The whole world wants peace of mind. A current trend in the world of psychology is called the “Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction.” It “evidence-based program that offers secular, intensive mindfulness training to assist people with stress, anxiety, depression, and pain. It is a practical approach which trains attention, allowing people to cultivate awareness and therefore enabling them to have more choice and take wise action in their lives.”1 It is a secular approach to a Biblical principle, but it will only give us temporary peace. Jesus came to provide us with the eternal peace of God, allowing us to thrive amid storms and trials. He took our mental and emotional pain on Himself when He bore the crown of thorns and died on the cross.
Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him. And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head. And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified. (Matt. 27:27-31)
Jesus endured all that pain to take away all the things that would try to destroy our mental lives. He did it so we could have peace in our hearts, and minds, and souls. Every mental infirmity mankind battles, Christ has already broken its power. We have mental peace because Jesus took the crown of thorns on his head. When we are anxious, when we are worried or stressed, we are not living in the full quality of the grace Christ died to give us.
