The Importance of the Mind

I have been preaching a series I’ve entitled “The Battle for Your Mind.” This is very important because what we think directly affects what we do!

I have decided to summarize the messages and post them here. I plan to one day put the expanded version into book form, so any comments you have would be greatly appreciated.

THE BATTLE FOR YOUR MIND

The Importance of the Mind

Our brains are really quite amazing. Some day when you have time, go to YouTube and search for some videos that describe the incredible inner workings of the brain. If you can sift through all of the evolution, you will find the whole process very captivating.

However, we have also been given something that goes beyond what the brain can handle. There is something that gives us life-consciousness and morals. We call this the mind.

Are the brain and mind separate? Those who attempt to answer this question call it the “brain-mind controversy.” Some believe that the mind and brain are not separate. These people generally do not believe in God, so everything has to have an explanation in the physical realm. Others, however, believe that the mind and brain describe two totally different objects.

If we are going to base what we believe on the Bible, we need to see what the Bible has to say about this controversy. Without boring you with a list of all of the Hebrew and Greek words translated into English as “mind,” we can sum them all up to say that the mind describes our ability to perceive, understand, and reason.

When you die, your brain will decay and eventually be non-existent. However, you still have your mind.

Neil Anderson compares the brain and mind to hardware/software. If you remove software from a computer, it still weighs the same, but it cannot work. He points out that “our society assumes if something is not functioning right between the ears it must be a hardware problem.”[i]

My wife’s computer recently became infected with the “redirect” virus. When she tried to click on something in her web browser, it would redirect to an advertising website. The only way to fix the problem was to reformat the hard drive.

I didn’t do anything with the hardware—I simply told the computer how to think.

Your mind affects your understanding

After Jesus rose from the dead, He showed Himself to His disciples. They had been with Him for three years and heard Him speak of His coming death and resurrection. However, it never “clicked.”

Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, (Luke 24:45)

Something was wrong with their mind. It needed to be enlightened. It was closed and needed to be opened. They had knowledge but not understanding.

Because your mind affects your understanding, it also affects your actions. What you understand about something will affect what you do.

Your mind affects your actions

I remember the first day I drove a car. I was barely a teenager and was outside washing our family vehicle. A family came over to visit and I told him that if he would move his car to the side, I would wash it, also. I was shocked when he tossed me his keys, as I had never driven before. With both excitement and fear, I successfully started the engine and pulled the care to where I could reach it with the hose.

No one had ever taught me how to drive. I only knew how from watching others do it. I knew how everything worked together, so I was able to do it myself.

That is the power of the mind. What you know and what you think will affect what you do.

Paul, writing to the Ephesians, warned them not to walk like the Gentiles, who walk “in the vanity of their mind” (Ephesians 4:17) which led to sin. Their minds were corrupt, and so were their actions.

Your mind is a very powerful thing. How are you at controlling it?

As we continue through this series, you will learn how to win the battle for your mind.