How does Romans 5 to 8 work in a Human Being? (Part 3 - The Spiritual Mind)

How does Romans 5 to 8 work in a Human Being? (Part 3 - The Spiritual Mind)

Start the series here: Part 1
Go to the next part here: Part 4

This study began with a brief overview of the three-part structure of a human being, spirit, soul, and body. It is the soul component that is the primary focus of this study since it is the part that is formed when God’s Spirit, His breath of life, enters into the clay shell of the flesh. It is the soul, and more particularly, the contents of the soul that is of significance, as it is here where the Word of God works.

The content of the soul forms the heart of the person, the essence of the person, and what flows out of them into this world. Part 2 of this study placed brief focus on the heart, to define it, and identify its role in the context of a person. It is vital that you clearly understand what the heart of a person is, in order to better understand this next part that I am going to introduce in this post, which is the spirit of the mind,

Eph.4:22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man [the heart], which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; 23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; 24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness [through knowledge of the Word].

The Spirit of the Mind

Only God truly knows what happens in the soul, but based on evidence in scripture, and in the above verse, it is my understanding that the ‘spirit of the mind’, is created at the moment of salvation.

Col 3:10  And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

When a person responds in faith to the grace gospel, and God justifies them, the ‘spirit of the mind’, is created in the soul, as a brand-new entity, known as the new man, 2Cor 5:17, separate from the heart, which already resides there since the birth of the person. Where the heart is tainted with sin, because of Adam’s administration, the spiritual mind remains righteous, because of justification and the qualities, or attributes of the administration of Christ, Rom.5:12-21.

Eph 4:24  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. (see also: Php 3:15; Col 1:28; Col 4:12).

Just like the heart, which is formed over time as a person grows, by gaining knowledge, reasoning, and character, and then overflowing out of the person both good and bad, (Pro 4:23; Pro 23:7; Luk 6:45), the spirit of the mind, which is an instantaneous creation at salvation, also grows, and gains knowledge, not from the ‘outside’ world, but specifically from exposure to the life and the spirit in the Word of God. Paul beseeches believers to present themselves as a living sacrifice to God, which is a reasonable service and something that is subtly expected. They are to be transformed by the renewing of their minds with the Word of God. It is when one reads and studies the Word that it fills the spiritual mind, the inner man, and allows for growth and maturity in Christ and in the will of God.

Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Notice how Paul refers to the good, acceptable, and perfect will of God at this point. This is the aim and purpose for spiritual growth, to grow up in understanding and knowledge of the will and judgements of God. We have an eternal vocation in Christ. Maturing in the knowledge of Christ is not so much for this life, but much more so, for the life to come. We, as the Body of Christ, will be executing God’s will and judgements in the age to come. When we judge angels and men, 1Cor 6:3, we are to do so in the perfect execution of Gods will. We are expected to have the mind of Christ, to judge as God would judge, to execute His will and ways on His behalf. This is what we are to learn while here on earth. This is out time of learning and growing in the knowledge of His will, and to learn the mind of Christ, which is the Word of God according to Pauls gospel and writings, Rom 2:16.

Col 1:9-10  For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;  10  That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

2Cor 4:6  For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

The light of the Word of God in the mind of the spirit is to shine into the heart of a person and inject it with truth and life. It is the Word of God in the spiritual mind that should start to overwhelm the heart and bring it into subjection to the truth. This is how one reckons themselves to be dead indeed unto sin Rom 6:11. This is how sin shall not have dominion over a believer, Rom 6:14, not by trying to apply law and rules to serve God, but by simple obedience to truth that fills the spiritual mind and influences the heart. It is the Word working effectually within a believer, 1Th 2:13, and their obedience to it, that allows them to walk in the spirit and not gratify the desires of the flesh, Gal 5:16-18. (See also Rom 8:1-6).

It is the light of the Word of God in the spiritual mind that should show forth as it flows out of the heart and into the life, character, personality, knowledge, and reasoning, of that person. This is the outward evidence of Christ being formed within the person, Gal 4:19, as their life is transformed by obedience to righteousness, as Paul describes here,

Rom 6:16-18  Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?  17  But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.  18  Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the [spiritual] mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Additional evidence that the spirit of the mind is only found in a saved individual is that the knowledge that is formed in this mind can only be processed and understood through the discernment of the Spirit of God, who inhabits the spiritual mind of this new man, also referred to as, the inner man, Eph 3:16.

1Cor 2:14-16  But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.  15  But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.  16  For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

Paul also speaks of these two entities, the inner and outer man, in Romans chapter 7, constantly at odds with each other, warring for ascendency in the soul. This inner warring is only evident in a saved person because righteousness inevitably clashes with sin in the heart. An unsaved person might have some resistance from their ‘seared’ conscience, which simply informs them what is right from wrong, but a saved person has a much greater conflict with sin in their lives, due to truth and righteousness that is living and growing within them, seeking pre-eminence.

In Summary

So, in summation with what is revealed to date in this study, we can be sure that a human is created in three parts, spirit, soul, and body. It is the soul of a person that requires most attention, as it is here that the Word of God is designed to do its work. The soul is filled with the issues of life from birth and forms the essence of the person as displayed through interaction with the world around them. The heart, the contents of the soul, is tainted with sin and is represented in Paul’s epistles as the old man that should be ‘put off’.

• Rom 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
• Eph 4:22  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
• Col 3:9  Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;

The new man, which is also referred to as ‘the  spirit of the mind’, is a brand new entity that is created in the soul at salvation. The power of the gospel, at salvation, creates this spiritual mind that is able to receive and understand the spirit, the will, and the intentions of God, revealed in His Word, 1Cor 2:6-16. It is this spiritual mind that needs to be fed the Word of God, and through this is to grow and mature in Christ and in the knowledge of God. As this mind in the believer grows in knowledge and as the believer lives in obedience to the spiritual mind, they walk in the spirit and mortify the flesh. This is Romans chapters 6 and 7 in action. Christ formed within a person is not by the feeble, external attempts to live by the law, which kills the spirit, but by the inward obedience of the Word within them unto righteousness. It is these two entities that ‘live in the soul’ and are in constant warring for ascendancy in the believer. Feeding the mind with the Word of God, rightly divided, is the number one priority of a believer from the moment they are saved.

The spirit of the mind has an ultimate purpose. It is not so much for our life here on earth, though we demonstrate the will of God through obedience to it here, but it is much more to the glory of Christ when we are placed in our eternal vocation, Eph 4:1, which is to fill the heavens with the glory of Christ, and to execute the will and judgements of God, over angels and men, in the next dispensation.

Eph 1:15-23  Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, 16  Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers;  17  That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:  18  The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,  19  And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,  20  Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,  21  Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:  22  And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,  23  Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

This study will continue in the next post with further evidence and information to provide you with context and understanding concerning the heart and the spiritual mind within the soul of the believer.