Loving God with Your Mind

Scripture: Luke 2:17-19

Luke 2:17–19 KJV 1900

17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. 18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. 19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.

This means she thought about these things with her mind, contemplated on them, meditated on them, maybe even stewed on them...

Introduction: This is the season of jingling bells and jangled nerves. The rush and expense of the holidays often leave us with little time to do what Mary did—to ponder these things in our hearts. We become too preoccupied to think.

But thinking is a very God-ordained activity. Jesus said we should love the Lord our God with all our ... minds.

So tonight, the second Sunday evening of this great season, let's get a grip on our perspectives by looking at the Lord's great commandment as recorded in Matthew 22:35-37

Matthew 22:35–37 KJV 1900

35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, 36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Elsewhere in Scripture Jesus quoted the "Shema" as it appears in Deuteronomy 6:5. But here He altered it slightly to say we should love God with our minds.

Maybe the particular Lawyer to whom He was speaking was proud of his mental agility, and he needed to understand that his mind was meant for devotion to God.

The mind is God’s masterpiece—a wonder of design.

The human brain weighs only three pounds, yet it is the most complex structure in the body.

The brain encases more than 100 billion cells, and is capable of sending signals to thousands of other cells at speeds of more than 200 mph.

Over its lifetime the brain will establish trillions of connections within the body.

All that power—and we still manage to forget where we put our car keys!

The human brain really is an incredible machine.

It goes far beyond any man-made computers and dare I say even Artificial Intelligence - in terms of its complexity and capability.

Your brain serves as the command and control center of your body, enabling your various organs to function while simultaneously helping you operate at an intellectual level, retaining facts, learning to reason, thinking.

The mind is one of God's most incredible creations. That's why I've always been fascinated with this statement by Jesus, that we are to love God with all our minds. —Michael Duduit

The mind - the place of thoughts, ideas, creativity and horrendous struggles and battles - so much so that we are told to Romans 12:2 ... be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, ...”

Every temptation comes to us via our thoughts.—Erwin Lutzer

The mind of man is the battleground on which every moral and spiritual battle is fought.—J. Oswald Sanders

Our defeat or victory begins with what we think, and if we guard our thoughts we shall not have much trouble anywhere else along the line.— Vance Havner

Self-control is primarily mind-control.—John Stott

Every kidnapping was once a thought. Every extramarital affair was first a fantasy.—Leslie Flynn

What, then, does it mean to love God with your mind? The word translated "mind" was a common Greek term, dianoia, {dee-awn-you-a}

Paul uses it again in Colossians 1:21

Colossians 1:21 KJV 1900

21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled

to demonstrate that while we were once alienated from God in our minds (that is, our ability to think and understand), we are now reconciled and can “think straight.”

Peter also uses this word in a unique way when he writes, “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:13). “Gird up” is anazōnnumi, which appears only here in the NT. It’s taken from the custom of that day to bind up their long garments in a girdle or belt when exerting themselves (see Oct. 3). The metaphor, then, is that our minds are to be in constant preparation for “spiritual exertion.”

Watson, J. D. "Doc". A Word for the Day: Key Words from the New Testament . AMG Publishers. Kindle Edition.

But when Jesus uses the term in Matthew 22:37 “... Thou shalt love the Lord thy ...with all thy dianoia, {dee-awn-you-a} mind.”

He seems to be conveying several ideas:

1. Loving God with Your Mind Involves Your Intellect.

A common meaning of this word involves human thought or intellect.

The ability to reason is a gift of God, and using that gift is an act of worship, as we see through Mary's example.

If God deserves our best—our greatest love, our deepest commitment, our highest service—that is no less true of our minds.

Sometimes we're tempted to produce less than the best our minds can deliver.

For example, there's the young person in school who feels pressure not to be "the brain" in class.

Some kids say it's not cool to be academic achievers.

Then there are those who expect God to directly reveal everything, and they don't use their minds to adequately process His Word.

Others fear intellectual pursuits because they're afraid they might learn something damaging to their faith.

Real education, however, doesn't harm a person's faith because all truth is God's truth.

What can damage young people are the secular, materialistic presuppositions of many university faculties.

It's possible to use our minds to try to create thrones for ourselves, bowing before the altar of ego. That's why it's essential to let Scripture be our guide; The Bible is our judge, not the other way around.

God calls us to use our intellect to His glory.

2. Loving God with Your Mind Involves Your Attitudes.

Another common use of dianoia involved a "way of thought" or "disposition"—a person's attitudes and perspectives about life.

There are many different types of personalities and many different attitudes to accompany those personalities.

Some see the glass half empty others half full

there are negative attitudes and positive attitudes.

A wildlife organization offered a bounty of $5,000 for each wolf captured alive. Sam and Jed decided they'd start hunting for wolves, and they began spending their days scouring the forests and mountains. One night they were exhausted and fell asleep right in the woods dreaming of all the money they were going to make. Suddenly Sam awoke to see that they were surrounded by fifty hungry wolves. He jabbed his friend in the side and said, "Wake up, Jed. We're rich!" That was a positive attitude!—MichaeI Duduit

Hugh Downs observed, "A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes."

Much of what we accomplish in life is determined by our attitudes.

When we come to faith in Christ, we receive a new mind, new thoughts, new attitudes.

In fact, the Greek word for repentance, metanoia, literally means "a change of mind."

As Christians, we think differently about life and have a new attitude because Christ lives in us.

Our attitudes are reflected in things we say and do. Can you imagine saying, "Sure he's flunking all his classes, but he has such a good attitude about school!"

That makes as much sense as Linus telling Charlie Brown, "I love humanity. It's people I can't stand!"

What is on the inside—the kind of person we truly are—will inevitably surface in our words and actions.

Are you loving God with your attitudes? Do you have an attitude of loving concern toward others?

3. Loving God with Your Mind Involves Your Will.

Several ancient writers used the word dianoia to describe the will. Loving God with your mind means placing your will under His control. It doesn't mean you won't have to make any decisions; but it does mean you'll seek to make decisions that honor God.

No decision has greater consequences than how we'll respond to Christ's call.

Surrendering your life to His lordship means accepting His authority over your life. We accept His rule and agree to submit ourselves in obedience to His will.

Peter exhorts us in what I alluded to earlier, 1 Peter 1:13 to “gird up the loins of your mind.” This vivid image calls us to prepare for action, to engage our will in readiness to follow God. Every decision begins with a thought.

G.K. Chesterton’s Quote "The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried." Engaging the mind in faith requires perseverance and intentionality.

Think of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. His prayer, “Not my will, but Yours be done,” demonstrates perfect love for the Father through the submission of His will. If Christ Himself modeled this, how much more should we?

Conclusion: In Matthew 27:22 Pilate asked, "What shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?" That may be the most important question posed in the entire Bible, and it is a question which can only be answered with a decision.

If you've never given your life to Christ, you can make that decision right now and propel your life forward in a new direction.

Those who have given their lives to Christ - I want to remind you of Mary:

“As Mary pondered the mysteries of Christ in her heart, so we are called to engage our minds in loving reflection and devotion.

How will you love God with your mind this week?

Will you make the decision to set aside distractions and give Him your thoughts, your attitudes, and your will?”