Armor of God Series – Heart Emoji

How’s your heart? Broken and bleeding out? Hard as a rock? Locked down like it’s Fort Knox? Dead rose emoji?

Today, I want to discuss heart therapy, Jesus style.

As we move through our review of the Armor of God, remember that I am taking the pieces head-to-toe, rather than in the order laid out in Ephesians 6:10-20.

Once your head is right with God’s focus, thoughts and intent, and every thought is filtered through the lens of salvation, it is time to examine our hearts.

First, let’s establish that whatever is in our hearts – good, bad or indifferent – God already knows it. Psalm 44:21 [NKJV] Would not God search this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart.

And He has given us His Holy Word to help us do the same – to know our own hearts. Hebrew 4:12 [NKJV] For the word of God [is] living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

There is nowhere for the secrets, thoughts and intents of our hearts to hide! That’s bad news if we harbor bitterness, jealousy or hatred. It’s good news if our hearts are pure.

"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

Timothy tells us that the purpose of God’s commandments is to cause us to love “from a pure heart”. [See 1 Timothy 1:5] And Psalm 24:3-4 lets us know that if we want to “stand in His holy place” we must have a pure heart.

But the thing is, sweet sisters, there is a lot going on in the world that would have our hearts breaking or turning to stone out of fear for the damage this world might hold.

Instead of either of those, God offers us the breastplate of righteousness to protect our hearts (and other vital organs) from the potential damage this world can do.

And to be perfectly clear: this is the breastplate of HIS righteousness. Not our own. We have none of our own. Romans 3:10 [NKJV] As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one;

How does God covering us with His righteousness protect us?

2 Peter 3:8-9 [NKJV] 8 But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day [is] as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slack concerning [His] promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

When we understand His righteousness is available to all, just as salvation through Jesus is available to all, we feel differently about the ugliness going on in the world. We have His heart of patience toward others – the same as He has toward us. We also have a great desire for all to come to repentance, even those we disagree with, those who harm us or those who harm our loved ones. There is no way for a stony heart to form if this is how we feel about the world around us.

It doesn’t mean we are okay with the suffering of the world – the hate and hurt and ugliness that goes on every day. It means that we are not hardened by it. We don’t respond with judgement, ugly words, demand for revenge, or hate. We are, instead, softened by compassion for others who are God’s children, no matter how broken, as God is softened by compassion for us though we sin and deserve death.

And if we do get broken-hearted about our own suffering or that of the world around us, we have this guarantee: Psalm147:3 [NKJV] He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds.

So, sweet sisters, as Matthew 6:33 advises, "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”  If we put on His righteousness, we will be able to stand in the evil day, and our hearts will remain open, and soft, no matter how hard things are and how the world rages around us.

Join me regularly for this series on the Armor of God.

I welcome your comments and questions. You can write  me in the comments section, or any time at Nancy@DynamicChristianMinistries.org