An expert in the law asks Jesus to name the greatest commandment. Jesus answers, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matt. 22:36-40).
The “first and greatest” commandment. Let that sink in. What could be more important to us? God rescues us from a life of rebellion and instructs us in how to live in a new way. The intent of this greatest commandment is clear. We should love God with every part of our lives, including our minds. What does it mean to love God with all our mind?
Before answering that question, we need to make clear that loving God with our minds is not the only thing that followers of Jesus are called to. At times, Christians have fallen into the trap of “doctrinalism,” thinking that being a disciple simply involves believing the right things. Believing and understanding orthodox doctrine is an important part of loving God with our minds. But the greatest commandment is bigger than getting our theology right; it calls us to love God with all our mind. And loving God with all our mind is much bigger than theology.
We also need to remember that our minds—like everything else in God’s creation—are distorted by human sinfulness. This distortion takes place in many ways. For instance, our desires become disordered. Desires are an important part of our minds. They are part of God’s design for human flourishing. Without an innate desire for food, without hunger, our ability to survive would be reduced. Without the desire to enjoy food, our experience of God’s good creation would be damaged.
Another way that our minds can be distorted is by using the great gift of reason in the wrong ways. Humans can reason. But the ability to reason is not what it means to be created in God’s image, as some Christians have said. The ability to reason comes in degrees; some people are better at it than others. At some times in life—in infancy or after dementia—our ability to reason is virtually non-existent. But all people, regardless of their cognitive capabilities, are created in God’s image.
Nonetheless, the level of reasoning that humans are capable of is qualitatively different from any of God’s other creatures. And sometimes we misuse this gift. Sometimes we use our minds to manipulate other people. For instance, we use the knowledge of another’s fear to get that person to do something that we want them to do even though it might not be the best thing for them. Think about an extended car warranty robo-call. The caller identifies a fear and then presents seemingly logical arguments for how to make you safer. But usually, the solution only benefits the warranty company.
Sometimes we use reason to avoid taking responsibility for our actions. Both Adam and Eve tell God why they are not responsible for their own disobedience. Similarly, Aaron tries to persuade Moses that he is innocent of the charge of making an idol in the story of the golden calf. Often defensiveness is our first response to being called out for some action; we try to use reason to show that it was not our fault.
Given that our minds are corrupted by sin, we need healing. In Romans 12, Paul first commends us to give our whole selves to God as living sacrifices (which sounds like the greatest commandment) and then writes, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (emphasis mine). Through the healing of our minds, we will be changed from rebellious, disobedient traitors to obedient citizens of the kingdom of God.
How does this transformation of our minds take place? Paul identifies one clear pathway: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8, emphasis mine). We renew our minds by changing what we immerse them in. Our minds are shaped by what we think about.
This is not as easy as it sounds. How do we discern what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy? Here are four things to remember as we seek to renew our minds. These are not the only things we can do, but they are a starting point.
1. Remember that good is all around us. Even though the world is still rebellious, God providentially cares for all humanity and all creation. Jesus says, “God makes it rain on the just and the unjust” (Matt. 5:45). Both believers and unbelievers produce things that are true, beautiful and good. We should expect to see excellence around us.
2. Remember that renewing our minds will likely be hard. In the parable of the lost coin (Luke 15:8-10), a woman lights a lamp, sweeps carefully and searches until she finds the lost coin. This parable is about God’s search for lost people. But perhaps it is appropriate for us to search in the same way for the excellent and praiseworthy gifts that God has provided for our minds.
Sometimes the result of the search is hard. Finding what is true can be painful. Imagine King David when, after sleeping with Bathsheba and murdering her husband, he is confronted by Nathan. Nathan tells David a story of a rich man who abuses his power over a poor man and steals the poor man’s prized possession. David is outraged and demands to know who the rich man is. Nathan replies, “You are the man” (2 Samuel 12). The truth is sometimes hard to face.
3. It is important to search in community. As the story of David and Nathan suggests, it is important to search together for the good, the true and the beautiful. Sometimes we cannot see the good around us because of some lack on our part. Our communities can fill in the gaps of our knowledge. This aspect of renewing our minds requires honesty, humility (we have to acknowledge that we don’t know it all) and trust. Our churches should be places where humble, honest, trustworthy conversations take place.
4. Remember that sometimes the true and the good are hidden. A retired Mennonite Brethren pastor was asked how he handled unfair criticism. His response was that even the most unfair criticism contains at least a grain of truth. He tried his best to figure out what that truth was and to learn from it. Sometimes the renewing of our minds will help us to uncover truth, goodness, nobility, beauty, excellence or praiseworthiness that would have otherwise remained invisible.
David Faber is professor of Bible and Religious Studies at Tabor College, the Mennonite Brethren college in Hillsboro, Kansas. He is a member of Ebenfeld MB Church, rural Hillsboro.
