Vanity of Our Minds.

Eph 4:17  … walk not … in the vanity of their mind

Vanity of their mind, such an interesting four words. Let's look at the word vanity in our Bibles.

Vanity-

(Greek)From G3152; inutility; figuratively transientness; morally depravity: - vanity.

(Hebrew)From H1891; emptiness or vanity; figuratively something transitory and unsatisfactory; often used as an adverb: -    X altogether, vain, vanity.

And I don't think we need to look at the words for -  'of their mind', do we?

Just because I could though, I looked up the word 'mind' in the Greek.

G3563

νοῦς

nous

nooce

Probably from the base of G1097; the intellect, that is, mind (divine or human; in thought, feeling, or will); by implication meaning: - mind, understanding.

So here we have it- the vanity of their minds means - the moral depravity of our minds, the emptiness, unsatisfactory, transitory existence of our minds. The moral depravity, emptiness of our intellect, our understanding- in thought, feeling, or will.

This is the existence of all who have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviors and been born again in the Spirit.

But you tell me that you know many brilliant atheists and devout Christ haters? You know a lot of upstanding, wonderful people- the kindest you'd ever meet who refute the validity of Christ's very existence, let alone surrendered their lives to Him. How could those people be said to be vain- their minds, their understanding morally depraved and empty of thought, feeling and will? How could their minds be deemed transitory- temporary?

I'll tell you that what we may consider on an everyday current level of moral depravity, of meaningless thoughts, feelings and will- is not what is meant on a spiritual level, not at all.

If we believe that our hope is only in ourselves, that there is no God of hope, we are morally depraved and yes, all our thoughts, feelings and will mean nothing. We are vain, we are empty in all truth, meaningless- completely and utterly meaningless. Why? Because we are meant to be a part of God, and our worth lies in the fact we will have an existence beyond the sin-tainted lives we all lead. To believe that our existence, that the world we are brought into through no thought of our own, by no action of our own, is how it is supposed to be- is to believe in hopelessness, to believe in futility.

Why do people try to fight for freedom, for happiness, for goodness, for painlessness, for what they believe is right UNLESS they know there is a reason to fight?  It is completely SENSELESS to fight to right what is wrong, if there is no belief that there is wrong in our world.  There is a whole lot that is wrong on many levels and it truly doesn't take us too long to figure that out as we grow up from babyhood. There is no exact age of comprehension for us individually, but there comes a time when we are very young when we are most likely in tears that we know things aren't quite right in our world, and from that point on that understanding only grows.

I believe in a RIGHT world, I believe in PEACE, I believe in LOVE for all, I believe in the reality of these things but I also know that after the thousands of years of recorded history- those things will never exist within this world in totality- NOT through our effort. We've tried haven't we? Since recorded time people have tried to create a world ruled fairly but it never works out- never- not a single time has it worked out. There is always someone who isn't given the fairness desired by all. Someone always seems to have to be subservient to another which instantly negates the perfection that is trying to be achieved.

The vanity of our minds… just how much of our lives is spent caught up in the results of our vain minds?  And if you read the above you know I’m not simply talking about the modern, secular idea of vanity. I'm not accusing you of having a mirror in your pocket that you must look at constantly because you are so vain - self-centered about your appearance. I'm talking about how many of us have lives centered around the moral depravity that is a total lack of understanding in things of the Spirit?

We need to be RENEWED in our minds- in the SPIRIT of our Minds.

By the grace of our Lord God, more on this tomorrow.

All through the love of Jesus Christ our Savior, now and forever! Amen.

Eph 4:18  Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: 

Eph 4:19  Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. 

Eph 4:20  But ye have not so learned Christ; 

Eph 4:21  If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: 

Eph 4:22  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; 

Eph 4:23  And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; 

Eph 4:24  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. 

Eph 4:25  Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. 

Eph 4:26  Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: 

Eph 4:27  Neither give place to the devil. 

Eph 4:28  Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. 

Eph 4:29  Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. 

Eph 4:30  And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. 

Eph 4:31  Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 

Eph 4:32  And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.