Those who live out of the selfish compulsions of their lower passions have a corrupt mind-set, but those who live by the Spirit's power have a renewed mind-set. Note the stark contrast: to be selfishly minded is death in the making; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. The selfish mind-set is at odds with God, for it is not submitted to his moral standards and it cannot be by its very nature. So, no matter how hard they might try, people who live by human energy alone cannot please God.
Comments:
I think of the word "praxis" as I seek to work through the paraphrase exegesis and application. (I do have a very personal stake in this effort too...that's why I've called R of R a "devotional" paraphrase.) Here is it's primary definition from one of the online dictionaries:
praxis (n.)
1.translating an idea into action "a hard theory to put into practice"
I find profound paradox at the heart of every major doctrine of Scripture and this can qualify good theology as "a hard theory". It seems that God intends for us to wrestle personally with difficult concepts like: What does it actually mean for us to walk in the Spirit and not walk in the flesh? And...how can this (or even..."should this") be measured or evaluated in our lives? God apparently wanted Jacob (a man who tended toward deceit) to wrestle with him. Jacob did...out of his passion to receive God's blessing and partnership...and in the process, he was personally "converted" and was renamed Israel (prince of God), though he ever after walked with a limp. This Bible story seems like a parable of life to me. Wrestling has always been a way that "fathers and sons" have bonded.
I would go further and suggest that one of the most vital functions of the church, or body of Christ, is to create environments where believers read Scripture aloud and wrestle together interactively with it's intended meaning and applications (another reason for smaller communities...of some kind or another...being the backbone of a healthy church). Some of the most important tranformations and spiritual experiences have come into my life through this practice with my friends in Christ.
Too often believers want to have preachers and teachers just tell them what to do without having to grapple with God himself (it does seem a bit overwhelming!), but our Father is intent on having each of us touch him...and be touched by him..."in person" in the process of trying to understand what he wants from our lives. The paradoxes of theology are resolved in our minds and hearts only through "meeting God" in person.
When it comes to discerning what it means for us to "walk in the Spirit" and not "walk in the flesh", there are both objective and subjective sides of the matter to integrate. In my history, I have leaned too often to the objective side and not been at peace with the subjective side. But this approach has led to further frustrations in my spiritual life. Now that I am older..and I hope, wiser...I am more reconciled to the subjective side of it all and see how important it is to seek and find "truth" with capacities that include, but go beyond, my "cognitive" abilities. An over-reliance on our rational abilities...that our historic western educational systems have promoted...has led to much "legalism" and to what lies beneath it...dysfunctions in our interpersonal relationship to God and others (i.e. a lack of authentic love!). In light of the bigger context of Romans 7 and 8...I believe this capacity of bringing these two sides of our being into a dynamic balance is a very real part of being "renewed in the spirit of our mind" (Eph 4:23) and with possessing a "renewed mind-set" (see above).
We are called, challenged, invited and empowered to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. To love God with all our mind, then, must mean to love him with both of it's sides--left and right!
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