Renewal of Mind and Transformation

 

Renewal of Mind and Transformation

  Strong's Greek: 3563. νοῦς (nous) -- Mind, understanding, intellect

Strong’s Greek 3563 (νοῦς, nous) designates the seat of thought, perception, judgment, purpose, and moral reasoning. It embraces both rational intelligence and the spiritual faculty by which …[1]

          If our mind is stayed on ourselves, we tend to focus on our problems; and also on the problems of people in our lives, or on anything else like our situations around and our globe as well. When we can not experience perfect peace,  emotionally turbulent, and cognitively confused, we will be the recipient of  spiritual attacks in our confusion. The enemy of our souls, Satan loves to get our minds set on anything except the LORD. Can we believe this?

       The Christian life is not an unthinking life of just doing, or experiencing life the way one wants. It has a lot to do with thinking, and this is where we set our mind  essentially in our walk before our Lord our God. Here we need wisdom from above, and basic understanding of neuroscience to understand ourselves to live it. 

      A “walk” in the Bible is often a metaphor for practical every day living with Christ. Christian life is a journey, and we are to make consistent forward progress. The biblical norm for all believers is that they should try to walk in the Spirit:

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit; Gal. 5: 25.

The Spirit gave us life in the new birth. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit; Jn. 3: 6.    

                                      

As Christians carefully steward their mind, “the brain is more active, growing more branches in integrating and linking thoughts, which translates as increased intelligence and wisdom and that wonderful feeling of peace. God also throws in some additional benefits such as increased immune and cardiovascular health”[2]

The heart of the prudent getteth knowledge; and the ear of the wise seeketh knowledge;

Prov. 15: 15.

        To walk in the Spirit means that we yield to God’s control, we follow His lead, and we allow Him to exert His influence over us. To walk in the Spirit is the opposite of resisting Him or grieving, or opposing or fighting against His Spirit and His people. 

And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption;

 Ephe. 4: 30. 

 “Whatever you think about the most will grow, so the more [you reinforce] a particular thought, the stronger it grows. You can’t just apply a thought once and think change has happened. It takes repeated work…” It’s not easy; it is hard work, but it can be done through our thoughts and choices.”[3]

       Strategic feeding of our minds with God’s word help us to grow in Him. Bible is rich with His words to encourage us to develop our minds in His riches, the riches of His glory. For this we have to grow and be strong enough to destroy the forces of darkness, and any speculations that rises against the knowledge of God. God is more than able to help and develop us. 

Strong's Greek: 4561. σάρξ (sarx) -- Flesh - Bible Hub

In short, flesh generally relates to unaided human effort, i.e. decisions (actions) that originate from self or are empowered by self. This is carnal ("of the flesh ") and proceeds out of the …[4]

         For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

2 Cori. 10: 3-5.

“As the spittle that comes out of a man’s mouth slayeth serpents, so doth that which proceedeth out of the mouths of God’s faithful ministers quell and kill evil imaginations, carnal reasonings,   which are the legion of domestic devils, that hold near intelligence with the old serpent.” (John Trapp)

 “For nothing is more opposed to the spiritual wisdom of God than the wisdom of the flesh, and nothing more opposed to His grace than man’s natural ability.” (Calvin)

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee;

Isa. 26: 3.

         Research shows that living peaceably reduces the stress hormones, the cortisol and increases emotional regulation.    

If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men;

Rom. 12: 18.

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[1]https://www.bing.com/search?pglt=299&q=Greek+word+for+mind&cvid=030a36f6466

[2] Neurocycle Institute https://neurocycleinstitute.com › about-us

Dr. Caroline Leaf – Neurocycle Institute (Switch on Your Brain, p. 48).

[3] Neurocycle Institute https://neurocycleinstitute.com › about-us

Dr. Caroline Leaf – Neurocycle Institute (Switch on Your Brain, p. 128). 

[4]https://www.bing.com/search?pglt=299&q=flesh+in+Greek+word&cvid=ecd7487a57ec

Pain is Real: Beauty for Ashes

                                                    Pain is Real: Beauty for Ashes 

         In those silent, dark, midnight hours of suffering and torment, we try to understand what it really means to bear hemorrhaging wounds of our soul, wounds which no one can cure. If we belong to part of humanity, we will have pain, struggles, agony, heart aches and sufferings ever since the Fall of humanity in the Garden of Eden;(Ref. Gen. 3: 17-19).

   

       Modern education and the availability of different help during crisis, aids people to come to growth and maturity through suffering.  Pain of an individual, has to be dealt in a holistic way: cognitively, relationally, personally, physically, theologically, emotionally, and motivationally. How do we have a long-distance view of the process of overcoming pain, despite the situation?

Strong's Greek: 3601. ὀδύνη (oduné) -- Pain, sorrow, anguish

Greek 3601 denotes intense interior pain—whether physical, emotional, or spiritual—usually translated “anguish,” “sorrow,” or “torment.” It conveys more than momentary discomfort; it …[i]             

Pain is an unpleasant feeling that is conveyed to the brain by sensory neurons. The discomfort signals actual or potential injury to the body. However, pain is more than a sensation, or the physical awareness of pain; it also includes perception, the subjective interpretation of the discomfort.[ii] 

Where is our hope? 

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified;

Isa. 61: 3.

For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper.  He shall spare the poor and needy and shall save the souls of the needy; Psa. 72:12-13.

        Having said the above,  many are broken and destroyed through crisis. The metaphysical aspects of humanity the soul (mind, will, intellect, emotions), is not fully understood by fallen humanity very well. Sufferings of humanity, makes one question about their mortality; and there is real appeal to question is there life after death or is that all?!

          Personal reflection: Pain comes to humanity in different formats and colors. Deep pain can bring deep loneliness as well. I remember the times when my heart aches: when my clients suffer in pain, oppression, violence, broken relationships, betrayal, deaths in the family, illnesses with family members, children leaving at  an younger age to a faraway country, and all of these, does not sit well with my soul. When our souls, the intellectual property endowed to mankind is in torment, the only source of comfort I gained was limitless assurance from God’s word. 

 “All helpless ones are under the special care of Zion’s compassionate King; let them hasten to put themselves in fellowship with him. Let them look to him, for he is looking for them.” (Spurgeon)

He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight; Ps. 72: 14.

 “The king is represented in Psalm 72:14 as taking on himself the office of Goel, or Kinsman-Redeemer, and ransoming his subjects’ lives from ‘deceit and violence.’” (Maclaren) 

“The pain of loneliness is one way in which he wants to get our attention. We may be earnestly desiring to be obedient and holy. But we may be missing the fact that it is here, where we happen to be at this moment and not in another place or another time, that we may learn to love Him - here where it seems He is not at work, where He seems obscure or frightening, where He is not doing what we expected Him to do, where He is most absent. Here and nowhere else is the appointed place. If faith does not got to work here, it will not work at all.” Elisabeth Elliot

          He will save the souls of the needy: Poor and needy are those who are oppressed and suffering. Oppression and violence are forms of slavery, that requires one to be set free from and to be redeemed! This means God’s work will go beyond what was taught of today in our educational system and world view.

 

        Example: The pain and the feelings of grief after losing someone or something of value: betrayal, hemorrhaging wounds, evil toxic tale about someone whom they trusted, the pain of it can be intense and real. This is like crashing something that was precious to us, and our hearts can truly break!  

          God often meets us in our pain. The will of God often is never what we expected to be exactly. When we look around the globe we see much woundedness among people. The only hope and assurance for a believer in Christ is often the finale, the end of it all. The hope and assurance at the end is going to be a lot better and much bigger!  

        We can be totally consumed in the pain, but we have to remember that we are being held by His hands, in His tender bosom of love as a mother holds her child tenderly, so that we find hope and live in Him. 

 Linger with the Savior

       A good tongue brings healing to wounded consciences and sin-sick souls by comfort and assurance.

If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee. For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb;

Psa. 139: 11-13.

         We can name  the hardships of this life, caused by natural evil or by moral evil, and they are as nothing compared to the rewards to come; because of God’s promises. Growth in maturity, through trials seem to be like being in school trying to go to a higher level, and often the  reward is seen only after life.

       This is totally because of what God has done through His Son, Jesus Christ, on the cross. Overcoming the intense pain of the abuse is emotionally, physically, and mentally exhausting. It is almost like climbing a mountain; it takes time, and it also involves blood, sweat, and tears.

        Times of sorrow happens to all humanity and in Biblical days, when they mourn, they put ashes upon their head; (Ref. 2 Sam. 13: 19). Good news is, God is able to  replace the ashes with a beautiful crown. The word beauty has in mind a beautiful crown as head ornament, which can reflect further beauty in place of their sorrow.

 “I am very aware of the fact that pain is necessary to all of us. In my own life, I think I can honestly say that out of the deepest pain has come the strongest conviction of the presence of God and the love of God. Have we the humility to thank our Father for the gift of pain?!! Elisabeth Elliot

       No matter how deep our sorrow . . . how intense our pain . . . Jesus is greater and our healer. Placing our hope in Him and resting in His promises frees us. He loves us. He cares for us. He will never leaves us nor forsakes us. 

"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most" (Heb 4:16).

     There is new hope for all of us in our darkness; because Jesus Christ the Light came into the dark world. That Star twinkles brighter in our darkness! Gives us Beauty for Ashes!

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[i] Bible Hub https://biblehub.com › greek

https://www.bing.com/search?FORM=I657DF&PC=I657&q=Greek+word+fo

[ii] Medical Dictionary https://medicaldictionary.thefreedictionary.com › pain Pain | definition of pain by Medical dictionary

 

 

 

 

Insight of Science in Forgiveness

 

Insight of Science in Forgiveness 

Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoned iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy; Mic.7:18.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.  For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses;

Matt. 6: 12-15. 

Strong's Greek: 859. ἄφεσις (aphesis) -- Forgiveness, release, remission

Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages.^[i]

         Forgiveness involves imagining the perspective of the one who offended us and actively letting go of the painful association between them and our inner man and letting go of any resentment or bitterness. This is good for our soul and helps us to recover from the painful experiences. The neural pathways that exercises in the process of forgiveness, brings much goodness in our mental well-being. 

If God delights in mercy, then why do I feel that He can’t have mercy on me? In such cases, we should trust God and not our feelings. “Whatever despair may whisper or doubt may suggest, one text of Scripture is worth fifty fears and doubts, or fifty thousand either.… All objections to the delight of God in mercy are but illusions of your brain, or delusions of your heart.” (Spurgeon) 

 God loves the sinners which is all of us and He extends His mercy to sinners by forgiving us, and keeping us closer to His bosom of tender mercies. This forgiveness God wanted us to extend to our neighbours, when they sin against us. When we refuse to forgive our offenders this is like choosing our own destruction, and we can easily live in that illusion of our brain, and delusions of our heart. Heart and brain has a tremendous connection, and this is like living behind iron bars, and building citadels in our brain. The worse thing is when we cannot extend that mercy we received from Him towards our offenders. We often heard of these words: To err is human; to forgive, divine. 

 Insight of science on forgiveness

[Researchers have studied forgiveness and have found that the tendency to forgive is a trait linked with certain structural and metabolic characteristics of the brain.

The dorsomedial prefrontal cortex is believed to play a role in the ability to imagine the feelings of others. This low imaginative ability was correlated with lower forgiveness. 

The differing brain structural anatomy associated with a tendency to forgive suggests that forgiveness could be a trait that people are born with. The differences in metabolic brain activity associated with the inclination to forgive may mean that this trait could be altered throughout life. Influences may include life experiences with trustworthy people or with betrayal, both of which can set the stage for how much a person tends to forgive.

Another interesting finding is that a larger left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is associated with forgiveness. Dysfunction of this region is believed to cause depression, so it seems that the lack of depressive tendencies promotes forgiveness.]^[ii] 

Neuroscience studies have shown repeatedly, when we focus on good, our brains literally rewires itself  to look for more good. This is called neuroplasticity. This is not motivation but indeed science connected to our nervous system.

In brain studies of forgiveness, researchers find that forgiving activates structures and pathways in the brain that improve resilience and social connection more broadly, and empower you to step beyond painful experiences in an energized, motivated, and connected way.^[iii]   

Forgiveness, does not mean condoning or endorsing anything that was done that caused harm; nor reconciling or resuming any kind of meaningful social connection, without the other party asking for forgiveness. It does mean letting go of any bitterness or resentment we hold against the incident  and the person. 

Referring to Psalm 139, we understand that we are wired fearfully and wonderfully. 

For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them; Psa. 139: 13-16.

           King David was a shepherd, a special force soldier, a hero, a poet, and we also can say in some aspects he was a scientist when he penned, almost like a trained biologist, when he declared, “ I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”

“The Psalmist had scarcely peered within the veil which hides the nerves, sinews, and blood-vessels from common inspection; the science of anatomy was quite unknown to him; and yet he had seen enough to arouse his admiration of the work and his reverence for the Worker.” (Spurgeon)

Love and positivity literally reshape our brain, and it boosts growth, memory,  creativity, and emotional resilience. When we ask God, who has wired us differently, He is able give us the tender hearts to forgive our trespassers, and this is because His love is poured out in our hearts beyond our imaginations. Then we come to the humble realization, that we can forgive our offenders, because Christ is in us and He is at work in our inner-being.

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[i]https://www.bing.com/search?FORM=I657DF&PC=I657&q=Greek+word+for+forgiveness

[ii] https://www.neurologylive.com/view/neurobiology-forgiveness

[iii]https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_forgiveness_changes_you_

Location of our Great Assurance

 

Location of our Great Assurance

Hidden Theology

(Job’s Integrity: the drama and the incident; Hidden Theology)

           Satan knows our weaknesses, and he knows that we make wrong choices when left to ourselves, and he comes to the court with an overwhelming body of evidence.

Act 1, Scene 2 (Job 1:6-12)

          God is omniscient, so Satan is not going to change God’s position regarding any situation in the universe and the people He has created. 

The stage in heaven

a.       The first benefit of the narrative is for the body of believers, His children who will begin to understand and apply the things God has for them.

b.      The second benefit is for the whole heavenly host, who are not in need of redemption, but will witness God’s character, and those yet to be born, who will together glorify God.

 

The fact that Satan… came among them shows that Satan is himself an angelic being, and in no way equal to God.  The accusation against Job was also an accusation against God, for it implied that God had bribed Job into obedience.^[1]

 We know (and God knew) that Job was not sinlessly perfect; yet God called him blameless. “It means that no matter how horrible his offenses may have been, all the charges against him have been dropped. Absolutely no blame attaches to him, because the very one he offended has exonerated him.” (Mason)

God made us and everything else for His glory.

Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created;

Rev. 4:11. 

God begins His encounter with Satan face-to-face

“Where have you come from?”

^{(Ref. Job. 1:7-8.)}

And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.  And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?

 Job 1:7-8.

      What is remarkable about Job is that he was blameless and upright, and God had chosen him, because there was none upright like him.

And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?

 Job 1:8.

        So, it was with Jesus: blameless, lamb without a blemish, and God gave His testimony about His Son (Isaiah 42:1; Matthew 3:17). Satan jumps at the bait, and his accusation is more about God than Job.

But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face;

Job:1:11.

       He was saying that no one will love God more than they love themselves, and they want to get something out of Him, accusing God of lying.

Central issue is Job’s is integrity of saving faith 

       The gospel takes root, and believers respond in times of suffering and tribulation. We must remember that God alone is on the throne, and Satan acts only with God’s permission and according to God’s purposes only.

          The charge against Job fails, and now Satan is in trouble. So, he brings everything else to break Job, to the point of exasperation, and Satan is quick to be about his business. Satan exists from God’s court. He is not returning to God’s court because he made a fool of himself.

Where is our defense attorney?

My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;

1 Jn .2:1.

       Satan’s case is not defeated until Jesus has answered him in person and in action, and He has done it through the cross.

Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain;

Acts. 2:23. 

Now our Advocate need not argue, and the case is settled

But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God;

Acts. 7:55-56.

             And now all of heaven knows that God will not deny anyone who comes to Him!

All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out ;

Jn 6:37.

The judgment and justice are done! The matter is settled at the throne room of God, and that is the location of our great assurance.  

 

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[1] Enduring Word Bible Commentary Job Chapter 1