Thought for Mondsy, 3 July

Jeremiah 17:9-10

The human heart is most deceitful and

desperately wicked.  Who really knows how bad it is?  But I know!   I the Lord search all hearts and examine secret motives.  I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve. 

Like us, Jeremiah could not understand why wickedness seems to develop more and more in the world. He discovered that the person whose heart turns away from God to trust in man is cursed, unfruitful and has a life without meaning. He also discovered that the man who trusts in the Lord is blessed indeed and is like a well-watered tree that is planted by life-giving waters. Such a man will not be anxious in times of drought nor unfruitful despite the heat of the day: "For cursed is the man whose trust is in man, but blessed in the man who trusts in the Lord." 

Like us, Jeremiah had to learn that "the heart of man is more deceitful than anything else - and is desperately wicked, sick and incurable." and like Jeremiah, we see the results of individuals and nations who put their trust in men, suffering the consequences of their unchristian choices. 

The outward appearances of a man may deceive us, but God alone understands the heart. We may not even know the true content of our own heart, but the Lord our God knows what is in the heart of each and every one of us. 

We are all sinners, and although we praise and thank God that we have been saved by grace through faith in Christ and have been made a new creation in Him, our old nature fights against our new-life-in-Christ and our new nature fights against our sinfulness. 

As born again believers who are living by the grace of our Lord, we have the Holy Spirit permanently in our hearts.  The Spirit will never leave us nor forsake us and can never be taken away from us.  Nevertheless, knowing that "the heart is more deceitful than anything else and desperately wicked," we should examine our heart to see if we are in the faith and  to see if we are walking in spirit and truth - to see if we are trusting in anything other than the Lord Jesus. We should ask Him to search our hearts to see if there is any wicked way in us that needs to be cleansed and rooted out. 

Only God can fully know and understand our inner heart. May we submit to His purifying gaze and be ready and willing to say: "Purify my heart O Lord," no matter what it may cost. 

Prayer - Heavenly Father, we thank you that we are your children and have been saved by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. Nevertheless, it is uncomfortable to realise that, like all men and women, our hearts are deceitful and desperately wicked.  We pray that you would search our hearts, our motives, our conscious thoughts, and even our unconscious thoughts and plans to see if there is anything in us that needs to be rooted out. Purify our hearts, we pray.  Lord, we are so aware that these days we are encouraged to follow the desires of our own hearts. May the deep desire of our hearts be to follow only you and your example, in the power of the Holy Spirit, in Jesus' name, Amen.