When thinking about the human heart, most of us first consider the vital organ of the human body that is necessary to keep the body alive. In the physical sense, the heart is a large muscle. As it beats, it pumps blood around the entire body, carrying oxygen and nutrients throughout all the parts, while also getting rid of unwanted wastes. Its design allows us a glimpse of God’s masterful and brilliant handiwork in creating this intricate organ that supports our lives. It also paints a detailed and precise portrait of how important the spiritual heart is to the survival of the human soul. Just as the body has a heart that keeps it alive and thriving, the soul has a heart as well. The condition of the heart of the soul is the determining factor as to whether we will live an eternity with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, or whether our souls will be tormented by eternal darkness.
In the Gospel of John, Chapter 3, Jesus Christ had a conversation with Nicodemus about God’s Kingdom and the requirements to become a citizen of it. He said in John 3:3-6(NLT), “3 I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” 4 “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” 5 Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.”
Humans are three-part beings. 1Thessalonians 5:23(NLT) says, “Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again.” We are human-spirit, human-soul, and human-body. Without any of the three, we would not be human, we’d be something else. Our Heavenly Father was meticulous in our design. Genesis 1:26-27 tells us that He created us in His own image. We are of His kind, for in His brilliance, He made all living creatures after their own kind. Elephants can’t have giraffes, and kangaroos can’t give birth to whales. God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and He made us spirit, soul, and body, after His kind.
God made us spiritual beings that are housed in a body. As His created spiritual beings, we are having an earth experience, but heaven is our home because it is where our Creator lives. God’s requirement is that in order to be His children, we must be born twice. Jesus Christ said in John 3:5 that in order to enter God’s Kingdom, we must be born of water, which is referring to the birth where humans are incubated in water in a mother’s womb, and we must be born spiritually, which is to receive God’s seed through spiritual conception.
Through our faith in Jesus Christ, our dead human-spirit that was severed from God through Adam’s sin, is recreated by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God’s seed, and he comes to dwell inside us when we accept Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives. 1Peter 1:22-25(NLT) tells us, “23 For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God. 24 As the Scriptures say, “People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. 25 But the word of the Lord remains forever.” And that word is the Good News that was preached to you.”
The Holy Spirit made us alive in Christ, but our hearts and minds are completely under our jurisdiction. God has given us free-will, and He will not force us to bring our hearts and minds up to the standard of our new life in Christ. This He leaves totally up to us. The Holy Spirit will give us a new heart, but our invitation to him must be clear and contain a willingness to be submissive under his guidance.
God warns us in Proverbs 4:23(NLT) to, “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” Get a visual on this, see yourself standing outside the gates of your soul’s heart, manning the post, ensuring that nothing evil or sinful gets past the gate. This is the vigilance you must have about your soul’s heart. You must guard it with the Word of God, so that you will have a heart that pleases Him.
When we give our lives to Christ, guarding our hearts is just about the most important task we can undertake. Standing guard requires us to examine our emotions, thoughts, and words, and determine who is the source of them. Are they giving life and inspiring others to love God, or are they seasoned with the negative and selfish buzz of the world? Our commitment to God is demonstrated by what is in our hearts and what we let out of them. This is why God said to His prophet, Samuel, in 1Samuel 16:7(NLT), “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The LORD doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” No one other than God can look into an individual’s heart, and our hearts tell Him what is most important to us and who we really love.
Jesus Christ commanded us in Mark 12:30(NLT), “And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.” This is a heart that is sold out to God, and if we have even a hint of doubt that our hearts are not fully committed to Him, now is the time to change them. We need to be praying that God will give us a new heart so that when our Savior returns, we will be ready.
Ephesians 5:26-27(NASB20) says, “26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.” Jesus Christ is going to rapture his church. We are his bride and he is coming back for us. It is up to each of us to be without spot or wrinkle. He took care of the sin issue when he gave his life on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins. We are born-again and covered by the blood, and he tells us to remain blameless. It’s not about being polite or nice. It’s not about looking sharp on the outside. The inside is what God cares about. We’re not perfect. Yes, we all make mistakes, but despite our errors, our hearts must be loyal to God through the Lord Jesus Christ. If they aren’t, now is the time to get into God’s Word, surrender to His Spirit, and allow the Spirit to help us change our hearts and get right before God. ■
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Changing Our Hearts”, written by Reverend Fran Mack. Edits by Kim Times and K. Stephens for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.