A Heavenly Calling (5)

“Therefore I was angry with that generation,
And said, ‘They always go astray in theirheart,
And they have not known My ways.’” Hebrews 3.10, quoting Psalm 95.10

The heart of the matter
OK, but how can we tell if, in all our efforts to be faithful, we’re really on the path of that heavenly calling? Might we not be simply deceiving ourselves?

In fact, I suspect that a good many people who think they’ve begun to share in that heavenly calling have never really considered Jesus or started being faithful to God through Him at all. They are indeed deceiving themselves, if this is the case in their lives. They are content with some experience of faith, and the routine reinforcing of that through church activities; however, pressing on to full faith and a greater share in their heavenly calling, well, that’s just too much work.

So is there some place we can look, some reliable measure we can observe that will indicate whether or not we’re being truly faithful in this heavenly calling?

There is: Look to your heart.

In our passage the writer contrasts people with two different hearts – two very different sets of attitudes and affections. We’ve already begun to look at one of these. Those who are sharing in the heavenly calling are full of confidence and exuberant in boasting about the Lord. They demonstrate eagerness in seeking the Lord, and they rejoice in the hope of glory He gives them. They are firm in their resolve and persistent in their path. Those who have truly responded to the call from God by trusting in Jesus Christ have pliable hearts. They are being shaped and molded by God from within and are acquiring new affections that create in them a longing to please God and a growing desire to know and share in His ways (Phil. 2.12, 13).

A “hard” heart
On the other hand our writer mentions those “go astray in their heart” and whose hearts are “hard.” He is careful to note that these people were traveling along the same path with those who had good hearts and right attitudes. But they were complainers. They grumbled about everything. They didn’t want to do the hard work of learning God’s ways; they just wanted God to do for them whatever they needed.

Our writer says these people had evil and unbelieving hearts. They may have considered themselves “good people of God,” but all that grumbling and grousing, and that apathy and lethargy regarding God’s will, revealed that they had never begun to share in the heavenly calling; they were too busy pursuing whatever seemed best for them.

Our writer says that God was “angry” with those who had hard, complaining hearts, and who did not seek to know Him or His works as He had revealed them. These people, while still maintaining an identity among the people of Israel, sinned against God, and He allowed them to come to their deaths in the wilderness, without ever realizing the precious and very great promises of God in the land of Canaan.

The writer, quoting Psalm 95, urgently pleads with his readers to guard against the attitude of sin, unbelief, self-serving, and rebellion that characterized those who died in the wilderness. True believers always want a greater share of the heavenly calling, a fuller realization of faith and life in Jesus Christ.

We are not on the path that pleases God, and we have not begun to share in His heavenly calling if our attitudes reveal that we’re really more interested in ourselves and what we can get for ourselves than in God and His promises, purposes, and will.

Those whose attitudes are not what they should be tend to justify themselves. They have plenty of good reasons why they’re always complaining or talking about themselves. Why they don’t have time for prayer or Scripture reading. Why they can’t help in some effort to extend the Kingdom of God.

Those who have begun to share in God’s heavenly calling, yet who find themselves from time to time slipping back into those old attitudes and ways, recognize their error at once and repent of it immediately. They keep a close watch on their hearts (Heb. 4.12) and listen as the Spirit of God searches their attitudes and thoughts to expose and eliminate anything that should not be there (Ps. 139.23, 24).

Look to your heart
Each of us must look to his heart. Consider the kinds of attitudes you display throughout the day. Are you all about yourself and your needs? Or are you all about the Lord, confident in Him, boasting about His goodness, and rejoicing in the hope of glory in which you stand?

Your heart will tell you whether you have truly begun to share in the heavenly calling of God, and where you stand in relationship to the life of full faith.

For reflection or discussion
1.  Why does the “heart” matter so much? How does the heart function in the soul, say, in relation to the mind and the conscience?

2.  How can our hearts get us into trouble in the life of faith?

3.  Meditate on Proverbs 4.23. How would you counsel a new believer to practice what Solomon advises?

Next steps – Transformation: Suggest some ways to monitor your attitudes and the condition of your heart throughout the day. Run these by some Christian friends for their response. Then, find a friend who’ll join you in practicing these disciplines for a few weeks, to see how it goes. Meet regularly together to share and pray.

T. M. Moore

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This week’s ReVision study is Part 9 of a 10-part series, “Full Faith.” You can download “A Heavenly Calling” as a free PDF, prepared for personal or group study. Simply click here.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.