Out With the Old, In With The New: “Renewing The Mind”
What consumes or occupies our minds and thoughts controls our lives; this is true for positive and negative things. As believers, we want to have God and His word fixed in our minds. We should continually set our focus and thoughts on Him and submit to His will for our life—his kingdom rule, order, and dominion.
God must become the stronghold and refuge of our mind and will. If He is our stronghold, we become prisoners of our hope, faith, and trust in Him. The issues of life that many struggle with, like fear, anxiety, depression, regret, and past mistakes, will disappear, and we can receive His restoration and step into our transformation.
Renewing our minds and submitting to His will is not something we do once and finish. We must continually and consciously yield our will and minds to God. Our obedience demonstrates our yielding and surrender to God, and how we serve Him reflects our love, submission, and commitment to Him.
God declares His prerequisites and requirements, but it is up to us to learn what God expects of us and to grow in knowledge and understanding of who He is. The two most essential tools in our arsenal as believers are the word of God and prayer. Through studying the word, God reveals who He is and what He expects, and through prayer and communication with God, we become more intimately familiar with His presence and voice.
The degree to which we pursue Him dictates the degree to which we are transformed to be like Him and to see things the way He does. Jesus calls on us to change from our old way of thinking; repentance is a changed perspective that results in changed actions and going in a different direction.
“From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, regret past sins, live your life in a way that proves repentance; seek God’s purpose for your life], for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” — Matthew 4:17 (AMP)
We demonstrate repentance through our words and actions. It is a change of our inner self and the old way of thinking. We cannot pick and choose the word we want to live by. Instead, we must align our thoughts and lifestyles with God’s will.
Everything is tied to our mind, will, and obedience. Our thought processes, thinking patterns, and how we perceive ourselves must change. We must change our inner selves, for this part of us colors our perspective and shapes our world. There must be a difference in what we allow to abide in and around us, for these things influence who we are. Let the word of God abide in you and be the meditation of your heart, your focus.
We must actively engage with God’s word, seeking His guidance and allowing the Holy Spirit to reshape our thinking. Set aside worldly thinking and negative thought patterns and surrender your thoughts, desires, and will to God. He will not force anything on you. You cannot shape your mind as God wants, so you must submit it to Him. He will not do it against your will, so He leaves the decision up to you. You must submit your mind to Him and allow it to be transformed.
We will struggle at times to submit to God’s will. Even Jesus did in His prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. The devil wants to keep you distracted and focused on your pain or failure to keep you from stepping into your purpose. He will bring to your mind the mistakes, shortcomings, and pain of yesterday to keep you from stepping into the purpose God has for you today.
“that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” – Ephesians 4:22-24 (NKJV)
We are new creations in Christ and must choose to pull off our old selves and put on the new.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” – 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)
Putting on the new you does not mean taking on a religious outlook with the false attitude of righteousness that often follows, for Christ never formed a religious relationship with us, but to step into the new person you are and let the Holy Spirit guide you and renew your mind as you seek God.
When you commit to or start bettering yourself, there will be unhappy, jealous people. You will face external threats and internal threats. Be bold and undiminished when others question you. Let your focus be on Jesus and what He has done for you. Don’t let the ubiquitous and vague “they” consume your life.
The definitions and expectations of others will define you if you let them. Don’t let yourself be deformed by someone else’s definitions and expectations. Instead, Let the world see the Christ in you.
The information expressed above is excerpted from the sermon “Out With the Old, In With The New: “Renewing The Mind” by Dr. Lee A. Simpson. You can listen to the complete sermon on our YouTube channel.
Jonathan Craddock is a licensed minister at Faith Clinic Christian Center Church and has been a dedicated Christian and follower of Jesus Christ for over 12 years. He enjoys deep diving into scripture, learning about God, faith, and walking with Jesus. He is a writer for the blog “God & Gospel: Faith for Life,” and his vision is to help people to understand and apply the sermons they hear, the word of God, and their relationship with God.