During excavations of an ancient French convent in 2011–2013, archaeologists made a discovery regarding the ancient nature of heart disease. They came across five heart-shaped urns made out of lead, containing embalmed human hearts. Of the four well-preserved hearts, three showed severe signs of atherosclerosis—a heart disease that’s very common today. According to one of the researchers, the fact that humans had atherosclerosis 400 years ago is one of the most important findings of the study. But, then again, human beings have been dealing with spiritually diseased hearts for a long time. . .
In Jeremiah’s day, the people of Judah were so entrenched in their ways that it was as if their sin had been deeply engraved on their hearts (Jeremiah 17:1). But why did they choose to sin when God offered the path of blessing? (Jeremiah 17:7-8). Jeremiah said that at the heart of the problem was the problem of their hearts! They were deceitful—crooked like a bad road. Also, their hearts were desperately wicked—diseased through and through and in desperate need of healing. The prophet said people couldn’t understand how bad it was, for only God truly knows the heart and only He can cure its disease (Jeremiah 17:10, 31:33).
By God’s grace we can put our rebellion behind us and ask Him to create in us a new and clean heart (Psalm 51:10; John 3:5-6). We can possess one that recognizes Him as the Lord (Jeremiah 24:7), is loyal to His Word, tender to His promptings, and responsive to Him (Ezekiel 36:26). When the Spirit heals and renews our diseased ways, God will give us a desire to seek Him, a craving to do what’s right, and the assurance that we’re His children (Romans 8:14-16).
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: Ephesians 2:1-22
More:
Read Titus 3:4-5 and see how we receive a new heart.
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What’s been your experience of Jeremiah’s assessment of the human heart? What are the implications of only God truly knowing the heart and being able to cure it?
Gary Shultz on November 30, 2016 at 6:03 am
Hi Marvin! I suppose if God is the one that really, and only knows the human heart in a universal sense, and is the only One who truly knows the individual heart, He would be the only one really able to completely make it new. We often refer to the seat of the spirit as the heart; however, it must be clear that there is a difference when all of the similes are laid aside. God’s Spirit of greater power overtakes the old inherited nature and we then have a power greater then our natural “heart”. Unlike a physical heart, it is not replacement of the natural heart (seat of spirit, will and desire) it is an over powering and defeating of the old by the new. Marvin, I’m not schooling you because you know this, but to some it may not be clear, it is not a replacement it is an overtaking by God’s Spirit. And that is how the inherent evil still is able to remain and we can and do often access it. So we must feed the new and starve the old. Thanks Marvin
marvin williams on November 30, 2016 at 2:19 pm
Gary, you are spot on. God is the only one who knows and understands the depth of sin and evil in the human heart. Thus, we must let him completely transform it. When he gives us a new heart, then we will crave his ways more. But, it doesn’t happen automatically. It happens when we yield daily to his Word. Thanks for adding your voice here. I so appreciate it, Gary.
gagirllive on November 30, 2016 at 2:43 pm
Hi, BWO. As is my practice, I like to post my commentary before reading what anyone else has posted. I was a bit surprised this morning when I went back and read yours and found that we had somewhat opposing views on this. I hope you know me well enough by now that I am always open to correction and that if I disagree with anyone on this forum, I do so with the utmost respect. I try very hard to convey that in my writing. The thing I think we see differently is the nature of the heart. To my understanding, it is totally depraved, thus, why I say a transplant is necessary rather than a pacemaker. 🙂 Starving the old heart and feeding the new, as you stated, would not render a new man in us. Our old heart is incapable of being conformed to godliness. God had to place within us a totally new heart. As for the struggle that is in us as believers, we still wrestle with our flesh, the world, and the devil. There is this conflict within us, not because we are feeding our old heart, but because we have been given a new heart with new desires that want to please and submit to God. The old heart is dead and completely unresponsive to the things of God. The war within is because our flesh is desiring to go against our new heart which is controlled by the Holy Spirit. Submission is needed, not starvation. Anyway…all of that to say that I love and value all that you say, dear brother. Even when we disagree, I am eager to learn from you, Papa. 🙂 ♡
opinionorincontext on December 1, 2016 at 8:34 am
I agree completely. I look forward to your comments everyday after reading the scriptures (not just the verse) and prayer. I suspect that you filters them with prayer to encourage and stay in line with the scripture at hand before writing anything. I appreciate you brievity, clarity and honesty.
gagirllive on December 1, 2016 at 8:46 am
Amen, opinionorincontext! Gary does a wonderful job of encouraging us on this forum everyday. He especially reflects the humility and love of Christ in his comments—true marks of a person who has been given a new heart. Amen? Blessings upon you today!
gagirllive on November 30, 2016 at 8:22 am
Amen, Marvin. God’s not into renovations; He’s into demolitions. These diseased hearts of ours have to be torn down from the foundation and hauled away—something that absolutely requires divine ability. Just as the prophet Ezekiel says, God takes away our heart of stone (hardened and opposed to God) and gives us a heart of flesh (sensitive and responsive to God). I believe that our struggle as Christians is with our flesh, not our heart. The very fact that we now have a struggle is indicative that we have a new heart. Unregenerate people do not struggle with their flesh. We are a new creation in Christ and must learn to walk in step with the Holy Spirit, not our flesh, by yielding/submitting to the authority of Christ over our lives. Without God giving us a new heart, which He empowers in our lives by the Spirit, it would be impossible to even desire to do what is right out of a pure motive of love for Christ. This reminds me of the parable of the sower. There is a lot to be gleaned there concerning the heart which the different types of soils represent. I think I’ll be visiting that passage today, as well as looking a little deeper at what God said through Ezekiel.. Thanks so much, Marvin, for this encouragement today. It’s good to be back with my ODJ family. Grace and peace, beloved sojourners!
sandy229 on November 30, 2016 at 8:44 am
Its so good to have you back GAgirl!!
gagirllive on November 30, 2016 at 12:10 pm
Thank you, Sandy and godlove! It’s good to be back. I was visiting family in a very rural area, and to my dismay, I did not have good phone service there…no Internet connection! I ended up putting my phone away for the duration of my stay instead of fussing with it and about it. Sure did miss y’all. 🙂
hsnpoor on November 30, 2016 at 6:47 pm
I missed you, GG. Where were you….Mars? Just kidding and no need to reply. I’m just trying to picture myself without cell phone service and the Internet and, quite frankly, it’s a pretty unsettling picture. BUT, I think I would learn to adjust, given time, as long as there were good people, good food and a peaceful setting. Oh yeah, I’m getting more settled just thinking about it…: ). Welcome back!
sandy229 on November 30, 2016 at 6:55 pm
You would learn to adjust Kim. Sometimes when we go jeeping for the weekend, my phone says no service, which really turns out to be a blessing in disguise. That means no one can get a hold of me, and I found it rather comforting….. 🙂
gagirllive on November 30, 2016 at 7:33 pm
Haha! You nailed it, gf. There were great people, plenty of down-home good food, and a very peaceful setting! I actually enjoyed not hearing every ding of notification from my phone! (Once I got over the first couple of days. 🙂 ) I missed you too, Kim!
godlove on November 30, 2016 at 9:55 am
Amen, gagirl. The new heart truly struggles with incompatibility with the flesh, but thank God for the gift of His Spirit to help us. I like the way you put it, God is definitely not into renovations; He is rather into demolition… and rebuilding. Welcome back, sis, hope you enjoyed your trip.
gagirllive on November 30, 2016 at 1:02 pm
Ha! I just thought of this, godlove. We need a heart transplant, not a pacemaker. 🙂
sandy229 on November 30, 2016 at 1:20 pm
Wow, I was just thinking the same thing! A heart transplant, that is what we all need.
marvin williams on November 30, 2016 at 2:30 pm
Yes! I love this. A new heart. Not making a better version of the old one. Thanks for an apropos image.
marvin williams on November 30, 2016 at 2:27 pm
Amen! Complete renovations and transformation. No remodels. Love it.
gagirllive on November 30, 2016 at 3:08 pm
LOL!…So I guess today’s comments are not a case of “the law of non-contradiction”, huh? God does give us a new heart—one that He is constantly changing and transforming into the likeness of His Son. Thanks for checking in on the pot you stirred up today, Marvin. 🙂
sandy229 on November 30, 2016 at 9:58 am
Yes, I agree with you also GAgirl. I really like the way you put that.
opinionorincontext on November 30, 2016 at 10:36 am
I suggest you read Jeremiah 17 carefully. In context it refers to changed hearts not destroyed and replaced hearts. Jesus came to change our stone cold sinful heart. At the point that we accept Jesus as our personal savior, the Holy Spirit then begins changing our heart toward the things of God.
gagirllive on November 30, 2016 at 11:46 am
Beloved, it may be a matter of semantics, but overall I think we are on the same page. We just may be using different words interchangeably, but I do hold fast to “new” versus “changed”. Here’s why. In Ezekiel 36:26 God says, “I will give you a NEW HEART and put a NEW SPIRIT within you; I will TAKE THE HEART OF STONE OUT of your flesh and GIVE YOU a heart of flesh.” (Emphasis mine) This describes the new birth. That is what I meant about demolition versus renovation. God did not give our pre-existing heart of stone a makeover. It could not be improved upon. It was dead—“stone cold”. Scripture clearly says He put a NEW HEART and a NEW SPIRIT within us. With this new heart and spirit, we now have the capacity to live “changed” lives…or rather “exchanged” lives. It’s Christ in us and nothing else. Thanks for weighing in on the conversation today, dear one.
sandy229 on November 30, 2016 at 1:06 pm
Ezekiel 36:26 “And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a new tender responsive heart.” This new heart will be pliable and teachable, the opposite of a stone heart. New Spirit: Transformation of the will and spirit is necessary as the second step in renewal. The parallel passage in Ezekiel 11:19, “And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their stony, stubborn heart and give them a tender responsive heart.” and the command in Ezekiel 18:31a, “Put all your rebellion behind you, and find yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.” suggest that the human will and the whole inner life are involved in the renewal. A new will and a new attitude of spirit enable the individual to walk in God’s decrees and keep His regulations (Ezekiel 36:27). This passage is similar in concept to Jeremiah 31:31-34. Hence, part of Ezekiel’s prophecy is messianic.
marvin williams on November 30, 2016 at 2:34 pm
opinionincontext, in total agreement that the Holy Spirit changes our hearts. It is a continuous process, right? Thanks for adding your voice here.
hsnpoor on November 30, 2016 at 6:43 pm
opinion, a close reading of Jeremiah 17:9 would indicate that the state of the human heart is beyond cure (NIV, HCSB) at worst and exceedingly corrupt, desperately wicked, at best. I am not understanding how the context would indicate a heart change over a heart replacement; especially when taking into account the Ezekiel passage cited. Have I/we missed something that you want to bring to my/our attention for further consideration? If so, I’m certainly open to hearing what you have to say.
marvin williams on November 30, 2016 at 2:25 pm
gagirllive, you are so right. I love this: “Without God giving us a new heart, which He empowers in our lives by the Spirit, it would be impossible to even desire to do what is right out of a pure motive of love for Christ.” This is such solid theology. We are not good people who sometimes do bad things; we are fundamentally bad people who occasionally do good things. Thus, we need a new heart, new desires, and a new disposition. Only the Spirit can change us from the inside out. Thanks for always making solid contributions here. I thoroughly enjoy your voice. Grace and peace.
sandy229 on November 30, 2016 at 1:18 pm
I just wanted to add that we receive forgiveness and cleansing from the Lord so we should give Him every area of our heart that has become hardened, and we will receive a new heart and a new spirit. Yield to the Lord and ask Him to transform your heart and your life today.
marvin williams on November 30, 2016 at 2:41 pm
Sandy, this is such a great point. We may not even be aware of places in our heart where we have hardened it. We do need to ask the Lord to search us and try us to see if there is any wicked way in us and lead us in the path everlasting.
sim jing ying on November 30, 2016 at 3:50 pm
To my opinion, I agree to Jeremiah’s opinion about the heart and I agree that the heart is an deceptive organ and you never know how dark is that darkness in someone’s heart and you can only pray to help that guy which is the most effective method there is. To me knowing God whom can only cure and change and cure our hearts eliminates all hesitations to come to God and be healed in Jesus Christ’s name.
Gary Shultz on December 1, 2016 at 8:13 am
Hi GG, I don’t know if you will get back here, but there is no offense. That is why I laid it out like I did, because when we talk about a new heart it is often spoken about in different ways. New, is one way, old for the inherited nature. As Paul talks bout not doing what he wants to do, but doing what he does not want to do, we find the old is still present and accounted for, but now, by Christ’s work we have a better a new heart, (way of living, thinking, responding) a victorious link to a life in Christ. So actually we are saying the same thing we use different references and words and the description is a little different; however, we both know a new spirit came to our souls (heart) from God Himself upon faith in Christ. So I’m glad you’re back, and you’ll need to do a better job if you really want to offend me. Thanks GG
gagirllive on December 1, 2016 at 8:26 am
Glad to know it’s all good, Gary! One of the commentators came across kind of brusque to me, so I just wanted to make sure that I hadn’t offended my BWO. 🙂 Thanks for responding. Blessings upon you today, dear brother!
sandy229 on December 1, 2016 at 9:47 am
LOL