Grow Your Christian Mind

Developing & Using Your Mind in Christs service

Selected Biblical Passages Relating to our Minds
When the Bible speaks of our hearts, it often includes what we mean by the term minds, but the
biblical writers had a holistic view of the human person. The spiritual, emotional, mental & physical were
all interwoven together. The heart was considered the governing center for all of these including our wills.
Matthew 22:38- Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your
mind and Love your neighbor as yourself. (See also Mark 12:30).
Since we were created in Gods image, we are beings with minds which God intends us to use.
We are created in Gods image which includes our God given minds.
We are redeemed and are minds are transformed or renewed by Christ in us.
Romans 12:2- Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind.
I Peter 1:13- Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the
grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. This means preparing your minds by having an
attitude of spiritual and mental alertness. We are to roll up the sleeves of our minds. Conversion to Christ
and regeneration by the Spirit are meant to be accompanied by mental awakening, by a new exercise of
our powers of understanding now released and renewed. 1
Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is
pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthythink about
such things.
Using Your Mind to love and serve Christ
*Use your mind in worship Think about the words as you sing praises; reflect and think
as you pray, give testimony and give thanks to God. Paul says in I. Corinthians 14:15,
So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will
sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind. See Worship by the Book by
D. A. Carson, Tim Keller, R. Kent Hughes, and Mark Ashton.
*Use your mind as you serve others in meeting practical needs effectively. Sometimes
our methods of helping, if not thought through wisely, can have negative effects rather
than really helping for the long term. See the following books: When Helping Hurts by
Stephen Corbett and Brian Fikkert (new edition 2012); Toxic Charity by Robert D.
Lupton; and The Cat and The Toaster by Doug Hall with Judy Hall & Steve Daman.
*Use your mind to answer the questions and objections of seekers and doubters.
*Use your mind to help other Christians grow in their Christian life
*Use your mind to evaluate what you read, see on TV, and find on the Internet.
*Use your mind to think Christianly about all areas of life and all subjects
Os Guinness says, Thinking Christianly is thinking by Christians about anything and everything
in a consistently Christian way - in a manner that is shaped, directed, and restrained by the truth
of Gods Word and Gods Spirit.2
*Use your mind and heart to make intelligent decisions and moral choices
1 Alan M. Stibbs, The First Epistle General of Peter, TNTC (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1959),
85.

Be a Lifelong Learner. This year plan to use your mind to learn something new, perhaps a new skill or
something new related to the Bible or Christian topics and questions. To make a Learning Plan (1) Set
your learning goal; (2) List the benefits and advantages you hope to gain; (3) Identify ways to adapt to
your best learning style; (4) Think of learning opportunities, resources, people, etc.;(5) Create an action
plan for learning with specific deadlines; (6) Monitor your progress & record your results.- Ron Gross.
There are many ways to learn we can learn through books, talking with people, listening, watching
educational videos, audio, and through reflecting on our experiences. Be curious.

Five Ways we Learn

1. LListen
2. EExperiment
3. AAct- learn by doing
4. RRead and Reflect
5. NNote (to observe carefully)
Use your mind to Memorize- Scripture for example. To memorize use not only seeing & reading, but
also hearing & speaking, writing, reviewing, and making associations with things you know or visualize.
Use your local libraries- get a library card at your local library. You can also use inter-library loan.

Some Christian Classics and Other Good Christian Books to Read

Christian books read with a discerning mind open to the teaching of the Holy Spirit, are key
sources for helping us understand our faith and grow spiritually. 3 David McKenna
John Stott, Basic Christianity and The Cross of Christ
C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity and Screwtape Letters
Charles Sheldon, In His Steps
John Bunyan, Pilgrims Progress
J. I. Packer, Knowing God
E. M. Bounds, Power Through Prayer (The Complete Works on Prayer)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship and Life Together
Thomas A Kempis, The Imitation of Christ
Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God
J. B. Phillips, Your God is Too Small
Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest
A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God and The Knowledge of the Holy
Blaise Pascal, Pensees
Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline
Watchman Nee, The Normal Christian Life
Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God
O. Hallesby, Prayer

Basic Books to Help You Study the Bible

1. A Study Bible: recommendation- use one of the following:
a. NIV Study Bible
b. ESV Study Bible
c. Archaeological Study Bible

2 Os Guinness, Fit Bodies, Fat Minds: Why Evangelicals Dont Think and What to Do About It (Grand
Rapids, Mich.: Baker Books, 1994), 136.
3 David McKenna, How to Read a Christian Book: A Guide to Selecting and Reading Christian Books as
a Christian Discipline (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Books, 2001), 27

The Life Application Study Bible could also be helpful. The three mentioned above are the best, but if you
have one of the dozens of other study Bibles, it can also be quite helpful. Although study Bibles have
useful notes & info, keep in mind that it is the text of the Bible which is the inspired Word of God.
2.

A Bible Dictionary is one of the most useful Bible study tools; use one of the following:
a. New Bible Dictionary
b. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Dictionary (one volume)
c. Baker Illustrated Bible Dictionary
d. Nelsons Illustrated Bible Dictionary (new expanded edition)
For more in depth articles use the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia.

3. A Bible Atlas will not only have detailed maps, but also other helpful information.
a. Moody Atlas of the Bible, rev. edition
b. Crossway ESV Bible Atlas
c. The Carta Bible Atlas
4. A Bible Handbook can give you an overview of each Bible book with brief commentary and
background information, often with pictures, tables, charts.
a. Zondervan Bible Handbook
b. Baker Illustrated Bible Handbook
5. A Bible Commentary (one volume for the whole Bible) A commentary explains the meaning of
paragraphs, verses, and words, sometimes with application. Try one of these:
a. New Bible Commentary, 21st Century edition
b. Baker Illustrated Bible Commentary
c. IVP Bible Background Commentary (N.T. & O.T. volumes)
d. New International Bible Commentary
For more recommendations on in-depth commentaries see Biblical Research Tools and
Methods by Rudy Mitchell. Also see Donald Carsons New Testament Commentary
Survey (7th ed.) and Tremper Longman,III, Old Testament Commentary Survey.

Use your mind to study the Bible for yourself. Books on How to Study the Bible:
Simple: Mark Water, Bible Study Made Easy or Bible Research Made Easy. Two brief pocket
sized handbooks with helps on using Bible reference tools and Bible study methods.
Jack Kuhatscheks book Applying the Bible is also an easy book on this topic.
Intermediate: Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth.
Roy B. Zuck, Basic Bible Interpretation: A Practical Guide to Discovering Biblical Truth.
Robertson McQuilkin, Understanding and Applying the Bible, rev. edition.
Advanced: J. Scott Duvall, and J. Daniel Hays, Grasping Gods Word: A Hands-On Approach
to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible, 3rd ed. (Workbook available also)
Andreas Kostenberger and Richard Patterson, Invitation to Biblical Interpretation.
Grant Osborne, The Hermeneutical Spiral: A Comprehensive Introduction to
Biblical Interpretation, rev. edition

Selected Online Bible Resources

Bible Gateway- www.Biblegateway.com for Bible searches, reading plans, Devotionals, audio
Bibles, Bible App, IVP New Testament commentaries; 11 talks on the Bible by R.C. Sproul
www.BibleStudyTools.com Shows parallel passages; NIV Study Bible book introductions; Many
Christian classic books, Dictionaries & Lexicons; Dict. of Biblical Theology; Devotionals
Theopedia www.theopedia.com an evangelical Christian online encyclopedia
ESword- http://e-sword.net and www.BibleSupport.com - free Bible study software with many
features & resources (to download) See also MySword phone app.
Blue Letter Bible- www.BlueLetterBible.org offers many Bible study tools online
YouVersion- the popular Bible App 5 is available free for phones- various Bible versions & resources;
now has opportunities for interactions with others: www.youversion.com

Use Your Mind to Read Christian Magazines

Christianity Today- Christian news & a variety of good articles www.ChristianityToday.com
Bible Study Magazine (published by Logos) www.BibleStudyMagazine.com
Christian History- online archives free- http://www.christianitytoday.com/ch/
Disciple Navigators ministry free online articles- http://www.navigators.org/tools/newsletters
Sources of Christian Books
General: Christian Book Distributors online and printed catalogs with a wide variety of resources
including books, videos and music. See- www.Christianbook.com (1-800-Christian).
One way to find generally good quality, reliable, evangelical Christian books is to start with the following
five Christian publishers web sites. This helps in sifting out less valuable books.
Baker Book Publishing Group- http://www.bakerpublishinggroup.com/
InterVarsity Press- www.ivpress.com
Moody Press- www.moodypublishers.com
Thomas Nelson Publishers- www.thomasnelson.com
Zondervan- www.zondervan.com
All Baker, Thomas Nelson Publishers, and Zondervan books can be accessed on the Scribd.com website
for a monthly subscription fee. Many full older books are accessible free on Google Books
-http://books.google.com or the CCEL (Christian Classics Library: www.ccel.org ) websites.
Opportunities for Training Courses and Classes
Urbacad- Abundant Life; Life of Christ (6 books); The Big Picture (Bible Survey), etc.
Center for Urban Ministerial Education- Gordon Conwell Seminary, Boston- this is
a fully accredited graduate level seminary program of courses you can study for
various masters degrees or study for a Diploma in Urban Ministry (5 courses, 1 year).
Classes are not just for ministers; many laypeople attend. (Night and Saturday classes).
90 Warren St., Roxbury / www.gordonconwell.edu. (617-427-7293)
Online Courses (non-credit)
BiblicalTraining.org free courses; excellent selection of speakers including top
seminary professors; good theological variety. The Foundation series of courses is a basic level for all
believers, while the advanced Biblical Training Institute classes are seminary level and the seminars are
on specialized topics. Many subjects are available www.biblicaltraining.org
ChristianCourses.com On this website select free courses and you can preview brief videos before
you register with a username. These evangelical courses cover a wide variety of topics at various levels
from new believer to seminary. The videos and course guides and readings are on topics like Bible Basics,
N.T., O.T., First Steps in Ministry, Counseling, Missions, Apologetics, Spiritual Formation, Church
History, and Theology. www.christiancourses.com
Dimensions of the Faith from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary 10 free
courses on the Bible, Bible Interpretation, Church History, Theology, and Missions. These are designed
for ordinary church people and include audio presentations you can download, quizzes, and online
discussion forums. See www.gordonconwell.edu/dimensions for more information.
Third Millennium Ministries- www.ThirdMill.org This organization has

been working several years to produce free high quality Christian courses in English and several other
languages to train Christian leaders around the world. They now offer about 20 free online video courses
on the Bible, theology (reformed, evangelical), and biblical decision making. They are taught by qualified
and respected professors using visuals to illustrate the subjects.