Reclaiming the Mind of Christ — Carter Conlon

Praise God, praise God. Finally got a picture of the real me up there yesterday. They had a picture of a young guy about 20 years ago. Saddened my heart when I looked at it. How many were here this morning in the first service anybody?

Oh, look at that. Okay, praise God. You obviously didn't understand what I said. So you're coming back For the second service and I spoke a message this morning called reclaiming the mind of Christ. Reclaiming what is the mind of Christ?

A Generation Spiraling Into Confusion

Why is it necessary that we reclaim it in this generation? You know, you and I are living in a generation that's unraveling before our very eyes. Our society is spiraling down very very quickly shocking.

Isn't that what happened in America just in the last two three years? Things are happening. We never thought we'd ever be saying with our lips, you know the on every conceivable level we seem to be spinning into confusion and Immorality and I don't want to scare you this morning.

But I need to tell you this that there are two very prominent social scientists in Canada and they've spent a lifetime Studying the rise and the fall of societies and they're not lightweights either and these two social scientists have recently written a book and they're Encouraging the Prime Minister of Canada and the government of Canada to prepare for the collapse of America's society.

In their estimation all the variables are in place for a complete implosion of the American society by the year 2025 and they're telling the Canadian government that they need to prepare for the Exodus of refugees coming from America into Canada looking for safe haven now.

I don't know the full I haven't read the book yet. I don't know the full details of what they're saying. I just know that these men are not lightweights. They've dedicated their life to this study and they see the variables at play in This society today that are leading in their opinion to the collapse of America as a country as we've known it so I tell you this for one reason the only hope for this nation now is a spiritual awakening and The only hope for a spiritual awakening comes through you and comes through me.

It's not going to be a superstar preacher that God's going to raise up feathers are not going to fall out of heaven. It's going to be men and women of God like you and like me that the Spirit of the Lord gets hold a hold of.

And we reclaim the mind of Christ. That's what I want to talk about today. I spent yesterday in prayer. I spent the time with God just saying Lord. What would you have me to speak to the church today?

This is not an old message that I've preached somewhere else. This is the thoughts in my opinion from the heart of God for you and for me today so father, I want to thank you Lord for The touch of heaven that's been here all morning in this sanctuary Lord I thank you God for the numbers that responded earlier today God to to the word that you brought Lord, I'm asking you for the grace and the strength Lord to Unlock this word and we're asking you for the anointing of the Spirit to hear it for if you don't illuminate it We can't hear it.

It's just black and white letters on a page. It doesn't transform us. It doesn't renew our minds God. So we're asking now Holy Spirit, would you come? Would you literally renew our understanding? Would you quick in the Word of God and would you give us the ability to understand the words that we are about to hear?

And we give you praise and we give you glory for it. Give me the ability Lord to walk with you today. Oh Jesus Christ the day of games is over the day of light-hearted Christianity has come to an end God.

We are a city to be set upon a hill. We are supposed to be a testimony that cannot be denied. So Lord take us out of everywhere. We need to be out of and bring us into what we need to be into give us the mind of Christ.

We ask it in Jesus name. Amen. Now by reclaiming the mind of Christ. I I'm referring to returning to something Which we've never fully understood you know that it's possible to be in the Church of Jesus Christ for years and years and years and We're reading the scriptures, but and God's trying to speak something, but we're not hearing it fully.

We're hearing the edges of it, but we're not fully hearing what it is. That God's trying to speak to us not collectively necessarily but individually. What is he speaking into my life? What is it perhaps about me that he's thinking that I am?

Not understanding. What is it about my mind that it's not been transformed in a sense and I'm still living by my own reasoning. I'm still living by my own thinking. My estimation of myself is is based on what I I have on my wall or what I look at in the mirror.

And I'm not thinking the way God is thinking about me or maybe. The mind of Christ is something that we've resisted because of unbelief like the children of Israel who got to the shores of this incredible promise.

Not just they were taken out of captivity and they were taken out miraculously and there's a lot of people here today that you could Say that's that's my story. I was in an addict. I was I was hopeless.

I was depressed. I was suicidal. I was despairing. My marriage was broken. My family were destroyed when you were brought out sovereignly by the presence of God by the power of God and Going through in a sense a wilderness experience now coming to the coming to the shores of something that God had for you this the Place of promise that the cross actually leads us collectively and individually into and Yet you stood back and and as the children of Israel once dead resisted it because of unbelief.

Came to the wrong conclusion. Not about yourself your conclusion about yourself was correct. The wrong conclusion you came to was about God. You concluded that you were too weak. You concluded that you didn't have the knowledge the strength the ability to go in to do whatever it was that Lay before you and so you came to a correct conclusion about yourself.

But your wrong conclusion was about God because you didn't have the mind of Christ for your life. Or maybe you did know and you let it slip away because of neglect or apathy or complacency. It it was there at one time and you you did have this realization.

But you just let it slip. So I want to start in 1st Corinthians chapter 1 at beginning at verse 17. And I'm going to keep on reading and just commenting on verses of Scripture. So Lord again I just say illuminate this word my God and Shine it and our minds and our hearts my God and help us to embrace it.

The Cross as the Power of God

So Paul says in verse 17 Christ did not send me to baptize. But to preach the gospel not with wisdom of words lest the cross of Christ Should be made of no effect. So Paul is in effect saying there's there's something about the cross and the victory of the cross.

There's this there's a power in this. There's something in it for every person and so I wanted to be careful then in my speaking I didn't draw to myself that you start looking at me. Paul could be saying as the standard you start looking at my wisdom because Paul obviously had a brilliant mind.

He was probably the most brilliant theologian in the entire Writings of the New Testament yet. He himself he said I didn't come and I didn't use perhaps the wisdom he had. Lest you should bless the cross in a sense and the the power that was made available to every person should kind of Disappear from your sight and you start listening to me and you start listening to my wisdom and that becomes your focus.

Paul said I didn't Want that to be your focus? For the message of the cross verse 18 is foolishness to those who are perishing. But to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written.

I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where's the wise where's the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

For since in the wisdom of God the world through wisdom did not know God it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe for the Jews request a sign and Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness.

Paul said there's a power in the preaching of the cross. When Christ was raised from the dead. The cords of sin that bound us to the past were completely severed. We were given the same Spirit that raised him from the dead and we were promised that by the Spirit of God we too would be raised from the dead.

And we would be made into new creations that means everything of the past everything that we were everything that we think or thought we we are all of those things are Gone and and the slate is clean.

We're now born again. That's the reality of it we're starting life all over again and God is willing to take us out of our weakness and out of our nothingness and and begin to do something in us that only he Can do for the purpose of bringing his own name to glory.

That is the beauty of the preaching of the cross. The cross is level ground. There's no smart people. No stupid people there. Everybody's level. We're all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

We've all fallen short of what we should be and so it's not by wisdom. It's not by might it's not by human effort. That Christ has glorified in us. It's it's by the Spirit of Almighty God. Freely given when you and I come to Jesus Christ at the cross.

We receive the same Holy Spirit not a little here's a thimble for you as a bucket for you. Here's a little bit for you as an eyedropper for you same spirit. Same calling same same abilities given to or differing of abilities.

But same power of God given to every person that comes to God through Jesus Christ. Paul says the Jews request a sign in the Greeks seek after wisdom. So there's this these two types of people in a sense that did hear the message of the cross.

There are there's a certain group of people who feel that by sheer force of human effort and will that's that was what the Jewish Religion was all about making promises to God that they couldn't fulfill.

Trying to do more trying to be better trying to be godly you know, they were called to be the people of God in the earth, but it was it was all human effort and. And so basically the Jews were saying well, give us give us a sign that our efforts are not good enough.

I mean we have the robes. We've got the we've got the temple. We've got the scriptures. We've got all this stuff. Give us a sign that it's not so they require a sign. It's in other words We're not going to believe that what we do is falling short of the glory of God.

And of course the Greeks are saying well, we're gonna learn our way out of this Dilemma of called the human condition. We're just gonna learn about all of the ways and it's through knowledge that we're going to increase.

And of course, that's where the world is that today, you know through knowledge. We're going to break out of the boxes of our confinement and such like and we're gonna be a better people in a better society.

It's so ironic. It's like a it's like a. It's like an instruction class on wisdom on the deck of the Titanic after it's hit the iceberg, you know Paul said but we preach Christ crucified. Unto the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness a stumbling block.

Stumbling block the fact that you can't you can't gain favor with God through human effort a stumbling block. That I can't will myself to be a better person. I am on level ground with with others all around me that somehow.

That we are we're on level ground and and and the same power the same redemption is available to all people but to those who are called both Jews and Greeks Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God because the Foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men now.

So I got first time I read that I stopped at that verse and say how could you ever? Describe God as foolish or weak and consider this part of the inspired text of Scripture. God who is all-knowing. How can he be described in the Bible as how can foolishness be ascribed to God?

God who has all power I mean he could just do this and fold the whole universe up and recreate it today if he wanted to his all power. So, how can he be described as weak? So what is the foolishness of God?

And what is the weakness of God? It's an easy answer you are I am. We are the foolishness of God the fact that God in all of his power All of his strength and all of his knowledge chooses to reveal his glory through you and me.

That's the foolishness of God. That's the weakness of God. That's the mystery and the Bible says that the the angels look over the balcony of heaven and desire to look into this. That God because they live in the presence of God they they're aware of the glory of God.

When the words holy holy holy are spoken in the courts of heaven The the place is filled with but there's a kind of glory of God the posts of the door move. There's there's they understand his holiness and it's certainly in a greater measure than we do.

And then they look down at us. We look like a leper colony compared to them. Yet the affection of God is upon us and he has made a choice to reveal his glory in the world through you and through me. Praise be to God.

That's amazing when we consider that. Me with all my struggles me with my inglorious History me with with with all the things that I've done wrong me with all my frailties and weaknesses yet Almighty all-knowing God Chooses to make himself known through me in the world.

Amazing. Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. Now he goes on he says in verse 25 6 He said the first Corinthians for you see your calling brethren now. We're talking about the foolishness and the weakness of God.

So keep that in your mind. We're talking about the power of the cross. We're talking about the availability of the power of God to all people. You see your calling brethren not many wise according to the flesh not many mighty not many noble are called but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise and God has chosen the weak things of the world to Put to shame the things which are mighty and the base things of the world.

In other words the things that are at the bottom not the top. But people who are in a place that nobody aspires to be you know. A lot of people could say that today where I am nobody in the right mind would want to be there.

Nobody would ever want to be where I am and be doing what I'm doing. But God has chosen you even in that place of baseness and the and and the things which are despised God has chosen. Even worse than that places places that nobody wants to be the world despises it they would not want to be where many of us have been and some of us may even be today and The things which are not to bring to nothing the things that are.

So here's the good news. If you are somewhere on the scale between foolish and nothing you qualify to be used by God. Isn't that wonderful? I? Guess I could just feel it now somebody say yes me finally a message for me.

Finally somebody is speaking into my life. I'm on the scale between. I'm I'm a third of the way down up from nothing. But I'm I'm a little closer to nothing than foolish, but there I am. I qualify to be used by God.

Why does he choose us that no flesh verse 29 should glory in his presence? But of him you are in Christ Jesus who became for us wisdom from God and righteousness and sanctification and redemption that means his Wisdom is all that we need.

His thoughts are the thoughts that we need to reclaim in our generation. Not what we think about ourselves, but what God is thinking about us. Not what we say our future is going to be but what God says our future is going to be.

He's our wisdom. He's our righteousness. He has declared us clean no matter our struggles. No matter our inglorious history and past when we came to the cross of Jesus Christ. Just like the prodigal son the finest robe in the house was placed upon us.

We were cleansed from our filth. We were cleansed from our iniquity. We became sons and daughters of God. Hallelujah. Come on now. The Bible says That we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. If that were not in the Bible, it would seem to be blasphemy.

You know what that says. I am as clean as God is because of Jesus Christ. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. Glory to God glory to God. Christ is my righteousness. He is my sanctification means he is the indwelling spirit of God that gives me the power to become What he's called me to be to leave what I need to leave and to go into what he's got from my life.

He is the sanctifier. He is the one who changes my heart changes my mind changes my character. Changes my destiny. It is God in me that changes my destiny and he is my redemption. He is the one who has cut the cords to my past.

It doesn't matter who did what in my family. I am a new creation in Christ Jesus. Hallelujah. I'm not going where they went. I'm not living the way they lived. The cords of the past were broken when Jesus Christ was raised from the dead.

The my Bible says he took captivity captive and gave gifts unto men. Not only did he break the cords that held us to our past and held us to a life of sin. But he gave us giftings of the Spirit to become new creations and to do things that we can't do in our own strength if We have the mind of Christ.

The Mind of Christ and Spiritual Wisdom

Paul says he goes on in chapter 2. He says and I brethren when I came to you I did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

Paul said I I didn't want you. I didn't want you looking at me. That's what he's saying. I didn't want your focus shifted to men. I Didn't want you sitting there saying oh if I could only be like brother or sister so-and-so then somehow God could use my life.

Paul saying it's not about me and I didn't want the focus brought to me. Even though he had the capability of baffling people with his intellect and his understanding he didn't use it. And he goes on and says I was with you and weakness and Fear and much trembling.

And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom. But in demonstration of the Spirit and power that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Paul had this this inner trembling in his life and said God, please please. Don't let the people look at me as if I'm the standard. Let me be weak so that you might be portrayed as strong God let me be nothing so that you might be everything.

And when people look at me. Let them see the Spirit of God and the glory of God on a human vessel. That their faith should not shift to the wisdom of man. But be in the power of God. How be it? However, he says in verse 6 we speak wisdom among those who are mature.

Yet not the wisdom of this age nor of the rulers of this age who are coming to nothing. We speak the wisdom of God in a mystery the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory. In other words.

There are thoughts in the heart of God towards you. That God had before you were even born before the world was created. He saw you he saw you just like he said to Philip when you were under the fig tree.

I saw you. Before I saw you before we physically saw each other with it with human eyes. I Saw you where you were and I had thoughts in my heart about you. And then he goes on. This is an incredible verse.

Verse 8. He said. Which none of the rulers of this age knew for had they known it they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory. Now here's what Paul's saying that the spiritual rulers of wickedness and those that they had gripped in this world if they had known What was going to be released?

Through the cross they would not have crucified Jesus Christ if they would have seen the power. If they would have had a long-term view and seen a People everywhere being raised out of dust and ashes and the glory of God being upon them and the strength of God being given them.

They would not have crucified Christ in crucifying him. They were releasing the glory of God in the earth through who through who. The weak. The marginalized the foolish the nobodies the nothings of society you and me.

The glory of God was being released in the earth. But as it is written I has not seen verse 9 nor ear heard. Nor have entered into the heart of man the things was. God has prepared for those who love him.

But God has revealed them to us through his spirit for the spirit searches all things. Yes the deep things of God. You know the Bible speaks in another place of this inner groaning of the Holy Spirit.

I've always believed that groaning of God's Spirit like interceding it says for us with groanings. It cannot be uttered. The Spirit of God Knows the will of God for each life and I believe the Holy Spirit is groaning inside that we come into agreement with God.

That our minds come into agreement with the thoughts of God. But God has revealed them to us through his spirit for the spirit searches all things. Yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of man.

Which is in him even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. In other words Paul is just saying it's it's really simple. Nobody knows what you're thinking right now except you and God.

Nobody else knows the thoughts of your mind in the same way He says nobody knows what God is thinking about you except the Spirit of God in you knows the Holy Spirit knows. And Jesus said when he the Spirit of truth has come he will take what is mine.

That means the victory that Christ won and he will show it to you and he will show you things to come. Amazing he will reveal to you in a sense the plan that God has for each of our lives. Now we have received verse 12 chapter 2.

Not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God that we might know the things that are freely given to us by God. That's the mind of Christ. Oh God. Would you help me? To come into agreement with your plan for my life.

Would you help me to look away from my past and my resume and my weakness and what others have said about me? God Almighty your God. They're not you are. Would you help me to look away from the people that told me I'd always be an alcoholic because my father was an alcoholic or Be depressed because my mother was depressed or whatever it is.

Would you help me God to look away from those things? Would you help me to look away from my? My inglorious history or whatever it is or whatever I can do or haven't done or tried and failed. Would you help me to look away and God help me to understand that you're you have thought you're thinking thoughts about me.

And you have freely given to me the things I need to accomplish what I'm called to do. Don't let me stand at the border of this incredible promise looking in at the Giants and saying it it can't be. I'm too weak.

They're too strong. I'm too small or too big. I'm too little or too many. God Almighty the people of this world. We're told by it's a secular statistic now. That's not even a Christian one, but a secular statistic that 100 million people go to bed depressed every night in America.

100 million people almost a third of the entire population of the country are groaning at night when they go to bed because they don't see hope for tomorrow. Many are opiate addicted many areas. Their families are being destroyed.

They they can see the crumbling of society all around them. They don't see hope for the future. Suicide is becoming a huge problem among teenagers today in our society. The people of this world are are groaning for the testimony of God.

It is Church. Through you and through me. My strength does not come from Education or lack thereof or success or failure? None of it matters. The reality is it's level ground at the cross. It's a whosoever will kingdom can come matter of fact to Isaiah.

The Lord said it's the lame who take the prey. Don't you love it? The Pharisees are just doing this. How is it possible that a prophet could come out of Jerusalem? And while they're just playing with the scritchy little beards Fixing all the robes the prostitutes are touching his feet.

The lame are crawling through the blind are crying out in the side of the road. Wisdom is justified of his children, right? The Pharisees don't have a single testimony with all the robes and right that all I have is a negative testimony.

But the blind man's got a quite a story, doesn't he? Hallelujah. Verse 13 says these things we speak not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

But the natural man verse 14 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. That means that the person who is trying to serve God in their own strength.

And they're trying to Reason God by it with their own minds. I'm not suggesting we don't study or learn the Scriptures. That would be contrary to what the Word of God tells us. But this is their whole sense of being is is living by natural wisdom and natural strength.

And and so what I'm talking to you about to a natural man is foolishness. It's foolishness. It's out of reach. It's pie-in-the-sky Theology that's not attainable by anyone in this generation. But he was spiritual judges all things yet He himself is rightly judged by no one.

Ordinary People Chosen to Display God's Glory

For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him but we have mind of Christ. So what then is this mind of Christ and how does it apply to me? Let's bring it home now. It's when we agree that in spite of our present condition.

We are the ones chosen by God to display his power and grace in the spiritual crisis of our present day. That's the mind of Christ. When we are when we agree in spite of our condition in spite of who I am.

You've chosen me In spite of my weakness. You've chosen me in spite of my nothingness. You've chosen me in spite of my Powerlessness. You've chosen me in spite of my lousy self view. You've chosen me in spite of whatever other people have said you've chosen me.

You've chosen me. You've chosen me. You've given me your promise. You've given me your spirit. You have a plan for my life. You're gonna take me through a door and do things through my life that I could never do in my own strength.

But you will do it and when I get to the other side, I'll say glory to God glory to God. Only God could have done this and my my message will be when I get there. What God has done for me God will do for you.

It will be that simple. It won't be complicated. I'll not be wasting a lot of time on Greek and Hebrew word meanings. It will be I walked with God. God has done this in my life. The breath of God entered my life.

He took me out of weakness and into strength. He has made me more than I could ever be. Taking me where I could never go giving me what I could never possess and all glory to God for what he has done through My life.

Aren't you glad that we're the foolish plan of God and the weakness of God. He wanted to take his people out of captivity. They've been there for 400 years. The strongest Empire on the earth of that time is holding them in captivity.

They have no possible way out. So God looks down says how am I going to display my power? And bring them out. So there's a there's an 80 year old man out in the backside of the desert. He can't speak he stutters matter of fact, he can't even deliver a one-night aligned sermon.

He needs his brother to deliver it for him. And he just has a stick. He no longer has a sword. So that's my perfect candidate to show my power so he sends an 80 year old man and his 83 year old brother and they come walking into the court of The strongest leader in the known world of that time and Moses stands and goes Let my people go.

That is the plan of God folks. That's the plan of God that's that's the that's the foolishness of God. That's the weakness of God. You see the only reason Pharaoh didn't kill them on the spot I believe is because it was such a joke.

That these two men would be standing there saying we are here in the name of God telling you to let these three million people Go from captivity that they may serve God in the wilderness and Pharaoh laughed in the beginning.

But when it became a contest of power now, he's caught in a trap. He can't kill them because it makes them look weak now. Amazing the plans of God amazing how how God does things he 135 ,000 Midianites are coming into the nation on a regular basis and they're they're eating up Everything the people of God are trying to produce.

They're destroying that society of that time and there's there's a hopelessness abounding everywhere. And it's so hopeless that people have even turned from the worship of the Living God and they're now worshiping idols.

And God finds a young man just a teenager probably in the backyard of his father's house. Scraping out a living trying to trying to scrape up some semblance of hope and and he calls him suddenly a mighty man of resources.

Gideon says are you kidding me? I'm My I'm of the least tribe of the tribes of Israel. My father's house is the least house of All the houses in the least tribe and I'm the least person in the least house of the least tribe and all of Israel.

And you're looking at me and you're calling me a mighty man of resources. Who does God choose? To do exploits when everything seems hopeless. Folks we have to get this because this is a do-or-die moment in America now.

We have got to get a hold of this. This can't just become knowledge that we write down in a little book somewhere. So it wasn't that nice. We have to get a hold of this. We have to move into this. We've got to go beyond just learning about it and It gives him a battle plan split into three companies go to the top of a hill raise the torch and shout the sword of The Lord and the sword of Gideon and God says you leave the rest to me.

That's your part. You do that I'll do the rest. He wants to there's a law. Amid a Persian King has been deceived by the people around him and he's he's going to invoke a law that's going to cause the Jewish people the entire Race of Jewish people in that nation to be put to death and all their goods are to be taken and spoiled and divided.

What's the plan of God takes an orphan Jewish girl puts her in to the court of the king. She must have been thinking in her heart. What could I do? What kind of a difference could I make? How could I rewrite the law of death into a law of life?

What could God possibly do through me and at the time that she's called of God? She says to her cousin Mordecai says well look. Like the king and I are not tied anymore like we we it was it was a passionate relationship in the beginning.

But he's not even called me for 30 days. And it's a type of a young girl here today. The Lord's calling you now and you say well go. I wish he would have called me five years ago, or I used to pray. I've even talked to him in 30 days.

I don't even pray anymore. I don't feel close to him and Mordecai consider Esther. It doesn't matter you still have access to the throne of the king. You're still his bride. And Esther ends up rewriting the law of death into a law of life and she becomes a co-regent with her husband unheard of in the meat of Persian Empire.

Women were almost like chattel but the king Saw the worth of his bride and she ends up in a sense ruling and reigning with him. I put it that way in that time each of these Were foolish battle plans, they're foolish in the natural the natural man would look and say this is idiocy.

It's idiocy send two old men. To deliver a three million people a boy with a stone to bring down a giant. God needs to raise a voice to guide the nation back to himself again. So who does he look for a barren womb?

How many times did he he bring the deliverance in the sense? It was needed at that moment out of out of a womb that couldn't bear a child. Look at it. It's all there the the testimony of it's replete.

The whole testimony of Scripture is about who God uses and when he uses them and especially in a crisis time. You know Hannah had gotten to the point where her prayer had no more words. She could just move her lips.