The Heart of The Matter

Welcome back my readers and I hope you have all been well (the few of you who actually know about this). I have not had much time to put my thoughts down on paper until today so I decided that I would write two blogs back to back. I’m in my apartment on a Friday night trying to relax in between my tests. I figured writing some encouraging words is a better use of my time than flipping on the television and watching the repetitive coverage of Paris Hilton’s jail sentence. This first blog is about evangelism and the condition of the human heart while the other focuses on what God has been teaching me about what to look for in a wife and how I need to prepare in order to be a godly husband (pending that a wife is what God actually has for me of course). The second blog will most likely come tomorrow.

Monday of this week I happened to run into an old friend of mine from junior high/ high school. I had not seen him in a really long time and last I heard he was pretty much doing what I know I would be doing if not for the grace of God: drinking to the point of utter ridiculousness and rebelling against God in every and any way possible. Not that the two actions I’ve listed are actually separate but rather one is specific and one is general. Anyhow, I was just walking down the concourse on the way back to my apartment for some lunch when this old friend, who shall henceforth be referred to as Bob, rides up on his bike and starts talking to me. It was sort of awkward at first, but I realized this was a great opportunity to preach Christ and Him crucified. So often I miss the opportunity and the importance of sharing the gospel with the lost because I so often forget that our God is not a God that simply SHOULD be worshipped. Our God MUST be worshipped and all those who withhold His glory from Him and do not bow down in utter awe of Him will one day perish. With this in mind, I decided to offer Bob lunch at Chick-fil-a since neither of us had class for another hour or so. So there we were in Chick-fil-a when I ask the ever so dangerously generic question, “So are you going to church anywhere here in Auburn?” At this point he throws up his hands and says, “Whoa, whoa, whoa….Don’t go there man. Just don’t go there. I am so sick and tired of people preaching to me!” Rather than summarize the conversation I would like to actually introduce some quotes that actually came from his mouth. I wrote them down shortly after our meeting and they are accurate to the best of my knowledge.

1. “I am going to do what is in MY best interest and what serves ME best.”
2. “Why would you want to know my spiritual health?”
3. “The problem I have with the church is all the corruption and hypocrisy.”
4. “Christianity throughout its entire history has been morphing itself in order to get heathens into it so they can get their money and their loyalty.”
5. “Denominations are so messed up they can’t even agree on what it takes for a person to be saved”
6. “The [Bible] was written by man, if it opened up and words appeared on it then I would believe it.”

I provide these quotes so that you can not only see the presuppositions he has about Christianity but more importantly so that you can see the state of his heart. As with most lost people, it was incredibly hard to keep the conversation centered upon who Jesus is, what He did, and what that means for everyone. I tried to lightly address those things he brought up in those quotes as best I could ,but I found it very difficult to talk with him specifically about the work of Christ and that he must repent and believe on Jesus. He wanted to talk about all the peripheral arguments rather than the crux of the matter. Not to mention he was throwing down the f-bomb every other sentence and being incredibly hostile. The conversation that followed with Bob left me in a saddened state. I was utterly broken by the rebellion within this man’s heart and reminded just how hostile the unbeliever is towards God. I was reminded that not only this man but also every other person who is not in Christ is utterly and totally against Him regardless of how hostile they appear on the outside.

It made me think of myself when I was lost and how badly I needed Jesus. Titus 3:3 says, “For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another.” It reminded me of the condition of my heart before God’s initiative. Romans 2:5 says, “But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.” What grace we have received. My heart. Your heart. Our lives were in total rebellion to God. We were storing up righteous wrath and we were LOVING IT! Thanks be to God Who according to the pleasure of His will gave us sinners LIFE! He blesses us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, forgives us our sins, sanctifies us by His words, and best of all gives us the knowledge of His will and character!

Bob would leave me that day in the same state we met. God used this circumstance in my life to pain my soul for the lost around me and to remind me of the grace I have and continue receive. I pray that we all would see the lost in a new light and be reminded of our former likeness to them. I pray that we would go forth boldly with faith as we seek to be messengers of this good news. I pray that we would not JUST be saddened by those who hear and do not believe but rather that we would be driven to our knees to plead on behalf of their souls. I pray these things because I am weak and because Christ is strong. Please join me in the prayer that the eyes of the nations would be opened as to see this God and worship Him for all that He is and all that He does. Amen.