How To Have The Mind Of Christ In 2023

What does it mean to have the mind of Christ?

And how can you experience it every day?

In 1 Corinthians 2:16, the Apostle Paul says, “‘For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?’” But we have the mind of Christ.”

What Does It Mean To Have The Mind Of Christ?

To have the mind of Christ means that we have the spirit of God dwelling in us. The Holy Spirit enables us to understand God’s plan of salvation and how Jesus is at the very center of that plan.

Instead of being conformed to this world, we are being renewed every day.

How Can You Have The Mind Of Christ?

Are you ready for some REALLY good news?

If you believe in Jesus Christ, then you ALREADY have the mind of Christ.

Here’s the profound, staggering truth that we need to understand: if we love Jesus and delight in his death and resurrection, it’s because God has given us the mind of Christ.

In verse 12, Paul says, “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.”

Did you catch that? We have received the Spirit who is from God so that we might understand the things freely given to us from God.

In other words, God put his Spirit in us so that we might understand and delight in the gospel. We were dead in our transgressions and sins. We were blind and hopelessly lost. The gospel seemed like insanity to us before we had the mind of Christ.

But God didn’t leave us dead in our sins. He made us alive in Christ and gave us eyes to see the beauty of his Son. Jesus himself, the living Son of God, now dwells in us, and we truly do have the mind of Christ.

The gospel, which once seemed so foolish to us now seems beautiful. The things that once seemed foolish now seem glorious. The death of Christ on the cross, which once seemed like insanity, is now clearly seen as our only hope of salvation.

It’s an absolutely incredible thing, isn’t it?

We didn’t create this glorious internal change. God did it. He was the one who put his Spirit in us and caused us to come alive spiritually. He is the one who has given us the mind of Christ.

The Spirit Of God Versus The Spirit Of This World

In the previous 15 verses, Paul tells the Corinthians about how he proclaimed the message of the gospel to them.

This gospel message was VERY different from what the Corinthians were used to hearing.

They were used to hearing lofty speech and grand oratory.

The “super apostles” (who were no apostles at all) who had invaded the Corinthian church were all about delivering big speeches full of worldly wisdom.

The super apostles spoke in spectacle.

They spoke in ways that would appeal to the senses of the Corinthians. They were all flourish and flowing speech and, “Hip hop, hooray!” If smoke machines and lasers had existed back then, the super apostles probably would’ve used them.

The gospel, on the other hand, is not a message of worldly wisdom. In fact, it’s a “foolish” and “stupid” message in the eyes of the world. It’s the message of salvation through a crucified king, which, on the surface, doesn’t make any sense.

In verses 1-2, Paul says, “And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.”

Paul didn’t come come on the scene with a flash and a bang, dropping pearly, worldly wisdom. He didn’t speak with the kind lofty speech that would gather a rowdy, cheering crowd.

Rather, Paul decided to know nothing except Jesus Christ and him crucified. Paul didn’t deliver motivational speeches that would help the Corinthians live their best lives now. Instead, he preached nothing but Jesus and his life, death, and resurrection.

He preached a “foolish” message.

This gospel message makes ZERO sense to the world. This is why Paul says in verses 7-8:

“But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”

It’s also why he says in verse 14, “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.”

In our natural state, apart from God’s intervention, we simply cannot understand the things of God. The gospel seems like foolishness to us. It comes across as a message of garbled nonsense.

Now, all this should raise one enormous question: why do we believe in and treasure the crucified and risen Christ when the rest of the world despises him?

Think about that for a moment. Why do you love Jesus while many of your neighbors and coworkers don’t? What makes you any different from them?

The difference is that you have the mind of Christ.

Do Not Be Conformed To This World

Because we have God’s spirit in us, we should seek to live and think and love in ways that please and honor God.

In Romans 12:2, we read, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

As we read the Bible, pray, and fellowship with other Christians, our minds are renewed and we are transformed. We think God’s thoughts and His desires become our desires.

A Grateful, Prayerful, Humble Response

How should we respond to the truth that God has given us the mind of Christ?

It seems to me that THREE responses are appropriate:

  • Prayer
  • Gratefulness
  • Humility

First, we should be incredibly, overwhelmingly, staggeringly grateful. There was a time when we didn’t have the mind of Christ and the gospel seemed like stupidity to us.

If God hadn’t intervened, we never would’ve believed in Christ. If God hadn’t looked upon us with great mercy and pity, we never would have had spiritual life.

But because he is rich in mercy and love, God saved us from our sins and made us alive together with Christ. He breathed spiritual life into our dead souls and actually came to dwell in us. He united us so closely to Jesus Christ that Paul could say we have the mind of Christ himself.

It’s truly and utterly glorious.

The second way we should respond is by praying for those who don’t yet know Christ. We should intercede for our friends and family and coworkers who don’t yet know Christ.

We should pray that God would do for them what he did for us. That he would put his Spirit in them and make them alive spiritually.

That he would give them the mind of Christ.

Finally, we should respond with deep humility. We did absolutely nothing to deserve or earn or achieve our salvation. God did everything. He was the one who put his Spirit in us and caused us to believe in Christ. We didn’t go looking for him. Rather, he drew us to himself.

The only appropriate response to having the mind of Christ is a deep, reverent, thankful humility.

Hey, I'm Stephen Altrogge. I'm a dad and published author. I've written for The Gospel Coalition, Desiring God, ERLC, Church Leaders, Crosswalk, and many more outlets. You can follow me on Instagram and Facebook .

4 thoughts on “How To Have The Mind Of Christ In 2023”

  1. Praise God, who because of His love and grace, has saved us and given us the mind of Christ! May His praise be continually on our lips. Thank you for this excellent article which reminds us again that there is a merciful loving God who desires a personal relationship with us through His Son, Jesus Christ.

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  2. Awesome word, grateful to God for opening my eyes to receive him. I was just telling
    a friend why so many people don’t hunger and thirst for more of him. I thought something was wrong with me… so many said , “it don’t take all of that”. So , glad he’s drawing me to see it takes much more , and like you said, to pray for others to see him drawing them! Amen !

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  3. Hi Steve thanks for your article, it had inspired me not to give up on someone I am mentoring, who in my absence do the very things I encouraged her not to do — using instructional hours to chat in another teacher’s class, leaving the young children on t own. I have learned to continue to pray for her, because I didn’t choose myself by Christ chose me and put His mind in me, that is why I should humbly continue to intercede on her behalf to feel the need to celebrate Christ because she has a life of a person with the mind of God

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