“Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave them right to become children of God.  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.” – John 1:12; 2 Corinthians 5:17

INTRODUCTION

Last week, we said that when we come to Christ we are made brand new beings by the very Spirit of God and given new life – lives controlled by God.  Christians are not reformed, rehabilitated or even re-educated but we are new creations – created anew – recreated and living in vital union with Christ and ended by saying that the Christian mind should be one filled with joy – the joy of the Lord and confident hope in God’s eternal goodness – one that can say with the Psalmist in Psalm 46:1-3 & 7.

That the Christian mind is one that seeks to give God his best because he has received the best from God – Philippians 4:8 – “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.”

We continue this week on the need for us to focus our minds on God.  Please read on and share with a friend!

Brand New Beings

We need to focus our minds on God – to rise above the viewpoint of the world and the boring misguided worries about non-eternal issues.  We need to get on with the thoughts that really matter.

For example what is the Christian alternative to poverty, under development, diseases, oppression, corruption, greed, bad governance?  We are living in momentous times – each of us ought to think of brightening the corner where we are.  Let us think of giving our best to our nation.

The signs are clear – the Lord’s coming is near and we have things to do.  Our master said He was going on a journey and so we should be busy with the things He has left for us to do until He returns – Matthew 24:36-25:46. Would He find us faithful in what He has given us to do? –

Things to do!

Do we realize that we have things to do?  Such us:

• Living in holiness and righteousness. – Romans 12:1
• Sharing the gospel of salvation and making disciples of all nations. – Matthew 28: 19
• Being good and kind to all –Galatians 5:10
• Providing for the needy.-  James 2:15-18
• Loving one another as Christ has loved us –Colossians 3:12-13
• Presenting the ministry of the Body of Christ – knowing that we have one faith, one baptism, our Saviour?  Ephesians4:3 – 6
• Pursuing justice and standing up against injustice and corruption –Micah 6:8
• Doing everything as unto the Lord – Colossians 3:23
• Shining like stars in this depraved and sinful world as God’ s children, pure and blameless –Philippians 2:15

The Mind of Christ

Without the mind of Christ we will be deceived by the allures of this world.  The days are so evil and Satan is so subtle and so busy.  But we need not despair – we have weapons of warfare that are mighty through God to the pulling down of all strongholds – 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.  

The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.  On the contrary, they have diving power to demolish strongholds.  We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

We are God’s workmanship – Ephesians 2:10 “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”   He does not intend to let us go – He is holding us firmly in His hand and in His will. His goal is that we will be like Christ.  We should live by the principles in Matthew 5:3-12 and make the Beatitudes – “Be the attitudes” that ought to define our Christian actions.

Let us make the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi our daily prayer.

Lord make me an instrument of thy peace

Where there’s hatred let me sow love

Where there’s injury, let me sow pardon

Where there is doubt let me sow faith

Where there is despair let me sow hope

Where there is darkness let me sow light

Where there is sadness let me have joy

Divine Master grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console

to be understood as to understand

to be loved as to love

For it is in giving that we receive

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned

And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life

This is the mind of a Christian.  Is this your mind, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ?

Remain Blessed!

Please continue to join us on Asempa 94.7 FM – Sundays 5.30 am., Sunny 88.7 FM – Tuesdays 5:30 am; and YFM 107.9 – Sundays 6.30am; for our Radio Bible Study as well as Sunny FM 88.7 FM every Sunday at 3:30 pm. for Hymns and their Stories.