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Exposing My Heart

Over and over again in their history, the Jews of the Old Testament went through the cycle of idolatry —> judgment —> repentance —> restoration. It took years of exile to cure them of their propensity toward idol worship. After they returned from the Babylonian Captivity, they remained firmly committed to YHWH. They thought they had beat idolatry and had things figured out. 

After the prophet Micah, there were 400 years of silence. Many interpreted God’s silence as God’s endorsement that all was well. During that time, various schools of thought grew up within Judaism, such as the Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes. Smug, self-congratulatory, and superior, they pictured themselves as the true heirs of God’s promises. 

When Jesus began his ministry, he blew everyone’s expectations by placing a bull’s eye on the religious establishment and showing compassion to those clearly in the sinner’s camp.

For years, when I read the Bible, I pictured myself on Jesus’s team as he spoke against religious hypocrites. I imagined myself cheering him on, “You tell them, Jesus!” until one day I realized that I needed to read Jesus’s words as if they were directed at me. Moving from “Jesus, set them straight!” to “Jesus, set me straight!” radically changed how I read the Gospels. 

I am in the religious establishment. I am sometimes hailed as a hero and asked to speak in churches when I go to the States. If I believe my own press, then blind-spots to my sin will cloud out my awareness of my need for a savior. I need a wake-up call to my need of salvation. I need a fresh awareness of my sin that will drive me to Jesus. 

But how can I know what is in my heart?

I asked that question in the previous post, and one answer is to observe what comes out of my heart. So I asked you to join me in beginning the hard work of intentionally observing my words. In that post, I asked, “Am I complaining?” Today, I continue that and add the question, “Am I being sarcastic?”

Ouch. For someone who loves the witty, well-timed comment, sarcasm is an easy, go-to comedic technique. Is sarcasm always wrong? Maybe not, but often it reveals something wrong with my heart.

PRAYER:
Lord, as much as I pray for revival to grip this country, I know revival needs to start in me. May the Holy Spirit open my eyes to see in a fresh way my need of the cross. Lord, I can’t “do” brokenness, but I can confidently pray that you break me. May I live in the light of God’s favor on my life which I only enjoy at the cost of Christ’s life.

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