Who is Jesus? #159

Ten Things Jesus Knows About You

Your Heart

  

How do you feel about Jesus knowing your heart? Hum. I wonder if it stung the Pharisees when Jesus said (Matthew 15:8), “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” I wonder if it stung or if it went right over their heads? What do you mean “heart,” Jesus? What does that have to do with anything? We say all the things that sound right. We do all the things that look right.  We come to church three times a week. What more could you possibly want? Paul reminds us through our Ephesian brethren that singing that is not from the heart is not really singing (5:19), or that is all it is - singing - and not worship.

The fact that Jesus knows our hearts can be either quite unsettling or quite reassuring. In Matthew 9:4 Jesus asks some supposed experts in the law, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts?” How does that make us feel? Do you ever have those “wrong” thoughts in your heart? Surely we all do from time to time. How do you think that Jesus reacts to those?

After a discussion on money Jesus says to the Pharisees (Luke 16:15), “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight.” So, no matter what men may think of us on the outside, Jesus looks down deep – into our hearts. Let’s look at the words of Paul in Romans 8:26-27

        Also the Spirit helps us with our weakness. We do not

        know how to pray as we should. But the Spirit himself

        speaks to God for us, even begs God for us with deep

        feelings that words cannot explain. God can see what is

        in people’s hearts. And He knows what is in the mind of

        the Spirit, because the Spirit speaks to God for His people

        in the way God wants (NCV).

This verse obviously teaches that when we do not know what to say as we approach God that the Holy Spirit steps in to communicate what is in our hearts to God. But I wonder if there might be a little more here.

Just because there is a moment – a moment of weakness - in my life where maybe my heart isn’t quite right -though generally speaking it usually is - have I somehow blown it? Could that be a moment of intercession for the Spirit to remind God that we typically have our hearts in the right place and that we need to be forgiven for this momentary lapse?

Since Jesus looks at our heart it makes sense that Satan will go to work right there, and every now and then he will gain a slight and momentary victory.  The Spirit then kicks into action in our behalf before God. We, then, are encouraged to make the correction and continue our journey of spiritual transformation.

The fact that Jesus knows our hearts is really only alarming to those who want to live hypocritically - or at least it should be alarming. For those who want to live closer to Him every day, we look forward to those opportunities to experience a heart correction from Him who knows our hearts.

Who is Jesus? #158

Ten Things Jesus Knows About You

Your Perseverance

I know what it said over the door that led into the football locker room in high school. “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” I am not sure how effective that was for our record as a football team. We never had a winning season. It does sound pretty good, though, doesn’t it? The tough are going to hang in there.

Jesus told the church at Thyatira (Revelation 2:19) that among other things, “I know your perseverance.” He doesn’t say whether it was a high level of perseverance, which we assume from the words that follow, or a low level of perseverance. He just says He knows.

Some versions use the word patience for hypomone. Even with that translation it carries with it the idea of active patience and not passive patience. Passivity is the attitude that all this stuff is happening and I am just going to go with the flow – not really perseverance at all. Activity says I am going to do all I can to stand against whatever it is that is coming against me and if I am a follower I am going to call on all the strength I can get from every member of the Godhead to help me.

I am not sure that many of us live under the flag of perseverance. I can think of some positive examples. A woman or child perseveres under the onslaught of an abusive mate until the point that it simply cannot be tolerated any more. Maybe an employee perseveres under the tirades of an overbearing boss knowing that someday one or the other of them will not be there, or because it is a good paying job and provides for his family. I know that my wife had has to persevere being married to me. I know of a family who recently lost a daughter, wife, and mother and this family, though perhaps full of questions, has maintained their faith and integrity. 

Just how high are our perseverance levels? How tough does it have to get before we give up? I have known people who have "quit the church" over the least little things - maybe big things in their minds. 

I don't know. It seems to me that if we keep our eyes on the goal then perseverance would just follow when required - not easy, but definitely worth it. In this case the end would definitely justify the means. It seems that we are more likely to blame God for our circumstances rather than persevere through them. 

With prayers and partners, perseverance can be tamed a bit, but it is still hard. We'd rather not have to persevere. But we need to realize that when we are called into perseverance, Jesus knows it.

Peter indicates (II Peter 1:6) that perseverance is a characteristic that is to be added to our Christian character. He further indicates that it will come into play in living effective and productive lives. It is as if Peter is saying at some point you are going to have to persevere.

Paul commends the Thessalonians (1:3) for their hypomone. But he goes on to say that it is inspired by the hope they have in Jesus. Jesus not only makes it worthwhile but He also is there to help and encourage.

So, yes, things can and probably will happen in our lives that will call on our perseverance. Jesus will see that and He will be there to encourage us and guide us through those tough times that ultimately end in victory.

Who is Jesus? #157

Ten Things Jesus Knows About You

What You Do

In the letter to the church at Laodicea (Revelation 3:14), Jesus said, "I know your deeds." The New Century Version puts it this way, "I know what you do."

I don't know how I feel about that. In the case of the church at Laodicea their lukewarmness revealed what they were doing or weren't doing. It made Jesus sick to the point of vomiting them out of His mouth.

If Jesus knows what I am doing then I hope I am always doing the right thing. However, I know I'm not and He knows those slip-ups, too

Then there was the church at Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7). "I know what you do," says Jesus. This church was serving and remaining faithful even though they perceived themselves as weak. They were doing well. Again, I am O.K. with Jesus knowing when I do well, but I don't always do well, and  He knows that! Someone deliver me from this dilemma.

Maybe the solution is found in the thought that whether Jesus sees our deeds good or sees our deeds bad, He still loves us. He saw Peter when he denied Jesus three times, but He still commissioned Peter to a sheep-feeding ministry.

I remember one hot Texas afternoon during high school football practice that the coach had me playing middle linebacker. The offense ran a simple look-in pass to the tight end. The end had to stretch out completely to make the catch and I had him in my sights and could have driven him into next week. Instead I sort of caught him as he came down and we both tumbled to the ground. I believe we used to call that an arm tackle. I heard the coach make a grunting noise and then he let me have it for doing what he saw me do - arm tackle (He had a way of saying "arm tackle" that made you feel pretty wimpy).

Though he knew what I had done, and I knew what I had done, I was still part of the team. That failure at that time did not disqualify me from the team.

Jesus may see our failures but He doesn't disqualify us. When He sees them He may even let out a holy grunting noise of His own because He knows we can do better, and so do we. The bottom line is He is here for us. If that were not so, He would not have gone to the cross.

Jesus witnessed several acts of faithlessness or weak faith over the course of His ministry. He pointed them out so that people would take notice that He saw it and He knew they could do better. He was encouraging them on to greater things.

He doesn't just kick us off the team when we fail. Don't forget that promise. "I will never leave you, I will never forsake you."