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As we read yesterday, one role of the Holy Spirit is to make us more like Christ. He changes our actions and behavior, and he also changes the way we think. He helps us to love and serve others as Christ did, and he changes our minds so that we think like Christ.
“Discernment” comes from the Latin word that means “to learn.” As we grow in our faith and become more like Christ, we learn what Christ loves and what he hates. We desire what he says is lovely and we turn away from what he says is ugly. This will be the sin in our own lives but also the sinful choices of this world.
We saw in John 14 that the world neither acknowledges the Holy Spirit nor knows him. How can they? He doesn’t live in them like he lives in believers. It’s no wonder that the world makes decisions, creates entertainment, and pursues goals that glorify self and diminish God. Discernment comes in when we learn to recognize how these decisions, entertainment, and goals don’t align with God’s will for our lives.
An apprentice to a plumber follows the plumber around for several years, learning on the job, absorbing not only what the plumber teaches but also the plumber’s mindset. Checking and double-checking his work. Being diligent, following the regulations carefully, and being proud of the work he does. So that by the time the apprentice is ready to become a master, she has grown in her skills and her character to be like the one who has trained her.
And so it is with us. We will grow this skill of discernment as we follow Christ, reading his word and speaking to him in prayer. We will grow more like him as we learn who he really is.
Prayer: Dear God, thank you for the promise of the helper who will teach us to be more like Christ. Help me to discern when this world presents me with a choice that is not in alignment with your will and your heart for the world. Help me to stand strong and make the right choice, to love you and to love people. Amen.