The Heart

So let's imagine just for a moment that we are there... in the temple, year 1, Jesus has just been born, and there are His parents, dedicating Him to the Lord according to the law of Moses. Here comes this fellow named Simeon...he takes Jesus in his arms, says a whole lot of interesting things, and ends with the most interesting of all. Speaking of Jesus, he says to Mary, "...and a sword will pierce even your own soul, to the end that thoughts from many hearts will be revealed."

Fast forward an unknown number of years...again we see Jesus, this time as King, and He makes this statement--"I am He who searches the hearts and minds."

Hebrews says this--"all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with Whom we have to do."
Proverbs states that "Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the Lord; how much more the hearts of men?" and, "The spirit of man is the lamp of The Lord, searching out the most inward parts." Jesus said that "from the heart of men come evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, etc. etc." The book of Jeremiah says that "the heart is wicked and deceitful above all things".

All of these things, just for beginners, tell us quite a lot. The Bible has tons more to say about the heart.

Here is what we are learning.

True spiritual warfare takes place in the heart. The heart is where God works most; it is also where the Adversary works the most. Why? Because they both know that the heart is where everything that makes a person who and what they are happens. The heart is where the formation of a person takes place. The heart is where a person's identity is formed, argued about, and debated. It is where all of the things that make a person who and what they are, are found.

So...the logical conclusion...to most affect human beings, for good or for bad--go for the heart! Proverbs is correct when it says to "guard your heart above all, for from it flow the issues of life."

If you have the fortitude, ask God to show you the truth about your heart. It can be a very eye opening experience!

...more to come...