The Pre-Occupied Mind!

May 7, 2026

The Pre-Occupied Mind!

The man is a spiritual guide for spiritual seekers and he is a teacher for those who believe and are eager to learn more about God.  He is a very intelligent man with extensive study and knowledge in the areas of spirituality, theology, and religion.

And yet, his mind is so pre-occupied with his own understanding, his own knowledge, and his own wisdom that he struggles to understand the simple Truth that Jesus shares with him. 

A conversation with the Son of God in the dark of night on a lonesome street in first century Jerusalem does not seem to convince him of the necessity of being born again into a new relationship with the Lord God.

His mind is so full of his own theological constructs, his own religious traditions, and his own spiritual opinions that he cannot grasp what Jesus is telling him about the love of God, the need for a changed heart, and the salvation that leads to eternal life.  

The man’s name is Nicodemus.  He is a highly respected teacher of the Jewish faith.  And yet, he struggles to understand the things Jesus says about being born again, about being saved, and about living in a right relationship with the Lord God.

In John 3:10 Jesus says to Nicodemus; “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?”  Jesus continues in John 3:11; “Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony.”

A pre-occupied mind (i.e., a mind that is already made up!) can get in the way of trusting Jesus with all of our heart, soul, and mind (See Matthew 22:37).  The kind of conversion Jesus describes to Nicodemus requires a change in our heart and our soul and our mind. 

I encourage you take some time right now to read John 3:1-18.

Nicodemus seems to struggle most with the conversion of his mind.  He is tempted to rely more on his own understanding, trust more in his own knowledge, and depend more on his own education than what Jesus is offering to him.  Jesus tells Nicodemus about being “born from above,” about being “born of water and the Spirit,” and about being “born of the Spirit.” 

And yet, Nicodemus is so indoctrinated by what he has been taught and so entrenched in his own theological understanding that he struggles to open his heart, his soul, and his mind to the full presence of the Savior.  Sadly, Nicodemus walks away from Jesus, the Son of God, holding on to his own understanding rather than receiving Jesus as Savior and Lord.

It’s not that Nicodemus is not a spiritual person.  On the contrary, Nicodemus is a very spiritual person.  It’s just that his understanding of spiritual matters relies on his own creation rather than on God’s understanding of the spiritual life that leads to our salvation, an abundant life, and our life in heaven.

Many of my conversations eventually gravitate to the place in which the other person shares that they are a spiritual person.  If I ask them to tell me a bit more, most will often share something like; “I don’t believe in the Church, but I am a spiritual person.”

Without the Church and other believers, our spirituality will gradually morph into a theology and practice that is based on our own understanding rather than on the Truth as defined by the Lord God.  Most of the time, our understanding will either deny or ignore foundational spiritual Truth contained in the Bible.

Leaning on our own understanding is a dangerous path to walk.  It is a path that does not lead to salvation through faith in Christ and to an abundant life and to eternal life with the Lord God.  Leaning on our own understanding gradually leads us to the same place that it led Nicodemus; i.e., slowly walking away from a life with Jesus!

The Bible does not allow for you or me or anyone else to believe whatever we want as long as it does not hurt anyone.  This thinking is one of the great deceptions of the power of darkness (i.e., Satan) at work in our world.  In contrast, Jesus says; “I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Note that Jesus does not say he is one of the ways to salvation or one of the ways to an abundant life or one of the ways to eternal life.  Again, the understanding that there are many ways to God or salvation or eternal life is one of the lies of Satan.  Our own understanding often leads us away from the Lord God who we are seeking.

Here are a few questions upon which to reflect this week.

+Are you engaged in regular conversation with other Christ-followers who love you enough to challenge your spiritual understanding so you might lean more on Jesus?

+Are you participating in and praising the Lord God in worship with other Christ-followers who love the Lord with all their heart, mind, and soul?

+Are you leaning more on your own understanding and depending more on your own religious convictions than you are leaning on the person of Jesus Christ as described in the Bible?

+Have you (or are you now) slowly walking away from Jesus and the Truth of the Gospel like Nicodemus did late one night in the city of Jerusalem?  What can you do differently so you remain engaged in a life-transforming relationship with Jesus?

Opening our heart, mind, and soul to being “born from above,” being “born of water and the Spirit,” and being “born of the Spirit” will release in us an unbelievable delight in the Lord.  Maybe the time to lean even more on Jesus (and Jesus alone!) starts today. 

Take Delight In The Lord!

Doug