Lessons on Trust, Heart, and Spirituality
Reflecting on biblical verses from Jeremiah and Ezekiel, this lesson delves into the themes of trusting in the Lord versus relying on mankind, the transformation of the heart, and the importance of spiritual discernment. The verses emphasize the blessings of trusting in the Lord and the deceitful nature of the human heart, highlighting the significance of seeking guidance and strength from a higher power.
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PrepareJeremiah 17:5-6 Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind And makes flesh his strength, And whose heart turns away from the LORD. Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD And whose trust is the LORD. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, That extends its roots by a stream And will not fear when the heat comes
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances. EZEKIEL 36:26-27
Lets take a look at this most famous verse in the context in which it was written: Thus says the Lord, Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind And makes flesh his strength, And whose heart turns away from the LORD. For he will be like a bush in the desert, And will not see when prosperity comes, But will live in stony wastes in the wilderness, A land of salt without inhabitant. JEREMIAH 17:5-6
Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD And whose trust is the LORD. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream And will not fear when the heat comes; But its leaves will be green, And it will not be anxious in a year of drought Nor cease to yield fruit. The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it? The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds. JEREMIAH 17:7-10
Consider what the Lord says in Matthew 12:34, Matthew 15:18-19 and Mark 7:21. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. Matthew 15:18-19 But the things that come out of a person s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them.19For out of the heart come evil thoughts murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. Mark 7:21 For it is from within, out of a person s heart, that evil thoughts come sexual immorality, theft, murder, Matthew 7:17-18 For it is from within, out of a person s heart, that evil thoughts come sexual immorality, theft, murder,
From Scripture it is quite clear that an unbelievers heart truly is evil. But what about Christians? The message we too often hear as Christians, according to author Jim Robbins, is: You re a prisoner who s been pardoned, but you re still the same person you ve always been. Try harder not to sin. Your heart is suspect and prone to wander, but try harder not to wander and stray . ii
If the message of the gospel is that our hearts are evil and that we must fight against our desires, hopes, wants, and feelings; fight against our hearts to please God, then we are without hope, because we are powerless to change what we are. But in truth, this message of futile works that we so often hear is not the gospel, the Good News.
Ezekiel 36:25-27 describes an incredible surgery that the Lord performs. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.
Jeremiah 31:33-34: But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord, I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, declares the Lord, for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.
Consider carefully what this means according to Matthew Henry: That, instead of a heart of stone, insensible and inflexible, unapt to receive any divine impressions and to return any devout affection, God would give a heart of flesh, a soft and tender heart that has spiritual senses exercised, conscious to itself of spiritual pains and pleasures, and complying in everything with the will of God. iii Only Scripture can give a clear picture of what this new heart is like. Let s take a look at some verses that describe it. What does Jesus say? The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart. LUKE 6:45 But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance. LUKE 8:15As John Eldridge points out in his book Waking the Dead, Jesus says here that, at least for someone, the heart is good. iv What does Paul say?
What does Paul say? But what does it say? the word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, whoever believes in him will not be disappointed. ROMANS 10:8-11
What does Paul say is the result of this belief? Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge. 2 CORINTHIANS 1:21-22 And... so that He may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints. 1 THESSALONIANS 3:13
What does the writer of Hebrews say? let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. HEBREWS 10:22
Oswald Chambers explains that The characteristic of a disciple is not that he does good things, but that he is good in motive because he has been made good by the super-natural grace of God. The only thing that exceeds right doing is right being. v
Consider what John Eldridge says, Jesus himself teaches that at least for somebody, the heart can be good and even noble. That somebody is you, if you are his. God kept his promise. Our hearts have been circumcised to God. We have new hearts. Do you know what this means? Your heart is good. Let that sink in for a moment. Your heart is good. What would happen if you believed it, if you came to the place where you knew it was true? Your life would never be the same . It would change our lives. It would change the face of Christianity. This is the lost message of the gospel, lost at least to a great many people. Small wonder. This is the last thing the enemy wants the world to know. It would change everything. Those of you who ve gotten your hearts back know exactly what I mean. It s freedom. It s life. vi
Chip Dodd, in his book The Voice of the Heart, says: Feelings speak the language of the heart. We come out of the womb experiencing life through our feelings. They are primary to our human experience and awaken us to our hearts. We use feelings to communicate our God-given hunger for relationship. Unless we rediscover our ability to feel deeply and express feelings clearly, we will never find full life. vii
An emotion is an intense mental state that arises instinctively and is usually accompanied by some physiological change such as increases in body temperature, heart rate, and/or blood pressure. Emotions involve the body, mind, and spirit. In the most basic explanation, emotions are evoked when we have a particular experience. This experience or stimulus (internal or external) is an interaction with the environment The subtlest form of acting out is simply changing the Subject.
We must understand and embrace the truth that being designed in His image includes our emotions. Look at the following verses: Genesis 1:27 and 6:6, Exodus 4:14, Number 32:13a, John 11:35. Wh Emotions are expressed by God and why? Many of us are not aware of, or do not express, our emotions, and some of us express only a limited range of emotions (happy, sad, and angry). Identifying and Living with Emotions Rarely do we feel only one emotion at a time. Usually, our emotions rise very rapidly and all jumble together, which is one of the reasons we have such difficulty identifying them. Awareness of emotion(s) is a key concept in becoming emotionally mature and learning to effectively handle the ups and downs of life. A first step in gaining emotional awareness is to distinguish between emotion/feeling and thoughts
Proverbs 23:7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.
The human mind is the last great unexplored continent on earth. It contains riches beyond your wildest dreams. And it will return anything you want to plant. It doesn t care what you plant, success or failure, a concrete worthwhile goal or confusion, misunderstanding, fear and anxiety. What you think about each day will mold your life and determine your future. What are you thinking about? You are what you think. viii
