For most of my life I have owned dogs. For several years I even sold dogs, or rather traded pups for guns. My wife preferred cash. I preferred Ruger. But after years of doing that, I found it was much easier to care for one beast rather than two or more. When I think about those dogs, I think about how each was different from the other and how some just seemed smarter. For instance, I think my present dog is probably the smartest dog I’ve ever had, even though at times I utter “dumb dog” under my breath when he startles me with his bark. He’s a shelter mutt who has lived with us for several years. He has learned many commands and will even moan like he’s trying to talk. He loves being right in the middle of everything going on and has learned that if he hangs around long enough, some other member of my family (not me) will throw him a table scrap. So, you can imagine the obstacle he can be when people start moving to the kitchen. I know, if you’re a dog lover, you too have stories about the brilliance of your Benji. You feel like he or she can read your mind to know just what you are thinking. But, as you know, that’s impossible. Not only can our dog not read our mind, but we can’t read Benji’s mind either. Nor can we read another human’s mind. That’s just outside of our ability. But as I remind myself of this, another truth rises to the front. One that suddenly becomes something rare – even miraculous. The Apostle Paul discloses it this way. He says, “But we have the mind of Christ.” What!? You mean me? You mean that other Christian who struggles so much? You mean that new believer? You mean that follower who can’t seem to get it together? Yes. Yes. Yes. And Yes. All the above. You and I, as followers of Christ, have been given the mind of Christ. That means we can know the heart of Christ and even many of his ways. Yes, I know Isaiah recorded that God declared, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” But that was before Grace and the Spirit. That was Old Testament. But the New Testament brought about God living in every believer through his Holy Spirit. And included in that, as Paul reminds us, is the mind of Christ. And while that mind is still tainted and tempted and encompassed by our earthly and sinful body, we are still able to know his mind and how he chooses to accomplish his will through our unique vessel. Which means, while we all can want the same thing God wants, God may bring it about in many different ways according to how he has built each of us.
Gary Miller