ALIVE WORD: Examine your heart
Ministers Wilbert and Jacquelin Richardson - Monday, November 21st, 2011 at 10:53 AM
Ministers Wilbert and Jacquelin Richardson
“Create in me a clean heart, O God: and renew a right spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10
The heart is probably the most important organ in the body. It pumps the blood through the body and the life is in the blood.
Many people today are becoming more and more conscious of what they eat because of how it affects their heart. Too much fatty, greasy, oily foods and foods high in cholesterol are very damaging to the heart. Heart attacks are on the rise, yet while some people are very cautious and do all they can to take care of their heart and avoid heart attacks, others are very careless and relaxed and continue to poison their bodies with things they know are very damaging to their hearts.
There is a parallel in the spirit. Our heart is our innermost being. It is the part of us that is not visible to people but it is very much visible to God. God knows what is in our hearts at all times. Sometimes we can wear a mask and fool people and camouflage but we can never fool God. In the book of 1 Samuel 26:16 we see Samuel going to the house of Jesse to choose and anoint a king from among his sons. God told Samuel not to look at the physical appearance God knew the hearts of the sons of Jesse. God told Samuel that ‘… man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.”
Just imagine today that God is your cardiologist and He is now examining your heart would all your results be normal according to the standards of His Word? What is the condition of your heart? It is time for each of us to examine our hearts. Jesus Christ is coming back for a church without spot and wrinkle. He is not coming back for people who are hiding evil and sin in their hearts.
No matter how long you have been a Christian, or what position you hold in the church, if your heart is not right with God you cannot make heaven your home, and no preacher can preach or pray you into heaven after you die. Some Christians spend much time praying and fasting but their hearts are filled with bitterness, unforgiveness, jealousy and other works of the flesh.
These sins must be repented of for Psalm 66:18 “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” St. Matthew 7:21-23 states “Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name cast out devils and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” For such people, their outward works look good and they say all the ‘right things’ but there is iniquity in their hearts.
Many people spend a lot of times doing things. They are seemingly very busy for the Lord. They are involved in every ministry in the church and are very close to their pastor, bishop, apostle and their spouses but their hearts are far from God. Not everyone who does good deeds in or out of a ministry is doing it out of a pure heart. Sad to say, but some Christians have hidden agendas and ulterior motives. They are working with their hands but their hearts are not pure. God is not pleased with such actions. He desires that we have clean hearts before Him.
It is possible to know what is in someone’s heart. How? When they open their mouths, their hearts are revealed. “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” Luke 6:45
If you are going to bless someone or to do something for the Lord, always do it out of a pure heart. Do it because you love the Lord and with unconditional love. Do you ever wonder why some people get upset if they do something their name was not called or they are not recognized? It is because they are doing it for a show and not for the glory of God. Their hearts are filled with pride and they want to be recognized and exalted. Beware, for such was the case with Lucifer, who was cast out of heaven.
People who do things to glorify God are genuine in heart and do a lot of things in secret. It does not matter to them if they are recognized or not. They know that God is the one keeping the record and He will reward them openly. Do you bless people just to tell other people that you blessed them? St. Matthew 6:3-4 says “But when thou doest alms let not thy left hand know what thy right hand is doeth. That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.”
What is the condition of your heart? One clot I your blood stream could cause a clog in your heart, lungs or brains that could be fatal. In the same way, one sin in your heart, if it is not confessed could cause you your spiritual life.
God wants His Holy Spirit to really flow in and through you today. The life is in the blood. Today if you know that your heart is not clean before God, allow the blood of Jesus Christ to cleanse you from all sin. David was a man after God’s own heart. Despite the fact that he sinned, in his heart he wanted to please God. Psalm 51 is a prayer of repentance and the cry that came from David’s heart.
If there is something in your heart that is not of God, know that God is able to remove it and cleanse your heart once you confess this sin to him and repent. Pray Psalm 51 earnestly as a prayer from your heart today.
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