The consecrated life and the discerning life turn out to be one and the same, and this is where every Christian should rest. God pours out His pleasure on the child who is given over to His will and able to discern it.

The renewed mind is given for a purpose, and the close of Romans 12:2 names it: “that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

God’s Purpose Develops a Discerning Mind

Here is the third truth: God’s purpose develops a discerning mind. A person remade in this way can do something he could never do before—he can evaluate, and judge, and choose well.

The word Paul uses for test or prove is the word for an assayer. An assayer is the expert who takes a piece of ore, whether copper or gold, and subjects it to chemical tests to determine its worth—whether it is true gold or only fool’s gold, and how much gold the rock truly holds. He proves the thing to see whether it is genuine. That is the sense here: to put to the test, to approve, to discern. The man or woman who has offered their body as a living sacrifice can do just this with the choices of life, weighing ideas and opportunities, and deciding in line with eternal values.

When we take the shape of the world, we lose that capacity. We lurch toward one opportunity and then another, governed by impulse rather than by truth. “The first man who comes along, I will marry—I am desperate; surely he will be saved one day.” That is worldly thinking. “I am sick and tired of this; I will raise my hand against her, and then she will listen.” That is worldly thinking. “I think this marriage is finished; I will simply file for divorce.” That, too, is worldly thinking.

But when we give ourselves to God as a living sacrifice, set apart for Him, our minds renewed day by day in His Word, then we can look upon any circumstance, any decision, with the mind of Christ. A transformed mind can discern the will of God for a life.

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