A wonderful aspect of God’s creation is the human mind. Certainly man has a physical brain like animals, but the exceptionalism is in the fact that God has given man an additional spirit that animals do not have. This spiritual component empowers the brain to provide wisdom, knowledge and understanding of the physical environment in which man exists. In other words, an intellect — the capacity for rational or intelligent thought.
While this allows man to achieve unbelievable things, it also provides a challenge to the people God calls. We often talk about being free moral agents, which means we have free will to make our own decisions based on our understanding of moral standards. Man is free to choose between good and evil, as he perceives it, on the physical level.
At baptism we are given another Spirit which helps us see the moral standards as set by God Himself. Thus, God’s people have freedom to use their minds as all people do, but they also have minds that are to be governed by God’s Spirit.
This presents a challenge for selecting and responding to what is right and what is wrong. King Solomon brings this to our attention with two proverbs:
“The plans of the mind belong to mortals, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD” (Proverbs 16:1). And “The human mind plans the way, but the LORD directs the steps” (Proverbs 16:9).
God has given us the freedom to choose, to act on what we think is best. But, as we know, that opens a very large spiritual minefield where Satan’s mind is at work. So clearly, we need help to exercise our freedom of choice such as to enhance God’s Spirit in the process.
The Apostle Paul appreciated this aspect of human thought when he wrote to the Church in Philippi: “Therefore my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as much in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12-13). The answer of the tongue and the direction of our steps will be from God if we submit and look to Him.
To the degree that we can understand the need for us to develop character by choosing between the natural thinking of the mind and godly directed thinking through the Spirit, the more we will feel God’s direction in our lives. To make that distinction requires effort of mind: “Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established” (Proverbs 16:3).
Again, the Apostle Paul captures this line of reasoning in a New Testament context:
“Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you. And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints” (1 Thessalonians 3:11-13).
Brian Orchard