How can I renew my mind?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

In Romans 12:2, Paul taught that believers are to have their minds renewed. This means that everything we think and value is to be transformed by Scripture. Looking at other passages, we can see what is involved in renewing our minds.

To start, the renewal of our minds requires the washing, regenerating work of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5). This means one’s mind can only be renewed if he or she is a believer, and it means that everything we do to renew our minds is aided by the Spirit’s work (1 Corinthians 2:12–16).

We then renew our minds by putting aside sinful ways of thinking from our old lives and putting on biblically informed thoughts (Ephesians 4:22–24). This comes as we set our minds on what is godly (Colossians 3:1–2, 10; Philippians 4:8).

We learn what to think by regularly reading God’s Word, which is profitable for training us in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16–17) and for developing our ability to discern what is good and bad (Hebrews 5:14).

Another way we renew our minds is by fellowshipping with other believers. As we do, we exhort one another to good deeds and right thinking (Hebrews 10:24–25; Colossians 3:16). Over time, as we continually submit our minds to the Holy Spirit, our inner life starts to reflect the character and priorities of Christ more clearly.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• Renewing our minds is found in the New Testament.

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• Romans 12:2 reads, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Paul’s goal is for believers’ minds to be renewed. Specifically, he wants their thinking to change so that Scripture, rather than the world, transforms what they think and value.
• Note that he was speaking to those who have the Holy Spirit. This is because the Spirit is “so that we may know the things freely given to us by God” (1 Corinthians 2:12–16). When one is saved, they are saved “by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5). The renewal of the mind, then, begins with salvation and the Holy Spirit. He continues working with believers to help them renew their minds.
• The key to having our minds renewed is to stop thinking worldly thoughts and start thinking godly ones. Regarding this, Paul said the believer’s goal is “to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22–24).
• This is more than simply an external moral effort, though the believer should obey. It’s about thinking about what is godly: “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8; cf. Colossians 3:1–2, 10).
• However, it’s more than “thinking good thoughts.” We need to make sure the good thoughts we have are actually godly! We learn in 2 Timothy that “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16–17). Everything in Scripture matures us and equips us for godly living. Reading it shows us God’s mind, and as we understand it, our minds are being renewed to be like His. The more we think like Him, the better we can discern what will renew our minds and what won’t (Hebrews 5:14).
• One last way of being renewed is through our interactions with other believers. We were not saved as individuals but together as building blocks in Jesus’ church (Ephesians 2:19–22). As we fellowship together, we help one another live rightly (Hebrews 10:24–25) by teaching one another to know the Bible, God, and Jesus better (Colossians 3:16).

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

We need to renew our minds because we are surrounded by worldly thinking that persistently teaches us to love and value what God hates. Additionally, some of us were saved later in life and have sinful patterns etched into our thinking. Renewing our minds is about not being conformed to worldly thinking and starting to think more and more like followers of Jesus.

It starts with the understanding that only a believer’s thinking can be rightly changed. That is because having our minds renewed means having the Holy Spirit living in us and teaching us to obey.

Then we must realize that we need to change our thinking! Even as believers, we can become blind in an area and think that we understand reality correctly. However, only Jesus is perfect. The rest of us are in a period in which we need God to help us see our blind spots. So, having our minds renewed requires humility.

As believers, we have the Holy Spirit living in us, and must have humble, teachable minds, to allow Him to renew our minds by reading Scripture and applying it to our lives. Fellowship with other believers also challenges us to put into practice the renewal of our minds.

Having our minds renewed is a lifelong process, and there are no shortcuts. It involves rolling up our sleeves and living life as obedient Christians. From the baby Christian to the one who has been a believer for 50 years, the need to renew one’s mind never ends!

UNDERSTAND

• Renewing the mind is a spiritual transformation led by the Holy Spirit that changes how we think and what we value.
• God uses Scripture to correct, train, and reshape our thinking so it aligns with His truth instead of the world.
• The renewing of our mind is strengthened through consistent Bible intake and fellowship with other believers who encourage and correct us.

REFLECT

• Where do you notice your thoughts being shaped more by the world than by God’s Word in your life?
• How consistent are you in taking in God’s Word and allowing it to inform how you should think?
• How are you intentionally focusing your mind on what is true and honoring to God?

ENGAGE

• How do passages like Romans 12:2 and Ephesians 4:22–24 describe the relationship between thinking and transformation?
• What role does Scripture play in shaping discernment according to 2 Timothy 3:16–17 and Hebrews 5:14?
• How does fellowship with other believers contribute to renewing the mind based on Hebrews 10:24–25 and Colossians 3:16?