May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had. (Romans 15:5.)
This transformation of our mind is a significant theme through the letters of the apostle Paul. He calls us to have the “mind of Christ.” (Rom. 12:2; Phil. 2:5.)
We sometimes tend to equate having the mind of Christ with being as perfect in every one of our thoughts and motivations as Jesus was: absolute perfection of our minds. However, in each of these passages, this isn’t really what Paul is talking about. If you take a look at the contexts of each of these passages you will see that he is specifically talking about the way in which we think about and treat one another. God wants to redeem our relationships.
We are to see others as Christ sees us.
This doesn’t occur as other people decide to be nicer to us and treat us better. The focus of the change is on the transformation of our own minds. It starts with us, not with others. As our thinking about others is transformed, so too our relationships will flourish and blossom.
Fundamentally, we are to see others as Christ sees us. This is never something that we can achieve for ourselves. Rather, as Paul tells us here, it is a gift from God: the gift of a new mind, a mind that grows in love for others, toward the love with which he has loved us.
Spiritual Application
Make a list of your three most difficult relationships. Prayerfully reflect on how your attitude of mind toward the other persons needs to change to be more like the attitude of Christ Jesus. Humbly pray over this.
Article supplied with thanks to Dr Eliezer Gonzalez.
About the Author: Dr Eli Gonzalez is the Senior Pastor of Good News Unlimited and the presenter of the Unlimited radio spots, and The Big Question. Sign up to his free online course called Becoming a Follower of Jesus to learn about Jesus and His message.
Feature image: Photo by Dingzeyu Li on Unsplash