Discipline the Mind

The mind is greater than all the computers put together, for it can possess the mind of Christ and think God’s thoughts after him, wear his heart, and do his works.

Disciplines of a Godly Man, by R. Kent Hughes

The staggering fact is that the total number of possible pathways through the brain exceeds 10⁸⁰, which is more than all the protons and neurons in the universe.

Hughes describes this potential of our mind as “cosmic.” With all that power and capability, disciplining the mind for a Christian is at the same time critical and, for any human being, also seemingly rather difficult. Yet, the apostle Paul tells us that we have the mind of Christ.

1 Corinthians 2: 16(b) …we have the mind of Christ.

Paul immediately follows this unbelievable statement:

1 Corinthians 3: 1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; 3(a) for you are still carnal.

I take this to mean that while we have the mind of Christ, we can never move toward it or come close to realizing it without training and discipline.

In Romans, Paul offers a similar teaching. Romans 11 concludes:

Romans 11: 33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

34 “For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has become His counselor?”

35 “Or who has first given to Him And it shall be repaid to him?”

36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

Immediately followed in the next chapter:

Romans 12: 1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Who has known the mind of the Lord? Paul has answered the question: only those who are fed and who search. Christ’s mind offers a depth of riches; we are to explore and search this depth. The apostle Paul tells us it is so, in the face of acknowledging the question: who can know the mind of the Lord?

With all of this potential in our mind – evidenced by the uncountable pathways and having the mind of Christ – Hughes finds that the vast majority of Christians do not have Christian minds: “Christians who do not think Christianly.”

…while Christians may worship and pray as Christians, they do not think as Christians. … [Christians suffer] from religious anorexia, a loss of appetite for growth in Christ.

Our billions of brain cells remain not only unused for Christ, but even unguarded against false or evil teaching. What goes in determines what comes out.

Philippians 4: 8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

Paul offers this immediately after the idea of guarding the heart and the mind. In other words, focus on the positive virtues and values. We often hear the phrase: the good, the true, and the beautiful. Each of these ingredients is a matter of personal choice: we can choose to focus on these or to focus on the opposite. Consider the apostle’s words in the opposite:

…whatever things are [not] true, whatever things are [not] noble, whatever things are [not] just, whatever things are [not] pure, whatever things are [not] lovely, whatever things are [not] of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — [do not] meditate on these things.

We have a choice. A Christian mind demands negation of what is not noble, not just, etc. – consciously; a Christian mind is impossible without the discipline of refusal – a refusal to be sucked into experiences that draw us away from the positive virtues.

Hughes offers some data: the viewing habits of Christians – whether television or computer screen time – is no different (or even worse) in quantity or quality that that of non-Christians. Adultery, homosexuality, violence: these attract Christian audiences and non-Christian audiences alike.

It is impossible for any Christian who spends the bulk of his time, month after month, week upon week, day in and day out, consuming such media to have a Christian mind.

It is better to play poker (a big “give” for a protestant, at least in my experience) than watch television, because at least when playing poker you are interacting with other human beings.

…I am calling for Christian men to take control of their minds. … We need to allow Christ to be Lord of our prime time.

Returning to the apostle Paul and his list of virtuous ideas. He counsels us to meditate, or think, on these things. Spend time with them, focus on them, dwell on them, consider where we can find such experiences and teachings – ultimately, how we can live them: a deliberate and prolonged contemplation.

Hughes offers: spend time in Scripture; you can never have a Christian mind if you do not know that which you should know. This doesn’t mean creating a Bible-reading legalism (read the Bible in a year or whatever); this isn’t the point. The point is to dwell on it, to understand it. This requires regular reading and studying.

Next, spend time with Christian literature. There is an accumulation of knowledge over the course of two-thousand years of Christian thought. Hughes offers several books, taken from a survey of several protestant pastors (which, of course, biases the selections; nevertheless, they are all worthwhile): Calvin’s Institutes, Lewis’s Mere Christianity, and Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress are noted. Novels are also offered: Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov, Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, and Lewis’s The Great Divorce.

Hughes suggests committing to reading at least two or three such books a year. (Finally, on one point I am hitting the mark!)

This leads me to an aside about my work. As has become clear to me, I have been drawn to the early Church fathers and to Orthodox authors overall (this current book is one exception). I think this is because there is a world open to me that my upbringing in protestant circles and my extensive study of the Western Church did not offer.

Now, the early Church fathers belong to us all, yet my exposure was almost non-existent to these: we (protestants, again in my experience) skip from the apostle John in Revelation to Augustine to Luther and Calvin (with a shout out to Wycliffe or Hus).

Yet here in Hughes we have a protestant author surveying protestant pastors and theologians for books, and two of these books are authored by Russians – who happen to be, or are at least strongly influenced by, the Eastern Orthodox mind.

I guess I am not alone.

Conclusion

We must protect our minds. We must refuse to allow our culture’s media to write our program. We must say no to the wastelands that invade our homes.

Epilogue

I personally am finding myself more troubled when interacting with media that in the past was not an issue for me – troubled to the point of avoiding many such experiences. I take that as a good sign.

Now, I cannot get away from my appreciation of progressive rock (as long-time readers know). To this end, I have been listening to a lot of Neal Morse (drawn to him by the drumming of Mike Portnoy). Let’s just say, if there was ever a Christian musician who is worthy of being included with the best rock artists, it is Neal Morse and this band.

His album titles include Testimony (1 & 2), Sola Scriptura, and Similitude of a Dream (taken from Pilgrim’s Progress). Really good stuff.