Before I move on, I think that for Paul the ‘mind is very important’ in all his writings. This is not an exhaustive study it is only on the word ‘nous’.
The Mind in Romans and Corinthians
As I said we need to look at Pauls use of nous (mind). 1/3 of all occurrences in Paul happens in Romans so it is an appropriate book to start from. I am baffled with Galatians though. He never uses it in Galatians. I will save that question for a rainy day. What we can do now is go through each verse and reflect on how mind is used there. Please feel free to come to your own decisions about this. You may come to conclusions I didn’t come to but that is ok.
Let us start;
28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, Romans 1:28
God gave them over to a depraved mind. This use is negative. If you live in sin then one is going to be sinful because the influence of the world is sin, for example materialsm, greed and so on.
23 but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Romans 7:23
There is a spiritual battle here and the body is physical and its nature is obviously pulled in the sin direction like a magnet.
25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.
So, it is important to think about good things in Christ but there is a north pole and a south pole
Romans 7:25
6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, Romans 8:6
The mind can be set in a direction by God’s grace
7 because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, Romans 8:7
The mind without God can only point to the south pole of sin.
27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
Romans 8:27
Only the Holy Spirit can set the mind. It is a gift of God for the mind to be set towards the North Pole God and holiness.
34 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Romans 11:34
Only the Holy Spirit knows the mind of the Lord.
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
Romans 12:2
Your mind needs to be renewed and it can only be renewed by the Holy Spirit
16 Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Romans 12:16
Being of one mind is also a group of minds working together for the glory of God
5 One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. Romans 14:5
You are in control of your own mind by the Holy Spirit.
5 Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, Romans 15:5
Love is a driving force for the mind as God is love.
10 Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. 1 Corinthians 1:10
Being on the same page with each other.
16 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.
1 Corinthians 2:16
By the Holy Spirit we can have the mind of Christ
14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 1 Corinthians 14:14
The mind needs to understand
15 What is the outcome then? I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the mind also; I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the mind also. 1 Corinthians 14:15
Praying with understanding and without understanding are both ok but with the mind is important. Obviously when you feel in your soul something one cannot always put it into words. I think this is part of the human condition; empathy, feel, sympathy et al.
19 however, in the church I desire to speak five words with my mind so that I may instruct others also, rather than ten thousand words in a tongue.
1 Corinthians 14:19
Understanding with the mind is more important than just living with not knowing or feeling.
13 For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are of sound mind, it is for you. 2 Corinthians 5:13
Sound mind is having an appropriate level of understanding.
Reflection
So for Paul the mind is the seat of understanding. This mind can be influenced either by the Holy Spirit or by the world. The mind can also be a group of minds agreed on something. It is the main human processor for making rational judgments. Metanoia (repentance) literally means change of mind. The Holy Spirit gives us faith so that we have the capability to turn away from sin and to God. Once we have accepted Christ as our saviour then we are grateful for his love towards us and we reciprocate this love back to God by worshiping Him and loving our neighbour through practical deeds (Ethics).
This is my basic understanding but there are many other words that Paul uses but I will leave this here. We can now return to 1 Corinthians because we have an idea of how Paul uses the word mind. I think knowing in an appropriate way and making rational decisions was very important for St Paul
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