Getting our heart in Step with God

I will start this with Heb 12:1-2, But I will end with Heb 12:1-2

Getting our heart in Step with God

We have been covering the Theme of Deeper. We could park on this theme for a long time as to get deeper with God has as many facets to it, as God Himself has.

Marching Illustration.

Getting in step with God requires us to have a look at our hearts, and our walk with God

-          What’s going on with the inner man.

Paul writes 2 Corinthians 4:16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner man is being renewed day by day.

Renewed = To renovate, to cause to grow up, to change into a new kind of life.

-          The Inner man is another way of describing the spiritual aspect of a person.

-          Has he, the inner man turned off on a track that will lead to a dead end?

-          Have we put up a sign trespasser will be prosecuted.

-          Have we put up roadblocks to the Holy Spirit that we shut off and say no to certain areas of our spiritual growth that we refuse to go down.

To go deeper with God, maybe as simple as saying sorry Lord, I have closed my heart to you.  But today, this morning, I am willing to open it and let you in.

We all have plateaus in life.  Places where we find rest or places where we may set up camp.  These camps can come from disappointment or hurt or weariness and battle fatigue – 1 Samuel 30  David at the burning of Ziglag.

A plateau is only a flat greenfield, a resting place before we continue our climb.

2 Tim 4: 7  Paul writes “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

This fight is not for salvation, it’s from salvation.

A good fight is the one you win!  And in Christ we have won!  Jesus won it for us.

I have finished the race.  Paul had a race to run set before him by God and he ran it to it’s end. We to have a race to run also that is set before us.

-          He didn’t get side tracked.

-          He didn’t get detoured.

-          He didn’t put up his own road blocks.

Paul kept the faith: what is keeping the faith.

Acts 14:22   Strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the Kingdom of God.

Paul explains that keeping the Faith is about

-          Strengthening the soul, Strengthen the heart

-          Encouraging one another, To put courage in the heart

-          And knowing that this walk will be hard.

When scripture talks about the heart and soul these words are often interchangeable

Proverbs 4:23 Keep your heart with all diligence (vigilance) for out of it flows the issues of life.

Our soul is the most valuable thing we possess, and we can pass it by, by not valuing and seeing it’s worth.

Matthew 16:26 The value of the soul.

What would it profit a man, if he gains the whole world, but lose his soul? And what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

Ezekiel 36:26-27    God gives us a new heart.  We are to guard it.

1 Sam 16:7 God looks at your heart

What God looks at, we need to look at.

So we need to look at our hearts also.

WHY DO I HAVE TO GUARD MY HEART?

For out of it flows the issues of life. Issues = Heb word = Boundaries

Because our hearts are constantly falling out of tune.

All instruments need to be tuned.

HOW CAN I KEEP MY HEART?

Prov 4: 23  keep your heart with diligence (vigilance).

Vigilance = Heb to be watchful, to be awake, be alert.

We have to study our own heart, watch and pray.

-       We have to know our hearts.

-       We have to know God’s word.

What does this look like?

Let’s look at a dashboard of a car:

-       The speed we are doing

-       The temperature gauge

-       The motor is a key player and what’s happening with the motor is connected to the dashboard

-       Alternator

-       Fuel level

-       Battery, oil level

-       My car has tyre pressure

When ever one of these is not right a dash board light will flash. Most of us will stop immediately and fix the problem, I say most because some don’t…

What can we put on our dashboard as Christians?

-       Fear, pride, greed

-       Self-pity, resentment

-       Anger, wanting comfort

-       Hard thoughts towards God

-       Coldness in worship

-       Unforgiveness

-       To busy judging others to see our own sin

Here we have to be very honest with ourselves.

-       For every red light that flashes, create a green light with Gods word.

-       Envy = commit to thankfulness. Ps 100 enter His gates with thankfulness.

-       Unforgiveness = forgiveness. Matthew 6 forgive my debts as I forgive…

-       Discontentment = gratitude, Coldness in worship lift up holy hands

-       Commit to an action that is opposite to the red light.

Gal 6: 9 Let us not grow weary in well doing, for in due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

Weary – to come out of, your primary preposition.

What is our primary preposition?

‘Our walk with God’.

AW Pink says ‘we need to pay attention to the heart changes and the trends we are going into.’

Moral decay begins with not guarding our heart.

Gal 5 :7 You were running well, who did hinder you that you should not obey the truth.  (Truth is God’s word).

Investigate.  

Ask the question….what is hindering you?

A good ‘heart test’ is – are we trying to change God’s word to match our lifestyle?

We may seek others of like mind or seek advice from those who we know will agree with us.

The Answer

Heb 12: 1-2   Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Therefore speaks of chapter 11, the men and women of faith.

Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.

Trust: in the friend of sinners.

Matthew 11:19 Jesus was called a friend of tax collectors and sinners.

When we see Jesus as a friend and Savior, the heart comes alive, everything changes.

-       In Luke19:1-10 Zacchaeus in two verses 8-9 changes completely firstly he calls Jesus Lord.

-       Secondly Jesus says Salvation has come to this house. Salvation in Hebrew is Yeshua which means Salvation.

-       Look he says I will give half of my possessions to the poor and if I have extorted anyone I will give back 4 times as much.

When we look at our own heart, we may become discouraged.

“For every look at your own heart, have 10 looks at Jesus Christ.”

Robert Murray McCheyne   1813-1843

Trust in a merciful God who will:

-        Forgive us when we wander off.

-       Turn us when we turn off.

-       Redeem us when we have made mistakes