Without Thy Mind

By Michael Pemberton

“But without thy mind would I do nothing.” -Philemon 14

The fish and chips I ordered for lunch had just been set in front of me.  Across the small round table, my Hindu friend started munching on his chicken burger as I drank in the atmosphere of the little English pub.  There’s nothing like a 300-year-old English pub for lunch.

 I was paying more attention to the ancient brick fireplace just to my right than to our conversation, when something my friend said captured my attention.  “I am going to have to find a wife soon, or my mum will be very displeased,” he said in his crisp British accent.  That started a cascade of rapid conversation about marriage and traditions that somehow wound up on the topic of arranged marriages.  As I mulled that conversation over in my mind later that day, I realized that it was not the idea of arrangement that bothered me.  Most people could use a little help in that area.  No, what bothered me was the idea that my wife might feel as though she had no voice in the marriage.

 When I proposed to my bride, I was the most nervous thing on the planet.  I always dreamed of the idyllic setting in a romantic restaurant with me on one knee.  You know the scene.  Instead, I found myself pacing furiously back and forth in the living room.  Now that I think of it, I was probably talking at pretty good clip, too.  All I could think of was her response.  It would mean the world to me if she felt the same way about me that I did about her.

 That’s the way God feels about us.  In Philemon 14, the author gives us a glimpse into the heart of our heavenly father.  God is sovereign.  He can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants.  Who could stop him?  Nevertheless, he would rather have our mind be with him than to do things without our agreement.  Don’t get me wrong, he’ll accomplish his will regardless of whether or not you ever say yes to it.  However, that’s not the way he prefers it.

 Just like the man proposing to his future bride wants her mind to be with him in the matter, God wants our minds to be in agreement with him in what he does in our lives.  His desire is motivated from the great love he has for us.  It saddens him when we will not see things from his point of view.  Think again of the man and his bride.  We all know that there will be disagreements, but the marriage will succeed if the disagreements are few enough and unimportant enough.  However, there is no experience in life quite like having your spouse in complete harmony with you.  And that’s what all marriages strive for.  In exactly the same way, God is striving to get us in harmony with him.  This is the heart of the idea of repentance.  It is us getting in harmony with the mind of God.

 Now consider something.  If God doesn’t need our consent for anything he does, why does he want it?  The answer is, he wants us to experience the unique joy of having our will, our mind in harmony with his.  It’s all about his love for us.  It always has been.