1I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to walk worthily of the calling with which you were called, 2with all lowliness and humility, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3being eager to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit, even as you also were called in one hope of your calling, 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in us all. 7But to each one of us, the grace was given according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8Therefore he says,
“When he ascended on high,
he led captivity captive,
and gave gifts to people.”
9Now this, “He ascended”, what is it but that he also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.
11He gave some to be apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, shepherds and teachers; 12for the perfecting of the saints, to the work of serving, to the building up of the body of Christ, 13until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a full grown man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14that we may no longer be children, tossed back and forth and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in craftiness, after the wiles of error; 15but speaking truth in love, we may grow up in all things into him who is the head, Christ, 16from whom all the body, being fitted and knit together through that which every joint supplies, according to the working in measure of each individual part, makes the body increase to the building up of itself in love.
17This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, 18being darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardening of their hearts. 19They, having become callous, gave themselves up to lust, to work all uncleanness with greediness. 20But you didn’t learn Christ that way, 21if indeed you heard him and were taught in him, even as truth is in Jesus: 22that you put away, as concerning your former way of life, the old man that grows corrupt after the lusts of deceit, 23and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24and put on the new man, who in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of truth.
25Therefore, putting away falsehood, speak truth each one with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. 26“Be angry, and don’t sin.” Don’t let the sun go down on your wrath, 27and don’t give place to the devil. 28Let him who stole steal no more; but rather let him labor, producing with his hands something that is good, that he may have something to give to him who has need. 29Let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth, but only what is good for building others up as the need may be, that it may give grace to those who hear. 30Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, outcry, and slander be put away from you, with all malice. 32And be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving each other, just as God also in Christ forgave you.
Arm yourselves with the same way of thinking that Jesus had. This means how you feel about the whole idea of suffering. Do you believe that you are immune to suffering? To arm yourself means to PUT ON PROTECTION. And with what can you protect yourself? We can prepare for suffering by adopting an attitude that equips us to endure it. In 1 Corinthians 2:16, Paul quotes Isaiah 40:13 and tells all believers, "We have the mind of Christ." This means you participate in and share in the plan, purpose, and perspective of Jesus. It means seeing things from His perspective. That is way easier said than done. But Peter and Paul both tell us that it is possible to arm ourselves with the same mind, and to have the mind of Christ. Paul fleshes this out in the following passage.
13 We also speak these things, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual things. 14 Now the natural man doesn’t receive the things of God’s Spirit, for they are foolishness to him; and he can’t know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But he who is spiritual discerns all things, and he himself is to be judged by no one. 16 “For who has known the mind of the Lord that he should instruct him?” But we have Christ’s mind. (1 Cor 2:13-16 WEB)
Having the mind of Christ means we have an intimate understanding of God's plan for the world: to bring order rather than chaos, to bring redemption rather than condemnation, and to reconcile all of humanity to Him. It means understanding that God "seeks and saves the lost" (Luke 19:10). It means we have humility, compassion, and a love for one another that the world cannot understand.
To have the mind of Christ, one must first come to a saving knowledge of Jesus. After salvation, we come under the influence of the Holy Spirit, who indwells us, enlightens us, and empowers us with wisdom and the Mind of Christ. We have one discipline that we must follow: yielding ourselves to the leading of the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30) and allowing Him to do transformative work in our lives. (Romans 12:1-2) That yielding is where we perform our part, making the hard choices to say "not my will but thine." The same mind that was in Christ Jesus is within every believer. Reader, ask God to help you to see things from His perspective. In doing so, you will have the Mind of Christ.