“The MIND OF CHRIST”—It’s a CHOICE!

I was thinking about how much the Lord has taught us concerning the major shift which occurred when Adam chose the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil over the Tree of Life. At that moment, all of mankind shifted from BEING “OF GOD” to merely BEING “LIKE GOD,” by knowing GOOD and EVIL (Gen.3:22). From that moment, every person is born with what we call “a conscience.”

As I was meditating on all of this, I heard the Father say, “When I created Adam, you could liken it to building a new computer, with every piece of ‘hardware’ in place and connected perfectly. But without an ‘operating system,’ the computer is useless. So, it was with Adam. He lay lifeless until I breathed the spirit of life into him, then he became a living soul (naphash), having a mind, will, and emotions (Gen.2:7). That spirit of life is the ‘operating system’ which controls and coordinates how everything in the human body operates and functions. Being able to distinguish between good and evil is like loading into the ‘soul’ of the computer a tiny program, called ‘The Knowledge of Good and Evil,’ to run continually in the background of the ‘operating system’—your soul (naphash): your mind, will, and emotions.”

He went on to explain, “’The knowledge of good and evil’ is but a tiny portion of My mind. But, like every loving Father, rather than a mere portion, I want to share everything I am and everything I have with my children! As Adam’s Father, My will was to impart My complete mind into My son, through the Tree of Life. And though Love demanded it, Love also commanded that as My son, Adam and all his children must have free-will! Therefore, if My will was ever forced upon My children, it would cease to be love, and because I AM LOVE, I would cease to exist. That’s why there is always a choice! Both love and free-will require it.” Wow! Doesn’t that resonate as truth worthy of serious additional meditation?

There is ALWAYS A CHOICE!

A statement we hear often today is: “I had no choice!” While at the time, it may feel like a valid excuse, it is in fact nothing more than a lie from the pit. When our Heavenly Father has anything to do with our present circumstances, NEVER FORGET—THERE IS ALWAYS A CHOICE! God’s life and your life depends on it! “But what if I don’t see it?” That’s when it’s time to get alone and inquire of the Lord. He promises to make a way even in the desert, even when there is no way (Is. 43:19).

I remember when the Lord spoke through Moses to the Children of Israel, after 4o years wandering in the wilderness, that it was again DECISION TIME (reminiscent of Adam facing that life-altering decision):

“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore, CHOOSE LIFE, that both you and your descendants MAY live;” And what does real life look like? REAL LIFE is the result of making GOOD CHOICES!); “that you MAY love the Lord your God, that you MAYobey His voice, and that you MAY cling to Him, for HE IS YOUR LIFE and the length of your days; and that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them (Deut. 30:19–20).”

Did you notice, in addition to giving choices, the Lord also counsels us on which choice to make?

From the beginning, it was the Father’s will to impart His complete mind into His son through the Tree of Life, but Adam, His first-created son (Lk.3:38), chose the wrong tree, thereby rejecting the Tree of Life and losing his birthright which was eternal life. Remember, after Adam sinned, God said if he then ate from the Tree of Life, he would “live forever (Gen. 3:22).” Since “living forever” in a sinful condition would be disastrous and cruel (look what happened when men lived hundreds of years from Adam to Noah), therefore, God sent Adam from the Garden “to guard the way to the Tree of Life” with angels and a flaming sword (Gen.3:22-24). As His children, it’s important to understand that God does not change (Mal.3:6) and neither does His will. Therefore, He created a NEW SECOND FAMILY that would be both PHYSICAL and SPIRITUAL. He did this by bringing the physical DNA from Adam’s family line together (through Mary) with His own Spiritual seed (through the Holy Spirit), in order to conceive and bring forth His First-Born Son into the world (beginning a new Spiritual family line) and calling His name Yeshua (“Yahweh saves”) or Jesus. Isaiah prophesied that along with four other amazing names, God’s First-Born Son would become and be called “Everlasting Father (Is.9:6)” by His new Spiritual family. Even though the Father’s plan was frustrated by His first-createdson’s wrong choice of desiring knowledge over life, the Father’s will to impart His complete mind into His son through the Tree of Life would now be accomplished through His First-Born Son.

“In Him was LIFE!”

John wrote concerning Jesus, “In Him was LIFE, and the life was the LIGHT of men (Jn.1:4).” But what was this “LIFE” of which John was speaking? Surely, it must have been something greater than just living, because Adam already had that after God “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul (Gen.2:7).” So how could the breath of life or even the result, which is living and breathing, ever become “the LIGHT of men?” I think the obvious answer is that It could NOT! But John’s statement that this “LIFE” is also “LIGHT” is a powerful clue! We understand that “LIGHT” is what illuminates darkness, so in this spiritual context, there must be a kind of “LIFE” which illuminates the darkness of life which are lies and ignorance and brings the light of truth and understanding to shine in men’s hearts and minds.

John gave us additional insight by recording these words of Jesus: “I am the way, the truth, and the life (Jn.14:6a).” If “life” is more than living and “the way” is more than direction (to the Tree of Life), then “the life,” along with “the truth’ and “the way” are more than WHAT Jesus is, it’s WHO Jesus is—it’s part of the “I AM” IDENTITY! It’s the IDENTITY that Adam could have had by being “of God,” but lost when he chose instead to be “like God”—A “LOOK ALIKE!” It’s the “I AM” IDENTITY which belongs to Jesus, the First-Born Son, now shared with millions of additional Sons, including YOU and ME, “having been born-again, not of corruptible seed, but incorruptible (1 Pet.1:23);” born to Jesus as our Father and to God, His Father. Remember, “there is neither male nor female” in the Spirit (Gal.3:28). His children are all LEGITIMATE SONS—born of Christ and of God as our eternal Father(s) in the Kingdom!” We are NOT Spiritual orphans or illegitimate children (bastards, KJV) (Heb.12:8).

We have “The MIND OF CHRIST”

1 Corinthians 2:13–16 13 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, (making choices) comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. 16 For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (NKJV)

Philippians 2:5–11 5 LET this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, HE HUMBLED HIMSELF and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (NKJV)

The Father’s will to impart His complete mind into His son through the Tree of Life has now been accomplished through His First-Born Son. But it goes much further than that! As born-again sons and children of God, the Father has also imparted His complete mind into US—we now have what Scripture calls: THE MIND OF CHRIST! Hallelujah! Therefore, we are all currently in training learning how to use it better!