Opened Minds (2)

Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him… Luke 24.31

The work of the Lord
When Jesus Christ determines to open the mind of a person to the truth of the Gospel, everything changes. There’s no magic about how or when He does this, nor is there any formula we can follow to ensure that someone’s mind will open to the Lord.

But frequently, certain conditions may be in place that help to make people ready to hear the Gospel, or, if they are believers, to lead them to shake off the constraints of infancy and begin growing toward maturity in the mind of Christ. Those conditions may not always be there, and even if they are, there’s no guarantee that sinners will believe or believers will learn. Opening the mind of a deceived sinner or a dull believer is the sovereign work of our Lord Jesus Christ; He saves whom He will, and He instructs those He will in His own way and time.

At the same time, certain conditions may exist in the lives of people – either unbelievers needing to be saved or believers seeking to mature in their thinking and faith – that can aid in the reception of the truth when Jesus comes to open the mind. And in all conditions, God can use the winsome, persistent, personal, and persuasive witness of a loving but fearless believer to help bring the clear light of the Gospel through the mists of unbelief or doubt, and to illumine the heart and open the mind of one who is ready to hear.

Three conditions
What are these conditions? There are three.

First, a person is more likely to be open to the truth of God’s Word when circumstances have conspired to upset or challenge his or her settled assumptions about life. Consider those disciples on the road to Emmaus. They expressed to Jesus, Whom they did not recognize, their disappointment that the One to Whom they’d looked for three years had not proved to be the One they were seeking. All their hopes and expectations were dashed when Jesus died, and they were left to start all over again in trying to make sense out of their lives (Lk. 24.13-24).

Now this is good news, because we are living in a day when the things people hope in, everything solid in their lives, threatens to melt into thin air – to borrow a phrase from Marx. A mood of unsettledness, dissonance, and even seeking something more has crept into the souls of many people. People today are more likely to be open to friendly and loving persuasion about a worldview that makes all things new, because their own worldview has not managed to fill the bill in their lives. This is as true for confessing, but infant, believers as it is for lost and uncertain unbelievers.
The second condition under which Jesus often opens the minds of people is when the Word of God is being considered. The Scriptures are alive and powerful, able to penetrate the depths of a person’s unsettled soul, and in the hands of the Holy Spirit, perform spiritual surgery that begins a process of healing for the whole of life (Heb. 4.12).

It’s a mistake not to talk with our neighbors, or to share with other believers as often as we can, the teachings of God’s Word. The Word of God can open the minds of others, but it cannot do this if we hold it in abeyance or keep it in some scabbard of mere reason or enthusiasm, rather than wield it in full vigor. Jesus took those two disciples through all of Scripture during that long walk to Emmaus, and they were overwhelmed and overcome by His grasp of the Bible and ability to make it clear to them (vv. 27-32). We can expect to see God open minds through our efforts as well, letting in the bright light of mature thinking, precisely to the extent that we are willing to share God’s Word, so that they can do business directly with Him.

The final condition under which Jesus often opens the mind of people is when He is the primary focus of the conversation (v. 27). In Scripture, all roads lead to Jesus (Jn. 5.39). He is the “Desire of all Nations” (Hag. 2.7), the One Who satisfies the longings of every human heart. Catch people at a time of reflecting and rebuilding – or lead them there – then open the Scriptures to them, and point them over and over to Jesus, and watch what our mind-opening Savior can do.

We will be more likely to persuade people to leave off their failed worldviews, or wake from their stupor of Christian infancy, and help them to a higher plane of life, if we keep the Lord Jesus the focus of our conversations, and of our lives.

Primed for maturity
Human beings are made in the image and likeness of God. They are made for God, to think with His mind about their lives, and to follow His paths into righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. The works of God’s Law are written on their hearts (Rom. 2.14, 15); the Spirit of God strives to get their attention (Gen. 6.3), and God Himself holds onto them against their own wills, only reluctantly giving them up to further degrees of distance from Him (Rom. 1.18-32).

Put another way, people are primed for Jesus to open their minds, either unto new life through the Gospel, or to greater maturity in their thinking as followers of the Lord. If we understand this, and believe it, we will not hesitate, conditions being right, to urge others into the light of truth, where Jesus can open their minds to greater vistas of new life and eternal truth.

For reflection
1.  Think about your own coming to faith in Christ. What was going on in your life at that time? How did the Lord use those circumstances to turn your thoughts to Him?

2.  Why do you think Christians are reluctant to talk with others about the Bible and Jesus? How can we help one another overcome this reticence?

3.  Who are the people in your Personal Mission Field to whom God has sent you to help them grow in the mind of Christ?

Next steps – Preparation: If you have not yet mapped out your Personal Mission Field, watch this brief video (click here), then download the worksheet and follow the directions.

T. M. Moore

This is part 3 of a multi-part series on the Christian mind. To download this week’s study as a free PDF, click here.

How’s your Christian worldview? Are you stretching your mind to think about life and the world as Jesus does? Our free online course, One in Twelve: Introduction to Christian Worldview, can provide the categories, terms, and framework for you to begin nurturing a more expansive Christian mind. For more information and to register, click here.

The mind of Christ is set for the Kingdom of God. Is yours? Our book, The Kingdom Turn, provides a concise and practical overview of what it means to live for Christ from within the framework of His Kingdom. Order your copy by clicking here.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.