The Heart of the Matter

Somewhere along the way, many Christians have come to paint a mental and spiritual portrait of Jesus as a mild-mannered, soft-spoken man of grace, peace of mind and heart, and all-inclusive salvation; salvation promised to any and all that accept Jesus into their hearts, which by the way, is a contemporary evangelistic term. To me, this conjures up an image something akin to the peace-sign waving hippies of the 60's. I have often wondered if I was totally off base in my mental/spiritual image of Jesus because, to me, he was certainly not a milk-toast messenger scooping up followers as fast as he could. Consider Nicodemus or the rich young ruler, for instance. The highly educated, influential Jewish leader and the wealthy man would surely have been feathers in the Followers Cap, were that true. Yet, Jesus stood firm in His admonishments of both because he knew their hearts. The Jesus that rang true in my spirit challenges people to face their sin, change their ways and habits through regeneration. Can one have the salvation Jesus offered with mere lip service?

Salvation is a gift but not one passed out like samples of food at Sam's on a Saturday morning. It is not a passive decision but a lifestyle of deliberate action. "Follow Me" is not an invitation to fall blindly into the ranks like lemmings but to set aside with purpose that which you formerly believed and lived, to forsake anyone and anything that hinders your path to the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Jesus embodies love, forgiveness, and grace, certainly; but it is by no means an indication that it is an all-inclusive gift card for those that claim a life on Righteous Road half way to Heaven but dwell as citizen of Sodom and Gomorrah! Regeneration is the rebirth Jesus spoke of to Nicodemus. It was turning away from all that is not Christ as Savior and Him crucified. We read in Titus 2:11-15 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds. These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority Let no one disregard you.

Still, there are Christians, congregations and entire denominations that open wide their arms to accept any profession of faith from anyone regardless of their lifestyle, active and/or open participation in a life ripe with sin. Jesus knows the heart of man; He is not swayed by flowery words of professions of faith. Jesus confronted and challenged people to look into their hearts, examine the fruit of their lives. Look at what Paul instructs in Titus 3: Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed, to malign no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing every consideration for all men. For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy statement; and concerning these things I want you to speak confidently, so that those who have believed God will be careful to engage in good deeds. These things are good and profitable for men.

A regenerated heart and life renewed by the Holy Spirit cannot continue to wallow in the sinful, carnal practices it did before Christ. Professions of faith fall flat when the actions of the speaker reveal an un-regenerated heart and lifestyle. Jesus told Nicodemus, no man has any hope of eternal life without a spiritual rebirth. He refused to proclaim a message that would give anyone false hopes. His words, always tailored to the individual's needs never failed to puncture an inquirer's self-righteousness, unveil wrong motives, or warn of false faith or shallow commitment. That does not read as mild-mannered or soft-spoken to me. I see it as to the point and straight to the heart of the matter. That's my Jesus.