Minding Your Thoughts
A Biblical Overview of Obtaining and Maintaining a Biblical Thought Life
I Peter 1:13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
The Apostle Peter uses an ancient saying of gird up the loins as a metaphor. This is the only time this phrase is used in the New Testament. It is interesting to note however that the phrase Gird up thy loins is used five times in the Old Testament. Three of those times it is used by God Himself, twice to Job and once to Jeremiah. The term literally means to gather together your long flowing, loose fitting robe close to your body, tighten the robe around you because you are about to undertake some work. The ancients wore robes that could become a hindrance to physical labor so they would gird them up.
The Old Testament is physical wherein the New Testament is spiritual. Peter employs the use of this physical preparation for work to illustrate the New Testament spiritual preparation for work. In the opening verses of this book Peter reviews the Gospel, the future inheritance that is reserved in Heaven for God’s people, manifold temptations, and the trial of faith that are common to all believers. He uses the word wherefore as a bridge to bring the reader into the importance of the spiritual work of the mind.
The metaphor of gird up the loins means to prepare your mind for spiritual work. The word loins speaks of the hip area of the body. There are two aspects of this physical anatomical region that have significant spiritual meaning. One is that this is normally the strongest part of the body; the mind is to be the strongest part of the Christian. And the loin area is also the reproductive portion of the human body. Likewise, the Christian mind is to be strong, and concerned with bringing others to new birth in, and through, Christ’s Gospel. If the believer’s mind is not girded up, it may become a hindrance to the spiritual work God has for one to perform. The overall purpose of these Minding Your Thoughts devotions is to assist each reader to gird up the loins of our mind.
May the Lord bless and be pleased with your thought life today.
Dr. William T. Howe
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