Creation Corner
The Heart of the Matter
By Jim Doenges
Monthly Series: November 2006
Can we ever hope to have a heart like Jesus? In his book, Just Like Jesus, Max Lucado answers this question. “Ready for a surprise? You already do. … If you are in Christ, you already have the heart of Christ. … He has made your heart His home. It would be hard to say it more succinctly than Paul does: ‘Christ lives in me’ (Galatians 2:20 MSG).”
Before we consider our spiritual hearts, let’s consider our physical hearts.
Our amazing body machines are part of God’s creation. God created an amazing organ within each of us: the human heart. Our hearts are pumps that no human engineer has been able to match! Weighing less than a pound, the human heart will beat about 2.5 billion times and pump 80-million gallons of blood in an average lifetime! God designed our hearts to be so exquisitely sensitive to the changing needs of our bodies that in just seconds the output of our heart can vary from 5 to 35 liters of blood per minute.
The human heart is really two pumps in one. One pump sends blood to the lungs to pick up oxygen and release carbon dioxide (pulmonary circulation); this pump lies on the right side of the heart. The other pump receives the oxygenated blood from the lungs and sends it to the rest of the body (systemic circulation); this pump lies on the left side of the heart.
Our hearts were uniquely made. At the microscopic level, the very makeup of heart muscle is unlike any other muscle tissue in the body. Heart muscle looks different than skeletal muscle, and it is called “striated” cardiac muscle. The metabolism of cardiac muscle is also unique in our bodies. For example, the heart has the ability to utilize a carbohydrate called lactate. Lactate is produced in large amounts by skeletal muscles during exercise. Thus, during times of robust exercise when heart activity increases, the by-product of skeletal muscle contractions — lactate — is used by the heart muscle for energy production. Amazing! God did that. The heart even has its own electrical system made out of highly specialized cardiac muscle fibers (such as “Purkinje fibers,” named after a 19th century biologist). Part of that electrical system is the heart’s own pacemaker. This electrical system carefully controls the many valves in the heart and the muscle fibers within the walls of the four chambers. This allows each heart beat to be wonderfully choreographed in less than a second, and blood moves properly and efficiently through the heart.
In Christ, we have the freedom to make decisions that can honor and glorify God, or work against His will. It is now common knowledge that diets high in cholesterol and certain fats, smoking, and too much alcohol consumption cause most heart disease, which is epidemic in America. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in America. Each year, 1.2 million Americans suffer heart attacks, and about 40 percent die. Yet heart disease is almost completely preventable and results from poor decisions people make about what they eat and drink, and whether they choose to smoke or adopt a lifestyle that makes them appear to be a piece of furniture (usually attached to the couch). Many young adults think they don’t need to be concerned. However, damage to your heart can begin when you are only 20 years old. Do your decisions reflect good stewardship of the heart God gave you, or a sinful, self-centered pride that works against His plan for your life? Is Jesus Lord of all your life, or just your Sunday mornings?
Beyond the essential function of pumping blood, our hearts are spiritually important. To the Biblical writers, the heart was the center of one’s being, including the mind, will, and emotions; from the heart sprang thoughts, motivations, courage, and action. When Jesus was asked what is the greatest commandment, He responded, “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30). Note that the “heart” is listed first in the Great Commandment. The importance of the heart is a theme throughout the bible. In fact, “heart” is mentioned more than 700 times in the Bible!
How do we fulfill the Great Commandment? Open our heart to God and allow Him to fill us with His love. God’s love is the source of life. Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the fullest” (John 10:10). We love because He first loved us. Once you fill your heart with God’s love, you can be a conduit of that love to others and become obedient to 1 Peter 1:22: “love one another deeply, from the heart.” We can love others like Paul loved the people of Philippi: “it is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart” (Philippians 1:7).
Our faith originates in our heart. Consider Romans 10:9-10: “if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” Your heart is the dwelling place of the Lord: “I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in you hearts through faith” (Ephesians 3:16-17). Your heart is akin to DOS; it is the place where your underlying spiritual operating system determines all higher functions.
Perhaps the greatest barrier to connecting with God’s love is the state of our heart. In order for intimacy and a deep connection with God and with one another to occur, your heart must be open. Open hearts are vital to God’s plan. Is your heart open or closed?
Why does a heart close? One reason can be that lies become written on our heart (Jeremiah 17:1). When this happens we become afraid that the lie is true and fear develops. We react to the fear by closing our heart (see Matthew 13:15). All our sin works towards closing our heart. Jesus said, “blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8).
How do we heal our heart? Discover what lies have been written on our heart, and think about God’s truth about our heart:
- “And the secrets of his heart will be laid bare” (1 Corinthians 14:25).
- “Would not God have discovered it, since He knows the secrets of the heart?” (Psalm 44:21).
- “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts” (Psalm 139:23).
- “This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in His presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts and He knows everything” (1 John 3:19-20).
- “Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32).
We are to be spiritual stewards of our hearts, and guard it:
- “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life” (Proverbs 4:23 NLT).
- “Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34).
- “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7 NKJV).
- “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).
How can we guard our hearts? We guard them with the Word of God. “I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11). “For the word of the God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). Here are four simple steps to guarding your heart with Scripture:
(1) Identify any area in your life that does not reflect God’s love.
(2) Find a Bible verse that speaks to the area that needs changing.
(3) Memorize the verse, and say it to yourself as if you are already living it, or imagine what you would be like living the verse.
(4) Repeat the verse in your mind several times a day. “Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are away on a journey, when you are lying down and when you are getting up again” (Deuteronomy 6:7; see also Philippians 4:8-9).
A change of heart changes everything! As Max Lucado wrote in Just Like Jesus:
“Let Him live long enough in a heart, and that heart will begin to change. Portraits of hurt will be replaced by landscapes of grace. Walls of anger will be demolished and shaky foundations restored, God can no more leave a life unchanged that a mother can leave her child’s tear untouched.
“It’s not enough for Him to own you; He wants to change you. … This might explain some of the discomfort in your life. Remodeling the heart is not always pleasant. We don’t object when the Carpenter adds a few shelves, but he’s been know to gut the entire west wing. He has such high aspirations for you. God envisions a complete restoration. He won’t stop until He is finished. And He wont be finished until we have been shaped ‘along the lines of his Son’ (Romans 8:29 MSG).
“Your Creator is remaking you into the image of Christ. He wants you to be just like Jesus.”
Let Jesus live in our heart! Let His priorities govern our actions. Let His passions drive our decisions. Let His love direct our behavior. Love God with all your heart!
I am indebted to Greg and Gary Smalley for the “I Promise Seminar” they presented at Greenwood Community Church in Colorado earlier this year. I thank them for some of the inspiration and information regarding the spiritual aspects of the heart in this Creation Corner. |