Emptying the Mind

A few weeks ago, I posted on social media that Christians should never “empty their minds.” Instead we should seek to meditate on the things of God. Here was my post.

The Christian should never ‘empty their mind.’ Eastern meditation invites demonic attack. Rather, the mind must be “renewed” through the Word of God. Every thought is to be “taken captive to obey Christ.” We are to meditate on God’s law “day and night.” (Ps 1; Rom 12; 2 Cor 10)

As you can imagine, with social media platforms like X and Instagram, the responses to these four simple sentences came pouring in fast and furious. Many non-Christians and even some Christians disagreed with this assertion. Arguments were made that seeking to empty the mind can be very relaxing and energizing. What I realized in the responses is that many do not understand what the mind is, much less how as Christians, we should seek to think. So, I thought a simple post might be in order for clarification.

The Mind

First, we need to understand that the mind is not physiological. Though associated with the brain, and indeed there is physical-spiritual overlap, the mind is the component of the soul that thinks. When you die before the bodily resurrection, your soul will still have a mind in Heaven, but you will be “away from the body” and, therefore, your brain. But you will still have your mind! Jesus said in Matthew 22:37, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” The mind is not separate from the heart or the soul but is its thinking component. And Jesus exhorts us that our minds must be dedicated entirely to God. Covetousness, lust, envy, hate, and even ‘nothingness’ should not occupy our minds. Our minds must be given to the love of God, Jesus said.

Yet, the problem with the non-Christian is that their mind is bent in sin against God. They naturally hate God and devise ways in their minds to reject Him. Paul says, “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him” (Col 1:21, 22). The unregenerate mind opposes God. When we are then converted, our minds are renewed and transformed. Christ even gives Christians components of His own mind and thinking in conversion, so much so that Paul says that “We have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor 2:16). Therefore, our minds are no longer our own (1 Cor 6:20); they belong to Christ.

The Christian Use of the Mind

A couple of years ago, a former pastor contacted me through a mutual friend about giving me some books. It turned out to be an entire pastoral library consisting of several thousand books! After flying into Philadelphia and picking them up with a Penske truck, and driving them back down to Raleigh, I began opening the boxes. As I was opening book carton after book carton, one book title struck me: The Christian Mind (1963). The general thesis of the book is that too often, Christian thinking mirrors the world’s thinking on any particular subject. Rather than thinking with the “mind of Christ” (1 Cor 2:16) and God’s thoughts after Him, Christian thinking often stagnates in the same ruts and cesspools as the world. This reality is hardly surprising given the amount of worldly entertainment Christians consume. Not much has changed even sixty years after The Christian Mind was first published.

So secondly, as believers, our minds should be completely calibrated and renewed by the Word of God. Paul exhorted us to be transformed by the “renewing of our minds” (Rom 12:2). Of course this only happens as our minds come into contact with the truth of His Word. Jesus said, “Sanctify them in the truth; thy Word is truth (John 17:17). David said that the blessed man, “meditates on his law day and night” (Ps 1:2). Clearly, the biblical picture centers on a life of meditation on the Word of God. We should read, study, meditate, and apply God’s Word. This should be our consuming passion! How far is this mentality from “clearing your mind?” It runs in the polar opposite direction. In fact Paul makes some very hard-hitting statements about what we are to think and meditate about. Consider the following statements:

“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Cor 10:5).

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Phil 4:8).

The Christian should strive to bring every thought in obedience to Christ. We should think about God and His gifts to us. We should think about what is “commendable,” he says. And we should be careful to not think about things that are of the world or in the vein of our old way of thinking. Seeking to clear the mind in meditation, as some psychologists and Eastern spiritual gurus suggest, gives Satan an opportunity to implant sinful ideas into our minds. I shudder at John’s comment about Judas during the Last Supper: “During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him” (John 13:2). Satan gained access to Judas’s heart through his mind. And it certainly occurred because Judas’s mind was never renewed and because he failed to guard it.

The Mind and the Life of Prayer

So what happens when we are driving or sitting on our porch in the morning, and we are not intently thinking about anything? Thoughts constantly pop-up in our heads. What I have been arguing is that we should then filter these thoughts through the rubric of God’s Word. But then let me suggest something proactively. Paul says to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess 5:17). Obviously, this is a general statement. The entirety of your life should be described as a “praying life” is the main idea. When we have moments when we are not engaged in critical thinking, conversations, and the study of God’s Word, our minds in those moments should turn to prayer to the Holy One. Our minds should be lifted up to Heaven. We should commune with God in our minds! Paul even says precisely this: “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Col 3:2).

So no, we are never to empty our minds. That gives Satan a foothold. Instead, we are to use our minds to meditate on the things of God. Things that are good and pleasing to Him. We are then to exercise our minds in prayer. Always communing and thinking of our Master. There is no room for an “empty mind” in the Christian life!