Faux Heart
“Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known” (Luke 12:1-2).
Jesus told people to beware of the Pharisees, who were considered the highest, most esteemed religious men of that period. They knew Scripture well, and they spent time teaching people on the outside, but their hearts were dirty because they didn’t spend time with the Father.
The Pharisees told people to do things that they weren’t doing themselves. They knew what to do because they knew the Bible like the backs of their hands. They spent time with their spiritual families and grew in spiritual knowledge together, and they had no trouble trying to lead outsiders to the light rather than the dark, but their actions were useless because they didn’t know the heart of God.
Spending time with the Father is where we grow from. It’s the root of everything we do and everything we are. People can know a lot about God without ever really knowing Him personally.
When Jesus modeled His life for us, He began at the top of the mountain alone with His Father to show us that everything begins with having a personal relationship with God. Without the closeness, it’s only head knowledge. All the studying, all the teaching, and all the being with other Christians will never be enough if your heart isn’t in His hands.
Jesus called their actions ‘hypocrisy,’ knowing that their hearts weren’t clean even if their hands were.
How can we live changed lives if we aren’t spending time with the only One who can change the heart? How can we extend grace, mercy, and love in the best way if we don’t seek wisdom, patience, and understanding from Him?
Your intentions can be pure, and you can be doing all the right things, but none of it means a thing if He’s not in it. You can pray until you’re blue in the face, but if you’re only doing it for the approval of others, your words will always be empty.
God doesn’t want your words and your actions if He can’t have your heart.
Jesus told people to beware of the Pharisees, who were considered the highest, most esteemed religious men of that period. They knew Scripture well, and they spent time teaching people on the outside, but their hearts were dirty because they didn’t spend time with the Father.
The Pharisees told people to do things that they weren’t doing themselves. They knew what to do because they knew the Bible like the backs of their hands. They spent time with their spiritual families and grew in spiritual knowledge together, and they had no trouble trying to lead outsiders to the light rather than the dark, but their actions were useless because they didn’t know the heart of God.
Spending time with the Father is where we grow from. It’s the root of everything we do and everything we are. People can know a lot about God without ever really knowing Him personally.
When Jesus modeled His life for us, He began at the top of the mountain alone with His Father to show us that everything begins with having a personal relationship with God. Without the closeness, it’s only head knowledge. All the studying, all the teaching, and all the being with other Christians will never be enough if your heart isn’t in His hands.
Jesus called their actions ‘hypocrisy,’ knowing that their hearts weren’t clean even if their hands were.
How can we live changed lives if we aren’t spending time with the only One who can change the heart? How can we extend grace, mercy, and love in the best way if we don’t seek wisdom, patience, and understanding from Him?
Your intentions can be pure, and you can be doing all the right things, but none of it means a thing if He’s not in it. You can pray until you’re blue in the face, but if you’re only doing it for the approval of others, your words will always be empty.
God doesn’t want your words and your actions if He can’t have your heart.
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