Verse: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? Jeremiah 17:9
Deception is a key tactic in warfare. You do not want the enemy to know what you are doing so you fake a tactic or somehow mislead them into thinking you are doing something else so that you can make your move. We see this with the most basic of military tactic, the flank.
One way our enemy did this in the War on Terror was to send local workers or Afghan Army/National police inside our compounds to be trained. They were to get to know us and get as close as they could. When the moment was right they would turn their weapons on us, report any intel to the enemy, or attempt to blow themselves up in a suicide bomb. We call this, the enemy’s “in the wire”.
Our enemy is inside the wire as well. Our flesh is an enemy that we must battle every single day to win in this spiritual warfare and become more like Christ. We must understand that we don’t put on Christ to become, “better versions of ourselves”. Rather we study His word and humbly follow His commands so that we may become more like Him.
When you hear follow your heart, this verse goes directly against that. You do not want to follow your heart when Jeremiah says it is “deceitful above all things”. Look at the marriages nowadays. People say, “We are just not in love anymore”. When they hit an emotional slump or hard time in their marriage. So, they split up and destroy their life and that of their kids. But they are just following their heart, right?
This is the issue with that statement yet so many ask the Lord for the desires of their heart in the flesh when they pray. They have the gull to go before God and say, “this is what I want Lord, won’t you provide it for me?” We need to make the desires of our heart aligned with God’s will. We need to be so steeped in the word that whenever we need to know what way to turn, we can trust our gut which is informed by experience and the Holy Scriptures.
Understanding that our heart will deceive us is important when we make decisions. When your heart is telling you something contrary to the Word, know that you must go with the Word to follow Christ. He has sought you and made you, His child. It is through election and adoption that you are a servant of His and that you can enjoy His peace and joy forever.
To know when the flesh is telling you to do this, you must be in His word. The study, memorized, meditate, and pray the holy and inspired Word of God so that when the time of temptation and hardship come your heart is aligned with Him. You cannot trust your heart in the flesh but when we bow and love the will of the Father, He will give us what we need.
Written By,
John Cooper Jr.
Godly Grunt 6
Comments