Change Your Thinking

Change your thinking

Have you ever considered that you may need to change your thinking? Most of us are comfortable with our beliefs and have lived with them so long that they "seem" right. We love when people confirm our belief system. However, when they say anything contrary to what we have always thought, we usually bristle inside. A lot of people bristled during Jesus' messages. Jesus would say things like,"you have heard it said...but I say..." He wanted us to change our thinking.
The Jewish nation was not ready to change. They wanted God to be all on the "outside." The old covenant deals with our outside. Things like sacrifices, circumcision, outwardly blessing with riches, even following the law. Check on your beliefs. Do you feel that God owes you something because you are faithful? Do you feel cheated when you get sick or suffer financial hardship and not the ungodly neighbor who is prospering.That is outside covenant living. Think for a minute about every Old Testament story. God's people ALWAYS won every battle. Abraham's family and descendants were wealthy. Job was a rich man and God returned all that he had lost. Does that always happen today? I don't think so.
He is concerned with what is going on inside when we are in a new covenant relationship. There are plenty of godly people who are poor. I DO NOT subscribe to the "prosperity principal." It is old covenant thinking. Jesus said some radical things about life. He said things like "deny yourself." Jesus was never mentioned as wealthy. Paul was ship-wrecked, beaten, had a thorn in the flesh, which God refused to remove. Why? God wants to improve our inside, not our outside. He commands us to rejoice in every trial because it does plastic surgery on our inside.
Being cut open is painful but it heals. Quit holding on to old ideas, like the Pharisees. God cares more about our holiness,than our happiness. He cares more about our posterity, than our prosperity. He cares more about our sanctification, than our level of comfort. He cares more about showing His strength in our weaknesses than us helping us hide our weaknesses.
"Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."