“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” (Romans 8:5-6)
In order to be discipline-driven in the way we act, we must be discipline-driven in the way we think. This is the heart of what scripture means by wisdom. It is wisdom that calms our emotions and enables us to live and work with focus and effectiveness, empowered by the Spirit of God.
We must actively choose to focus our mind on the things of the Spirit, not the things of our old fallen nature, referred to in the above passage as ‘the flesh’. God designed the mind to operate according to a four-step process:
What you focus on➔ How you talk to yourself➔ How you feel➔ Action you take
The Fall distorted the mental process. Under the corrupting influence of the sin nature, we often focus on the wrong things; we talk to ourself in disruptive ways and listen to the wrong voices, which creates and feeds disruptive feelings, which in turn motivates and energizes ineffective and sometimes corrupted action.
Jesus redeems the mental process. Under the transforming power of the Holy Spirit, the Lord prompts us to focus on the situations of life from a Kingdom perspective; listen to the truth of God’s word and talk to ourself in productive ways, which activates the power of God’s Spirit within us, which in turn empowers productive and fruitful action.
Our minds are weakened when we listen to the voice of the world, the voice of our sin nature, or the voice of self. But our minds are strengthened when we listen to the voice of the Spirit and listen to the voice of God speaking to us through His Word.
“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (Philippians 4.8)
