Romans 8:5 – For those who are according =
to
the flesh mind the things of the flesh; but those who are according to the
spirit, the things of the Spirit.
ACCORDING TO THE FLESH OR
ACCORDING TO THE SPIRIT:
· =
To be according to the fle=
sh is
to depend on the flesh.
· &=
nbsp; To be according to the spi=
rit is
to depend on the Spirit.
· &=
nbsp; OUR MIND IS THE KEY!
· &=
nbsp; Our mind, as the leading p=
art of
our soul, represents us. It i=
s our
mind that determines whether we are a person depending on the flesh or on t=
he
Spirit.
TO MIND THE THIN=
GS OF
THE FLESH:
· &=
nbsp; To mind the
things of the flesh is to go along with whatever the flesh is doing at that
moment.
· &=
nbsp; This is to
allow our mind to act independent of the Lord and to do things apart from t=
he
Lord Who in our spirit.
· &=
nbsp; Our mind is
sticky. If we are not careful=
, our
mind will attach itself to the flesh and rely on the flesh, causing us to be
according to the flesh.
TO MIND THE THIN=
GS OF
THE SPIRIT:
· &=
nbsp; To mind the
things of the Spirit is to go along with whatever the Spirit is doing at th=
at
moment.
· &=
nbsp; This is to
allow our mind to be open to the Spirit within us.
· &=
nbsp; When our mi=
nd
attaches itself to our spirit and relies on the spirit, our mind will cause=
us
to be according to the Spirit.
Romans 8:6 – For the=
mind
set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace=
.
AN INNER FEELING OF DEATH =
OR
LIFE AND PEACE:
· &=
nbsp; The law of =
the
Spirit of life operates within us to give us an inner consciousness, an inn=
er
feeling or sense anytime and anyplace.
· &=
nbsp; This is a
feeling of either death or life and peace.
· &=
nbsp; This all
depends on where we set our mind.
· =
When we set our mind on the
spirit we will sense life and peace, which can be described as an inner sen=
se
of feeling STRONG – SATISFIED – LIVELY – BRIGHT –
COMFORTABLE.
· &=
nbsp; The sense of peace can be
described as feeling natural and at ease.
This inner feeling confirms
whether we are according to <=
/span>the flesh or
according to the spirit.
CONSIDER HOW CRUCIAL OUR M=
IND
IS:
· &=
nbsp; Seeing the
glorious Christ is so much related to a person’s mind. This is why Satan’s strategy=
, as
the god of this age, is to blind the thoughts (minds) of people (2 Cor. 4:4=
).
· &=
nbsp; The matter =
of
repentance is related to our mind.
This is to turn our mind to the Lord to allow the Lord to cause a ch=
ange
in our thinking and a change in our purpose.
· &=
nbsp; We are being
renewed in the spirit of our mind (Eph. 4:23).
· &=
nbsp; When our mi=
nd
is turned to the Lord, we can be strengthened into our spirit to allow the
Spirit to spread into our mind (Eph. 3:16, 2 Tim. 1:7).
· &=
nbsp; If we allow=
the
Lord to enlighten our mind, we will realize that much of our thinking is
contrary to the Word of God as the very thought of God.
· &=
nbsp; Matthew 5:3
– Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of the
heavens. (To be poor in spiri=
t is
not only to be humble but also to be emptied in our spirit, in the depth of=
our
being, not holding on to the old things of the old dispensation, but unload=
ed
to receive new things, the things of the kingdom of the heavens –
Recovery Version, &=
nbsp;
note 3-2)
· &=
nbsp; Matthew 18:3
– And said, Truly I say to you, Unless you turn and become like little
children, you shall by no means enter into the kingdom of the heavens.
· &=
nbsp; Luke 18:17
– Truly I say to you, Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God lik=
e a
little child shall by no means enter into it. (A little child, not filled with a=
nd
occupied by old concepts, can easily receive a new thought. Hence, people need to be like litt=
le
children and, with an unoccupied heart, receive the
Lord Jesus, help me to dai=
ly
open to You, to turn my mind to You, to allow You to give me new thoughts as
the Spirit and the Word.
=
=