Principle Nine: Faith

Principle Nine: Faith

We have arrived at our final principle.  Lastly, but most importantly, we address the role of faith here. In fact, it is so important that I addressed it in a single seminar, dealing with faith exclusively, in a series on the mind.  Let’s recap briefly.  Thus far, we have learned that God gave us minds . . .

  1. To be used;
  2. That need to be renewed and transformed by changing our minds to the extent that we change our lives;  
  3. To be built strong and courageous;
  4. To glorify him in all things;
  5. Together with God’s Spirit, to be the best that we can be.

The Role of Faith In Optimizing the Mind

Does our mind have a role in practicing our faith? Indeed, in a discussion on the spiritual gift of tongues, Paul reminds us just how important is the use of our minds.  The mind is not an anti-spiritual tool that we must shelve when we become followers of Jesus.  Quite the contrary.  It is a natural gift from God to be used for our spiritual development and alongside of all spiritual gifts.

In short, to be the best that we can be, those who have turned to Christ for his salvation must also set as their goal the attainment of the mind of Christ.

Some Bible (Faith) Passages About the Mind

  • Psalm 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart (mind); test me and know my anxious thoughts.
  • Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is determined to trust in you.”
  • Matthew 2:37 Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
  • Mark 7:21 For from within, out of men’s hearts (minds), come evil thoughts.
  • Luke 12:29-31 And do not set your heart (mind) on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it.  For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your father knows that you need them.  But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.”
  • Romans 8:6-7   The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace, because the sinful mind is hostile to God.  It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
  • Romans 8:27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.
  • Romans 12:12 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.
  • 1 Corinthians 2:16 For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?  But we have the mind of Christ.
  • Ephesians 4:17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their mind.
  • Philippians 2:5 Your attitude (mind) should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
  • 2 Timothy 1:7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of a disciplined mind.
  • Hebrews 8:10 This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord.  I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts.  I will be their God, and they will be my people.
  • 1 Peter 1:13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.
  • 1 Peter 4:1 Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm your selves also with the same attitude (mind), because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin.

Some Bible (Faith) Passages About Thought

  • Genesis 6:5 The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time.
  • Psalm 10:4 In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.
  • Psalm 94:11 The Lord knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile (ineffective).
  • Psalm 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart (mind); test me and know my anxious thoughts.
  • Isaiah 55:7-8 Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts.  Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him and to our God, for he will freely pardon.  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.
  • Mark 7:21 For from within, out of men’s hearts (minds), come evil thoughts.
  • 1 Corinthians 3:20 The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile. (Quotation of Psalm 94:11)
  • 2 Corinthians 10:5 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.
  • Hebrews 4:12 The word of God is living and active.  Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (mind).
  • 1 John 5:20 We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding (thoughts), so that we may know him who is true.  And we are in him who is true – even in his Son, Jesus Christ.  He is the true God and eternal life.
Resources to Help You:

Who Am I?

Our first and most important task in a world-changing mission is to learn how to think straight (and teach straight thinking) and combat the insurgence of crooked thinking in our culture and in our world today. If we become passive victims of this crooked way of thinking, we promote it. Furthermore, if we remain silent, we also give it credence. In Who Am I?the reader progresses from how we have become “crooked thinkers” to how to break out of this prison of the mind to become instruments of change for a better world.  We do this by recognizing from where we derive our value as humans. “Build a straight and powerful mind.” ~ Ray W. Lincoln

 


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DISCOVER THE TRUTH OF WHO YOU ARE!
Lean into the whole truth.  Discover the truth of who YOU are — the “Real You” — and who your children truly are.  Discover how to best engage your children in finding the whole truth.  INNERKINETICS, Your Blueprint to Excellence

 

Our team at InnerKinetics is ready to provide that help, too.  If you’d like some assistance, you can request a consultation.  An InnerKinetics consultant will call you to answer questions and schedule your meeting. Schedule an Initial Consultation. Alternatively, if you are more independent and want to cut to the chase, you need not wait for a call back. You can get answers to your questions and schedule your session HERE.

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