KEEP THE THINGS OF GOD IN MIND

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Christ.”
(Mark 8:29)

MEDITATION:
We should never forget that the Christian life is lived on the battlefield.
We are in a war.
The line is clearly drawn and the sides are diametrically opposed.
It is the people of God versus Satan and his emissaries.

We should never forget which side we are on, either!
Sometimes we can inadvertently aid the enemy,
especially when we are not thinking biblically.

What Peter said in Mark 8:29
is one of the greatest confessions of faith of all times.
While some said Jesus was John, Elijah, or one of the prophets,
Peter said, “You are the Christ”.
Sounds like Peter had the things of God in mind, right?

Now, let’s look at what happened when Peter failed
to keep the things of God in mind.
When Jesus began to teach the disciples
about His anticipated death, Peter rebuked Him.
He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law,
and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. (Mark 8:31)

How did Peter respond?
He responded as one without the things of God in mind.
He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside
and began to rebuke him. (Mark 8:32)
When he rebuked Jesus and with that rebuke, he was aiding the enemy.

In turn, Jesus rebuked Peter,
“But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter.
‘Get behind me, Satan!’ he said. ‘You do not have in mind the concerns
of God, but merely human concerns.” (Mark 8:33)
His words must have startled Peter.

The problem was, when Peter no longer had in mind the things of God,
he was aiding the enemy.
He was also allowing the enemy to infiltrate his thought processes.

Our views are not to be those of man, or of our own reasoning.
When our thinking turns to the concerns of men
instead of the concerns of God, we aid the cause of Satan.

Our views, attitudes, reasonings and beliefs must be molded by the Word of God.
Unfortunately, when people have problems, many good intentioned believers
often gravitate to the concerns of men, and ignore turning to God’s Word.
As a result, their ability to cope with problems doesn’t get any better.

ACTION:
Learn to see things God’s way.
How? By reading and learning what He says in His Word.
If you have a struggle in this area,
then get books that will help you better understand His Word.

Be sure to look for books written by someone you respect as a believer;
someone you feel loves the Lord and wants others to love Him as well.
Start with small, short and simple books so you can enjoy His revelations,
rather than feeling that you are in a laborious, in depth, intellectual study.

Reading God’s Word should be enjoyable, exciting, encouraging and convicting.
It should never be for the purpose of filling our head with factual knowledge,
but rather an effort to know Him better and change our perspectives and attitudes.
Pray and allow His Spirit to guide you.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, help me in my efforts to know You better. Forgive
me for the times I have allowed other things to crowd You out of my
mind. Give me a renewed effort to read Your Word more often and to
allow Your words to permeate my mind. Remind me that whenever I
testify of my love and trust in You, I am participating in Your earthly
ministry to reach lost souls.”

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