A.Paul’s epistle to the Romans is a wonderful exposition on man’s universal need for salvation and God’s provision for that salvation.
1.The doctrinal portion of Romans (chapters 1-11) can be summarized in two verses:
a.“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Rom. 3:23)
b.“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom. 6:23).
2.Chapters 12-16 give practical instructions for those who live by the doctrine of Christ.
B.As Paul introduced the latter instructions of the Roman epistle, he indicated that a Christian’s mindset was essential to his success.
1.He first gave directions for the use of the body, saying, “present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God” (Rom. 12:1).
2.Then he gave directions for the proper mindset of a Christian, saying, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom. 12:2).
3.Therefore, a Christian’s way of life is not to be determined by the world’s standards, but rather it is to be driven by a renewed mind.
C.Let us consider the renewed mind that Christians must possess in order to be transformed into the people that God would have us to be.
II.TAKING THE MIND CAPTIVE
A.In 2Corinthians 10:3-7, Paul described a spiritual war that he fought in which he was “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (v. 5).
1.The war for the souls of men is not a carnal war by which men can be forced into obedience to Christ at the point of a sword (although some have tried to make it so).
2.Rather, Paul described a fight for the hearts and minds of men.He knew that if the mind of a person could be changed, the rest of the person would follow.
B.Renewing the mind is similar to “taking every thought captive” in that the thoughts of the mind must be changed and controlled in order for a person to be transformed into the image of Christ.
1.History shows that the mind of man left to itself thinks of evil as in the days of Noah (Gen. 6:5).
2.The evil of a man’s thoughts is not always apparent, for he may deceive other men into thinking that he is good.However, the thoughts of his heart corrupt him, “for as he thinks within himself, so he is” (Prov. 23:6-8).
3.Jesus said, “But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man” (Matt. 15:18-20).
C.Therefore, taking control of the mind is essential for us to be both inwardly and outwardly as God would have us to be.
III.RENEWING THE MIND
A.Taking the mind captive alone is not sufficient to please God.
1.Controlling the mind is a difficult task, and it must be learned by discipline and maturity.
2.However, the ability to control one’s thoughts deserves no praise, for a person may set his controlled thoughts upon anything that he wants, whether it is good or evil.
B.God is pleased by one who chooses to renew his mind from the wicked thoughts of the world.
1.The word translated as “renewing” means “again new,” indicating a new beginning for the mind in which all the previous stains and impressions left by thinking in conformity with the world are removed from the mind of the believer.
2.In modern terms, we might compare renewing our minds to reformatting the hard drive of a computer.The mind of a believer is cleansed from evil and worldly thoughts just as the memory of the computer is wiped clean and made new.
C.Not only must a Christian’s mind be renewed from worldly conformity, but it must also be renewed unto conformity with God’s will.
1.God’s will is known to the mind of man only through the word of God (1Cor. 2:6-13).
2.Therefore, we must consume the word of God through reading and hearing in order to renew our minds.
a.“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” (Rom. 10:17)
b.Consider the renewing effect of God’s word upon Jeremiah, who said to God, “Thy words were found and I ate them, and Thy words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart” (Jer. 15:16).
c.Also, consider the words of the psalmist, who said, “I will never forget Thy precepts, for by them Thou hast revived me” (Psa. 119:93).
3.Not only must we consume the word of God into our minds, but we must also constrain our minds to dwell upon His word.
a.The Bible commends meditation upon the word, which is to think to oneself about the word (Psa. 119:97, 99, 148).
b.We are commanded to set our minds on the things of Christ (Col. 3:1-4) and upon all things that are good (Phil. 4:8) as they are revealed in the word of God.
D.Therefore, the renewed mind that transforms a Christian is made new by purging itself from the ways of the world and setting itself upon the word of God.
IV.MAKING UP THE MIND
A.Now we have seen the necessity of having a renewed mind and the means by which one can have a renewed mind.The only part lacking is the resolve to have a renewed mind, and that resolve must come from within the believer.
B.Preachers of God’s word have been calling upon their listeners throughout history to make up their minds about what they have heard.
1.Consider Joshua who called upon Israel to make a decision, saying, “And if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve…” (Josh. 24:15).
2.Likewise, Elijah called upon Israel to choose between Jehovah and Baal: “How long will you hesitate between two opinions?If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him” (1Ki. 18:21).
3.The Lord Jesus indicated that a choice must be made: “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other.You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matt. 6:24).
C.The gospel still calls upon us to make a decision: Will we continue to conform to the ways of the world or will we be transformed by the renewing of our minds?
1.The choices presented by the gospel are clear and potent.Will we choose God, Christ, the Bible, the church, righteousness, life, and heaven, or will we choose Satan, sin, death, and hell?
2.God presents the choices, but each of us has to provide the resolve to decide his path and follow it to the end.
D.Yet many remain indifferent, apathetic, and lethargic about the things of God.
1.No person should be indifferent about God.If anything in the world is important, it is whether or not there is a God, who He is, and what He desires from us.Until a person resolves these things in his mind, they should be his constant pursuit and desire.
2.No person who claims to be a Christian should be apathetic about God.He should have determined from the beginning to renew his mind through the word of God so that he will be transformed into the image of Christ.
E.Let us resolve to commit ourselves in trusting faith to God and His ways.
1.Notice Romans 12:2 again.The one who is transformed by the renewing of his mind “may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
a.By renewing the mind, one may be transformed and prove by experience and application that God is right.
b.To achieve this, one has to trust God from the beginning so that he may see the good results of doing God’s will in the end.
2.Therefore, let us not be apathetic and lethargic about serving God, but let us trust God and set our minds upon experiencing just how good and righteous God’s ways are.
