In Right Mind

In Right Mind

Greetings to all my friends in the precious name of our Lord Jesus Christ! All the glory to my Lord and my Savior, Jesus Christ!

Lk.8:35, ‘Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.’

We all know of how a demon possessed man who dwelt among the tombs of Gadarenes was delivered by Jesus. The man who wore no clothes, who was kept in chains, who would break the bands etc is seen here sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. It’s easy to understand that he was at the feet of Jesus and that he was clothed. But when we say that he was in his right mind, we ought to have a proper understanding about what does this refer to.

We live in a world where all have the freedom not only to choose their actions and words, but also their thoughts and theories as to what is right and what is wrong. What is right in one’s perception might be wrong in another’s perception. The clashes of ‘rights’ and ‘wrongs’ are faced in every aspect of life, and it goes on without an end. But amidst these clashes, let’s realize that for a child of God, we have only one way that is right, which is written in the ‘Bible’. If we closely follow this Word of God, we will be surely blessed.

In order to understand the concept of being in right mind, it’s important for us to understand what is being in wrong mind, which often seems or appears as being in right mind. We can understand this better when we look at two passages from the Bible.

In Lk.8:28, the man who was possessed by the legion acknowledged Jesus as the Son of God, the most high. In Lk.8:31-32, the legion through this man, besought Jesus to be sent into the herd of swine instead of being sent into the deep. Jesus answered their prayer and drove them into the herd of swines. Getting answers for all prayers and acknowledgement of His name cannot be taken as sure signs of being in right mind.
Lk.15:28-30, ‘But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore, his father came out and pleaded with him. 29 So he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat that I might make merry with my friends. 30 But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’’ In this parable, where Jesus spoke about the elder son who was with his father always, refused to get into the house when he heard about the celebration of his brother’s return. Let us take note of the things he spoke to his father.

Lo, these many years I have been serving you ‘- He gave a record of the years of serving his father. This shows the relation of a master and a servant. Doing anything for a master is like doing a job done for the sake of being done and its rewards are demanded and kept account of. This is different from a relation between a father and a son. No accounts can be kept between a father and a son, because the bond of love cancels the concept of job and conditions of rewards. Here, whatever we do is done out of love and is unconditional.  All things are done without expecting anything in return, for they are just a proof of the love for the person whom we serve. In Lk. 8:31, the father tells this son ‘all that I have is yours.’ This is the love of the Father, who has not kept any account of what he gave his son. If we serve Him with a heart keeping account of things done and expecting rewards in return, let’s realize that we are not in our right mind.
‘I never transgressed your commandment at any time’: This thought of self-righteousness might have come into his heart just because he stayed with his father doing things for him, unlike his brother who went away from the home. Often, we struggle with this mindset of being right in mind because of the fact that we are regular churchgoers and tithe givers or even a part of some ministry. 1 Jn.1:8-9, ‘If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.. .’ May we be in the right mind by always examining ourselves in the light of His Word, for we are watched every moment by the Lord, who alone is holy.
‘Yet you never gave me a young goat that I might make merry with my friends.’ These words express the frustration and dissatisfaction of the elder son. Though he was with his father and seemed to serve him, his eyes was always on his own self and his own delights. He could not rejoice in his father’s presence & longed to be in the presence of his friends, making merry with them. He did not mention a word about what he received from his father but did not hesitate to murmur about what he did not get. Often, we join this elder son by forgetting the blessings and murmur about the lacks, and forget the fact that nothing less than rejoicing in His presence more than being in His presence is what that makes one being in the right mind.
30 But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him’ – The elder son could not rejoice over his brothers return to his father’s house. He called his brother as ’this son of yours’ instead of ‘my brother’. 1 Jn.2:9, ‘He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.’ The purity of love for our brothers and sisters is seen correctly, when they are blessed and honored more than we ourselves. If we cannot rejoice in them being blessed more than ourselves, we need to examine our mindset.  Our love for our Father is reflected in love for those around us, which is an important factor of being in right mind.
Above all these, in Lk.15:26, we read about the elder son calling one of the servants to know all about the music and dancing in the house. He seemed to have more access to his servants than to his own father. Though physically the elder son was with his father, his heart was far away from him . Closeness to God’s children and even with His servants does not prove our closeness to our heavenly Father. In fact, a right-minded person enjoys the deepest intimacy in his or her relation with the Lord, more than the same in any other relation in this world.
From all these, we have an idea as to how easily we can think of ourselves being right in our mind, when we might not be so. The man who was delivered from the legion was clothed and siting at Lord’s feet. The lost son was clothed by the father with the best robe and drawn into the house of the father. If we are right in our mind, we will be clothed with the righteousness of Christ bestowed upon us through our faith in Him. If we are right in our mind, we will be at His feet, forever willing to learn and obey. If we are right with our Lord, we will cleave to Him, rejoicing in Him & never think of ever leaving His presence. The delivered man wanted to be with Jesus(Lk.8:38), more than his own family and society. The found son never thought of leaving his father’s house again.

Being right in mind means to align our thoughts, intentions and even the imaginations perfectly with the Word of the Lord. This is possible only when we allow the double edged sword of His Word time and again to pierce deep down into the division of souls & spirit, of joints and marrows, into thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebr.4:12), which alone has the power to  flush out the wrongs from our hearts and mind. When people of Gadarenes saw the delivered man, clothed and at the feet of Jesus in his right mind, they were afraid.  Being in the right mind is the most powerful weapon to keep away the evil one. When the found son was received into the Father’s house, the elder son found himself being lost, out of the house, refusing to come into the Father’s hose.  Being in the right mind tears off the many masks of seemingly right-minded ones, which causes purification of the Father’s house i.e. the churches. May we be right minded and thus be powerful weapons in the hands of our Lord. God bless us all.

God bless us all!

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