This may sound so scary to you but it is the truth! Thank God I’m born again, but it is not an end in itself, it is a means to an end. It is required of those who are born again that their lives should ultimately please God. Christianity is not all talk, it is all walk. People who do not understand this truth end up as mere professors of faith; they profess so much with their mouth but their lifestyle continues to deny the lordship of Christ.
“They profess to know God, but by their actions they disown Him; they are detestable, disobedient, and useless for anything good” – Titus 1:16 (Williams NT).
It is possible for someone to be born again and his or her experiences are still the same with those who are not even born again at all! But I think if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature, old things have passed away, behold all things have become new ?This I have discovered: old things will still remain with anyone who is in Christ but refuses to renew his or her mind.
As a matter of fact, someone can be born again and yet daily live a life that is hostile to God! You may be born again, but as long as you retain a carnal mind, your thoughts will always be clashing with the law of God and consequently, your actions. A carnal mind is not subject to the law of God; this is why a lot of born again people still live contrary to the ways of God.
CARNAL MIND MAKES YOU PRONE TO DEVIL’S CONTROL
“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those [who live] according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded [is] death, but to be spiritually minded [is] life and peace. Because the carnal mind [is] enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” – Rom8:5-8
By definition, a carnal mind is a mind that is ruled and influenced by the principles of this world as against the principles of God’s kingdom. In a nutshell, it is the devil’s workshop! Carnal mindedness does not mean you are not born again; rather, it means you are born again, but you are still thinking and feeling much like unbelievers.
If you have a carnal mind, you will yield more to the devil than you yield to God. Even though you are born again, yet a carnal mind can make you an easy prey to the devil, since a carnal mind is hostile to God and His law. Each time your carnal mind moves you to break God’s law, the serpent gains access to your life—whoever breaks through a wall will be bitten by a serpent (Ecc 10:8). God’s law is like a wall of protection around us.
BORN AGIN BUT SPIRITUALLY FRUSTRATED!
This is one of the reason many who are born again do not enjoy the things that should freely follow after their salvation. Bible talks about good things that accompany salvation, “But, beloved, though we thus speak, we are persuaded that there are better things for you, things that accompany salvation.” – Heb. 6: 9 (TMB). How can I be born again, and yet my mind will be putting me at loggerheads with God? To enjoy all that Christ has to offer us, we must decisively aim at having a spiritual mind. Devil is at home in a carnal mind, but God is only at home in a spiritual mind.
However, a spiritual mind is not gotten instantly as salvation. Salvation is a gift receivable on confessing Christ as the Lord and Savior; but spiritual mind is not a gift like salvation. Spiritual mind is worked out with the help of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8: 13), spiritual mind is cultivated through daily renewing your mind by the Word of God.
Carnal mind is the reason many born again people still lead a defeated life; you can be born again and still share the woes of those who do not know God. Keep renewing your mind and you will be surprised at the quality life of God that will be at your disposal—to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
