Christianity Oasis Forum

[cimi]

August 5
Wednesday


MATTERS OF
THE HEART

READ:
Matthew 13:10-15
________________________________________________

The hearts of this
people have grown
dull. Their ears are hard
of hearing, and their
eyes they have closed.
__Matthew 13:15
_________________________________________________

At the beginning of a spiritual retreat, our speaker Matt Heard asked, "How's your heart?" It stunned me, because I tend to focus on believing with my mind and working with my hands. In the activity of thinking and serving, my heart is pushed to the side. As we were led through the Bible's repeated emphasis on this crucial center of our lives, I began to grasp his premise that belief and service are, more than anything else, matters of the heart.

When Jesus told a story to illustrate how people receive and respond to His teaching (Matt. 13:1-9), His disciples asked, "Why do You speak to them in parables?" (v.10). In reply, Jesus quoted the prophet Isaiah: "For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them" (v.15; Isa. 6:10).

How dangerously easy it is to neglect our hearts. If we become callous, we find no joy in living or serving; and life seems hollow. But when our hearts are tender toward God, understanding and gratefulness flow through us to others.

So, how's your heart? __David McCasland
_____________________________________________________________

````````````````````Our service for the Lord becomes`````````````
```````````````````````````A duty that is hollow`````````````````
```````````````````````If we neglect our heart for God````````````
``````````````````````And Him we do not follow. __sper```````````
_____________________________________________________________

We can become so busy doing good
that we lose our heart for God.

************Today's Bible Reading __ Matthew 13:10-15************

10 And the disciples came
and said to Him, "Why do
You speak to them in
parables?"

11 He answered and said to
them, "Because it has been
given to you to know the
mysteries of the kingdom of
heaven, but to them it has
not been given. 12 For
whoever has, to him more
will be given, and he will
have abundance; but
whoever does not have,
even what he has will be
taken away from him.

13 Therefore I speak to them
in parables, because seeing
they do not see, and hearing
they do not hear, nor do
they understand. 14 And in
them the prophecy of Isaiah
is fulfilled, which says:
'Hearing you will hear and
shall not understand, and
seeing you will see and not
perceive; 15 for the hearts of
this people have grown dull.
Their ears are hard of
hearing, and their eyes they
have closed, lest they
should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears, lest
they should understand with
their hearts and turn, so that
I should heal them.'"

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>INSIGHT<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Jesus' parable (Matt. 13:3-9) that prompted the disciples' question
about His teaching style is often called the parable of the sower
and the seed. However, it is actually the parable of the soils. The
sower and the seed remain consistent throughout the story, but the
emphasis is on the difference in the soils (our hearts), and their
ability to receive the seed (the Word of God). BILL CROWDER