The Heart of Jesus
The heart of Jesus is love and from that heart flows ever other good and perfect attribute of His character. As followers of Jesus, we are called to emulate His heart at every level. We are called to reflect Christ in our shoes becoming Jesus in skin to all we encounter.
It is a great sermon when preached, and you will get plenty affirmative head nods and amens, but the reality of walking this out and living it in the fullness required by God, is seldom seen.
We shouldn’t be looking for this among nonbelievers because if Christ is not in their heart, He will not flow out of their lives. However, the sad reality is, many nonbelievers mirror the heart of Jesus better than those that profess to follow Him. What a sad state the body of Christ has become.
In my own naivety I have always believed that above all, Christians should be able to walk through confusion, disagreements and even hurt, and they should do this well, but we don’t. It seems we respond and behave no better than those who don’t follow Christ, leaving a lost world wondering exactly where the differences lie between the saved and unsaved.
For it is by grace which we have been saved, forgiven, and set free. And while our lives should be overflowing with grace and mercy extending it to those who fall, make mistakes, or disagree with us, we’d rather exercise our right to be right and ensure our voice is heard, and heard by many regardless of who is damaged along the way.
The extension of grace and mercy, forgiveness, and long-suffering are turned to characteristics Christ never wanted to see. In our quest to be heard, and present our case to anyone who will listen, we trample one another with unrelenting harshness destroying the very people we once called brother and sister. Division is stirred, truth is bent, and folks run ahead led by emotion and feeling rather than the heart of Jesus. And just like that, the wounded solider is shot with arrows from their own team.
Does Christ really lead us down a road that permits this type of behavior? Of course not. This runs counter to His character in every way. But it doesn’t stop us. There is a self-righteous snare among the legalistic. A judgment so thick that they cannot see their own heart of flaws that overflows with critical mass. They steamroll ahead in determination led by their merciless convictions leaving the heart of Jesus in their rearview.
No doubt Jesus sits on His throne saddened that the blood He shed out of mercy and grace is being used as a platform to crucify one another and then turnaround and worship Him. The contradiction is repeating that of the Pharisees, a contradiction Christ despises.
The heart of Jesus is not dictated by a self-centered lifestyle that is only concerned about their thoughts and feelings. The heart of Jesus is not passive aggressive. The heart Jesus is not one of pride, arrogance, anger, or hostility. The heart of Jesus is not comfortable living in bitterness, disagreement, or division. The heart of Jesus was never a heart of judgment – that, my dear friend, was nailed at the cross long ago as His blood became our liberation.
The heart of Jesus is love, mercy, grace, long-suffering, carrying one another, and working through the thick of disagreement. In every action and reaction that flows from us, every response, word, or thought, the heart of Jesus should dictate and be at our core.
Jesus Christ is coming back soon for His bride, the body of Christ. How sad if He finds the body He died for, divided, and broken not looking much different than a dysfunctional world. It is time to put on the heart of Jesus.