THE MIND OF CHRIST
To have the mind of Christ is not merely to think religious thoughts; it is to see the world through the posture of the Son of God—humble, obedient, self-giving, and alive to the will of the Father. The gospel does not invite us simply to admire Jesus; it commands us to enter His way of thinking. “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). This is not metaphor alone—it is a summons to a transformed inner life.
Jesus saw everything through the lens of love and obedience. Where others grasped for status, He emptied Himself; where others demanded rights, He laid His down. Though equal with God, He did not cling to privilege, but took the form of a servant and walked the road of sacrifice all the way to the cross (Philippians 2:6-8). To think like Christ is to choose humility when pride feels natural, obedience when autonomy feels attractive, and trust when self-protection seems wise.
The mind of Christ also reshapes how we see people. Jesus did not sort humanity into categories of worth; He saw souls—sheep without a shepherd, sinners in need of mercy, children to be welcomed, enemies to be loved. He looked upon crowds and was moved with compassion (Matthew 9:36). He saw through hypocrisy, yet never through people. To think like Him is to refuse contempt, to lay aside suspicion, and to meet others with grace seasoned by truth.
And above all, the mind of Christ is cruciform. It is shaped by the cross—where love bore suffering, where weakness overcame power, where God’s wisdom confounded the world. “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). When Christ governs our thinking, we no longer measure success by gain or faithfulness by ease; we measure life by obedience and love.
This mind is not achieved by effort alone; it is received by surrender. Christ dwells within His people by the Spirit, forming His thoughts in us as we yield—slowly, daily, sometimes painfully. We learn to pause before reacting, to pray before judging, to listen before speaking; and over time, His thoughts become our reflex, His heart our horizon.
To have the mind of Christ is to live differently in the same world—to walk gently where others push, to hope where others despair, to love where others withdraw. It is not weakness; it is the quiet strength of heaven made visible in human life.
_________
Lord Jesus, form Your mind in me. Teach me to think Your thoughts, to see as You see, and to love as You love. Empty me of pride, fill me with Your humility, and let my life reflect the beauty of Your obedient love. Amen.
BDD