Where’s your Heart at? Part 2
Bruce Chant
generation-j - Pulse
16/05/2003
Where’s your heart at?
“Above all else, guard your heart, for it
is the wellspring of life.”
It is out of the overflow of what
is in our heart that leads to how we live our life. We like to blame other
factors – other people leading us to sin, others sinning against us,
opportunities to sin we find ourself in, we were set up, we were tired and
depressed and we couldn’t help it.
It is none of these things – it is
what is already within that simply springs out; from the heart – these things
come; good or bad.
Matthew 12:34b “For out of the
overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.”
Proverbs 27:19 “As water
reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man.”
If you want to know what is going on in your heart – just look at your life, and take stock. Your life reflects your heart.
Where is your heart at
checklist.
1 Chronicles 28:8-9
”Be careful to follow all the commands of the LORD your God, that you may
possess this good land and pass it on as an inheritance to your descendants
forever. "And you, my son Solomon,
acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion
and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands
every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but
if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.”
Acknowledgement
–
Do you acknowledge God in
your life?
–
Proverbs says that the fool
says there is no God. The fool lives life as though there is no God, with no
consequences, no judgements.
–
When things are good and bad,
do you acknowledge God?
–
Acknowledge God before man –
that is where we live our lives.
–
How do you acknowledge God
(claimed to be your Lord and King) as your Lord and King with time, money,
gifts etc.
o
Do you pray over important
decisions affecting your life?
o
Do you seek God over how to
be involved in the local church?
o
Do you acknowledge God with
your money, giving? Or do you waste it frivolously?
Service
–
How are you serving? How are
lives being blessed?
–
Service of God in a
wholehearted manner is an indicator of where your heart is at.
–
Because we never mind doing
something we love. Are you going to the footy today? Gee I don’t know. I’m
really tired. You don’t know how busy I am. I’ve got an assignment. I had to
work late yesterday I just need to have sometime for myself etc.
–
Serving God and His purpose
shows we are sold out to Him. In John 8:12 Jesus says “Follow me” –
Following means the following things:
o
As a soldier carrying out
orders from a superior officer
o
As a slave serving the wishes
of his master
o As a student to a teacher
o As a citizen living under a king and His laws
o As one having understanding of a concept and applying that to your life.
Serving
as a concept is unpopular because we like to maintain the illusion that we are
in control and God is here to serve us. That is wrong – and if we are under
that illusion we need to question where our heart is at.
Wholehearted devotion
–
This is the crux of the
matter, where’s your heart at? We all devote ourselves to something. You can
not be partially devoted to something – you either are or you aren’t.
– Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.
– This is the key – if you are delighting yourself in the Lord you won’t need to force yourself to pray or to read the word or to want to change your ways.
– Why? Because by delighting yourself in God you’re heart is being renewed and changed and God says he will grant you the desires of your heart; if you delight yourself in Him.
– We can enjoy God – we are in Him and Him in us. God has given us a new heart to enjoy God. Our new heart has new desires.
– Why do you love God, why do you read your Bible, why do you pray, why do you change your ways, why do you preach the good news, why do you seek your friends salvation? Because you love it!!
– You don’t need to disciple me and give me rules so that I will love my wife, I do it anyway – because I love it!
– “Love God and do what ever you want” – Martin Luther. Because if we are in God and enjoy God – He will give us His desires.
A willing mind
–
A willing mind is important
–
Proverbs 23:7 “For as he thinks in his heart, so
is he.”
–
Meditate upon the word; not
in the eastern sense of emptying yourself and becoming one with nothing, but
filling your heart and mind with the goodness of God’s word. Meditate – Rom
12:2 “be transformed by the renewing of your mind” .
Motive
–
God understands us because He
created and made us for his purpose
–
Won’t give you more than you
can bear but he also check how you handle what He give you.
–
Motive for outward actions is
as important as the outward actions.
–
Faith without works is dead,
but works without love is legalism
Seek Him
–
When our hearts are set on
God He reveals him self to us.
–
Revelation: Seeking God is
firstly done through repentance.
–
Hebrews 4:15-16
15For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our
weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16Let
us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and
find grace to help in time of need.
–
God knows our temptations. Why do we need grace and
mercy? Because of our sin. Who has dealt with our sin? Jesus. What do we need
to be cleansed of our sin? Repent. The starting point for seeking God is
repentence.
–
Knowing God brings
incredible joy, the greatest joy.
–
Story about the liberal Professor and the old man and the Apple –
was that apple sweet or sour? Don’t know, didn’t taste it. Same with Jesus –
“neither have you tasted Jesus”.
–
Be active in your pursuit of
God in your life, but understand it is only by His grace we find Him.
–
Are you hungry? Are you
thirsty?
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