Create in Me a Clean Heart
In Matthew 6 Jesus continued his sermon on the mount and addressed the issue of doubt, worry, and fear. He said, consider the lilies of the field and the fowls of the air. They toil not neither do they spin, yet Solomon in all of his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If he so clothed the birds of the air and the flowers of the field, will he not much more take care of you, O ye of little faith?
Men of little of faith are like children; they fear the deep end of the pool. They have not learned to trust in the Lord with all their hearts and lean not unto their own understanding. Jesus said, What’s different between you Children of Israel and the Gentiles… the heathen who have no relationship with God? They worry about the cares and the affairs of this world. What makes you different from them? Jesus said, I’ll give you the resources you will need, but you will use these blessings to bless others… by working with your hands from a heart of love to accomplish the purpose for which I have prepared you. In so doing, set your affections on things above and seek ye first the kingdom of God. God will be your sufficiency for blessing you and your family as you use the resources your Father’s glory. Don’t worry about having your needs met… God will bless and abound the work of your hands if you look unto me. Therefore, Seek not worldly treasures. Instead, seek treasures in heaven and not upon earth…. Then when you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all these physical things shall be added unto you.
Most people who consider themselves Christians, have no passion, zeal, and fervor for the things of God. They keep their light of Christ hidden under a bushel basket.
Faith is a muscle that needs to be exercised. Galatians says, neither circumcision… the keeping of the Old Testament law… nor uncircumcision… the ways of the heathen gentiles… availed any thing. As Solomon said in Eccleastes, everything upon this earth that is done for our own vain purposes will come to naught. Galatians 5 says, the only thing that really matters is believing faith that worketh in love. Love activates, energizes, invigorates and exercises the faith-muscle that appropriates God’s blessings into fruition… Therefore, be not weary in well doing…. God will sustain your effort. Then in patiently working, God gives the blessing at the time of harvest.
Our Heavenly Father is intimately acquainted with all of our ways. He numbers each hair on our head. Wherever we go, God is there…. He sees all and is ever present. Therefore David said, search me and know my heart… test my anxious thoughts. Create in me a clean heart, O Lord… a heart dedicated to you… and lead me into the way everlasting.
As we look at the world around us, as the lyric from The Music Man says, “there’s trouble in River City.” There is strife, contention, chaos, and confusion all around us… the devil is up to his old tricks. His job is to divide and conquer… Ultimately his purpose is to separate our hearts from God’s heart. To look at the world we’ll be stressed. To look at others we’ll be distressed. To look in the mirror, we’ll be depressed. However…. To look unto Jesus, we’ll be blessed. Therefore, turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in his wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim… in the light of his glory and grace.
Sin separates our heart from God’s heart. Sin is missing the mark. However the emphasis of the word sin, is not on the missing… instead the emphasis is on the mark itself. The mark is the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. You have to look at the target, focus on the target, and then concentrate on and aim deliberately at the target in order to hit the mark. The target is God’s righteousness…. Jesus Christ himself. For he who was without sin was made the perfect sacrifice for sin on our behalf that we may be made the righteousness of God in Him. If we’re walking in close proximity with him…. He will fill our field of vision. It’s impossible to miss the target at point blank range… when we follow close by his side.
The devil will distract our attention from Jesus Christ… the truth of God and his word. He’s up to his old tricks. He tempted Eve like he tempts us today. He questions the love of God and the Word of God.
To work on our relationships, first we must have our vertical priorities in alignment. Our first priority is to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness….. You treasure that which you love. To love God above all is to treasure treasure in heaven and not upon earth… for where you treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The unbelievers questioned the Apostle Paul… they said, you’re one of those hypocritical Pharisees. How dare you judge us according to your impossible standards of the law of sin and death? However, Paul said, I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that (Holy Spirit) which He has committed unto me against that day of righteous judgement…
David said, search me O God and know may heart and see if there be any hurtful way of unrighteousness thing in me… Cleanse me and lead me in your way… test me… try me and prove my heart. Through the testing of trial and tribulation, the pressure of the test will reveal God’s character in us. For tribulation worketh patience, and patience experience…. God’s tested character, and experience hope… the hope of the resurrection and heaven. And hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given to us.
The source of sin is the nature of the flesh that we inherited from Adam’s fall.. The god of self and his domain is heavily defended territory. How do we defeat the god of self…. According to Corinthians…. The battle is for hearts and minds. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal… they are not of the flesh, but spiritual to the pulling down of the adversary’s spiritual strongholds. The way to pull down these selfish strongholds is “casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ…
To live for Christ, we must die to self…. To our sin nature. For I was crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me, and the life that I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.
Life upon this earth is but a vapor…. A nanosecond in eternity. Life on earth will soon be passed, only that which is in Christ shall last…. Therefore set your affection on things above, not on things of this earth… search me O Lord and know my heart… Create in me a new heart O Lord and cleanse me from all unrighteousness….
…; that with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength I may love you above all…. To treasure treasures in heaven…To live this life pressing toward Your mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus, to the praise of the glory of Thy grace!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael
