God has made us each uniquely different. When you think about this, it’s pretty mind blowing. Out of the billions of people that have existed, continue to exist, and will exist in the future, no two are alike. We have diverse experiences, backgrounds, talents, and abilities. Our levels of intelligence and understanding are varied as well. So, its obvious that we also have varying mindsets and attitudes when it comes to all the different facets of life. Everyone has an opinion and they’ve worked it out to such a degree in their minds that they are sure they’re right and everyone else isn’t. But sometimes, what we think we know doesn’t help us go higher in Christ; it blocks our faith. Heavenly Father wants us to release any information that doesn’t measure up to His truth, so that we can be blessed and continue to increase in His love.
Through the Apostle Paul, God instructs us in Philippians 1:27(NKJV), “Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.” As believers, we must understand that there is one mind, and it is the mind of Jesus Christ. This mind includes the beliefs, thoughts, attitudes, and feelings that please God and keep us continually blessed. When we step away from the mind of Christ and begin to think about things that are corrupt and dark, we only hurt ourselves because these kinds of thoughts and feelings cause us to look away from God. Looking away from Him causes us to miss what He’s doing and to miss all the wonderful opportunities He has in store for us.
Heavenly Father rescued us from darkness through His beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:8(NLT) tells us, “For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light!” Before we came to God, we were children of darkness. We learned a certain way to be from our families, peers, communities, and from the world, and some of the things we have learned are not a part of God’s nature. These things kept us operating blindly, and that’s what the devil wanted so he could continue to steal from us. Since we have come to Christ and given our lives to him, we are new creations. We should no longer allow ourselves to be blinded from God’s truth. Jesus Christ has made us brand new in spirit, and now we must be committed to bring our minds and hearts up to his standard.
We must live as people of light. This is God’s commandment. He is instructing us to live in a way that we can remain under His safety, abundance, and care. Ephesians 5:9-11(NLT) goes on to tell us, “9 For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true. 10Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. 11Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them.” The light of Christ can only produce what is good, right, and true, but you and I must come into his light. We must make the choice to do those things that represent him.
God instructs us to carefully figure out the actions, thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that please Him, and then we must commit to do them. To figure out what God requires, we have to read and study His Word. It corrects us by telling us what not to do, and it tells us the right way to live our lives in Christ. Most of us give ourselves permission to think and to do anything we like, but God tells us in 2Corinthians 10:5 to pull down and destroy every high-minded and proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing the truth about Him. He tells us to arrest every thought that could possibly trigger or spark an attitude, feeling, or behavior that does not line up with our newness in Christ. This is the way we teach and train our minds to operate like the mind of Christ.
You see, obedience to God through the mind of Christ makes sure that we are not staying stuck. When we’re stuck, we feel like we’re moving because we’re working really hard. Our wheels are turning and burning rubber, but we’re not going anywhere. We’re wasting our resources of energy, time, momentum, and stamina. While life is moving full speed ahead, we’re not; instead we’re being left further behind. This isn’t God’s Will. He makes it clear in Deuteronomy 28:13 that His people should be the head and not the tail; we should be on top and never at the bottom.
Heavenly Father is telling us that we should be the lights that lead others to the light. When others are angry, impatient, short-tempered, and mean, we should be pleasant, patient, compassionate, and kind. We should be confident that by following the example of Christ, we are elevated higher in the things of God. This is the lifestyle of an empowered people! We continually set the bar to Jesus, and live under his authority and power, where God’s love rules everything completely.
Obedience to God through Jesus Christ keeps us empowered through His goodness and love. We must be willing to release any thought, attitude, or behavior that doesn’t please Him. None of us have a secret advantage over the other. All of us belong to God through Jesus Christ, and He doesn’t want us to be petty. He doesn’t want there to be any divisions or strife among His children. His goal is for us to come together in one mind, so that we will be unified in His purpose and love each other richly in Christ.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
“The Lifestyle of An Empowered People” written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2021. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!