Being Renewed in the Spirit of Our Mind and Living a Forgiving Life for the Body

How can we live a life for the building up of the Body of Christ? In Ephesians 4:17-32 we have many hints, some more outward and practical while others intrinsic and enjoyable, on how we can practically live a life for the carrying out of the work of the ministry, which is the building up of the Body of Christ.

Today we were enjoying three such matters: not grieving the Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:30), being renewed in the spirit of our mind (Eph. 4:23), and living a forgiving life (Eph. 4:32).

As we daily live a life under the divine dispensing of the Divine Trinity, being open to the Lord to work Himself into us, we do all things in such a way that we not grieve the sealing Holy Spirit.

Also, we cooperate with the Lord to allow the mingled spirit to invade our mind and become the spirit of our mind. On the practical side, we live a life of forgiving one another and seeking to be forgiven, even forgetting when we forgive.

When we practice these things in the Lord by being one with Him (and not in our natural strength), we live a life that corresponds to the life of Jesus, a life for the building up of the Body of Christ.

Lord, renew our mind more and spread as the Spirit with our spirit into our mind. Transform us for the Body, and gain us more! Even make us those who forgive others as You forgave us. Lord, we want to practice to forgive and forget by being one with You. Oh, Lord, our living! May it be for the building up of the Body!

Not Grieving the Sealing Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is continually sealing us for the day of the redemption of our Body – we need to learn not to grieve the Holy Spirit within us (Eph. 4:30).

There are times when we do certain things, we speak some words, we get involved with some people, or we are in certain places, and we feel that the Spirit in us is not happy. We need to learn to practice turning to our spirit and always make the Spirit happy.

When we do things or go places, we need to consider whether the Spirit likes those things or those places. When the Spirit in us is happy, He is sealing us with the essence and element of the Triune God.

In the old days when a seal was put on a letter, the paper received the ink essence and also the shape of the seal.

Daily as we cooperate with the Spirit and exercise our spirit, the sealing Spirit brings the essence of the Triune God into us and saturates us, and He causes us to bear the likeness of God. When others see us, they see God because we bear His likeness, His seal, His image!

Lord, keep us turning to our spirit. We want to be keen to listen and obey the sense of the Spirit in our spirit. May we be those who don’t grieve the Holy Spirit. May we be those daily and continually under the sealing of the Holy Spirit that we may be saturated with God’s essence and bear God’s image!

Being Renewed in the Spirit of Our Mind

After Paul spoke concerning the putting off of the old man and just before he spoke of the putting on of the new man, Paul inserts the thought of being renewed in the spirit of our mind (Eph. 4:23).

The way for us to put off the old man and to put on the new man is to be renewed in the spirit of our mind! This renewing is a part of our transformation process to be conformed to the image of Christ (see Rom. 12:2 and 2 Cor. 3:18).

Our regenerated spirit is indwelt by God’s Spirit, and He wants to spread into our soul, especially into our mind, to become “the spirit of our mind”.

When we set our mind on the spirit and seek the things which are above (Col. 3:2), the mingled spirit spreads into our mind and conquers it, subdues it, and renews it.

The old and natural elements and thoughts in our mind are being discharged and renewed, and the new elements of the Spirit with our spirit are being added to our mind. Through this metabolic process, our mind is renewed and we are being transformed to Christ’s image.

The accomplished facts of the putting off of the old man and the putting on of the new man are being realized and experienced by us today by being renewed in the spirit of our mind!

Since the mind is the leading part of our soul, when we are renewed in the spirit of our mind, we will live a life that corresponds to the life of Jesus, a life for the building up of the Body of Christ!

Living a Forgiving Life

As brother Witness Lee once said, we are not made of marble but of flesh and bones, and simply by living in the church life and among people we get offended and we offend others.

We need to learn to live a forgiving life, a life in which we practice to forgive one another and forget one another’s offending – even as God in Christ forgets our sins and offenses (Eph. 4:32; Heb. 8:12).

We don’t live 24/7 and 60 mins every hour in our spirit, but we are rather a lot of time in our natural man, our old man. Many times we get offended by others, and many times we also offend others and make mistakes.

A life that builds up the Body of Christ is not a perfect sinless life but a life that forgives others and seeks to be forgiven. When others offend us, we need to forgive them and forget their offense by the life of God in our mingled spirit.

Sometimes our hearts are hardened by sin or by the world and we don’t even want to forgive! But by enjoying the Lord as our life supply and our joy, our hearts become tender and we can forgive others again.

The secret is to enjoy the Lord! As we enjoy the Lord, we ask for forgiveness when we offend others and we learn to forgive and forget when others offend us.

If we don’t forgive others’ offenses and if we don’t forget them, we cannot be built up with others but we will rather be divided and have grudges against others. But by the life of God in us and in His Spirit mingled with our spirit, we CAN FORGIVE even as God also forgives.

He in us can do it. We need to enjoy Him, open to Him, and let Him transform us by the renewing of our mind and by making our heart soft and tender.

Then we will be ready to forgive others and we will live a life for the building up of the Body of Christ!

Lord Jesus, may the mingled spirit spread into our mind to saturate us and subdue our mind more. Transform us more by the renewing of our mind, so that we may live a life for the building up of the Body of Christ. Lord, soften our heart and make it tender. May we cooperate with Your life in us and by Your Spirit to forgive others even as You forgave us. Oh, Lord, a forgiving life! Oh, Lord, the renewing of our mind!

References and Further Reading

• Sharing inspired from, Life-Study of Ephesians (msgs. 47-48), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, The Unique Work in the Lord’s Recovery, week 8 (entitled, The Work of the Ministry).
• Hymns on this topic:
  # O to be like Thee! full of compassion, / Loving, forgiving, tender and kind.
  # By the cross discern the spirit, / With the mind by light renewed, / All emotion consecrated, / And the will in love subdued.
  # Many gifts the Lord has given, / That His Body He may build, / That the saints may be perfected / And their ministry fulfilled. / Thus we must put off the old man / That we may put on the new; / Thus, renewed in mind and spirit, / We will bear God’s image true.
• Picture credit: Ephesians 4:23 and 4:32.