Dead Ends and the Finite Mind
As I read the final chapters of Romans, I was struck by how Paul described how the law of Moses had prepared God’s chosen people for the coming of Christ but became dead to them because of Christ’s earthly ministry and glorious resurrection. I encourage you to read chapters 7-16 and examine how Paul attempts to convince the Roman saints and us to move from a carnal to a spiritual mindset.
Living and practicing within inferior or temporary moral and ethical frameworks can prepare us for a higher law that comes when we can accept it. Each necessary stage of development moves us forward but becomes obsolete and needs to be supplanted by superior thought, more refined action, and increased focus.
We all start our mortal probation as infants, helpless and innocent. Progressing through different stages of development, we become more complex in thought and action. When we increase in knowledge and understanding, we develop into mature adults. It is natural for most of us to want to grow up faster and skip some steps in the process, but when we do, we find ourselves lost or overwhelmed. Conversely, some get comfortable in a place and don’t want to move on. I am sure we all know people who never get out of a high school mentality and attitude. In each case, people are either unprepared or unwilling to accept the responsibilities of adulthood.
All of us, in some way, resist change and growth. We may not get stuck in childhood or high school, but it is easy to become satisfied with a status that, we think, is as good as it will ever get, whether we are miserable, happy, or somewhere in between. We probably reach a standstill in life because we lack vision or hope. We could imagine such times as reaching a dead end.
This state of non-progression is the product of a finite mind. However, I cannot accept that our minds are meant to be limited by either time or because we are part of a temporal existence. The greatest thinkers seem to be able to transcend the bounds of shared understanding, and those who live by faith get glimpses of the infinite.
Accepting that we are not meant to understand eternal realities and mysteries is a mistake. It is a frustrating doctrine that teaches us that God is incomprehensible or beyond our understanding. The whole purpose of Christ’s ministry was, and still is, to bring us to a complete understanding of the mysteries of godliness. People also say it is impossible to be perfect, but Jesus said, “Be ye therefore perfect…” It was not meant only to be a motivation to emulate our Father in Heaven; it was and is attainable at some point. If we fall prey to the idea that we will never be one with God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, then the prayer offered by the Savior, as recorded in John 17, was vain.
Paul uses the heroes of the Old Testament many times to illustrate the concept of the dead law in contrast to the gospel of the Living Christ. The Jews constantly called themselves the children of Abraham, as if that was their salvation. The problem with that thinking was that all the heroes of Israel were dead; Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and David were all dead. But Jesus of Nazareth was not like any of the great ones of the past; though he was crucified, he rose from the dead and appeared to multiple individuals and groups, leaving no doubt that he lives.
So what is the significance of a living Christ? He gives us a way to live and a path to follow that has no dead end, and it literally leads us to God. Not only living in heaven with the Father, but being like Him. There is no other possible explanation for the doctrines of the Gospel of Jesus Christ than the transformational process it promises. Most Christian religions place limits that would have us fall short of the glory of God, a dead end. They deny the purpose of Christ’s teachings and resurrection.
You may think I am making a big deal out of this, but it is all to make a point that whatever or wherever we are now needs an upgrade. We must move on from limiting ideas and practices leading to dead ends. We should ask ourselves two questions. If I keep doing things the same way, will it lead me to a dead end? Will the pursuit of material things ultimately become a deadly practice? If we do not believe in eternity, following a dead law filled with meaningless rituals and sacrifices is acceptable.
However, it is imperative to do the best with what we know. We can use incomplete knowledge and understanding to prepare us for a higher way. Using Jesus as our guide is the best we can do. Even when we don’t entirely understand or find it challenging to keep the commandments, our faith in Christ makes us alive in Him. This is why Paul taught the Romans that it is by faith that we are saved.
The divine help we receive is called grace. Grace is an undeserved or unearned gift, but just like any gift, we must accept it. It is not forced upon us; otherwise, we would not appreciate or use it as intended. It is like getting a birthday present and never opening it. We can do nothing to earn grace, but taking the gift and opening it is a lifetime of faithful actions. 2 Peter 3:18 reads, “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever. Amen.” A more excellent knowledge of the Savior comes only by action. So while grace is freely given, it is by works that we receive it. Faith, works, and grace are complimentary and integral to each other.
Finally, while the terms mind and brain are sometimes used interchangeably, I would like to differentiate them to make an argument of false limitations placed on us by academia, science, and religion. Our brains have limited capacity and cognitive abilities despite the billions of neurons and electrical and chemical reactions that control bodily functions, emotions, and process sensory emotions. Our minds, on the other hand, are capable of much more. They are not physical entities like the brain, which houses our thoughts, emotions, beliefs, perceptions, memories, consciousness, and, most importantly, faith.
Perhaps I am being too hard on the learned among us or misinterpreting them because of my ignorance, but I think we give too much credence to their sophistry. When we are told that we are incapable of understanding God or ourselves because of the physical limitations of our brain or that we are not meant to comprehend such things, I say that is not true. While our brains are finite, our minds are infinite.
Our spirits, like the Spirit of God, are eternal. If we follow Jesus to the cross and resurrection, each bearing burdens of practices that will lead to dead ends, we must allow the old ways to die and be replaced by living ones. We cannot allow the letter of the law to overwhelm the spirit of it.
We must remain current with the never-ending words and works of God. The only way we can accomplish it is through constant revelation. Living prophets provide general instructions for all people that we must heed for the world’s benefit. Personal revelation is specific to us and will lead us on a path without dead ends.
When Paul announced the death of the law, he was speaking to the letter, not the spirit. The people who understood the spirit of the law immediately accepted Jesus and his resurrection and became Christians. The law of Moses was preparatory for those individuals. Those who saw life and salvation in the letter of the law stumbled and refused the salvation that was plainly manifest to them in the law. We must be careful not to be blinded by relying on practicing religion, but instead using the practices and rituals as a means of spiritual understanding.
Our pursuits and practices, even those that eventually come to an end, can be used as stepping stones to further progress and open our minds to unlimited new possibilities, if we live in the spirit of the law.