Lately I have been convicted by the Holy Spirit to spend
significant time studying and meditating on the subject matter of “the heart”.
There is a heavy emphasis on the heart throughout scripture, and particularly
in the teachings of Jesus (“kardia”,
which is Greek for heart, is used 40+ times in the Gospels alone). None
carrying so great a force as when Jesus declares in Matthew 22:37, “You shall
love the Lord your God with all your heart...” This statement alone
should be enough compel each of us into a dialogue with the Holy Spirit over
the issue of “the heart”.
That being said, I’ll let you in on something I have been
learning – my hope being that it provokes you to go deeper on this subject as
well.
“For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him.” (2 Chron. 16:9, NIV)
What does it mean to have a heart that is fully committed to
God? I’m certain that I do not have the full answer to that question yet;
nevertheless, there is one particular thing that I feel that the Lord has
opened my eyes to that I want to share: a key aspect of having a heart that is
fully committed to God is carrying the proper atmosphere of heart to receive
truth (by “atmosphere of heart” I mean the prevailing attitude that your heart
possesses). The different attitudes one’s heart can carry is illustrated
through a parable of Jesus found in Luke 8:4-15. I highly recommend reading
through and meditating upon this passage. But what I want to focus on is a
short statement made in James that teaches us specifically what this
“atmosphere of heart” ought to be:
“…receive with meekness (humility) the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” (Js. 1:21)
The proper atmosphere of heart that we are to carry is
meekness/humility (there are slight variations in the definitions of these two
words, but for this purpose they are practically the same). Put simply, to
“receive with meekness” implies a surrendering of your rights while elevating
the rights of another. Keeping in mind that, among many other things, the Holy Spirit has been given to us in order to "guide us into all truth" (Jn. 16:13) we can come to a conclusion on what God is communicating to us through this verse in James. In a nutshell, what I believe God wants to teach us is that in
receiving the Word of God, one must surrender their “right” to put their interpretation what
the Word says and instead allow the Holy Spirit His right to impart to you what is
being said; all so that you would experience the salvation that the Word of God
is capable of, and that God would receive the glory He is deserving of.
This impartation by the Holy Spirit will happen as we give ourselves to meditation upon God's Word. Meditation is a diligent search through a humble heart and a directed mind. In contrast with other religions where people are taught to empty their minds as a means of meditation, the bible teaches us to fill our minds with God's Word while carrying a humble heart that allows for the work of the Holy Spirit.
This impartation by the Holy Spirit will happen as we give ourselves to meditation upon God's Word. Meditation is a diligent search through a humble heart and a directed mind. In contrast with other religions where people are taught to empty their minds as a means of meditation, the bible teaches us to fill our minds with God's Word while carrying a humble heart that allows for the work of the Holy Spirit.
There is so much to say about this subject - and I already feel like I am rambling - so I am going to end with this: Is your heart fully committed to God? Do you carry the proper atmosphere of heart for encounter
with God? I want to encourage you not to settle for anything less
today. Our heart was built for divine encounter. Carry the proper atmosphere of heart as you fill your mind with the Word of God and experience the transformation
the Lord Himself works in your life.
Be Blessed!
Andrew
PS - Comments are be helpful and appreciated!
