Monday, June 29, 2020

SPIRITUAL ESCAPEES

Part 2


Jack Davis


“Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man” Luke 21:34-36.

In the preceding verses 25-32, we read of Jesus describing many of the “things that shall come to pass,” shortly before He will be seen “coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” His people are warned, “look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh, take heed, watch and pray,” in preparation for their escape. We well remember that the redemption of the believers of this Church Age precedes Israel’s national redemption.

Therefore we sense the grave danger of God’s precious people becoming overcharged and overwhelmed by over indulgence. There are so many  snares, and cares that would cause us to be caught unawares. We can become so caught up in “things” that would keep us from being caught up at that first trumpet sound. Paul urges us to watch and be sober so that day not overtake us as a thief in the night, for some shall not escape. I Thess. 5:6,3.

TAKE HEED

We Each do well to “take heed” unto ourselves, our lives in the light of God’s everlasting all seeing WORD.

“For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world” I Cor. 11:31-32. “And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth” Hebrews 12:5-6.

Correction from our loving heavenly Father, is provided for our complete escape. This is often the way some of the snares are broken. He helps us turn loose. He helps escape capture even to carnal captivity, corruption, and condemnation. Some saints are seen in Revelation coming out of great tribulation, and others are spoken of as being kept out - Rev. 3:10 and 7:14.

WORTHY TO ESCAPE

“Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him” - Heb. 2:1-3.

Also Heb. 12:25-29, “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven: Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven…Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us (hold fast) have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:  For our God is a consuming fire.”

Who will be worthy then to escape and stand before Him. In whose worthiness alone do we stand? Have you been made accepted in the beloved? What is the measure of our escape? I appreciate the way it is expressed in II Peter 1.

“Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge…For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” – Vs. 2-11.

Peter here indicated for us a duel benefit, “escape corruption” and an “abundant entrance,” what a wonderful out of and into. By heeding these exceeding great and precious promises, and laying hold of them by faith we become more and more completely partakers of the divine nature, growing in grace and knowledge of Him. He increases, being formed in us, and we grow up into Him in all things. Therefore He has made it possible that we escape all the influence of the world’s corruption, defilement and decay, not conforming to this world but being transformed.

GOD - OUR PROVIDER


Anita Clark – Pastor, Carbondale, KS


“And Abram called the name of that place, Jehovah Jireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.”  Genesis 22:14.

How precious it is to find God as our Provider!  As we walk with the Lord God, we learn Him in this special way.   Abraham did.  In Genesis 22 God tested Abraham’s faith.  We all know the story.  God told him “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of  Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.”   What a command!  Abraham did not hesitate.  “And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac, his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering and rose up, and went unto place of which God had told him.”

This is such a wonderful story, truly showing  great obedience to God’s demand and will. Hebrews 11:19 states that Abraham was “Accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead; from whence also he received him, in a figure.” His faith did not weaver.  He was perfectly obedient to God’s command.  He speaks to the servants telling them that both he and Isaac will go and worship and come again to them.  When Isaac questioned him about where the lamb for the offering was, Abraham answered, “God will provide Himself a Lamb.”  God certainly did, Praise the Lord, our God.  This is why Abraham called the place “Jehovah-Jireh.”

We see from this example that if we surrender all that is precious to us to Him and believe Him, He will provide everything we need.  God spoke in verse 17 that because Abraham was willing to do as He commanded, the Lord said, “In blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore...”.

There are many illustrations in the Bible showing God providing whatever was needed for His people at various times.  In Exodus 14, we see the children of Israel in a dilemma.  They had obeyed God and left Egypt and had traveled into the wilderness, but now they are against the Red Sea and the mountains are on each side of them, and they look up, and the Egyptians are coming full speed  behind, a great army with chariots to kill them all.  God told Moses to speak to the sea and lift up his rod over it.  God provided and a “strong east wind all night.”  It blew and washed the water up into a wall and the Israelites went over on dry land.  Then, after the Israelite got safely over God said for Moses to stretch out his rod again and the water rushed back down drowning all the Egyptians.

In Exodus 15 God provided pure good water at Marah, which had been a very bitter hole of water.  The people complained and murmured.  In vs. 25 Moses cried to the Lord and God said to cut down a tree and put it in the water.  Moses did that and the waters became sweet.  We see over and over how our God supplies for His people.  In chapter 16, the people murmur about not having enough to eat so, God supplied a marvelous food.  Every day except the Sabbath, this food, called manna,  would appear on the ground, and all they had to do was gather it. Think of how great this was.  The people numbered 2 to 3 million.  Imagine if you can how much manna that took to satisfy all that hunger!

Matthew 6:25-34 tells of Jesus speaking to the crowds of people which came out to see and listen.  He taught them principles of trust in God for their very lives.  Jesus said, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, nor yet for your body; what ye shall put on.”  Jesus said that God will supply whatever we need just as He does the lilies of the field.

Apostle Paul teaches us that our faith should be in God alone.  God is fully and completely able to meet our every need.  In Ephesians 3:20,  Paul says in his prayer for the Ephesian believers, “Now, unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us. Unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.”  Apostle Paul was referring to the work of God in our lives, changing us into the image of Christ Jesus.  God has provided all Spiritual blessings in Christ to produce in us the spiritual growth we need.  Praise the Lord for His divine work in us, to perfect our faith and produce the growth He wants to be seen in our lives.

In Philippians 4:19, Paul writes, “But my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory.”  Our God knows exactly what we need.  Many of us have asked the Lord to work in us and through us so that only Christ will be seen in our lives, that He will receive all the glory.  We cannot do this in ourselves.  We must come to this realization before God can really finish His divine work in us.  As we submit ourselves to God, He will begin His work.  Oh, how He changes us.  He is trying to perfect us.  It is hard for us to allow Him his work, often times.  It is not always pleasant, but it is completely necessary.  We must surrender completely and He will finish His work in us, as Philippians 1:6 says, Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of the Lord Jesus.”  He is our  Great Provider.

 Spilled Coffee


Tasty food for thought:
You are holding a cup of coffee when someone comes along and bumps into you or shakes your arm, making you spill your coffee everywhere.
Why did you spill coffee?
“Well because someone bumped into me, of course!”
Wrong answer.
You spilled the coffee because there was _coffee_ in your cup.
Had there been tea in the cup, you would have spilled _tea_.

*Whatever is inside the cup, is what will spill out.*

Therefore, when life comes along and shakes you (which WILL happen), whatever is inside you will come out. It’s easy to fake it, until you get rattled.

*So we have to ask ourselves... “what’s in my cup?”

I “borrowed” this from the internet. I do not know who the original writer was, but I cannot take any credit for it.

I feel like the idea is really good to consider. I know that life often “bumps” us, and invariably, something spills out. When life gets tough, what spills over? Joy, gratefulness, peace and humility? Or anger, bitterness, harsh words and reactions?

The Bible tells us that what is in our heart is what will come out. This is true, not only of our mouth, but also our attitude that shows to others. Some might say that nothing bad comes out of their mouth, but their attitude is noticeably angry or bitter. The Bible deals a lot with our attitude.

Jesus tells us in Luke 6:45 that “for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” While we can often fake our way in life, when reality hits, what is really inside will come out. You might think that you have your emotions under control, but the truth is that our old nature is not very nice.

In Jeremiah 17:9 we read that “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” He then goes on to tell us that God knows what is in our heart. He knows even better than we do, because He sees what we don’t want to admit.

So, what do we do about this? Do we really want to spill nasty things, or do we want to spill good things when life “bumps” us? If we are serious about our relationship with Jesus, then we want others to see Him in our lives, and there is no better time for that than when things have not gone our way.

The Psalmist says in Psalm 19:14, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” His desire was that whatever came out of his mouth would be acceptable in God’s sight which is what matters the most.

So, how do we get to that point? It is actually pretty simple, although not necessarily easy. If you are a believer, you have the life of Christ in you. The increase of the new life in us is the only way to change what is in our hearts. Romans clearly tells us that we have to yield to that life of Christ if we want to live an overcoming life.

Paul encourages us to allow that to be our way of living.

Colossians 4:6 “Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.” Ephesians 4:29 “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” 1Corinthians 6:20 “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

In order to yield to the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we will need to feed on God’s Word. Proverbs 4:21-23 “Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

Yielding to the Holy Spirit will work in us the fruit of the Spirit. Gal 5:22-23. This is why it is not possible to just make ourselves react better. Our reaction to the circumstances of life is a result of the fruit of the Spirit.

Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” As He works to increase the life of Christ in us, the fruit comes out and is seen by others.

Gordon Crook

Prophecy 


Earlene Davis


TRIBULATION


Matthew 24:9, “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.” The word “Then” indicates the change from the “beginning of sorrows” (Vs. 5-8) into the tribulation period. Jesus says to Israel, You will suffer affliction and be hated and many will be killed. All these things will be intensified, especially through the work of the false prophet and then the antichrist shall come on the scene.

V. 10, “And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.” There will be secret believers and someone will snitch on them, for fear of their own lives. The words, “hate,” “betray,” “afflicted” and “kill” tells the story of what that  tribulation time will be like.

Vs. 11-12, “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” Here we read more descriptive words, “deceive” and “love wax cold,” this will be the condition after the rapture of the overcomers. It is bad enough now, but when the overcomers are taken out of the world, evil men will have their day. Their hatred waxing worse and worse, the love of even true disciples of Christ will wax cold.

The overcomers today are holding back the darkness that is coming on the world: by their presence, their prayers, by proclaiming the Word of God and standing for the truth. When these powerful light are taken up, how much easier it will be for the powers of darkness to descend on this world and the man of sin shall be revealed. II Thess. 2:6-7.

V. 13, “But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” This verse has been widely misused and misapplied, saying we have to hold out faithful to the end of our life to be saved (keeping the law, keeping saved, etc.). We must consider the context, the subject is tribulation days not keeping ourselves saved. We are saved eternally, because when God does a thing, He doesn’t do it half way. We are saved because of Jesus Christ’s work on the cross and He finished the work. We are not saved because of our works. But every man will receive rewards or lack of rewards for the deeds done in the body.

We can know right now that we are the sons of God. We don’t have to wait until we endure to the end to know whether we are saved. Let us not take a verse out of context, leave it in the chapter where it belongs. Here it is speaking of people who will endure to the end of the tribulation. They will be saved physically from death at the hand of the antichrist.

V. 14, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” It is the gospel of the kingdom, not of the church. Have you ever heard that the gospel has to be preached in all the world before the rapture? That is not what this verse is about. The kingdom is not our message, we are of the Church Age. There are those who preach the gospel of the kingdom and say they will be her during the tribulation and not go to heaven, but will help set up Christ’s kingdom. According to your faith, so be it. But the Lord has given us a revelation of something better, the high calling in Christ Jesus. That we have been seated in the heavenlies in Christ. Eph. 2:4-7; Phil. 3:14.

“Then shall the end come,” the end or conclusion is described in the following verses.

V. 15, “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)” The “abomination of desolation” is the image of the antichrist (Dan. 12:11; Rev. 13:14-15). Jesus says, When you see it stand in the holy place, this is a defining change (whoso readeth, let him understand). Take notice, ponder, consider and heed. The next verses tells us what to heed.

Vs. 16-21, “Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:  for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” Then shall come the end” (V. 14), “When” ye…see the abomination of desolation stand in the holy place” (V. 15), “then shall be great tribulation (V. 21). The last three and a half years of tribulation will be terrific suffering, called Jacob’s trouble in Jer. 30:7.

Some preach this, concerning the rapture. NO, this is not going to happen until the antichrist’s image is in the temple. The remnant of Israel that will be looking for their Messiah to come will have to flee and hide. God is going to protect them (Rev. 12:6,14-17). It will be harder for a woman heavy with child or having little children to flee. They will have to go by night and under the treat of being killed, such a terrible time.

V. 22, “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” The elect are the believing remnant, for their sakes, those day will be shortened, so they will not be Killed. Satan’s measured off time will be shortened.

Vs. 23-24, “Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” The false prophets shall be empowered by Satan to do signs and wonders. No doubt we will see more supernatural things as time goes by, even in occults. Be careful, for even today, believers can be deceived by things that are not right. That is why it is so important to keep in the Word of God  measuring everything by it.

For Satan will even use Scripture to deceive believers if they are not watchful. Satan quoted scripture to Jesus in the wilderness temptation (Mt. 4:6), “Prove all things,” I Thess. 5:21. Anyone can take a scripture out of its setting and make it say anything they want to say. Paul withstood Peter to the face when He was acting outside of God’s Word. Christian psychologist use scripture to prove their man-made formulas. They brain wash Christians into thinking they can solve all their problems (a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump). It leaves the Holy Spirit out. God works His Word in us by His Spirit as we yield to Him.

Vs. 25-26, “Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.” For this is not how the Messiah is coming.

V. 27, “For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” This is not how He is coming for the church, this is how He is coming to Israel Swiftly and openly, not secretly, but as the Judge of the nations and the helper of His people the Jews. Lightning is destructive and He is coming in unsurpassing judgment of all unrighteousness.

V. 28, “For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.” “For,” this is the result of it. After the great warfare, the carnivorous birds will be gathered unto the great supper of God (Rev. 19:17-18), to eat the flesh of those ungodly men that have fallen in battle, being slain of God.
Continued next issue: after tribulation

JONAH


Debra Isenbletter, pastor
Springfield, Missouri


Vs 8: “Then said they unto him; Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? And whence comest thou? What is thy country? And of what people art thou?”

This verse begins with “Tell us, we pray thee…”. There are two different tones is this cry that they give.  There is a demand: “Tell us”—There is a desire: “we pray thee.”  This is an opportunity and it is an open door for Jonah to be a prophet.   There in in great need, they are without hope.  What an opportunity to witness that Jonah has before him.  This is what Jonah should be doing as a prophet of God.  This is what Jonah has avoided, now he is forced to speak and because he has waited, the Lord has chosen the circumstances and the audience. Jonah cannot run, he cannot hide, he must speak.  The Lord challenges and commands Jonah through these men and forces Jonah to face his fear and his failure. Jonah may not realize it but this is God’s Grace. 

“for whose cause this evil is upon us”— For “whose account” or “who is responsible.” This is an accusation because they know who because the lot has fallen to Jonah.  What they do not know is why.  They recognize what has happened as “evil.”  They believe in divine judgment, in divine justice, in divine intervention.  They know there is a reason for the storm and they know that Jonah knows also.  Jonah has an opportunity to reveal to them the divine Who is behind this, the God of Israel. 

The questions that following are asked by these men, but the Lord speaks through them.  These are the Lord’s questions for Jonah. These are four questions forcing Jonah to admit the truth. To be a prophet of God.

First Question: “What is thy occupation?”  The root word for occupation means “to dispatch as a deputy.”  Is not that a description of a prophet? This word speaks of labor in that occupation (business, work, employment) it also speaks also of responsibility in that occupation (deputyship or ministry).

The word “occupation” is sometimes translated as “business” or “employment.” It is what you are occupied with or busy with.  It is used in connection with Joseph. It is the testimony Joseph had as a slave in Potiphar’s house.  “And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business…” (Gen.39:11). He was serving man but in reality, he was really serving God. He was a busy man. Daniel had this same dedication to serve, and was busy in that service.  After his vision, and recovery from the vision he said: “I rose up and did the king’s business…” (Dan.8:27)—Jonah should have been busy with the Lord’s business but he failed in that part of his testimony when he ran away.

The word “occupation” is also translated “work” speaking of physical work, of labor.  Jonah had a calling to a specific task and it was work, it was not easy. I am sure in the past there was a weariness experienced in his ministry, in his preaching, in his traveling, though we do not hear about it.  We see the effort in that “occupation,” the “work” aspect of it when we see the ministry of the Levites, the description of those that were singers.  “for they were employed in that work day and night.” (1Chron.9:33).  We see the dedication of that “work” in the labor of those that were building the wall. They all worked together, “they that bare burdens with those that laded, everyone with hone of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon.” (Neh.4:17). Jonah was not occupied with his occupation, he was not working, was not laboring, he was sleeping until the captain woke him up.

The last meaning for “occupation” is an “appointment,” or a “position of responsibility,” it is translated “officers of the king” (Esther 9:3). Everything points back to the acceptance of this position of responsibility, that acceptance, that embracing of it makes possible the work and labor involved. Jonah was running away from his occupation, his appointment, his position of responsibility.

Second Question: “Whence comest thou?” Third Question: “What is thy country?” Fourth Question: “What people art thou?”

Each question grows more specific as they try to find out who Jonah is.  Verse 10 tells us that Jonah during this time had told them he had fled from the Lord, so they may have understood that he was a prophet. But what is so striking in their questions is that they do not know anything about Jonah. He is a mystery. They cannot tell from his speech, or his dress, from how he interacted with them who or what he is.  That is what is so striking and so sad.  Jonah has carefully and deliberately hidden who and what he is. He has no visible testimony, he has hidden his light, hidden that he is a prophet of God, hidden that he knows God at all.  He has done this so successfully that they do not find out until they closely examine him.  Is that not a sad condition for this prophet of God to be in.

Jonah in a way pictures the nation of Israel because the testimony they have is hidden, they should be a light and a testimony of God in the world and nationally they are not.  There may be individuals or small groups but the nation is like Jonah, asleep, hidden, running away from their responsibility or denying it. The church which is hidden in Christendom has this same hidden testimony. There is such a mixture of tares and wheat, and leaven with the meal and involvement in the politics of the world that the simple, powerful testimony of Christ is hidden.  It will be the translation and resurrection of the First Rank, the Bride that will wake up the next rank and their light will begin to shine and each rank thereafter.  We could go even further and say that as individual saints we can come to this place where our testimony is so hidden that no one around us knows who we are, where we are from, what our calling is. And until circumstances force us into a position where we are examined or have to take a stand, we can be like Jonah, asleep, hidden, running from our responsibility.

Let us each boldly show forth our testimony of who and what we are, by word or deed, by little things or big things, so that those around us have no need to try to examine us to find out we belong to the Lord and serve the Lord.

Spiritual Heart Transplant


by 

Dr. Victoria Moots


Part 1 of 2


Do you want a new heart? If you are born again you have a new heart. But how did you get that new heart, and why did you need it?
In Ezek. 36:26 God offers Israel a new heart, a spiritual heart transplant. “A new heart will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.” Israel’s heart had become hardened and turned to stone and away from God. They had spiritual heart failure.
I am going to compare this spiritual heart transplant to a physical heart transplant. Organ transplantation is one of the modern miracles of medicine that allows some people to have a continued life that they wouldn’t have otherwise. You must keep in mind that in order for a heart transplant to take place someone must die for that person. Therefore, the gift of a transplant is a true gift of life; likewise it is in the spiritual realm.
I am truly amazed at how medically accurate the Bible is. When a person receives a heart transplant it is because their old heart has become so diseased and weak for various reasons that medications or further surgical intervention will no longer benefit. In physical end-stage heart failure, the tissue of the heart becomes fibrosed or hardened such that it is no longer able to pump effectively. The book of Ezekiel accurately describes this as a “stony” heart.
What is end stage heart failure? In end-stage heart failure the heart is no longer able to keep up with the work load necessary to pump the blood to all the other organs and tissues of the body. Consequently, fluid backs up into the lungs resulting in congestion. Hence the term “congestive heart failure” or “CHF.” In early heart failure this can be controlled with medications and special pacemakers, but if it progresses these may no longer be effective.
What about in the spiritual? In Matt. 11:28 Jesus invited all who labored and were heavy laden to come unto him and he would give them rest. If we are working under the burden of the law and are not able to keep up with that work load, we will go into spiritual heart failure. We cannot do it; we cannot hold up under the heavy burden of the law. We find ourselves under the sentence of death since the law says, “The soul that sinneth it shall die” (Eze. 18:4). This includes all mankind for Rom. 3:23 declares, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Our hearts have failed! We are in end-stage heart failure and in need of a new heart.
In the physical the criteria to be eligible for a heart transplant is that because of a weak and failing heart you would be expected to die within six months without it. In other words you must have a diagnosis of impending death. Likewise in the spiritual you must recognize your need for new heart and be willing to do something about it.
God has evaluated man’s heart and found it to be incurably diseased in Jer. 17:9-10: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked [you have a bad heart]: who can know it? I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins.”
Only God, the true Heart Specialist, can know the heart. If you have a bad heart you go to a doctor who is a specialist to see if anything more can be done. You recognize your need and go to the one who can meet that need. Through a series of tests, the doctor is able to come up with the diagnosis and can then offer you a heart transplant. God has already done this for us and is able to meet our need.
Again, concerning the medical accuracy of the Bible, Jer. 17:10 says, “I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins”. Do you know what the “reins” are? They are the kidneys! We get the term “renal” from this same root word. The kidneys were used in that day to describe the inner parts of our being, similar to the way in which we use the word heart today. It is no accident that God chose to use the kidney in conjunction with the heart instead of the liver or the bowel, for there is a direct medical association between the two organs. In the natural if a person is being evaluated for a heart transplant the kidneys must be evaluated also. The first major organ, besides the brain, that the heart pumps blood to is the kidney. As heart failure progresses the kidneys also begin to fail due to decreased blood flow. It is possible that you may also need a kidney transplant, as you must have adequate kidney function for a heart transplant. God was fully aware of that when he wrote the Book; it was not coincidental. This was written long before the text books were written!
God knows every little part of us. He knows our heart better than we know it. Our heart is “desperately wicked and deceitful above all things.” No matter how good a person we try to be or how much love we try to show, if we are doing it through our own ability, sooner or later we will break under the load. The anger will come out and we will get tired of doing good works and we will fail. The Scripture says, “Be not weary in well doing,” but we are going to get weary if we are trying to do it out of the goodness of our own heart, for there is no goodness in our own heart. We all have heart failure because we cannot do the things that we want to do.
The apostle Paul acknowledged that in Rom. 7:18-19 when he discovered that in his flesh, he was not able to do the good that he wanted to do. In desperation he cried out in v. 24: “who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” He recognized that the old creation heart was not able to please God so he went to the Heart Specialist to “try his heart and reins.” He knew he was under the sentence of death as in II Cor. 1:9: “But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead.” It takes a new creation heart to please God.
This same problem applies to all of us. Paul’s physical life was in danger, but spiritually we are all under the sentence of death: “The soul that sinneth it shall die.” None of us would escape death for “all have sinned.” The wickedness of our heart has nothing to do with our upbringing or whether or not we were raised in a Christian home. It simply has to do with the fact that we are all sinners.
This isn’t intended to be a sermon about salvation or how to get saved. It is a message about how great the gift of God was to us. Sometimes we fail to recognize the magnitude of that gift of life and how great was his grace toward us.

To be continued in August issue.