Getting Past Our Human Nature
by Jon Walker

But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” Mark 8:33
When Jesus calls you, he expects you to begin thinking like him. This isn’t as impossible as it sounds because the Apostle Paul says you have been given the mind of Christ: “‘Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:16 NIV)

The issue is in accessing the mind of Christ as you mediate upon God’s Word and listen to the Holy Spirit, who is your guide into all truth (John 16:13). If you imagine discipleship as a physical journey, then you can easily see that the more time you spend with Jesus, the more you will begin to understand his way of thinking.

As you walk with him day in and day out, you will become intimate with his likes and dislikes; you will see what he sees and hear what he hears. You will know what he cares about and you will know what he considers insignificant, petty, or distracting. You will witness how he responds to problems, expectations, and laughter, and you will learn what he thinks about your future.
All of this will teach you to think from God’s perspective, to engage the mind of Christ available to you through the Holy Sprit.

The Apostle Peter shows how this transformation takes place. As he follows Jesus, he begins to submit his mind to the Father and that changes his perspective. He begins to see things as they appear inside the kingdom of heaven.

In other words, Peter begins to clearly see reality and he is able to see the truth that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus says, “For this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17)