Austin Bible Church
Divine viewpoint is not a warmed over version of the power of positive thinking. This is a biblical technique for believers only. It has to do with the believer who is filled with the Holy Spirit and thinking based on the Bible doctrine in the right lobe of their soul. It is thinking with the mind of Jesus Christ. It is “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.” 1 Cor. 2:16; Heb. 12:2.
“For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:16, NASB)
"fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Hebrews 12:2, NASB)
Occupation with Christ is for believers only. Believers are what they think. This opens the whole realm of mental attitudes. Proverbs 23:7 says that believers are what they think in the right lobe of their souls.
"For as he thinks within himself, so he is. He says to you, "Eat and drink!" But his heart is not with you." (Proverbs 23:7, NASB)
A believer’s physical appearance and success depends upon what they think. Often people equate a tough person with a profane vocabulary or someone with a strong physical stature, but toughness is a mental attitude. You are not beaten until you give up mentally. This was illustrated by the American soldiers in the Korean War. Some of them had “give-up-itis.” They had no desire to live and if left alone, in 24 to 48 hours they were dead.
There are two ways of thinking - divine viewpoint and human viewpoint. The believer needs mental attitude divine viewpoint and cannot get it without the communication of Bible doctrine. The Christian public has stopped thinking because they have stopped studying the Word of God. It is interesting that when Christians habitually attend Bible class and the regular services where the Word is faithfully taught, they learn to concentrate, to think, and to stabilize. Isaiah 55:7-9.
“Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon. "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," declares the LORD. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:7-9, NASB)
When an individual accepts Christ as Savior, how much divine viewpoint do they have in their right lobe? A mustard seed of divine viewpoint. The spiritually mature believer who has developed a large frame of reference through Bible doctrine intake and application has displaced much of their pre-salvation human viewpoint with divine viewpoint. Learning and applying Bible doctrine has renewed their soul and their thinking. 2 Cor. 4:16; Eph. 4:22-23; Col. 3:10.
"Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day." (2 Corinthians 4:16, NASB)
"that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind," (Ephesians 4:22-23, NASB)
"and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him—" (Colossians 3:10, NASB)
You need divine viewpoint to please God. Human viewpoint never pleases God, no matter how cultured or intelligent the thinking might be. The unbeliever has only human viewpoint and believes they must work for what they get. The harder they work, the more they get. The believer knows that they are saved by grace and they keep walking after salvation on a non-meritorious system called “faith.”
The Only Source of Divine Viewpoint is the Bible
1 Corinthians 2:16 tells us that the Bible is the mind of Christ. Therefore, we must know the Word to know His mind and apply it to realize His will. Religion does not agree with the above statement. Remember, Christianity is not a religion, but a personal grace relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
"For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ." (1 Corinthians 2:16, NASB)
The Word of God is a critic of the thoughts and intents of the inner life. Our thinking must jibe with His thinking. We can’t have inner soul peace without it. Heb. 4:12.
"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12, NASB)
Four Areas of Mental Attitude
There are four areas of mental attitude thinking – worldliness, peace, giving, and stability.
Worldliness is not what you do. Worldliness is what you think. The only answer to mental attitude worldliness is replacing human viewpoint (worldliness) with divine viewpoint. One can have a beautiful outward life as did the Pharisees, yet be completely shot through with human viewpoint. You can be sitting in church and be worldly depending on what you are thinking. The use of cosmetics or the lack of them does not make you worldly. It is what you think regarding them. Rom. 12:2; Col. 3:2.
"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." (Romans 12:2, NASB)
"Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth." (Colossians 3:2, NASB)
Peace is a mental attitude. Peace is not laying down arms and inviting some other foreign power to walk all over you. A relaxed mental attitude of peace enables one to really enjoy the Christian walk regardless of other people or circumstances. What do you do under pressure or when you get upset? Do you use divine viewpoint, think it and apply it? You should be relaxed and have an inner soul peace based on Bible doctrine resident in the right lobe of your soul. Just as a good athlete is relaxed and calm before a competition, so should the believer be in the Angelic Conflict. Isaiah 26:3; Phil. 4:6-8.
""The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You." (Isaiah 26:3, NASB)
"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things." (Philippians 4:6-8, NASB)
Giving is a mental attitude. If the mental attitude is not right, don’t give. Don’t give under pressure. Give with mental attitude of joy. You can only have that when in fellowship! It’s the attitude that counts.
Stability is a mental attitude. A good illustration of this is Robert E. Lee, a believer, at the Battle of Gettysburg. Disaster report after disaster report came to his headquarters, but he remained calm and had stability under pressure. He kept thinking. Adults who are cry-babies or have mental attitude fear are always unstable. Stability is the ability to think under pressure.
David and Goliath Example
In 1 Samuel 17:8-10, Goliath had come out each day for 40 days to say ”I defy the ranks of Israel.” The camp of Israel had status quo fear. They were scared out of their wits. Even Jonathan who had had a great victory in 1 Samuel 14 was scared. Goliath was 9’2” and was a fearful foe. His chest protector alone weighed 143 pounds. His spear had a head on it heavier than a shot-put (17 pounds). David came into the situation with perfect inner peace and stability. Why?
"He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel and said to them, "Why do you come out to draw up in battle array? Am I not the Philistine and you servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves and let him come down to me. "If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will become your servants; but if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall become our servants and serve us." Again the Philistine said, "I defy the ranks of Israel this day; give me a man that we may fight together."" (1 Samuel 17:8-10, NASB)
David had courage and confidence in God’s promises in the right lobe of his soul. He knew that the battle is the Lord’s. He had that relaxed mental attitude that comes from knowing Bible doctrine. He had no mental attitude fear when he ran to face Goliath and to kill him. 1 Sam. 17:46-47.
""This day the LORD will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the LORD'S and He will give you into our hands."" (1 Samuel 17:46-47, NASB)
What is your fear? What do believers fear? It is fear of death, loss of job, loss of health, loss of loved ones and so on? Your courage and confidence should be based on the Bible doctrine in your soul. We should learn Bible doctrine and stockpile divine viewpoint in the right lobe of our souls.
Looking at life from divine viewpoint gives tremendous stability and inner peace. The obstacles may be terrible and the pressure great, but the believer “has access to the mind of Christ” which is the Word of God. Let’s investigate divine viewpoint and human viewpoint in the area of respect for authority. This makes a fascinating biblical study in that in America all types of authority are flaunted and children seem to have little respect for authority.
Respect For Authority
See category on Respect For Authority.
Paul’s Demonstration of Human Viewpoint vs. Divine Viewpoint
All believers have trouble with their thought life to some extent. A believer may be able to control overt activities and look fairly good outwardly, but be completely shot through with a perverted thought life. And it bothers them. They know they are redeemed. They rejoice in sins forgiven, but their thought life is a paradox with their outward mode of living. Many of the answers to the problems of thought life for the believer are found in 2 Corinthians 10. This chapter could be entitled, “Human Viewpoint vs. Divine Viewpoint.”
Paul indicates in 2 Corinthians 10:1 that he is in fellowship and that he has the mental attitude of meekness. This is the attitude of grace. He also speaks of the gentleness of Christ. This is the attitude of Paul’s mind, sweet reasonableness. Now beginning with the word “who,” Paul begins quoting his critics who maligned him and were critical of him. Actually they were calling him “two-faced” or in plain language, a hypocrite.
"Now I, Paul, myself urge you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ—I who am meek when face to face with you, but bold toward you when absent!" (2 Corinthians 10:1, NASB)
Paul is saying in 2 Corinthians 10:2, “I’m the same when away as present, but I can get tough in either location if I have to.” You see, Paul was criticized for being dogmatic. A believer has confidence when they know doctrine and apply it to experience. They know where they are going and have stability in life. Paul’s critics were very vicious and very caustic and said his dogmatism was dirty. They said Paul was full of pride and double-minded, a lion when at a distance, but a mouse when present.
"I ask that when I am present I need not be bold with the confidence with which I propose to be courageous against some, who regard us as if we walked according to the flesh." (2 Corinthians 10:2, NASB)
Paul continues on in 2 Corinthians 10:3 saying that we are not to operate on the basis of carnal methods in the Christian walk even though we are still living in the earth.
"For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh," (2 Corinthians 10:3, NASB)
2 Corinthians 10:4 answers that the weapons of the Christian are not human viewpoint, but mighty through divine viewpoint. The word “fortresses” referred to ancient rock forts that were very difficult to conquer. They were conquered by a war machine that battered down the walls, or via a ramp that allowed the enemy to conquer them. In analogy, divine viewpoint is much more powerful than human reasoning. In fact, what you think is more important than what you do.
"for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses." (2 Corinthians 10:4, NASB)
In the first four verses of this chapter, we have Bible doctrine, and from verse five on we as believers are to apply this to experience. 2 Corinthians 10:5 says we are to avoid human viewpoint thinking that is contrary to the Word of God. Intellectual systems that are not God-based or oppose Bible doctrine or divine viewpoint should be avoided.
" We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ," (2 Corinthians 10:5, NASB)
Many believers use dreamworld to solve their problems, but dreamworld never solves any problems. Worry is one of the fairy helpers in dreamworld, but it never solves any problems. For example, there is a believer who has had a rough day at the office. Instead of utilizing God's grace resources and faith-rest, he sticks it out even though he has a bad mental attitude. He is out of fellowship. So he comes home, kicks off his shoes and tries to relax and read the paper. But really, he is not reading the paper, his mind is reliving the day at work with the irritable boss, the nervous secretaries, the griping customers, and the raw deal he has working there. Now remember this guy is a believer. But yet, he tries to solve it by dreamworld. He mentally tells off the boss. In his mental picture, he sees the boss begging his forgiveness. He crucifies the secretarial help until they are pleading with him for mercy. He tells off the griping customers. Keep in mind that all of this is done mentally behind the paper he is reading. He dreams himself into a plush office with nice salary. Suddenly, his wife calls him to supper. Boom, he leaves dreamworld and comes back to reality and in the meantime he has solved absolutely nothing.
Here is what that believer did. Any problem you try to solve by human viewpoint is unchanged and still a problem. Why? Because the believer is the problem! A problem cannot deal with a problem.
Here is what he should have done. A problem is solved by divine viewpoint and becomes a problem under control. The believer is to use confession of sin biblically followed by faith-rest whereby God's promises can be claimed and applied to the situation. If he has mental attitude sins such as worry, he confesses known sins to God the Father and then uses the promises, doctrines, and principles of the Word. He looks at the problem from divine viewpoint and believes that “the Battle is the Lord’s” and “if God be for me who can be against me” and he places it into the Lord’s hands. He casts his cares upon the Lord. Instead of a dreamworld hopper, he puts it into the divine hopper.
Thus he has mental stability and he thinks clearly. When we pout, get moody, worry, fear or have doubts, we stop thinking clearly. Some believers become cry-babies. They fall apart at the seams. They say, “Oh, if I could just change jobs or geographical locations, my problems would go away.” They withdraw, sublimate, get nervous, fret, become hysterical, and frankly, they are miserable. They become bitter because no one cares and their self-pity becomes apparent. Yes they are believers, but they are completely immersed in the cares and issues of this world.
What is the answer to human viewpoint? Replacing it with the Word, saturating the right lobe of the soul with Bible doctrine and applying it to experience. Then armed with Bible truth, the believer is to challenge the human viewpoint of life. This can only be done when “your obedience is complete.” That is when you are in fellowship, casting your burdens on the Lord and knowing that God has not given you the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind! 2 Cor. 10:6; Psalms 55:22; 2 Tim. 1:7.
"and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete." (2 Corinthians 10:6, NASB)
"Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken." (Psalms 55:22, NASB)
"For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline." (2 Timothy 1:7, NASB)
Paul’s critics were looking at his outward appearance, which was human viewpoint instead of considering what he was teaching. As believers grow spiritually, they will have to learn to handle justified and unjustified criticism with divine viewpoint. Every believer will have plenty of it in this life. 2 Cor. 10:7.
"You are looking at things as they are outwardly. If anyone is confident in himself that he is Christ's, let him consider this again within himself, that just as he is Christ's, so also are we." (2 Corinthians 10:7, NASB)
Paul mentions his critics again with reference to his God-given authority and office of Apostle. Paul’s critics said he wrote “lion-like letters of terror.” 2 Cor. 10:8-9.
"For even if I boast somewhat further about our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be put to shame, for I do not wish to seem as if I would terrify you by my letters." (2 Corinthians 10:8-9, NASB)
Paul indicates in 2 Corinthians 10:10 that he was not depending upon a beautiful appearance, but one thing was for sure that he was the same absent or present. Enemies of the Gospel always try to belittle the sincere Bible student. Paul, no doubt, had a speech impediment. He also had some king of pain and hurt all of the time. The thorn in the flesh was a thing of pain according to the Greek. Through it all, he was a man of God. That is what counts. He was a man of God and open to any believer because he had Bible doctrine in the right lobe of his soul!
"For they say, "His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible." Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word by letters when absent, such persons we are also in deed when present." (2 Corinthians 10:10-11, NASB)
2 Corinthians 10:12 is describing a mutual admiration society where members pat each other on the back, obeying the proper ground rules, and making the proper “clucking” noises to be “in” with the right crowd. This is a description of a bunch of carnal Christians out of fellowship and not applying divine viewpoint.
"For we are not bold to class or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves; but when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding." (2 Corinthians 10:12, NASB)
We are to boast in the Lord. The phrase “but within the measure of the sphere which God apportioned to us” is another way of stating divine viewpoint. There are five results of thinking divine viewpoint in these last verses. Mentally, divine viewpoint is the standard. 2 Cor. 10:13.
"But we will not boast beyond our measure, but within the measure of the sphere which God apportioned to us as a measure, to reach even as far as you." (2 Corinthians 10:13, NASB)
Divine viewpoint results in outreach of the Gospel and growth and development in the believer. 2 Cor. 10:14-15.
"For we are not overextending ourselves, as if we did not reach to you, for we were the first to come even as far as you in the gospel of Christ; not boasting beyond our measure, that is, in other men's labors, but with the hope that as your faith grows, we will be, within our sphere, enlarged even more by you," (2 Corinthians 10:14-15, NASB)
Divine viewpoint results in increased missionary activity and glorifying Him in our thinking. 2 Cor. 10:16-18.
"so as to preach the gospel even to the regions beyond you, and not to boast in what has been accomplished in the sphere of another. But HE WHO BOASTS IS TO BOAST IN THE LORD. For it is not he who commends himself that is approved, but he whom the Lord commends." (2 Corinthians 10:16-18, NASB)
Divine viewpoint is actually occupation with the Person and work of Christ. With all the emphasis in the world we live in on seeking alternatives to God, some believers may be a bit gun-shy because they have used some form of mental crutch before and it let them down. However, this is a technique and a disciplined program of getting into the Word which will cause unbelievable happiness, all based on Bible doctrine.
Every unbeliever needs to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. For those that accept the work of Jesus Christ on the Cross for their sins, they needs to know how to handle the sin problem in their life. This is the first technique. Then while in fellowship, they needs to claim God’s promises by faith. The three ingredients of faith-rest are found in Romans 4:16 - faith, grace and promise.
"For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all," (Romans 4:16, NASB)
To get these promises, techniques, doctrines and principles in the right lobe of the soul, the believer needs to live in the Word. They needs to learn it, believe it, survey it, categorize it, and think on it. Then the believer needs to understand how the character of Christ is formed in them and how the fruit of the Spirit is produced in the believer’s life. Gal. 5:22-23.
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." (Galatians 5:22-23, NASB)
A husband in fellowship loves his wife. Because his wife is also in fellowship, she responds to her husband. Because they are in fellowship, they have mental attitude joy, which is a divine given enthusiasm to study the Word and apply it to life. Because a believer is in fellowship, they have peace in their soul, they have patience, they are good and gentle, and they are developing in their faith. They have mental attitude humility and are in control of the situation, because God is in control of their soul. Not only that, but they continue to grow spiritually and in divine viewpoint. Eph. 5:18.
"And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit," (Ephesians 5:18, NASB)
Thus the believer is equipped for life and they are also equipped for death. If the believer fails, they confess known sins and they keep on moving. God has provided everything for taking care of the past and everything for taking care of the future. This is the marvelous grace of God!