We as believers strive to have the character and thus, the mind of Christ. So, how can we have the mind of Christ? The short answer is by overcoming your thoughts. But this is no easy task, and obviously, we’ll need lots of help along the way, cue the Bible. I want to bring up two critical parts of the Hebrew sanctuary: the sacrifice and the table of showbread. Of course, with more in-depth study, you can see how every part of the tabernacle links to the sanctification of our minds, but for now, I’ll bring to light two of many.

1. The Sacrifice

Sin is like many beasts; for example, perfectionism is a beast as it is a sin against God. The first step in entering the sanctuary is to sacrifice or lay down your animal as an offering to God. This action is you surrendering your beast of sin and taking the first step toward claiming the heart and mind of Christ.

2. Table of Showbread

The showbread was a representation of the bread of life, which is both Jesus as He came “down from heaven and gives life to the world” (John 6:33) and the word of God because “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). The table of showbread symbolizes how we must be consumed by the Bible and Jesus’ life on earth, particularly the cross.

Have the mind of Christ by Determining which Thoughts to Overcome

A scientific study, which you can read more about here, determined that “you can deliberately bring yourself back to the moment. That’s an ability that can improve with training.”

You can focus on the cross, the words of the Bible, and the mind of Christ. Of course, this starts with praying for God to remind you of the Bible in times of trouble. The only way to get rid of sinful thinking is to fill your mind with good thoughts.

The Bible agrees; Psalms 1:1-2 says, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.”

Psalms 1:1-2

I’m going to pull the classic verse that we’ve all heard from our mothers and their mothers before them.

Philippians 4:8 says, “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.”

Philippians 4:8

The only way to have the mind of Christ is by overcoming your thoughts, and the only way to overcome negative thoughts is to fill your mind daily with the thoughts and teachings of Christ. The only way to accomplish this is through prayer and meditation on the Bible and the life of Christ. This week I challenge both you, my reader, and I, myself, to start the day with prayer and reading the Bible. As an incentive for myself, I’ll post my thoughts and my experience next week.

Until we meet again,

-Alycia