mind.  Jesus’ mind was set on things above.

 

How often God, open a door for ministry before us, which would involve tremendous personal sacrifice?  But, it offers opportunity to expand God’s kingdom in a way that nothing else offered.   Feelings said no but my will chose the will of God.  Only the will can choose beyond feelings.

 

2.             The River Principle

 

Our second verb is renew. In Rom. 12:2 Paul says, “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” The Christian lives in a constant state of renewal!  After you give your will to God, you must continue to allow your mind to be changed (transformed) by a renewing process.  This part of the process is a time of growth.

We call this middle or growing stage of the process the River Principle.  Jesus said, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water’” (John 7:38,NASB).  Fresh living water flows in and washes out the old and the dead.  Most of us do not work on the River Principle.  We work on the  Pond Principle!  Ponds become stagnant, but rivers flow.  Ponds become puddles, but rivers become oceans.  You are to grow spiritually, and your growth in Christ ultimately is to be enormous.

 

Your body grows by producing new cells.  As long as life continues, your body constantly is producing new cells.  That newness is a sign of life.  Failure to produce newness is a sign of death.  The spiritual life, too, is to be characterized by a constant renewing.  Lack of renewal or growth is a sign of death.  I have learned to expect spiritual newness and not to be surprised at what form the newness takes.  Sometimes the newness comes in (a) the shape of new insights, previously unknown.  Sometimes it comes in the (b) form of spiritual energy.  At times it is a new and (c) deeper meaning applied to an old familiar verse.  Newness may occur as you move (d) into a new and deeper relationship to the body of Christ, or to another Christian.  Newness may involve (e) a new commitment of some kind.  At times newness takes (f) the form of a new strength or a new way to resist temptation.  Newness is the way of progress as you are moving from one glory to another (see 2 Cor. 3:18).

 

 

Allow God to renew your mind in the Growing Stage.  Do you see the contrast between the River and the Pond Principles?  Renewal brings newness, new insights, and fresh spiritual energy.  Christ’s life demonstrated progress and growth.  “Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man” (Luke 2:52).  “Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered” (Heb. 5:8,NASB).  If you are to have the mind of Christ, you must expect newness.  That is the way of growth.  That is renewal.

 

When you surrender to the Unshakable Kingdom and the Unchanging Person, you surrender to creative love and all you say, and do, is finely tuned to make a lasting impact. You think thoughts you couldn’t think before, you do things you couldn’t do before, and you are a person you could not otherwise be. You are a surprise to yourself and others. And now you can love yourself because you love something  (the Kingdom) and someone (Christ) more than your self. Your self on your own hands is a problem and a pain; your self in the hands of Christ is a possibility and a power.

 

3.             The Readiness Principle

 

Our third verb associated with the mind takes us to the climax of the process.  We are to gird up our minds for action (see 1 Pet. 1:13).  The reference is to the long, flowing robes people wore in the first century.  People could not run or move quickly in such dress.  To do anything athletic, a person had to lift the edge of the robe and tuck in under the belt to free the lower legs for actions.  This was called girding up the robe.   In this command is the Readiness Principle. Your mind is to be prepared for action.

 

In die Qualified Stage you prepare your mind for action by girding it up.  Jesus was alert, or ready, as various groups attempted to trap Him with trick questions in Luke 20:20-40.  The scribes and the chief priests asked whether Jews should pay taxes to the foreign Roman government.  Their trap failed as Jesus answered that they should give both God and Caesar their just due.  When the Sadducees questioned Him about resurrection, Jesus skillfully corrected their wrong ideas about the nature of the future life.  Jesus demonstrated a mental readiness at all times.  Readiness means being qualified for service.  If your will is set and your mind has grown through constant renewal, you will be qualified for any rest God allows to come your way.  Be alert and ready.

D.        FIX YOUR THOUGHTS ON JESUS

 

 

Developing the mind of Christ involves a three-stage process.  In nature we see the development of the mind in a little child as a process.  So in the spiritual world, developing the mind of Christ is also a process.  Even at spiritual birth, we have the mind of Christ (see 1 Cor. 2:16).  But in subsequent growth that mind must contend with established habits, the culture in which we live, and the work of Satan to keep it from growing (and other factors to be mentioned later).  In us, the mind of Christ matures in a process of growth.

 

The apostle John says,  “We know that, when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him just as He is”  (1 John 3:2, NASB).  Whatever degree of Christlikeness we attain on earth will not match that final perfection of being just like Him.  Jesus will return some day to claim His own.  In His presence we will become like Him without spot or blemish.  Our destiny is to be like Christ.  God intends it.  He has commanded it, and the Scriptures call on us to participate in the process of becoming like Him.

 

Yes, you are to be like Christ in eternity.  Jesus said, “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master.  It is enough for the disciple that he become as his teacher, and the slave as his master” (Matt. 10:24-25, NASB).  Plainly, Jesus expected you to become like Him.  Peter tells us “You have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you,  leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps” (1 Pet.2:21).  Not only are you to think like Christ, but you are to follow His lifestyle.  Peter also gives this command:  “Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind” (1 Pet. 4:1).  In the process of becoming like Christ, you are to accept suffering as a tool to put the flesh to death.  Developing the mind of Christ will be costly.  Yet its value is far beyond any cost that may be required.

 

Consider Jesus as Apostle and High  Priest : The writer of Hebrews commands us to “consider Jesus, the Apostle and High priest of our confession” (Heb 3:1, NASB).  The name Apostle indicates one who has been sent.  Jesus was sent from Heaven to earth.  We are to consider Jesus.  To consider means to fix your mind, thoughts, and attention on Him – to set your mind on Christ.  We are to fasten our attention on His earthly life as revealed in the gospels.  Then we are to follow in Christ’s steps (see 1 Pet. 2:21). We also are to consider Him as High Priest.  Jesus served as our High Priest when He offered His life as the perfect sacrifice for us.  But presently Jesus is High Priest as He makes intercession for us (Heb. 7:25).  Much of that high priestly role is revealed in the New Testament epistles.

 

If we are to consider both the Apostle and the High Priest, we must know the gospels (for the apostle life) and the New Testament letters (for the high priestly life).  The gospels show us Jesus in action on earth.  When we fix our thoughts on His lifestyle we can pattern our lives after His example.  The letters describe for us  both the meaning of the Apostle and also the present intercessory role of the High Priest in heaven.  We are to fix our thoughts on His divine work in our behalf.

 

E.         CONCLUSION

 

Our goal is to become like Christ.  We have a role in that process: we are commanded to think like Christ.  The main work in the process, however, belongs to God.  Our Christ-likeness is His intention.  God has predetermined it and currently is transforming us “from glory to glory” (2 Cor. 3:18) into the likeness of Christ.  In working with God in the process, we study carefully all the revealed aspects of the human life of Christ and seek to follow in His steps.
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