For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him, but we have the mind of Christ.
– 1 Corinthians 2:16
What an amazing verse. Just think about it. The first part, Who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him. Clearly, none of us can give instructions to God as if we have things to teach God. He is all-knowing. God is all-wise. He does not need our instructions. And so, the picture is his mind, the mind of the Lord. What a phrase. Just picture the wonder, infinite beauty, wisdom, and knowledge that’s found in the mind of the Lord.
1 Corinthians 2:16 Teaches that the Wisdom of God is Available to Us
And so, there’s a clear difference between us and our minds and the Lord and his mind. And yet, at the very end of this chapter, in the very next phrase, Paul writes of the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, but we have the mind of Christ. This means that the wisdom of God is available to us in Christ. We have His Holy Spirit in us, which is what 1 Corinthians 2 has been talking about. We have the Holy Spirit of God, the Spirit of Jesus living inside of us. This means we have his mind. He shares his mind with us.
This is John 15 when he tells his disciples, I call you my friends because I make known my Father’s will to you. I don’t hide things from you. And then, you think about… I mean all kinds of verses just start coming to your mind. When James 1 says, If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God. Who does what? Who gives generously to all who ask him without finding fault. He gives it to those who ask and believe, and that’s the picture here. I read this and I think I am not living out the fullness of what I have in Jesus. Are you? Don’t you want to live out of the fullness of the mind of Jesus and the power of Jesus, the Spirit of Jesus inside of you, more and more every day?
1 Corinthians 2:16 Reminds Us God can Transform Our Minds to be like His
God, we praise you for your generosity. That word doesn’t even seem close to adequate for the praise and honor and glory and gratitude I feel, we feel when we think about you with all wisdom saying, I’ll give it to you generously without finding fault. Just believe. Ask me and believe. God, we need your wisdom. God, we think about all kinds of decisions we will make today, some small, some big. Pray especially for those who are walking through significant decision-making moments. But God, for all of us, help us to make wise decisions based on your wisdom, based on the mind of Christ and us. Oh, Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit, transform our minds to be like yours, to think like you think, to see what you see, to perceive what you perceive, to discern what you know.
God, we pray for the mind of Christ to become more and more and more and more our mind and, flowing from that, the heart of Christ and the words of Christ to flow from our mouths and the works of Christ to flow from our lives, all because we’re thinking like you’re thinking and we’re seeing like you’re seeing. Oh God, I pray, Romans 12, transform us by the renewing of our minds, by the power of your Spirit in us. Oh God, we pray for people who in their minds have never even heard of Jesus and who don’t have access to the good news about Jesus right now.
Prayer for the Berta People
God, we pray that the knowledge of Jesus would spread to them, to the Berta people of Ethiopia, 338,000 of them. God, we pray that this unreached people group would be reached with the knowledge of Jesus Christ and you would transform their minds by your grace and the gospel, by your love for them. Oh God, we praise you for giving us, by your grace, the mind of Christ. Help us to live with your mind in us today. Jesus, we pray this in your name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
