By R.W. McAlister
The Bible teaches that the heart is that part of us upon which the state of our souls depends. “Out of it are the issues of life” (Prov. 4:23). The heart is the man. It’s the seat of all spiritual life, and health, and strength, and growth. It’s the hinge pin in the condition of man’s soul. If the heart is alive and obedient to God in all things, a person is a living Christian. If the heart is dead, the man is spiritually dead before God. The heart is the man! The Bible teaches that it’s not just what a person says and professes, and where they go on Sunday, and how much money they put in the collection plate. The heart of man – his attitude – is also of great importance. Prov. 23:7: “As he thinketh in his heart, so is he.”
For another thing, the Bible teaches that the heart is that part of us at which God looks closely. I Sam. 16:7: “Man looketh at the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” Prov. 21:2: “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes; but the Lord pondereth the hearts.” Man is often content with the outward part of religion, with outward morality, outward correctness, outward use of courtesy, outward attendance at the Lord’s house. But the eyes of the Lord God look much further. He regards our motives. He “weigheth the spirits” (Prov. 16:2). I Sam. 2:3 says of God, “By Him actions are weighed.” He says Himself in Jer. 17:10, “I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins.”
The Bible teaches that the heart is the first and foremost thing which God asks man to give Him. In Prov. 23:26, He says, “My son, give me thine heart.” We may give God a bowed head and a solemn face, our bodily presence in His house, and a loud “Amen,” but until we give God our heart, we give Him nothing at all. I’m not sure who gets credit for it, but I once read a quote concerning a young lady’s heart that goes, “A girl’s heart should be so lost in God that a guy should have to seek Him in order to find her.” That’s how it should be for all of us – God should have our heart’s devotion. Dear Friend, does He have yours? Give it some thought.
The Bible teaches that the heart is that part of us upon which the state of our souls depends. “Out of it are the issues of life” (Prov. 4:23). The heart is the man. It’s the seat of all spiritual life, and health, and strength, and growth. It’s the hinge pin in the condition of man’s soul. If the heart is alive and obedient to God in all things, a person is a living Christian. If the heart is dead, the man is spiritually dead before God. The heart is the man! The Bible teaches that it’s not just what a person says and professes, and where they go on Sunday, and how much money they put in the collection plate. The heart of man – his attitude – is also of great importance. Prov. 23:7: “As he thinketh in his heart, so is he.”
For another thing, the Bible teaches that the heart is that part of us at which God looks closely. I Sam. 16:7: “Man looketh at the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” Prov. 21:2: “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes; but the Lord pondereth the hearts.” Man is often content with the outward part of religion, with outward morality, outward correctness, outward use of courtesy, outward attendance at the Lord’s house. But the eyes of the Lord God look much further. He regards our motives. He “weigheth the spirits” (Prov. 16:2). I Sam. 2:3 says of God, “By Him actions are weighed.” He says Himself in Jer. 17:10, “I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins.”
The Bible teaches that the heart is the first and foremost thing which God asks man to give Him. In Prov. 23:26, He says, “My son, give me thine heart.” We may give God a bowed head and a solemn face, our bodily presence in His house, and a loud “Amen,” but until we give God our heart, we give Him nothing at all. I’m not sure who gets credit for it, but I once read a quote concerning a young lady’s heart that goes, “A girl’s heart should be so lost in God that a guy should have to seek Him in order to find her.” That’s how it should be for all of us – God should have our heart’s devotion. Dear Friend, does He have yours? Give it some thought.
- R. W. McAlister preaches for the Anna Church of Christ in
Anna, IL.He may be contacted through the congregation's
website: http://www.annachurchofchrist.com/
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