So my mind has loins—Who knew?!
The loins
of my mind—say what?
“Gird up
the loins of your mind,” was the instruction of Peter to first century
followers of Jesus. Those two words, gird
and loins—we just don’t use in
everyday conversation in the Twenty-first Century. But to the early church
members this was a powerful statement. It was a word picture that made perfect
sense.
Peter
instructed: “Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober and rest your hope
fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Christ
Jesus” (1 Peter 1:13 NKJV).
In preceding
verses of this chapter, Peter had celebrated our living hope, incorruptible
inheritance, genuine faith and refinement through trials. (These verses were
addressed in couple of my previous posts.) Using the transition word, therefore, Peter brings us into a
progression of thought and instruction.
Loins
refer to the area of the body, on both sides of the spine between the hipbones.
In this area is the center of procreative power and, in Bible times, was
considered the seat of strength and vigor. A person’s loin area would be
covered and protected.
“And God said to him
(Jacob), ‘I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company
of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins” (Genesis 35:11 KJV).
A person
would gird up his loins when preparing to run a race, commence hard work, or
enter into battle. Given that his apparel consisted of a dress-like garment
hanging down knee to ankle length, the fabric would be a hindrance to free
movement.
So to
prepare for action a person would reach down, gather up the cloth and tuck it
up under his belt, also called a girdle. During the course of the action, if
loose ends happened to drop down, the loose hanging clothing would interfere
with winning the race/battle or completing the task at hand.
But Peter
is not talking about an actual garment. He said, “the loins of your mind.” The
mind is the origin of our words and actions. We must take control of this place
where our thoughts reside in order to maintain lives that please and reflect
Christ.
Joyce
Meyer addresses this topic very well in her book, Battlefield of the Mind. She points out that the mind is a
battlefield where our thoughts war against one another. I experience
conflicting thoughts relatively often. At times many different issues are going
in various directions. Sometimes good versus evil is warring on the inside of
my head. When was the last time you experienced that?
So Peter
is saying that we must gather our thoughts together and bring every thought
captive into the way God sees things and in a way which honors Him.
When we do
this, we’re achieving the admonition of Paul when he said, “For the weapons of our warfare
are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down
arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God,
bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NKJV).
We do have
control of our thoughts. I know it’s hard to gain control when negative or
impure thoughts take hold. We must reach down and gather up those loose dangling
thoughts—rein in those racing anxieties—and gird up the loins of our minds.
If we
don’t:
- we’re
too distracted to focus on and complete, with excellence, the work we’re called
to do.
- our
emotions may draw us into negativity and depression.
- wrong
thinking goes uncorrected.
- we’re
inclined to believe lies of Satan instead of the truth of God’s Word.
- we will
miss out on our God ordained destiny.
- the
above situations will have a negative impact on our family life, social life,
physical health, and—most importantly—our spiritual health.
Like the
runner who did not gird up, we’ll lose the race.
In
addition to girding up the loins of our minds, Peter said, “be sober and rest
your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation
of Christ Jesus.”
Peter
says, therefore do these three things:
1. Gird up the loins of our minds—bracing up
to take action with focus and determination.
2. Be sober. This doesn’t just refers to not
overindulging in alcohol. It means we’re to be mindful, self-controlled, using
wisdom, and being watchful along the way.
Other than
the shed blood of Jesus, there is nothing on the outside that can make us
righteous or holy. This soberness comes through self-control, mindfulness, wise
decision-making, and the power and help of the Holy Ghost who resides within
us. Recklessness in our thoughts and attitudes is like drunkenness on the
inside and leads to reckless decisions and actions.
3. Rest in the hope and grace abundantly
provided by the revelation of Christ Jesus in our spirits and lives. Three big
words here—rest, hope, and grace. In other words, trust God. That’s what faith
is.
To rest is
to relax and let God do His part. After we have obeyed God in the areas he
instructed, our Lord steps in and goes beyond what we could ask, think, or
imagine. Amidst all this is hope—living
hope. [Living hope is addressed
in a previous post.]
This hope
lifts us from despair and fear. Peter tells why it is real and alive. It’s
because we rest our hope upon God’s grace. “For by grace you have been saved through
faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God” Ephesians
1:8-9a).
Amazing
grace has been provided to us through the revelation of Jesus Christ and His
provision of salvation, including abundant life this side of Heaven. Hallelujah—thank you, Lord.
As in
every aspect of our spiritual growth and stability, knowledge of God’s Word
comes into play here. We cannot expect to be strong in faith and continue in
spiritual growth without a steady diet of Holy Scripture.
Let’s end
this post looking at 1 Peter 1:13 from the New American Standard Version and
The Message (paraphrase).
“Therefore
prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves; set all your hope on the
grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when he is revealed” (NEAV).
“So roll up your sleeves, put your mind
in gear, be totally ready to receive the gift that’s coming when Jesus arrives.
Don’t lazily slip back into those old grooves of evil, doing just what you feel
like doing. You didn’t know any better then; you do now. As obedient children,
let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God’s life, a life
energetic and blazing with holiness. God said, “I am holy; you be holy” (The
Message).
SO, let’s just do it—gird up the loins
of our minds, be sober, and rest in the hope...! AMEN!
In my next post we’ll look at ways we
successfully take our thoughts captive.
©Copyright
2017 Connie Wohlford
