Tag: test the heart

44.d. “Wilderness” – 8.k. “From every man whose heart moves him”

 

Exodus 25:1  The LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me. And this is the contribution that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, goats’ hair, tanned rams’ skins, goatskins, acacia wood, oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece. And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.

Exodus 35:5    Take from among you a contribution to the LORD. Whoever is of a generous heart, let him bring the LORD’s contribution: gold, silver, and bronze;

 Exodus 35:21    And they came, everyone whose heart stirred him, and everyone whose spirit moved him, and brought the LORD’s contribution to be used for the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the holy garments.

 1 Chronicles 29:9    Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly, for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the LORD.

 1 Chronicles 29:14   “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.

 1 Chronicles 29:17    I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you.

 2 Corinthians 9:7    Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Our giving should not be primarily because of need. We should primarily give because our willing heart compels us. God only wanted contributions from those who gave willingly. God is not interested in coerced or manipulated giving. (Guzik)

This offering was to be given willingly, and with the heart. It was not prescribed to them what or how much they must give, but it was left to their generosity, that they might show their good-will. (Benson0

The best use we can make of our worldly wealth, is to honour God with it in works of piety and charity. We should ask, not only, What must we do? but, What may we do for God? Whatever they gave, they must give it cheerfully, not grudgingly. (Henry)

If I choose to spend more than I make on things I want rather than need, I will find at the end of the month there is little to be given to God let alone to those in need. This type of giving is out of what is left rather than upfront and gives a good indication of where the heart and mind are focused. Giving out of what is left shows where God is in a person’s life and what priority they have placed on things of God. 

God instructs Moses to tell the people of the need and allow their generosity of heart to guide them in this giving. There was no set limit, ie.. 10%. Give as they were moved to give. I think we have fallen into wrongful thinking when we limit our giving to 10%. When you think about those who are living on very little and they cheerfully choose to give 10% off of the top of what they have and compare this to those who have much more than they need to live, it is obvious who has given more. Do not limit your giving to 10%. Our giving should not be limited to this. 

When our hearts and minds are focused on living so that all we think, say, and do is done for the honor and glory of Jesus Christ, things of this world will grow dim and our giving will be as we are led by the Holy Spirit to do so out of cheerfulness, and without limit.

1.q. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword

2 Chronicles 1:7  In that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, “Ask what I shall give you.” And Solomon said to God, “You have shown great and steadfast love to David my father, and have made me king in his place. O Lord God, let your word to David my father be now fulfilled, for you have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth. Give me now wisdom and knowledge to go out and come in before this people, for who can govern this people of yours, which is so great?” God answered Solomon, “Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked for possessions, wealth, honor, or the life of those who hate you, and have not even asked for long life, but have asked for wisdom and knowledge for yourself that you may govern my people over whom I have made you king, wisdom and knowledge are granted to you. I will also give you riches, possessions, and honor, such as none of the kings had who were before you, and none after you shall have the like.” So Solomon came from the high place at Gibeon, from before the tent of meeting, to Jerusalem. And he reigned over Israel.

1 Samuel 16:7   But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.”

1 Kings 8:18     But the LORD said to David my father, ‘Whereas it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart.

1 Chronicles 28:2    Then King David rose to his feet and said: “Hear me, my brothers and my people. I had it in my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD and for the footstool of our God, and I made preparations for building.

1 Chronicles 29:17-18   I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you.  O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you.

Hebrews 4:12     For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

What would God see in your heart that no one else can see or know?  What do you think is hidden and only yours to ponder and think about?  What occupies your thoughts that you think no one knows about?  God for certain knows everything in your heart.  He not only knows the thought but the intent behind the thought.  We get tested by God. Deuteronomy 8:2 “You shall remember all the way which the LORD your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.”  Ecclesiastes 3:18  “I said to myself concerning the sons of men, “God has surely tested them in order for them to see that they are but beasts.”

God alone tests us so that we will see the error in our ways, how we talk, how we think, how we act. It is because of His love for us that He does this.  He wants us to grow, understand, and gain knowledge of Him through the grace and mercy demonstrated in the redeeming work of Jesus Christ.  In this gaining knowledge and understanding, we must be shown (tested) what is truly in our heart and mind so that we can freely repent from it and freely choose to turn away from it to honor, serve, follow and obey our Lord and Savior.  If we are not tested I fear our growth will become stagnate and we will become complacent and neglectful.

Oh God, give us ears to see and a mind to understand the greatness and awesomeness of Your grace and mercy.  Speak loud and clear to our heart so that we know Your testing and see clearly that from which we need to confess, repent and turn away from.  Strengthen our understanding of scripture as we intentionally choose to each day to be in Your word for Your honor and glory.

1.o. You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth,

1 Chronicles 29:10  Therefore David blessed the Lord in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.

“But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding. O Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.”

Deuteronomy 8:18    You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

1 Samuel 2:7-8    The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he exalts.  He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s, and on them he has set the world.

Ecclesiastes 5:19    Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God.

Luke 1:51-53   He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;  he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate;  he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.

This world we live in and our sinful nature has a naturally hard time in thinking that all there is and all we have and all of my talents are from God.  We can stand back and say all is of God, but when we look at all of what is in my possession – it is mine.  We can stand back and look at someone and say God gave them such great talent(s) but when we look at our talents/gifts we see the education, hard knocks, and work experience we put into those talents and tend to claim them as our own.

Why does this happen?  God is not first in our life.  God is not first in our heart, mind, and soul.  God is not our breath of life, our bread of life, or our living water. God is not our intentional choice.  God is not what our heart, mind, and soul are seeking and desiring.  I fully understand the way we run to God in troubles and trials that hit us hard.  We run to Him when the wind has been knocked out of us and our feeble attempts at resolution have failed.  We finally end up at the place in our heart and soul and mind where we pick last that which should have been first.  Turning to God should be our very first thought and action.

It seems knowing more and more about God, gaining understanding and knowledge of Him, and wanting to live for the single purpose of honoring, glorifying, serving, following, trusting, and obeying Him, are not first because the intentional choice to place Him first is not in our heart, mind, and soul.

We need to repent of and turn away from the selfish lifestyles, self-satisfied, self-worth, self-honoring, self-absorbed, self- leading, self-praising, self-promoting, and self-serving ways in our heart, soul, and mind.  Turn to His word.  Intentionally choose to be in it each and every day.  Learn to have a heart, mind, and soul that knows and lives as though all things are from and belong to God our heavenly Father and Creator.

Humble Service

“They refused to obey and were not mindful of the wonders that you performed among them, but they stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt. But you are a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and did not forsake them.”

 

Psalms 18:22
For all his rules were before me, and his statutes I did not put away from me. I was blameless before him, and I kept myself from my guilt. So the LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.  With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;  with the purified you show yourself pure; and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.  For you save a humble people, but the haughty eyes you bring down.  For it is you who light my lamp; the LORD my God lightens my darkness.

Psalms 119:13
With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth.

Psalms 119:128
Therefore I consider all your precepts to be right; I hate every false way.

John 5:14
Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.”

Psalms 119:112
I incline my heart to perform your statutes forever, to the end.

Psalms 119:117
Hold me up, that I may be safe and have regard for your statutes continually!

Psalms 11:7
For the LORD is righteous; he loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold his face.

Psalms 17:3
You have tried my heart, you have visited me by night, you have tested me, and you will find nothing; I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress

Psalms 37:27
Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever.

1 Samuel 26:23
The LORD rewards every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness,

1 Chronicles 29:17
I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness.

God saves the humble.  When I read this I think of the time I was humbled  through His word.  I had people speaking Christ into my life and sharing His word with me for over a year.  Through these acts of discipleship God’s word became alive.  I became aware of what God required to be right with Him.  I learned that I could not be good enough to gain His forgiveness.  Then one night God opened my heart and mind to His forgiveness through believing in the redemptive work of His son.  I was humbled and knew there was nothing I could do to be right with God and had to trust His word that by believing in His son I was saved from my sin.  I was made new.  All my past sin was forgiven.  All the guilt and shame was taken away in that single moment.  I dug into His word, learning, training, wanting to know more and more of Him.  I would like to say that I grew and grew and never lost sight of honoring and glorifying Him in my daily life.  However, after some years I became  a very luke warm follower of Him.  Playing the role without much of His word being active in my life.  I was very good at pretending but the fact of the matter was I was not growing at all.  I had stopped reading His word on a regular basis.  I became complacent.  I was not listening for His voice leading me.  I was going through life with no thought of humbly honoring and glorifying God everyday.  It was more about me and what I wanted.  Things of this world seemed to have grabbed my attention and I lost sight but God did not leave me there.  Through His great plans and purpose He humbled me and then used my wife to place scripture back in front of me.  She would place His word on my computer screen.  He used her because she was listening and obeying when she could have easily followed my lead.  I tell you all of this so you know that following God is not a one day a week.  If you find yourself where God does not seem to be very near it is not because He is not there.  It is because His word is not active in your life.  Go back to that first desire.  Read His word.  Commit to being His humble servant ready to listen and obey His leading. Don’t waste a single day apart from Him.