Lessons from the Gospels – Heart of the Matter
Today, a part of a Don Henley/Eagles song came to mind:
I've been tryin' to get down
To the heart of the matter
But my will gets weak
And my thoughts seem to scatter
But I think it's about
Forgiveness, forgiveness
The heart of the matter in the Christian walk is forgiveness. Without the forgivenesss of God through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, there is no hope for us. Forgiveness is the heart of God and we are saved from eternal death by it
Jesus had plenty to say about our hearts too. Let’s examine our hearts through His words.
Matthew 15:8 [NIV] " 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”
Why would the people of God simply pay lip service to Him? Jesus says that can happened when our treasure, our dreams, and our goals, are not laser focused on the hope of the future.
Matthew 6:21 [NIV] “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
We do not want to be “just going through the motions” of walking through life in tune (thought, word, and deed) with God’s will for us, while being distracted by the next shiny thing we could learn, earn, do or be in this life. And we definitely don’t want to be distracted by some political bruhaha or doomsday news prediction about what “they” are going to do if we don’t stop them.
One way we can tell if our hearts are not in the right place is by considering what comes out of our mouths. Gossip? Prejudice? Lies? Judgmental phrases?
Matthew 15:18-20 [NKJV] 18 "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. 19 "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. 20 "These are [the things] which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."
What is in our hearts comes out in our words and actions – good or evil.
Luke 6:45 [NIV] “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”
So, what does God really want from us? Everything.
Mark 12:30 [NIV] “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”
Our WHOLE hearts. ALL of our love. EVERY corner of our minds. EVERY part of our souls. ALL of our strength. He wants it all.
Our relationships must be passed through the filter of giving everything to God. Our jobs must be passed through the filter of giving everything to God. Our worship must be passed through the filter of giving everything to God. And so forth.
That kind of life is one that begins with a heart close to God – a heart entirely given to Him in whole-heart devotion and focus.
Mark 12:30 [NIV] “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”
God wants our whole hearts and when we give them to Him, everything else falls into line.
And THAT is the heart of the matter.
I welcome your comments and questions. You can write me now in the comments section, or any time at Nancy@DynamicChristianMinistries.org