GIVE YOUR WHOLE HEART TO GOD!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY JULY 24, 2024.

SUBJECT : GIVE YOUR WHOLE HEART TO GOD!

Memory verse: "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God." (Psalm 42 vs  1.)

READ: Psalms 119 vs 34 - 36:

119:34: Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart.

119:35: Make me walk in the path of Your commandments; for I delight in it.

119:36: Incline my heart to Your testimonies, and not to covetousness. 

INTIMATION:

The heart is the chief organ of physical life. The heart is used figuratively for the hidden springs of the personal life. It is the custodian of man’s entire mental and moral activity, both the rational and the emotional elements. The Bible describes human depravity as in the heart, because sin is a principle which has its seat in the centre of man’s inward life, and then defiles the whole circuit of his action. 

On the other hand, Scripture regards the heart as the sphere of Divine influence. The heart, as lying deep within, contains ‘the hidden man’—the real man. It represents the true character but conceals it. It denotes the seat of physical life, moral nature, and spiritual life.

God desires a heartily relationship with us, hence His demand on us to seek, serve, and love Him with all your heart. As I said, the heart contains ‘the hidden man.’ A wise person once said, "When God measures you, He puts the tape around your heart, not your head." How is your heart relationship with God? We work hard to keep our outward appearance attractive, but what is deep down in our heart (where others can’t see) is more important to God. What are you like inside? God desires the spiritual heart relationship with His children; where they will seek Him with all their heart. 

Unfortunately many people never really seek Him with all their heart. They are content to learn as a child would. That is, learning and following rules in order to avoid big problems, but not as willing to spend any great period of time with the Lord in the free time they have. There is little delight in the relationship, only obedience out of necessity. They have salvation from penalty of sin, but they will enter heaven "through the flames" (First Corinthians 3 vs 15). They have yet to cross that line of spiritual familial relationship into spiritual heart relationship.

Spiritual heart relationship can best be explained through a human illustration. Some children grow up in families where their father is a strong disciplinarian. They obey because they do not want to suffer the wrath of their father. Although they may even respect the father and his accomplishments, they want nothing to do with him on a personal basis. It is not unusual for such children to dread the return of their father in the evening. As adults they spend as little time with him as possible. There is a physical relationship with obedience, but not the close heart relationship. Fear and mistrust are barriers to their ever being close.

On the other hand, some have fathers who have definite standards and rules to obey, but the relationship is one of love and respect. They are excited when Dad walks through the door at night. They love the weekends because Dad can be with them and they do fun things together. Such children obey because they love and trust their father, not because they fear him or the consequences of disobedience. 

In our relationship with God we can respond and obey either out of love or out of fear.

When we realize God's desire to be our Faithful Companion in our relationship, we find Him less an authority figure and more a desirable companion Who is no less in charge in our lives. We now realize He is on our side, how much He wants the best for us and how absolutely dependable He is. The inborn unhealthy fear of God that stems from our sin nature and is often stirred up by the enemy of our souls, is weakening as we are getting a clearer picture of who He really is.

Throughout our lives, we look for those rare individuals with whom we feel relaxed and comfortable and can share our heart and our secrets and know they will not betray us, who will always be there for us, and in whom we can have confidence; individuals we can respect and who in turn admire us and want us to be successful.

God wants to be in that type of role with us, but He is even better than any earthly companion. For God is a perfect companion: the One who knows the road we are traveling on and all of the problems that lay ahead; the One who can give us dependable advice; the One who wants to share our life with us and will not put us down when we stumble; the One who will never desert us if we fail or do not live up to His standards. He accepts us just as we are, wants to be with us forever, is able to help us be all that we can be, and can enable us either to avoid or overcome every obstacle or problem in our lives.

So, let your heart relationship be like that of David as indicated in our memory verse; the man God testified thus, "a man after My own heart, which shall do all My will." ( Acts 13 vs 22.)  In the passage we read today, Moses had such heart relationship with God, that he enjoyed the presence of God most times. God spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. 

Prayer: Abba Father, my utmost heart desire is an intimate heartily relationship with You; to seek, serve, and love You with all my heart. Build in me Your steadfast spirit, and uphold me with Your right spirit. Endue me with the strength to accomplish this, in Jesus' Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!