Heart
When you think of a 'heart' what do you think of? Perhaps you think of Valentine's Day and those cardboard boxes filled with chocolates or hard candy with goofy sayings about being someone's valentine. But the shape of that box isn't anything like the shape of the human heart – And when the Bible talks about our heart, it isn't even talking about that pump that helps circulate the blood in our bodies. No, the Bible is talking about the center of our emotions. It's talking about our brain, our mind. It's talking about our character.
Is our heart important to God? According to the Bible God looks at the heart, the mind and the character. Read what the prophet, Samuel had to say: “But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1Sam 16:7).
Is my heart unique? According to the Bible, “He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works” Psalm (33:15 NKJV). Our God is a God of variety. Each heart is like a snowflake. We're all different.
Where is God when our hearts are broken? King David wrote, “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit” (Psalm 34:18 NKJV). Even when we think we can’t go on, God can be our strength. David also wrote. “My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:26 NKJV).
Is there anybody we can trust? It’s in God's Word: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3: 5-6 NKJV).
What about when everyone says to just trust my heart? Guess what? It’s in the Bible, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it” (Jeremiah 17:9 NKJV)?
Can the Bible point out things in our heart that need changed? Yes! It’s in the Bible, “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” (Hebrews 4:12 NKJV).
What kind of heart do I need to see God? In the Beatitudes Jesus announced, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8, NKJV).
Okay, so I know what a heart is. But mine is dirty with sin. What can I do now? Paul wrote, “and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith” (Acts 15:9, NKJV). We must have faith in God's power to purify our hearts.
How do I find God? It’s in the Bible, “But from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deuteronomy 4:29, NKJV).
How can I be saved? Romans says, “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10: 9-10 NKJV).
How can we live forever? In Psalms it says, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23-24, NKJV).
How can I show God I'm truly sorry for my sins? In the book of Psalms David writes, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart— these, O God, You will not despise” (Psalm 51:17, NKJV).
How can I stop feeling so guilty about past sins? The disciple, John was inspired to write, “For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things” (1 John 3:20, NKJV).
What if my heart is too hardened? The prophet, Ezekiel wrote, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26, NKJV).
Is there anything we can do to help our heart? Psalms says, “Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You” (119:11, NKJV).
How do we get God's goodness inside of us? The Bible reads, “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,” then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more” (Hebrews 10:16-17 NKJV).
Where does the decision to do what is right start? It’s in God's Word. “But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself” (Daniel 1:8, NKJV).
Is our heart involved in worship? Jesus warned, “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me” (Matthew 15:8, NKJV).
Where should the thoughts of our mind be? Jesus tells us, “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:20-21 NKJV).
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