The heart wants what the heart wants
Hebrews 12:1,2
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 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 has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God
As men and women of God our focus needs to always be on Him, looking to Jesus, not to the government, politics, our job or even others to fulfill us but only Jesus.
We want the right things, enough prosperity to have what we need for our families, enough of God to get us to heaven, enough of life to feel fulfilled but what if we don’t know what enough of life is? What if we get caught up in worries about ISIS, poverty, energy consumption, vaccinations, race relationship, the economy, fill in your big worry in the blank with your worry… We have struggles with even good things that distract us from loving Him completely think about the amount of time and energy we sink into so many even good things when in fact If loving God with all of our hearts is not a priority then we cheat ourselves of the greatness that God can do even in and through those things
We are to set or the King James says “fix” our eyes on Jesus above all else…That being said people will quote this scripture to put us in the ball park of what that means
Psalm 37:4,5
Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass
It is not simply having the Lord as a passing thought or a quick prayer shooting up toward heaven it is a level of commitment that makes our relationship with the Lord real…Jesus put it this way
Mark 12:28- 30
One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” 29 Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: “Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.”
No one wants a passionless life..Jesus begins by saying love God with all of your heart. The heart is the place of affections, passion, desires.
So how do we go about loving God with all of our hearts?
- Our affections determine our devotion – Our heart contains powerful emotions and desires that drive our lives. We need to honest look at what occupies our time, motivates our actions, and shapes our aspirations. Our affections want to cling to someone or something. Wherever these affections are found so will our hearts be.
- Our affections and desires follow what we treasure – Whatever we value that is where our heart will be…if it is our career, money, family that is where our heart will be, the irony is that if we make the Lord our number one affection all of this comes to us in abundance as the Lord sees our desires.
Matthew 6:21 Wherever your treasure is, there your heart will also be.
Jesus gave us the answer here on how to love God with all of our hearts…the heart loves what it treasures
The heart loves what it treasures, ironic that the treasure comes first and the heart follows.
Matthew 13:44
“The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field.
In order for our hearts to love Jesus we must first treasure Him completely. Our affections are the outcome of what we treasure.
When we encounter the Lord in all His amazing glory, when we seek Him completely, loving Him with all of our hearts will be the end result
- Decide to make Jesus your greatest treasure. Everything else have very little value compared to Him
I want us to look at 3:8’s From Philippians 3:8 and Ephesians 3:8
“Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ”
“To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ”
Here we see a man who found Christ to be a treasure above all else. The presence and glory of God is so fulfilling, meaningful and powerful that everything pales in comparison. When other things take precedents, when we divert our attention away from the Lord then our love grows cold and the very desires of our heart go unfulfilled. The greatest treasure in our lives is no longer Christ but has been replaced by someone or something else.
- The Love of God shines through us as we learn to love Him with all of our hearts and we impact the world around us rather than the world around us impacting us.
2 Corinthians 3:18
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord
As we have pursue Him his glory naturally shines through us, we are naturally part of the vine and the life pours through us.
Paul says that this when our passion, affection, desire becomes Him even though we are human His power, life and love shine through us to change our world
2 Corinthians 4: 6,7
For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.
So what do we need to do?
- We have to decide to pursue Him. Just pray it to the Lord, “Jesus I long for You to be my ultimate treasure, help me and give me power to do so!” Pray this often through out the day.
- Start with the Bible. Open it and search out what it says about the glory of who Jesus is and what He has done. If you don’t know where to start, just go to the Gospels.
- Make adjustments. What is it you are going to do daily that will allow you to grow into this reality. Write it down. Schedule it.
- Be with Him. He delights in you. He wants to be with you and reveal Himself to you. He enjoys you! Set time aside to be with Him only.