The podcast dives deep into the intricacies of daily life, as the host weaves together personal anecdotes and insights. We explore how advancements have transformed not only our interactions but also our perceptions of reality. With a blend of humor and wisdom, we dissect the implications of constant connectivity, questioning whether it enriches our lives or detracts from meaningful engagement.

Takeaways:

1. The importance of balancing personal ambition with community responsibility is crucial for growth.
2. We explored how effective communication can bridge gaps in understanding and foster collaboration.
3. Understanding the nuances of emotional intelligence can significantly improve our interpersonal relationships.
4. We discussed the impact of technology on our daily lives and how to navigate its challenges responsibly.
5. The role of humor in diffusing tension cannot be underestimated; it’s a powerful tool.
6. Lastly, we emphasized that continuous learning is vital for adapting in an ever-changing world.

And welcome again to our study.

We have started a series on transformation and we've emphasized the fact that the spiritual mind is fixed on higher realities, truth, but not on the carnal plane, not on the horizontal plane.

Paul said in Colossians 3:2, set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

The spiritual world is altogether different from the material one.

And so in the spirit's dimension, value is not measured by appearances.

We noted that last week, but rather it is measured by truth.

Honor is found not in self promotion and recognition of men.

It's found in service.

Strength is proven not in dominance, but in submission to God.

This is key.

The key to transformation is where we fix our mind.

Is it fixed on the spiritual dimension or is it on this horizontal plane?

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:18, we look not at the things that are seen, but at the things that are unseen.

The things that are seen are temporary, carnal.

The things that are unseen are eternal.

So the carnal mind clings to what can be seen, thus what can be controlled and manipulated or in some way influenced, because it's all motivated and focused on what appears to be.

So.

The spiritual mind, however, trusts what is unseen and what is eternal.

And the fruit of that trust is always the same.

As we noted last week, life and peace.

But the carnal man cannot please God.

He can't understand the spiritual dimension.

It's beyond him.

He doesn't have his faith placed there.

Oftentimes that's the issue.

But beyond that, he's just not been born.

He doesn't have that experience.

He has not been transformed.

He has not begun the new life.

You've got to kill the old man before that can happen.

And we've spent a great deal of time talking about that months ago.

But here again our focus is on transformation from within, not trying to conform things on the external basis.

Paul, or Jesus rather, identifies the Jews that lived in his day, the Jewish leadership, as being whitewashed tombs.

They were clean on the outside, but within they're full of all uncleanness.

Imagine then, the responses from two different mindsets.

Imagine two people facing the same crisis.

Let's just look at it that way.

A sudden loss of a job.

The first one reacts very carnally.

His mind is fixed on appearances.

He's worried about how he's going to pay his bills.

Perhaps that's his focus.

It's all on the horizontal plane.

He's not looking to God and trusting him and asking for his help.

His mind is fixed on all what can be felt on that horizontal plane.

In fact, he may feel humiliated that others will think less of him.

Fear can grip him because his identity has been tied to his paycheck and maybe his position in the job.

In his desperation, he.

He may begin to blame other people, and he may grow bitter, and he may scramble to regain more control.

His thoughts revolve around how he looks to others and how quickly he can restore his reputation.

His reality is one of appearances.

That's what drives him, but it drives him into deeper frustration and despair.

But then imagine a second person who responds to this crisis spiritually, because his focus is not on this horizontal plane anyway.

Obviously, he has to live in it.

He has to provide for his family.

There are certain responsibilities that are his.

But though he feels the sting of that loss, his mind is fixed on God's truth.

He remembers that Jesus said, your heavenly Father knows that you need these things.

Matthew 6:32.

He sees this season not as humiliation, but as an opportunity to depend more fully on the Lord.

And so he prays.

And he asked the Lord to be with him through this trial, to relieve the pain and afford him another job, another position to be able to provide for his family.

Teach me to see your unseen hand at work, or something of that kind.

Instead of panic, in other words, peace begins to guard his heart and his mind, which is a promise that is given in Philippians 4.

7.

His reality, then, is shaped by truth, not appearances.

It may not be seen, it may.

Again, if you want to focus on the scene, then you'll always be on that horizontal plane.

But there's another world, there's another dimension, and it's not based on appearances.

And it leads to life and peace.

Here's the same situation, same scenario, but it's very different, as one's perspective is different.

It's much like the old proverb that says, two men stood out prison bars.

One saw mud, the other saw stars.

Same situation, same limitations, and yet two very different reactions, because one is focused on a different reality.

The carnal mind sees only the mud.

The spiritual mind is fixed on truth and lifts its gaze to the stars.

And so every one of us has to choose what mind we're going to cultivate.

Do we want the carnal mind, unaided by truth?

That will create a safe but false version of reality, really, and will eventually lead to death if that's all we have to live for, if that's our focus.

And the spiritual mind, on the other hand, is fixed on God's truth and yields to that truth, finds transformation in it and life and.

And peace.

So that's where we are.

That's where we left off in our lesson last time.

Every one of us has been wronged at some point in life, and probably we have done some wrong ourselves toward others in our mistreatment of others or our judgment of others.

But some have been wounded deep, deeply.

Whether it's by betrayal or abuse, whether sexual abuse or mental abuse or just rejection.

Others carry the weight of shame from the things that they wish never happened.

Maybe shame brought on by the sin of others or shame because of bad decisions that we've made.

But these wounds can define us if we leave them unchecked.

But the gospel offers a different path for us.

It's a healing path, one that restores and reshapes our identity to be in Christ.

Now, the world won't accept that.

They're not going to help you on that journey.

And let me just clarify, as you listening to me today, that some of you will.

This lesson will have no meaning at all.

Assuming that you have listened and picked up this lesson as a child of God, you'll have a different response than those who are not in Christ.

Please understand that there are different rules, because there are people who will not understand this, nor will they ever appreciate what we're discussing.

And the world.

And those who are on that carnal plane alone, they're not going to help you on your spiritual journey.

In fact, they will attempt to accuse you, maybe fire you, reject you, accuse you, or try to malign your character in any way they can.

They will elevate and accentuate your troubles as if they are permanently attached to your character.

And if they can attach a label to you so as to detach themselves from you, they will certainly do that.

And that label helps them.

It sort of.

It helps distance you from them, either because of your position that is very different from theirs, or in some way, again, they want to distance themselves from you.

And to do that, they must label you.

They must attach something to you.

The carnal mind is that way.

They're going to seize upon your failures.

If you failed in any way, they will use that as an occasion to elevate or make it in bold capital letters, the sin or the mistake that you've made in the past.

They're going to do that, even if it's just the appearance of failure.

They're going to use it as an opportunity to vilify you, or they'll use your weakness as an excuse to justify themselves.

This is why, my friends, we cannot entrust our Healing to the opinions of others.

It must be based on the truth of God and his grace.

And so if failure and the consequences of my own carnality, my own imperfections are indeed the truth, then owning it is the first step.

Kind of like David does in Psalm 51, when he just acknowledges his sin.

Or as it is said in the history of his confession, when Nathan comes to him and convicts him, or tells him about the poor man with the one lamb that he has, and the wealthy king takes from that one man, that one animal that he has, and then provides a feast for his guests.

David saw the injustice in that and says he ought to die.

And Nathan says, you're that man.

Well, the only thing that David could do is just shell the corn and say, I've sinned.

And that's what you and I need to do.

We need to own our failures, because only then will it lead me to repent.

I'm not above that possibility.

I accept that honesty would compel me then to face it.

And whether the truth convicts me of wrong or whether it clears me of false accusations, it's the truth that I'm after.

And the greater truth, though, is this.

God will forgive the repentant.

He will forgive the contrite heart and will assure us that sin does not have dominion over.

Over his people, those who have died to sin.

Romans 6:14, Romans 7.

Beautiful verse, verse 25, when he says, thanks be to God, that gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

And the victory is that we're not under law, but under grace.

This blessed hope and the assurance reminds the spiritual mind to be an extension of that same divine hand of mercy and grace, that we become like the one who has forgiven us.

And so if we understand that experience and have experienced the grace of God and his wonderful mercy and have been assured of his forgiveness, then we are an extension of that to others.

We become that by our in our own lives.

Now, the contrast, the carnal mind, he makes comparisons, fabricates truth, believes it.

It's just the figment of his own imagination and seeks revenge by trying to level the score in any way possible.

It's a matter of competition.

You know, there are two biblical examples of this in the Scriptures.

We see this contrast vividly in Scriptures.

Joseph is one.

After being sold into slavery.

We could go through his whole life if we took the time to mark it out today.

But I think that you probably know the story as well as I do.

And he was sold in slavery by his brothers and went through a series of catastrophes.

In his life, and he could have sought revenge and he could have been very bitter all of his life.

But instead, when he finally stood before them in power and they were in need, in Genesis 50 and verse 20, listen carefully.

He said, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.

His spiritual mind, anchored in God's sovereignty and God's mercy, would be able then to extend mercy to his brothers, to extend mercy rather than judgment because of how God has brought him forth and out of his demise and misfortune, and made him second on only to the great king.

Another example is Saul.

Saul provides the opposite picture.

He's consumed with envy over David's rise and twisted appearances and fabricated accusations.

He hunted David down like a dog.

He was the enemy.

His carnal mind sought to even the score.

But in doing so, he destroyed his own peace and hardened his heart.

Joseph, you see, represents the spiritual mind that heals.

Saul represents the carnal mind that wounds further.

Paul reminds us in Ephesians 4, in verse 32, talking to fellow Christians, be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God and Christ forgave you.

You see, forgiveness is not simply a choice we make for others.

It's a reflection of what Christ has done for us.

The cross becomes the center of healing.

And why?

Well, because it declares both the seriousness of sin and the depths of God's love.

This shows how the carnal mind weaponizes appearances against others.

And it explains then why we can't entrust our healing to the opinions of others, but only to the truth and the grace of God.

But how do we respond when we are the ones wounded?

One we accept the pain without denying it.

True healing always begins with honesty.

We cannot cover our pain with appearances or pretend that sin didn't hurt or that someone's injustice doesn't hurt.

Paul never dismissed the sin lightly.

He names it, he exposes it, and then he points to the cross, where it was dealt with.

And so in the same way, we have to acknowledge the wound, whether it was done to us or whether we were the ones who precipitated it, whether it was abuse that we experienced or betrayal or adultery or neglect, whatever, they are real.

They are the truth.

And they cut deeply.

We can't dismiss that.

Transformation does not ask us to deny the pain.

It asks us to bring it into the light of Christ.

Let him deal with it.

Number two.

It's seeing ourselves then.

And I'm talking to Christians.

Please understand this.

To those who have denied themselves and have taken up the cross and followed him to those who have yielded to his will, who have killed the old man and then buried him by the waters of baptism into Christ's death, and have raised a new man in Christ.

That's who I'm talking to this morning.

And so, in the face of all of that, Paul would write as he speaks to those as having a new identity, and he speaks a new identity over us in 2 Timothy 2:21, that those who cleanse themselves from dishonor become, and I quote, vessels for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.

See, your identity is not determined by what was done to you, but by what Christ has done for you.

Remember, when we allow labels to be attached to us as victims, we've been victimized.

That label defines you.

If you accept it because of what others have done to you, then you become the world's victim.

The world may see a victim, but God sees a sanctified vessel of honor.

And that truth secures us.

Even when our past tries to whisper shame, even when our past whispers failure or it says you're dishonorable, it makes no difference what you've done in the past.

There is a new identity if you're in Christ.

And so forgiving with the mind of Christ is the third thing that I would suggest to you as a way of responding to the wounds that have been created by others or yourself.

Forgiveness does not erase the wrong.

It releases the hold that wrong has over us.

It's still there.

We remember it.

In fact, though, we don't hold it over us.

If true forgiveness has occurred, it's still a memory.

It reminds us of God's grace and his mercy.

That wasn't weakness.

That was divine strength.

He told his apostles, don't you know that I could pray to my Father and my Father would send the 12 legions of angels?

Don't think for one moment that Jesus could not have altered this.

He had the power, if he had the power to save it from the cross, He.

He had the power to raise it from the dead.

And he did.

In fact, from reading John chapters 14 through 16, the same power that is described as being the Father that raised him is described in other places that Christ raised himself.

He had the power of deity.

Let's not deny that.

And so he would say, he would stay on that cross and say, father, forgive them.

They know not what they do.

The mind of Christ then always shows pity Pity for the offender.

Transformation empowers us, though.

It's so that we can show compassion, so that we can give forgiveness for the confessing and repentant heart, but also to carry a patient and willing heart that always longs for forgiveness, even when repentance is slow in coming.

There needs to be some distinctions placed between on whether we're talking about forgiving a brother that is a family member in Christ, or whether we're talking about forgiving those outside of Christ.

But forgiveness is not pretending the offense never happened or that it doesn't matter because it's refusing to let bitterness destroy us.

That's what it's about.

While we wait, while we wait for their repentance and their response, it is still holding out hope, longing for a return, longing for reconciliation.

It's holding our arms open, ready to embrace the offense.

When confession comes, when repentance occurs, then it can be given.

Christ embraced us in the same way.

He doesn't give remission of sins without or unconditioned upon man's response.

It's always conditioned upon man's response.

But he's paid the price, See, he's done what it takes.

And he has the heart of forgiveness and reconciliation.

He's not willing that any should perish is God's attitude, but that all should come to repentance.

He's waiting for that, but meanwhile he's not filled with bitterness.

That's the carnal way.

That's how the carnal mind works.

And so, so many people talk about forgiveness.

And I, I know I may be hitting on somebody's toes or stomping on toes or touching a sensitive issue here.

But let's be clear about this.

Forgiveness is not for the forgiver to feel better about himself.

That's not only motivated by selfish concerns, and it's really a matter of appearances.

It's a carnal mindset.

That's not why we forgive.

Forgiveness is for the one who seeks forgiveness.

It's for the sinner.

It's for the one that's caused the offense.

That's who it's for.

Meanwhile, the one who has been sinned against waits patiently.

The prodigal son's father is a perfect example of this, while the elder brother is an example of the other.

When he sees his young brother coming back after having wasted his, his inheritance, riotously, the King James says he's given, he's treated royally.

His father sees him a long way off, no doubt.

Again, that's patience awaiting his son's return.

His son had to return.

But when he does, his father runs to him and kisses him and hugs him and puts a robe on him and shoes on his feet and says, lets kill the fatted cattle.

Puts a ring on his finger.

He restores him.

Even though his son says, I'm not worthy to be called your son.

Make me just a hired servant.

That's fine with me.

No, no, I'm going to restore you just as it was.

But his elder brother was out in the field.

Wouldn't even come in sulking like a child.

Why?

Because he's carly minded.

Oh look.

Look at this.

This is just, just peachy.

Look, he's done such horrible things and you're just taking him on in.

And you'd never done that for me.

You'd never killed a calf that I might make merry with my friends.

And yet this your son.

Not my brother.

I want to distance myself from him.

He does all this and you just take him back with no question.

You never treated me that way.

So what we've got here is a person thinking on a horizontal plane.

And that's how the world thinks.

That's how they judge.

They judge it upon appearances, not upon the truth.

The truth that's really behind all of this.

And so again, forgiveness though, is dependent on the one who sinned to come back and repent.

Then forgiveness and release can be given.

But the intent of the heart, the desire of the heart, the longing, the anticipation for that return and that reconciliation could be experienced, that's all part of the offended person.

That's all a part of their attitude.

They're not bitter.

It is not true that if you don't give the release that you automatically are bitter.

That's the carnal mind.

That's not true of the spiritual mind.

Forgiveness is the release of the offended upon the offender when repentance occurs.

And not until then, but again you still have that heart, that spirit, that longing.

And so Christ embraced us in the same way and we must have the same heart that he has.

Imagine someone dragging chains behind them.

Everywhere they go the chains clank and they weigh them down and they exhaust them.

The truth is, though the lock has already been broken, they're just not aware of it.

They're living as though it's not.

The key has been provided at the cross.

And yet they continue to carry the weight of this chain because they refuse to let it go, because they want it to identify who they are.

They've still got that carnal mindset of thinking about retribution, that they are the cause of their problems or Someone else has made them victims, and they've given all of these labels and attached it to themselves.

They're not any good.

They can never be any good.

And so this bitter heart is weighed down and carrying this burden.

And even though we must not release people who've not repented from their burdens of sin under the weight of their guilt, we still pray for them.

We still show them pity and mercy, giving them ample time or patient longing for their return.

But we pity them for their ignorance, the condition they're in, their deception, longing to release them.

And in doing that, we step into freedom.

See, there's different rules and there's different rules that apply to those in Christ whom we would acknowledge as brothers and sisters.

But my point is we have the mind of Christ in these things, rooted in God's love.

And so healing and forgiveness can only stand on one foundation, the assurance of that fact.

That's truth.

God loves you.

And Paul writes in Romans 8:37, to those who are in Christ in all these things, we're more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Abuse, betrayal and loss, that can't define us, not when our identity is anchored in Christ's unshakeable love.

We're not victims clinging to survival.

We're conquerors walking in grace, overcoming by his power.

Transformation means learning to see ourselves through God's eyes, not through the lens of our own wounds and our past.

It means facing pain honestly, embracing our identity as sanctified vessels of honor, and extending forgiveness with the mind of Christ.

It is only then you see that true healing can flow.

And only then can transformation continue.

It can continue unhindered.

What's it based on?

Truth.

And the spiritual planes is where that truth is found, not on the carnal plane.

I thank you so much for giving some attention to these things.

Have a good day and a pleasant week.