In today's Epistle 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, the apostle Paul addresses Christ-centered, Holy Spirit based believers, within all witnessing paschal faith communities. Paul includes all traditions, religions, cultures, ethnic and secular groups. He reminds all people that Jesus Christ stated the goal the Father sent him into the world to achieve, as Messiah. As the good shepherd, Jesus declared in John 10:10, "The thief (Satan) comes only to steal, kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly". In the mind of the spirit, Jesus Christ revealed, achieved and modeled the universal goal of abundant and eternal life in Christ for all mankind, by living the Paschal Mystery (John 3:16-17)".
The bible clearly states that believers who choose to follow Jesus Christ in achieving abundant and eternal life, must live disciplined and goal oriented lives. In the mind of the spirit, they must deny self, take up their cross daily, and follow Jesus Christ in living the Paschal Mystery (Mark 8:34-38). Like Jesus Christ, after his water baptism and the descent of the Holy Spirit upon him, they will be sent by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness. They will also be distracted, tested and tempted by Satan, to abandon the goals, the Father called them to achieve, within their witnessing paschal faith communities (Mark 1:14-15).
Following Jesus Christ in living the Paschal Mystery, in the power of the Holy Spirit, and the mind of the spirit involves disciplined and purposeful cleansing, casting down and casting out the mind of the flesh. The personal and collective disciplines, within witnessing paschal faith communities must include the restoration of Christ-centered relationships with God, all persons and all creation, in the mind of the spirit. The universal, imperishable believers' goal and wreath of eternal and abundant life in Christ, can be realized only in the mind of the spirit (Romans 8:1-11, 1 Corinthians 9:24, Philippians 2:1-5).
Paul stresses that born again, Christ-centered, spiritually awake believers must stay focused on the imperishable wreath and goal of eternal life in Christ, in their striving. Many spiritually blind, spiritually deaf, spiritually asleep and hardhearted believers, within witnessing paschal faith communities, choose to live their lives in the mind of the flesh. Many choose to embrace the perishable wreath and goals of the power, prestige, positions and popularity of the mind of the flesh. Paul assures us that in the mind of the flesh, these believers will not and cannot realize abundant and eternal life, in Christ (1 Corinthians 9:25).
In using the metaphor of the boxer, the apostle Paul recognized and confessed the presence of spiritual warfare between the mind of the flesh and the mind of the spirit in his personal life. He emphasized however, that he does not live the Christ-centered, Holy Spirit-based life aimlessly. He stresses that his life in Christ is not lived in the inappropriate, deceptiveness, divisiveness and destruction of the mind of the flesh (1 Corinthians 9:26, Galatians 5:19-21).
In the power of the Holy Spirit and the mind of the spirit, Paul was able to identify the man of lawlessness within himself, and exercise self control over the Adversary (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). Like Jesus Christ in the wilderness, in the power of the Holy Spirit, Paul restrained his appetites. In self denial he followed Jesus Christ in putting on the mind of the spirit, and the whole armor of God, so that he would not become a stumbling block to others and a castaway (Ephesians 6:11-13). With God's help, Paul lived his life in the mind of the spirit (1 Corinthians 9:27, Galatians 5:22-26).
What is your goal, as you live your life, within your witnessing paschal faith community? Are you aimlessly beating yourself up, in the useless, unnecessary suffering, erroneous thinking, spiritual sleep, spiritual blindness, spiritual deafness and spiritual death of the mind of the flesh? Have you chosen to steadfastly follow Jesus Christ in regaining your divine inheritance and imperishable crown of eternal and abundant life in Christ? Will you follow Jesus Christ in living the Paschal Mystery, in the mind of the spirit, within your witnessing paschal faith community?
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