The Heart Series, Part Four

Allness for allness.  Anything short of this just won’t do.  Consider such a principle, recorded in Romans 8:17:

And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

It’s hard to fathom, but nevertheless true: the born-again are not just children of God and heirs, but joint-heirs with Christ.  Consider John 17:11 and 21-23:

11  And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.

21  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

22  And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

23  I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

The promise of allness is staggering: Christ in us making us one, and making us one with the Father.  Keep in mind that God, who created all things by Christ Jesus (Hebrews 1:2), was someplace other than the universe when He created it, and someplace outside of time, as we know it, when He created it.

Becoming one with the Father through the Son makes us bigger and vastly more important than the universe.  The scriptures declare that the heavens are God’s throne, a place to sit, and the earth is His footstool (Isaiah 66:1), a place to prop us His feet, and through Christ Jesus we are made one.  The allness of God is written in John 3:16:

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.

But this God-given allness requires an in-kind contribution on the part of the redeemed.  Romans 12:1-2:

1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

A living sacrifice, a life surrendered to the authority, to the oneness of God’s transforming Word, is the contribution of the allness that’s required.  Anything short of allness just won’t do.  May God have mercy on our souls. 

Dear friend, have you come to the place of allness?  Are you hiding some sin inside your heart?  This must end for the place of partial surrender is a place God cannot bless.  Psalms 66:18:

If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

Surrender your all.  Surrender completely today and you will receive allness for allness.  Click onto “Further With Jesus” for childlike instructions and immediate entry into the Kingdom of God.  NOW FOR TODAY’S SUBJECT.

GOD SAID, Proverbs 4:23:

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

GOD SAID, Romans 8:28:

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

GOD SAID, Hebrews 10:24-25:

24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

GOD SAID, Psalms 1:1-2:

1  Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

2  But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

MAN SAID: The heart is just a muscle pump and no more.  The Bible is just the archaic writings of mere men and no more.

Now THE RECORD.  This heart—out of it flow the issues of life, and keeping it is life, and life more abundantly here, and eternal life hereafter.  To neglect it is to one’s own peril.  Welcome to GodSaidManSaid.  Thank you for coming.  This is Part Four of “The Heart Series.”  Please review One, Two, and Three.  You need to do it.  Do it now.  We’ll wait for you here.

These are the last days – the very last days.  Jesus speaks of them in Matthew 24:22-24:

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.

23  Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.

24  For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Keeping the heart squarely fixed on, and filled with the Word of God, will be the only way of escape.

Inside each feature in this series you’ll find recent discoveries of science that fully confirm the veracity, the supernatural inerrancy, of the scriptures; proof that the God of the Bible is, and that He interacts daily in the lives of the redeemed.  In order for salvation to function in full power in a believer’s life, the absolutes of God’s Word must be absolutely absolute.  This is where water-walking faith resides.

Part One of this series addressed two issues:

(1.)  That a heart can be made merry or sad with words and circumstances, and the results produce very real spiritual and physical ramifications.

(2.)  The heart is not just a muscle pump, but it in fact has its own thoughts, and out of it flow the issues of life.

Part Two dealt with the soul—man’s spiritual/psychological nomenclature, and how thoughts are considered, and how they do or do not take up residence in the heart.

Part Three focused on purging the heart of bitterness, hatred, fear, etc., and preparing the heart to house the true issues of life.

The heart’s food is comprised of words which make up thoughts.  Fixating on the right thoughts is crucial to spiritual and physical health.  It is a truism to the faith walker that today is the best day of my life and tomorrow will be better, but maintenance of the heart is central to such an all-encompassing and glorious confession.  This feature will focus on three pertinent issues:

(1.)  Positive reframing.  Positive reframing is a psychological term that deals with how we should handle thoughts and circumstances.  The well-worn idea of the glass of water applies.  Do you see it as half full or half empty?  Positive reframing is simply looking at a bad situation and putting a new frame around it.  Example: A pregnant woman has a miscarriage and says, “It’s for the best.  This is nature’s way of preventing birth defects.”  Positive reframing and positive thinking have much in common.  But Biblical positive reframing is not simply positive thinking.  It is a confession of faith in Christ Jesus which has, standing behind it, the full faith and credit of the eternal Godhead and heavenly host.  God is standing at the ready to make the believer’s investment in faith good.  Positive thinking will eventually fail, but positive faith in Christ never ever fails.

The application of the Word of God to a bad picture turns dark skies bright.  Romans 8:28:

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

When positive faith reframes a believer’s circumstances—“…all things work together for good…”—it is an absolute.  Example: Many fear the coming of the antichrist, yet II Thessalonians 2 declares that in the window of time when the antichrist enters the Jewish temple to confess himself to be God, this is the doorway to the great taking up of the church when the saints of God meet Jesus Christ in the air.  This marvelous event is one of the seven best days of the children of God, and the antichrist plays a pivotal role.  The antichrist will work to our good.  It is important that we reframe this fearful picture with promise.  The antichrist plays an important role in one of the very best days of our lives.  We must feed our hearts with faith.  Reframe your life’s pictures with faith.  Fear just won’t do.

(2.)  Meditation and prayer.  Feed your heart with meditation and prayer, and the results will be health to all your flesh.  The children of God are directed to meditate and pray hundreds of times in the scriptures.  Neuroscientist Andrew Newberg and Mark Waldman authored the book, “How God Changes Your Brain.”  Their extensive research proves once again the total reliability of the Word of God. 

Twelve minutes of meditation a day yields startling results such as:

● Increased length of life

● Improved ability to perform a variety of tasks

● Augmented anger management

● Stress reduction, and according to the authors, “…stress is the number one killer in America because it damages nearly every organ in the body—especially your brain.”  [End of quote]

● Enhanced memory recall, concentration, and verbal fluency on average 10-20%

● Reduced anxiety

● Reduced depression

● Improved quality of life

● Enhanced cognitive performance of the brain

● Strengthened neural circuits that normally tend to deteriorate with age

The following paragraph is from the book How God Changes Your Brain:

I want to bring up an important but often overlooked point.  What you choose to meditate upon, or pray for, can do more than change your brain.  You can damage it, especially if you choose to focus on something that makes you frightened or angry.  In psychology this is called “rumination,” and it is clearly hazardous to your health.  In a Stanford brain-scan study, people who focused on negative aspects of themselves, or on a negative interpretation of life, had increased activity in their amygdala.  This generated waves of fear, releasing a torrent of destructive neurochemicals into the brain.  [End of quote]

Meditation and prayer are important players in the keeping of the heart.

(3.)  Going to church.  The following paragraphs are from the GodSaidManSaid feature article, “The Power of Going to Church:”

Hundreds of studies have been, and are presently being conducted to ascertain whether there is any connection between religious faith and health.  Some of the latest results are shocking to the unbelieving world.  In 1999 the results of a study conducted by the University of Texas were published.  Twenty-two thousand people were followed over a nine-year period.  Those who attended church or synagogue more than once a week lived an average of eight years longer than those who didn't.  Let me say it another way: those who attended church more than once a week lived 2,920 days or 11% longer than those who didn't.

A Yale study reported that churchgoers were less likely to become physically disabled.  In a syndicated article released by Knight Ridder Newspapers it was recorded:

Several studies concluded that people who attended religious services regularly are hospitalized less often and have stronger immune systems than people who rarely or never attend.  [End of quote]

A healthy heart spiritually and physically attends church more than once a week.

Out of the heart flow the issues of life, and we are responsible for keeping it.

Instant replay:

● Positive reframing

● Meditation and prayer

● Going to church

Feed your heart the beauty of God’s science.

GOD SAID, Proverbs 4:23:

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

GOD SAID, Romans 8:28:

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

GOD SAID, Hebrews 10:24-25:

24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

GOD SAID, Psalms 1:1-2:

1  Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

2  But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

MAN SAID: The heart is just a muscle pump and no more.  The Bible is just the archaic writings of mere men and no more.

Now you have THE RECORD.

References:

Authorized King James Version

Newberg, Andrew, M.D. and M.R. Waldman, How God Changes Your Brain, Ballantine Books, 2009, p39

“Studies Link Faith, Health,” Knight Ridder Newspapers, June 8, 2000

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