In the Vanity of Their Mind

Ephesians 4:17 “This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind,”

Romans 8:6 says, “To be carnally minded is death…” When we were not born again, all we had was what we could think of and what the world and its values told us to think. You add in the devil messing with our minds and thoughts, and you have a recipe for disaster.

The Amplified Classic translates this portion of Ephesians this way, “…in their perverseness (in the folly, vanity, and emptiness of their souls and the futility) of their minds.” The only thing a person who is not born again has is what they can think of. It is limiting and also confused because it is shaped by this world system.

Even if someone is only educated by this world system and they have a head full of this world’s knowledge, it is futile living because it is limited. Education is good, but that alone will produce death.

That is why after someone is born again, the Lord insists that we renew our minds (Romans 12:1-2). Our minds must be transformed; they must be washed with the Word of God. You can only think God’s thoughts if you know God’s thoughts. Then you will be operating out of God’s thoughts and not the futility of your own.

Your thoughts from your carnal mind are limited and futile, but God’s thoughts are powerful and have power to be fulfilled. It is time to meditate on God’s Word and make His thoughts our thoughts so we can make our way prosperous and have good success just like He told Joshua.