The Heart of God

By Pastor Jeff,

We hear people say that they want the mind of Christ in helping them to make decisions in their lives and yes, we should seek that.
But today I want to talk about the “Heart of God”

The heart is the key organ in the circulatory system. As a hollow, muscular pump, its main function is to propel blood throughout the body. It usually beats from 60 to 100 times per minute, but can go much faster when necessary. It beats about 100,000 times a day, more than 30 million times per year, and about 2.5 billion times in a 70-year lifetime. With each heartbeat, blood is sent throughout our bodies, carrying oxygen and nutrients to every cell. Every day, the approximately 10 pints (5 liters) of blood in your body travel many times through about 60,000 miles (96,560 kilometers) of blood vessels that branch and cross, linking the cells of our organs and body parts.

But the heart can mean other things other than this organ that beats within our chest today, it can mean our center, character, courage, emotion empathy, essence, feeling, kindness, love, mood, etc.
In the bible the word “heart”, occurs over one thousand times, making it the most common anthropological (study of humankind) term in the Scripture. It mostly refers to the heart figuratively. Some examples:
Psalms 4:7 says. “Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.”
Psalms 51:10, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” The bible tells us what comes out of it Mark 7:21-23, “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.”

Despite of trying to portray as some kind of tough guy, I always been kind of a feeler, even though I try to hide it, I often find this 230 lbs of solid muscle crying at not only movies, but commercials, or touchy quotes.                                                                                   I think that was the type of man that God wants in all of us but it really is bared out in when Israel decided it wanted a King to rule them and not just God, after Samuel anointed the first King Saul it didn’t take long for Saul to mess things up and when Saul disobeyed God at Gilgal, this is what Samuel had to tell him.
1 Samuel 13:13-14, “And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.” That was the type of man that God wanted Samuel to anoint to be the next King, 1 Samuel 16:7, “But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.”

Who was that man? Acts 13:21-23, “And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years. And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. Of this man’s seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus:”

A man after the heart of God, what a great title to have! So, what is the Heart of God? John 3:16 makes it clear what God’s heart is, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

There are many more scriptures than I could share on how we need to seek the heart of God, but I will give you just a few,
Psalms 38:8-10, “I am feeble and sore broken: I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart. Lord, all my desire is before thee; and my groaning is not hid from thee. My heart panteth, my strength faileth me: as for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me.”
Psalms 111:1, “Praise ye the LORD. I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
Psalms 51:15-17, “O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite (to collapse) heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” I saved the best for last for there are many benefits from seeking and having the heart of God, Matthew 5:8, “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.”

I Long for knowing Jesus Christ in every possible way I can, I want the Heart of God, how about you?

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