The greatest commandment is to “Love the LORD your God with all your… MIND.” Note the highest purpose of our “mind” is to love God with it. Scriptures teaches outside of Christ ALL are “DARKENED” in our mind, spiritually. No understanding of God, His ways.
“The ‘mind’ in Scripture (nous, dianoia etc.) approximates the ‘heart’ and covers not only thinking but choosing and feeling as well. The unregenerate mind is profoundly and perversely affected by sin, which in turn results in all sorts of damaging outcomes (Rom 1:21 , 28).”-{John Campbell}
Consider the MIND, CONDITION of all People outside of Christ in these verses…
1. – HOSTILE MIND Towards God – ” ‘the sinful mind is hostile to God and it is not obedient to God’s law, not can it be’ (Rom 8:7 ),
2. – DARKENED MIND, Inability to Spiritually Perceive- “ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim 3:7 ).
3. –MORALLY SPIRITUAL IGNORANT MIND- “They are darkened in their understanding and alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.”- {Eph 4:18}
4. – DEPRAVED MIND – “Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done.”-{Rom 1:28}
5. – SIN DOMINATED MIND THAT IS SPIRITUAL DEATH – “The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.”-{Rom 8:6}
6. – A REBELLIOUS MIND – “His thoughts are not our thoughts and His ways not our ways– (Isa 55:8-9 ).
7. – A FOOLISH MIND- “The foolishness of man ruins his way, And his heart rages against the LORD.”- {Prov 19:3}
We often speak of people been “brilliant mind’s” very intelligent, but they are spiritually darkened if not “In Christ!” We can be taken up with the temporal and not the eternal! They are in spiritual darkness. Groping as it were in the darkness and depravity of sin, without Hope and without Christ. To be pitied, To be prayed for, to be lovingly shared the Gospel with!
HOSTILE- DARKENED- IGNORANT-DEPRAVED-SIN DOMINATED, REBELLIOUS, FOOLISH, – Such is the “MIND” of the person who does not have a personal relationship with God that comes through repentance towards God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This “mind” cannot obey the first and greatest command to “Love the LORD your God with ALL your….MIND!” Spiritually dead, deceived, and a prisoner of satan {Read Eph 2:1-3 & 2 Tim 2:24-26}
It is only when we are born again is the mind enlightened to God and alive to GOD and has the power and is commanded to “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold, but let God re-mold your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good, meets all His demands and moves towards the goal of true maturity.”-{Rom 12:2-3- Philipps translation}.