Our Mind “Operating Systems”

Dr. Deneff begins this final Lesson with the illustration of a computer’s operating system. He talks about the time when he transitioned from an old computer that just worked on DOS to an Apple with a far more spectacular operating system. It was just so much easier to get things done than it was before.

In the Bible, Rev. Deneff finds at least three aspects of our “operating systems” that use the image of our mind:

• Our inclinations – the bent or biases we have (how the world appears to us)
• Our imaginations – our human capacity to invent things in our heads
• Our instincts – our behavioral reflexes, what we do before we think

Inclinations

Romans 8:7 says that “the mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.” Paul doesn’t present any other alternative. Either we are under the power of the Spirit or we are under the power of Sin. When our minds are under the control of Sin, our biases are to think wrongly. Our bent is toward the wrong. 

On the other hand, in Romans 12:2, Paul talks about a transformed mind. As the chapters that follow in Romans make clear, this mind has a bias toward others. We honor others above ourselves (Rom. 12:10). This mind has a bent toward love (Rom. 13:8-10). It is a mind like Jesus who, although he was God, emptied himself and took on the role of a servant (Phil. 2:5-7).

Imaginations

Our imaginations fill in the blanks of our lives. They fill in the gaps between what is possible and what we want to happen. Genesis 6:5 talks about how the generation before the Flood had an evil imagination. Their minds were always imagining evil things to do. The result was that God cleared the deck and virtually started over.

When our imaginations are turned toward God, we recognize the possibilities for good. Rather than assuming we will fail morally or that society will inevitably disintegrate, we have an optimism about what God can do in our lives and in the world. We imagine the words of Ephesians 3:20 that God is “able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.”

Instincts

John Wesley had a peculiar category of sin he called “sins of surprise.” Such sins were not thought out. They just happened in the moment. We explode at our spouse, children, or co-workers because we are hungry. We fail to get enough rest and hurt someone in an accident because we fall asleep. These can be wrongs we do as a reflex because our mind is not trained in other directions or because we did not take proper preparations for the moment.

However, we can train our instincts to be patient, and the Spirit wants to help. We can create well-worn pathways in our minds whose unthinking response is likely to be one of kindness rather than attack. It takes spiritual training for our instincts to leap to the good before we have a chance to think things through.

These are three functions that Dr. Deneff mentioned as part of the mind in the Bible. As we move toward holiness, God wants to shape these aspects of our minds toward the good.