As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me. Psalm 55:16 KJV
I was recently teaching on Psalm 55 when I came across a phrase that caused me to pause and consider its depth and importance. The phrase was, “As for me, I…” It doesn’t seem very significant as it is simply a phrase of declaration of intent, but that is exactly what made me pause and consider its importance.
Psalm 55 begins with King David pouring out his heart before God. He tells of the pain, fear, and sorrow he is facing on a daily basis because of the voice and oppression of those who have risen up against him. He then goes on to say that it is especially painful because those that are rising up against him are not the enemies of Israel, but those he once fellowshipped with in the house of God.
For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him: But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company. Psalm 55:12-14 KJV
Within these verses detailing King David’s situation, there are certainly Messianic foreshadows of what Yeshua [Jesus] would also endure at the hands of His “friends” like Judas and the Jewish leaders of His day.
I have learned over the years that satan and his kingdom focus on attacking two primary units because, within these two units, an individual is supposed to find the safety and affirmation we were designed to have in order to function correctly.
Those two units are the biological family and the Body of Messiah.
And more than likely, as a believer, and as someone who is a pillar of truth, you will be reproached in both of these units. Maybe it happened in childhood, maybe it has happened as an adult, or maybe it has happened both as a child and an adult, but nevertheless, it is where satan tries to do the most harm because it is within these relationships that the most long-term damage can be accomplished. But this insight is not why I am writing today.
I want to get back to the phrase, “As for me, I…” No matter what happens to us in life, or what situations or circumstances we encounter, they all demand a response. We can either be passive in that response, and let the feelings, circumstances, and situations overwhelm us OR we can be proactive in our faith and decide how we will respond based on the Word of God.
“As for me, I…” represents how we will respond, taking personal responsibility and personal accountability for the decisions we make and the actions we take. In Psalm 55 King David has just been betrayed and yes he pronounces what he thinks would be a just judgment for the one betraying him in verse 15, but then he takes personal responsibility for how he will respond by saying, “As for me, I will call upon God”.
It doesn’t matter if it is something as serious as betrayal or feeling overloaded at work. You may hear others around you complaining, gossiping, or see them running to evil, but a son or daughter of God, a pillar of truth will say, “As for me, I…” and whatever follows would represent the will of the Lord.
“As for me, I…” is actually just one short Hebrew word, “aniy” (pronounced in Hebrew ah-nee). In the Hebrew language when the word “aniy” is appended to a verb, it expresses a strong emphasis on the intent of action. So in Psalm 55:16, King David, in the midst of his pain, fear, and sorrow made a decision and emphatically stated what he would do. He will call upon God, and his expectation is that God will save him.
I see that oftentimes even as believers, people who want to stand and do God’s will no matter what, still wait for things to “seem” right and “feel” right before we take action. Or we feel like because we are doing the will of God and have set ourselves to do so, but don’t “feel” right or the situation still has not changed we must be doing something wrong. The saving and changing part is God’s part, our part is to be able to say in the midst of whatever difficult circumstance, whether it be external pressures or internal temptations, that, “As for me, I will do the will of God”. It may mean calling upon God like David did in this psalm, it may mean holding your tongue, it may mean facing a fear, or something else.
Most importantly, “As for me, I…” represents the ultimate freedom. Personal responsibility is freedom. It means that you do not have to stay the victim of someone else’s words or actions. It means you decide what and who you will believe, what the long-term effects of another’s sin against you will be or not be, and your personal intimacy with God. It is comforting to know that even though other people’s actions can have negative effects on your life, you always have the freedom to say that is not the end of the story, “As for me, I will call upon God”.
Is there a circumstance or situation in your life that you need to stand up and emphatically say, “As me for, I…”? Perhaps you are in a situation where you feel like you are drowning and there is no way out. I don’t want to oversimplify the issue, but have you taken the time to look back and examine if at any point you said something to the effect of “As for me, I…”? Maybe that is a good place to start if you have felt stuck for a while.
Remember, the Hebrew word our ministry is named after is Ammudim. This means “pillars” in Hebrew and our mission is to help God’s people be pillars of truth. If we are going to continue to be pillars, we all need to learn and continually be reminded to say, “As for me, I”
He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? Matthew 16:15 KJV
While ministering recently in Toronto, ON, our family decided to do some sightseeing and visited the renowned Royal Ontario Museum. Let me begin by saying it is a top-notch museum and has a little something for everyone. It is also huge and we did not even come close to seeing everything, but the things that we did see caused me to examine some things.
I enjoy a good museum, but the more I have grown over the years in the knowledge of God and the wiles of the enemy, I tend to view the exhibits at museums through this filter. This is especially true for natural history and cultural history museums. In natural history museums we see mankind’s “push” to “push” God out of the minds of humans as the Creator of all things. In cultural history museums, what is basically on display is the deception of satan over entire cultures and nations over the centuries.
Please don’t misunderstand me. I do not consider it evil or sinful to visit a museum. In fact, it can be quite educational and there are many things in museums that help us understand our past and appreciate it and the people who innovated so much to make our lives better.
But while we were in Toronto we visited many different sections in the museum. The first section we went to was the Chinese and Japanese historical exhibits. It basically consisted of some pottery and hundreds of idols in the form of Buddhas. So we walked through that and I made sure the kids knew these were idols made of hay, wood, and stubble that couldn’t speak, hear, smell, or taste. I figured if I took my kids to see a bunch of idols I needed to educate them continually from the Word as to what they really were. They told me to quiet down cause someone might hear me but oh well.
We went to see different types of wildlife native to the area, and again were educated about idolatry in the native american history section, but then we came to what I felt was a very confusing section…
It was the section on Greco-Roman history including the Byzantine era. Why was it confusing? Greco-Roman history is fraught with mythology and paganism. There were many gods and goddesses, but when Constantine became a Christian the official religion of the Roman Empire became Christianity. However, rather than do away with all the idolatry and turn to Yeshua / Jesus only, they as a culture tried to combine the idolatry and Christianity. You see, the Chinese and Japanese exhibits were easy, it was straight idolatry and the God of Israel was nowhere to be found. But especially in the Byzantine era displays there was a mixture of worshiping Yeshua / Jesus and idolatry. Now that becomes confusing. It seemed like everywhere I looked in this exhibit there were depictions of truth and Yeshua / Jesus that tried to paint a picture and character of who he was. That, mixed with their superstitions and other idolatrous practices such as holding amulets over the womb of women and then reciting psalms to ward off bad and bring good can make your head tilt.
After we left that exhibit I asked God, “How could literally billions of people throughout history have been deceived or bought this image of Yeshua / Jesus?” You see, I have a very simple faith, and this stuff I had just walked away from felt very complicated. And I began to be tempted to think, “How do I know I have it right when so many thought something else?” So I asked God, “How do I process that?”
Now what happened next was not an audible voice, but I was simply reminded of the Scripture in Matthew 16:13-17.
When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 16:13-17 KJV
But the verse that came roaring into me was, “But who do you say that I am?”. And I realized that ultimately that is all that matters. I don’t answer for all of civilization. I will not be judged on others’ perceptions. Just as this Scripture says, mankind has always believed all sorts of things about God, Yeshua / Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, but all that matters is the question that puts the finger right on the heart of each one of us.
Who do you say that Yeshua / Jesus is?
This question is so freeing because He is not interested as to whether or not we followed the mass of who men thought He was or is. Rather, He is interested in what you personally believe about Him and how you follow Him. This question has the ability to release us from the cultural bondage that so many believers fall into. It only becomes about who we say He is, based on what He has said to us and revealed to us individually.
Let’s get our eyes off of others and get our eyes back on the one who is asking this searching question in the midst of so many voices saying they are the right one to listen to.
Have you ever considered the sin of fretting and the damage it causes? At Ammudim Ministries, we are dedicated to helping God’s people be pillars of truth in the midst of a crumbling world. After all, Ammudim is simply the Hebrew word for “pillars”.
But even though you and I may know a lot of truth and truly be pillars, if we fret, even pillars can begin to crumble and wear away…
Some of the definitions of fretting in Webster’s 1828 are: To gnaw away; gives the sense of unevenness; to corrode or wear away; to agitate violently; to vex; to chafe by rubbing….
I think you get the picture. When we fret there is something or someone whose speech and actions are gnawing at us, rubbing us raw, and making us angry and/or fearful. Not a place we want to be for very long and certainly not a way of thinking and speaking that will make us strong pillars of truth. Just the opposite. It will weaken us as pillars and we may even begin to crumble spiritually, mentally, and even physically.
But it can be hard not to fret…. Especially when people do things that we know or think they should know better than to do. We get infuriated and demand “justice”.
This statement will probably offend someone, but how many believers are fretting over politics right now?… I see sons and daughters of God so agitated, so anxious, and letting political leaders and those on the other side of the aisle just gnaw away at them. And they don’t realize that they are forfeiting their strength.
Now there is nothing wrong with standing up for what is good and right, but we cannot fret… The Bible says so.
Psalm 37 is one of, if not my favorite psalm. It is hard to say because I have favorite psalms for different circumstances in life, but Psalm 37 is always a comfort when I find myself, well, fretting. Let’s have a look at the first 11 verses and I will comment a little along the way.
Psalm 37:1-11 NKJV
1 Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb.
3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit[a] your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.
6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday.
7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret—it only causes harm.
9 For evildoers shall be [b]cut off; But those who wait on the Lord, They shall inherit the earth.
10 For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, But it shall be no more.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
Now let’s break it down verse by verse
1 A Psalm of David. Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
I told you the Bible said not to fret! And what are we not to fret about? The thing we hate most as pillars of truth…evil. That does not mean we are not to be concerned not care about those that are being harmed by evil, but we are not to fret as defined above. Oh, and for good measure don’t envy people who have great riches because of unjust gain.
2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb.
This is why we don’t have to fret! Because there will come an end to their evildoing one day! Do not be temporally tormented over temporal things when we are eternal beings.
3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
I like how this says, “Trust in the LORD AND do good.” Many people say they are trusting the LORD, but their life doesn’t show they are doing much good… I wonder about that sometimes. In the midst of evildoers and the enemy’s devices to get you to fret, trust the LORD instead and do good, even if no one else is. Keep forgiving, keep serving, and be sustained by His faithfulness toward you. Feed on His faithfulness and do not choke on the sins of others.
4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Enjoy the LORD. It will make you stronger in the LORD than a thousand men’s willpower combined. The enemy demands we fret about what he is doing in the earth. You don’t have to obey his demands. Enjoy and delight yourself in the LORD and the desires of your heart, that you may be fretting over whether or not will come to pass, will come to pass.
5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.
Speaking of coming to pass, look at what this verse says. But now another action is inserted here that actually proceeds trust in the LORD. That action is to commit your way to the LORD. We really have no basis for the LORD’s faithfulness to us if we are not committed to Him and His ways.
One more thing to note is the time factor we may fret over. Our Father’s solution for us not to fret is not to tell us when difficult times will end, but rather to commit our way to Him, trusting Him, and at some point in time, He will bring it to pass. Either we trust Him to come through or not, and if we don’t it is an open door to fret.
6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday.
Many times we fret over injustices done to us. People slander our reputation and harm us with words and maybe even actions. Some of you have suffered abuse and maybe you fret about the past. We fret to get even, we fret to feel safe because we control situations when we fret. Listen, God will justify you. Follow His leadership and His Spirit and make decisions based on His ways and truth and I believe that you will find your righteousness and justice to come to pass not just in the life to come, but in this life.
7 Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
I would say that rest is the exact opposite of fretting. When we fret we do not sleep well, we don’t listen well, and we simply do not function well. When we are at rest our spirit, our minds, and our bodies function great and we will feel strong.
Again, examine your heart for any unrest over the evil and atrocities that mankind is doing right now. Yes, please care and help where you can… But do not fret. It is a command. Pillars do not fret.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret–it only causes harm.
I love how simple and practical the Bible can be. Stop being angry. Many will say, “I can’t help it, the feelings overtake me”. Well, that means that you are not in control of your will in this area and need deliverance. Listen, I know feelings can be strong, but the Bible indicates it is a choice more than a feeling that overtakes. Make a choice, even say it out loud if you need to. “I will not be angry at…”
Then it says to forsake wrath. That is angry judgment. The Bible just says to leave it alone and turn your back on wrath. That is what it means to forsake something.
But I think this next little phrase might be the most motivating to me to not fret. Do not fret, it only causes harm. This is very clear to me. Fretting will only cause harm. That means it will never produce life, righteousness, or health. It will NEVER produce righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Wow, you know what that means? Fretting is not from God and His Spirit. When we fret we are not walking with the Spirit. That got my attention!
9 For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth.
This is really what it is all about. We must remember that evildoers are temporary, but the righteous are eternal. Our faith in the blood of Yeshua, Jesus, is counted unto us as righteousness that we may inherit eternal life without evil in our midst!
I know for me when I am fretting, it is because something has happened that will affect my life now, but not in eternity. My reward is not here it is in Yeshua’s Messianic Kingdom to come and you know what Yeshua said about that? That no one can take that from me! So why should I fret? That would only separate me from the hope of my reward.
10 For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, But it shall be no more.
What a statement. Think about all this evil that we are exposed to every day on the news, social media, magazines, etc… Sometimes it feels like we can’t get away from it, but there is coming a day according to this verse that we will actually look for it, but will not be able to find it. It will have been judged and done away with and it will bombard our hearts, minds, 5 physical senses, families, and relationships no more!
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Psalm 37:1-11 NKJV
Don’t fret about those in charge of the earth right now through governments and power. One day it will be ours to rule and govern in assistance to Yeshua, Jesus, and our Father, and the overarching experience we will all have at every moment is Shalom, Peace.
Be blessed,
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It’s hard for me to believe I wrote a book on the Fear of the Lord. This book was actually never intended to be a book at all. It began as a short blog post I was writing on some truths that God was teaching me about the fear of the Lord. The problem I ran into though was I just kept on writing. To the point that I looked at my wife Kassy and said, “I don’t have a blog post, I have a book”. I kept writing for one simple reason. I was beginning to see just how prevalent and important the understanding of the fear of the Lord was in the Bible and how important it was that we as believers in Yeshua (Jesus) the Messiah learn to cultivate that fear, but I also found there was very little teaching and few resources on it within the corporate Body of Messiah. This book is my humble contribution as a teacher in the Body of Messiah to help fill that void. There is so much more to be understood about the fear of the Lord and so much more depth than I am able to share at the present time in this book, but I was determined to at least get started and offer the Body of Messiah what I was learning. Hence the title, “An Introduction to the Fear of the Lord”. In this book, I have sought to introduce and bring depth to certain aspects of the fear of the Lord in the most simple and clear way I am able. If the Lord wills, I will expand and write and teach more in-depth about the fear of the Lord in the future. For now, I hope and pray that this, “An Introduction to the Fear of the Lord” will bring understanding, clarity, faith, and healing in your journey as a pilgrim here on earth.
The Fear of the Lord is an absolute necessity in our journey as believers in Yeshua. There are numerous blessings promised to those who walk in the fear of the Lord so you would think it would be one of the most taught and important truths coming from pulpits all over the world. But it is not! It is rather difficult to find sermons and teachings on the fear of the Lord. The reason probably is becauase this is a misunderstood topic and therefore an avoided topic.
In “An Introduction to the Fear of the LORD” I saught to dispel the misunderstandings and confusion and lay out in a simple and clear way what the Fear of the LORD is and is not from the Scriptures. In this book, you will be: challenged in certain areas of your life; but not condemned, taught new things; but not put down for not knowing them, and given fresh perspective on the fear of the LORD in light of eternity.
Come and learn the fear of the LORD!
Read the feedback about the eBook below.
“Upon finishing the ebook, I had such a clearer understanding of the practical on-going application and a “I can do this” in my spiritual walk of “Fearing the Lord”. I don’t have that “ominous” feeling of unattainability or religious feeling of unworthiness to my Father God who loves me so much, but also is a King in a Kingdom, that I want to be a part of for my future. Why I say the above, is this ebook is written in a way that little children can understand the principles. It does not have large convoluted religious words, it’s clear and does not have confusion or condemnation, but truth, backed by the Scriptures. I can envision sitting down with my children or young children (3rd grader or even 2nd grade) and reading this ebook to them as a Bible study and provide instruction, so then this leads to others no matter the age also being able to understand and learn. As far as we are concerned you have hit it out of the park.” – Annonymous, WA
He deserves and is worthy of all our praise and all of our honor. I thought of a Psalm and I want to read through Psalm 145 and make a couple of comments as we go because this is such an encouraging Psalm about the goodness of God and how he meets us- in our trials and tribulations and when we fall.
Psalm 145
1 I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever. 2 Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever. 3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.
Understand you and I will never come to an end to His greatness. We need that for eternity. Sometimes I wonder, ‘Am I ever going to get bored with God?’ And the answer is ‘NO’.
He will always have something new! He will always show you something new. You will never get ahead of Him and that is the best news you could hear today!
We can not exhaust his goodness and greatness! It will always be there forever and ever, He doesn’t grow tired and he doesn’t grow weary.
There is no end to His greatness, it cannot be searched out, and for this, we can bless Him every day. And if you are able to bless God every day, that is a healthy place spiritually.
Not all things are great, I am not that great, but He is and that is the important thing. Who cares if one is great or not? If their source of life is great, that is all one needs.
4 One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.
I want to say to all the young people… God is great. He will see you through everything! Don’t ever give up on Him. He will always be there for you. And you can ask those who are older than me. He will always be there for you! He will not say, “You are old enough now, figure it out.” He will always be there for you.
I remember being 20 years old, praying with some friends, and because of the testimonies of those that had gone before I remember telling God, “No matter what happens, no matter what trials come, I KNOW you will be able to see me through them all”. I knew when I said it, it was the absolute truth and it has proven out true time and time again. That prayer proved to be a stake in the ground that I would come back to time and time again when all seemed lost. I just knew He would come through.
5 I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works. 6 And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts: and I will declare thy greatness.
God has done some amazing things in my life! He has delivered me from some big-time stuff. Stuff where the enemy was too strong for me and I couldn’t do it. In declaring His greatness let me just say this… I have experienced the power of God when He comes and overthrows evil in someone’s life. It’s difficult to describe, but all I can tell you is this; The Holy Spirit is able to be the most forceful being (in a good way) that I have ever experienced, and when it’s time to deliver from satan’s bondage.
7 They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness. 8 The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.
I want to tell you this because someone may need to hear it. God the Father is not like your earthly father. Even I, as an earthly father, I will admit, that sometimes my anger comes too quickly. Sometimes my ability to listen isn’t there, and I’m not as full of compassion as my heart wants to be. But your Heavenly Father, it’s not an issue. So don’t tag your earthly father thinking, ‘My earthly father is like that maybe my Heavenly Father is too.” NO, He is not!
9 The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.10 All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee. 11 They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power;
The world doesn’t get to talk of the Lord’s power or His kingdom. Sickness is just something you deal with. These things are just things you deal with. Problems in life are just things you deal with. We get to talk about the power in our lives to help us overcome these things.
The best the world will ever get is human government… I don’t care if it’s a democracy, monarchy, or anything else… Nothing compares to the Kingdom that we will inherit and the hope that it brings for eternity.
12 To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom. 13 Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.
I’ll tell you what the solution is to all the problems you see right now in the world, it’s his kingdom coming. Period! It will solve the problems because we will finally have a righteous King on earth. There have been many leaders come and go on earth… some good, most bad, but none of them holy and righteous.
14 The Lord upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.
Have you fallen recently? I have.
He upholds us. Do you know what it means in the Scriptures to be bowed down? It literally means to be depressed. It’s amazing that the Word says this because so often someone that is depressed feels that God is not wanting to help them…
THIS SAYS JUST THE OPPOSITE.
15 The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season. 16 Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing. 17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works. 18 The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
If you call upon the name of the Lord your God for help, the Word says, ‘He is nigh unto you.’ You might say, well, I have all this sin in my life. Yeah, okay, but in the sincerity of your heart are you calling on him for help? The Word says He is nigh. You might say you don’t feel Him. The Word is much stronger and more authoritative than our feelings.
Maturity as a believer isn’t measured by our feelings, but by how we hold to the Word no matter where our feelings are at in the moment.
19 He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them. 20 The Lord preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy. 21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.
Oh, we as His children have desires and hopes that He fills, we have cries and problems He helps us with… There is no area that He does not want to be involved in.
Do you know what it means to be preserved? It means you will not rot and decay… That is great news. Our earthly bodies might decay, but our spirits will not and in the resurrection, we will finally have bodies that will never decay, but last us forever!
For that, we can bless His holy name forever and ever.
God is so great! These are just some of the reasons only a couple of the reasons He is great. We could be here all day and never search out a fraction of how great He is. Let’s remember that today.
Hey everyone, it’s David. I hope and pray that all who read this are recognizing the blessing, providence, and love of God our Father in every trial, circumstance, and victory in your lives. If I were to categorize what I want to discuss in this article in some sort of teaching series, I would title the teaching series, “Things David thinks about while lying in bed at night”. That is a joke, but not really. I conclude that if I am reasoning through something when it comes to following and knowing God, then other people are too. So I conclude that “things David thinks about while lying in bed”, may be things that you would be interested in understanding, too. Not that the full understanding comes to me while lying in bed, but thoughts begin to form, Scriptures begin to come, and honestly I simply get bothered enough by not having some sort of conclusion that I begin to go looking in the Bible. So here it goes…
Lately, on social media, I have seen some memes circulating that say things like, “Jesus never said to follow your heart” and “Following your heart is terrible advice”. I get where this is coming from and I am not saying there is not some truth to those types of phrases, but my question is then what do you follow? Many would say something like this in response, “You follow the Word of God” or “You follow Christ and not your heart”. Okay, but if I don’t follow my heart, but I am to follow Christ and the Word, then what part of me is following Him if my heart is not in the equation yet because it is too deceived and depraved? My mind!?!? How is that any better?
If someone was trying to make a big decision or even a small one and asked me if they should follow their heart, I would say, “yes and no” OR “it depends”. In my opinion, saying a definitive yes or no is too generalized and does not bring an understanding of the heart’s role in our journey of knowing and following God.
So what I want to share with you are some thoughts that I believe are Scriptural that could help you come to your own conclusion about this all-too-common phrase “follow your heart”.
I think the first point of confusion is that most people are not even on the same page as to what the definition of our heart is. We could be saying the same words and perceiving two very different things. The world tends to define the heart as more feeling and emotion-based. So when they say, “follow your heart”, most would be saying, “follow what makes you happy, feels good, avoid pain, and is generally self-centered”. The word for heart in Hebrew is the word, “lev”. In looking at how it is used in context and looking at Hebrew dictionaries and lexicons, I have a very simple definition of the heart. Simply, put the heart is the very core of a person. What is in the heart of a person is what they will do and what they will focus on. The heart is not some faculty that is separate from you as a living being. It is you!
Maybe this example can bring clarity.
The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever. Psalm 22:26 KJV
This verse says your heart shall live forever. What that means is the meek that praise the LORD shall themselves live forever. In this Scripture, the eternal core of a living being is referred to as a heart. Also known as our spirit.
This is complicated, though, by what I believe to be well-meaning, but not thought out teachings by many preachers and teachers. They focus on the heart as being deceitful, and depraved, (which it is in an unredeemed state that comes as a result of the entrance of sin into the hearts of man through the disobedience of Adam), but give little to no understanding about how God works with the heart to bring us back to Himself. For example, I was looking at what different people were saying on this topic and a common saying was this, ‘Your heart cannot be trusted and that you first must turn to God, THEN your heart will change’. If that is true, my question is, what turns to God before my heart does in order for it to change? Do you see what I mean?
The greatest commandment says,
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God [is] one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: Deuteronomy 6:4-6 KJV
The first part of our being that we love God with is our heart. So how could I love Him with some other part of my being first so that my heart can change?
Similarly, the LORD says this about turning back to Him in repentance
And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call [them] to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee, And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; Deuteronomy 30:1-2 KJV
It is clear to me that the first part of who we are that turns back to God is our heart. So how is it that we could turn back to God so that our hearts can change? It appears as though our heart has to come to a place of change in decision and desire to turn back to Him and follow Him.
So the question “should you follow your heart”, should really actually be rephrased to “should you do what is in you (your heart) to do?”. It appears to me from Scripture that rather than following your heart, your heart is a driving, motivating force in what you do and say.
O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. Matthew 12:34-35 KJV
So now we are in really interesting territory because now we can forget about the question, “Should you follow your heart?” Or even the way I phrased it, “Should you do what is in your heart to do?” You and I WILL do what is in our heart. The Scriptures say so. In fact, it is what is in our heart that determines all the issues of life for us.
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it [are] the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23 KJV
So here is where I am at…
The important question is not whether or not I should “follow my heart” or “how do I come to God and follow Him so my heart can be changed”, but rather what is the state of my heart (me), and am I (my heart) soft or hard toward God and His Word? If the right things are in my heart I will have a much better chance of doing the right things and knowing and doing God’s call for me specifically.
For this commandment which I command thee this day, it [is] not hidden from thee, neither [is] it far off. It [is] not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? Neither [is] it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? But the word [is] very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it. Deuteronomy 30:11-14 KJV
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. Psalm 119:11 KJV
Many other Scriptures share the same message as these two above, and that message is this:
We need to get God’s Word in our heart, so that we may do His Word from the heart.
But how does that process begin? I have thought about this and thought about this, but at the end of the day, I only have one answer.
Because of the sin of Adam we all have been born into this world separated from God. The first thing that sin affects is our hearts. We are not sin, but sin changes us from what God intended us to be when He made man in His image. Simply put, this has put us in a condition that we cannot turn to God or even believe apart from a sovereign work on His part. The question is, do we reject and harden against that work or do we yield to it? In the Tanakh, it appears as though God used His prophets as a sovereign work of His Spirit to draw Israel back to Him. In the New Covenant, He says that He will.
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day [that] I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: But this [shall be] the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. Jeremiah 31:31-33 KJV
I remember when I was 14 years old, I went to a camp where the Gospel was presented. It was amazing because by the Spirit of God I understood the gospel for the first time. What it meant for Yeshua / Jesus to die for me and for me to be forgiven. But, I had no root in myself, little discipleship, and my heart became hardened again to God because of sin and worldly pleasures. But, when I was 20 years old, I began to have this draw, back to God. I could not explain it at the time, all I knew was that I was becoming more interested in God and less interested in sin and worldly pleasures. This was the Spirit of God drawing my HEART, not my mind (I didn’t understand what was happening), and this time I did not resist Him and harden my heart. So, yes, I had a part to play, but if God tried to draw me any other way than by my heart I would not have returned, because we will do what is in our heart.
Now, sometimes we have things in our heart to do and we may not be sure that it would be God’s will to do it. Let’s look at two examples from scripture and see if we can learn something from them.
The first is the story of Jonathan attacking the Philistines in 1 Samuel 14.
And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the LORD will work for us: for [there is] no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few. And his armourbearer said unto him, Do all that [is] in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I [am] with thee according to thy heart. Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over unto [these] men, and we will discover ourselves unto them. If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them. But if they say thus, Come up unto us; then we will go up: for the LORD hath delivered them into our hand: and this [shall be] a sign unto us. And both of them discovered themselves unto the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where they had hid themselves. And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armourbearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing. And Jonathan said unto his armourbearer, Come up after me: for the LORD hath delivered them into the hand of Israel. 1 Samuel 14:6-12 KJV
Jonathan had it in his heart to defeat the Philistines, and his armourbearer encouraged him to do it, but Jonathan understood that what was in his heart may or may not be the will of the Lord. So he went ahead with it but subjected what was in his heart to the circumstances that would play out. If it worked out one way He knew it was God’s will and if it worked out another way he would conclude it was not God’s will, even though it may have been a noble cause in his heart. I know I have had to do this. I had something in my heart, and took a step or two in that direction, but would not know if it was God’s will until certain circumstances worked out. If what was in my heart to do turned out not to be His will it would not necessarily mean my heart is evil, but that I just need to be aware if God is with me or not in it.
The next example is from when King David wanted to build God a temple in 1 Chronicles 17.
For time sake I will just tell the story. Basically, King David wants to build the LORD a temple and Nathan says to do what is in his heart because God is with him.
Then Nathan said unto David, Do all that [is] in thine heart; for God [is] with thee. 1 Chronicles 17:2 KJV
But then the LORD goes on to tell King David that, yes, it’s a good thing that he wants to build him a temple, but that it won’t be him building it. The LORD tells King David that it will be His seed (King Solomon) that will build it. So, sometimes there may be things in our heart to do for God, but we need to seek His guidance on the timing and if we are even the ones to do it.
When it comes to doing what is in our heart, we must heed the warnings of Scripture.
He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered. Proverbs 28:26 KJV
But we cannot allow the warnings of where our hearts (ourselves for that matter) may wander to do away with the absolute importance our hearts play in knowing and following God and His will for our lives.
To sum it all up as to whether you should “follow your heart”, I would simply say this,
Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these [things] God will bring thee into judgment. Ecclesiastes 11:9 KJV
Do what is in your heart to do, but always subject what is in your heart to do to prayer, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God. Also, be consistent in getting the Word of God into your heart, and although we may not always do it perfectly, you will walk in your way safely if you do these things.
Blessings,
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