RENEWED (Ephesians 4:23; Romans 12:2; Matthew 12:34-35; Luke 6:45)

MAKE THE CHANGE

EPHESIANS 4:23 says, "...be renewed in the spirit of your mind" (KJV).

JOB 33:24 contains the only other use of the word, in all of scriptures. The word 'renewed' appears only once in the New Testament, and is found only once in the OT [Old Testament], in the LXX [Greek translation of the OT scriptures], in Job 33:24, where the text reads, "...He shall hold (him) to not fall into death, and he shall renew his body as (new) plaster upon a wall...". The idea conveyed is that the plaster is new, not old; describing the concept of 'renewing'.

TRANSLATIONS (Ephesians 4:23)

 "...be made new in the spirit, in your minds". (This emphasizes that the mind is 'made new' or renewed).

"...but you are being renewed by the spirit, in your mind" (Ephesians, Hoehner).

"...the mind is being renewed by the Spirit" (Ephesians, Arnold).

PRESENT TENSE

The verb (ananeousthai), 365, is in the present tense, referring to an ongoing process (Ephesians, Thielman). "The present tense suggests that the renewal of the mind is a repeated process throughout the believer's life..." (Ephesians, Hoehner)

RENEWED

(ἀνανεόω), ananeóō, 365, from (aná), 303, 'again', and (neóō), n.f., 'to renew'. The word has an imperative sense. The Greek (ananeousthai) implies “...the continued renewal..." or continuous action. The implication is that the renewal moves from something 'old' to something 'new'.

ROMANS 12:2 says, "...be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what (is) that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God". (KJV).

ROMANS 12:2 is the classic text on being 'transformed' (metamorphoo, 3339), [like the caterpillar to the butterfly], which is the same word used when Jesus was 'transfigured' (Matt.17:2; Mk. 9:2), or when the scripture speaks of us being 'changed' into the same image as the Lord, from glory to glory, by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Cor.3:18), when we behold His glory, this seems to indicate looking at the 'mirror' of the scriptures. This is similar to how James refers to the contrast between 'hearers' and 'doers' of the Word, where the 'doers' actually see who they really are in the 'mirror' of the Word, and walk according to the image of themselves that the Word reflects, which would indicate who we are in Christ; what we have in Christ; and what we can do in Christ.

MATTHEW 12:34-35 says, "...out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good person out of the good treasure of the heart brings forth good things; and an evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things."

LUKE 6:45 says, "A good person out of the good treasure of their heart brings forth what is good; and an evil person out of the evil treasure of their heart brings forth what is evil; for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks."

ABUNDANCE

The word 'abundance' is (perisseuma), 4051, which means, not just a 'majority', but the idea is an overflowing of the container, so that it is full to capacity and spilling over. [See Overwhelming Overflow]. In other words, whatever you 'cram' into your mind will not only fill your life but also dictate its direction, success or failure, positive or negative.

ZIG ZIGLAR is quoted as saying, "You can change where you are, and you can change what you are, by changing what goes into your mind."

GOOD STUFF

You put the good stuff in; you get the good stuff out!

You are God's Best and God's Best is Yours