Foundation #6 - The heart is revealed by what someone says or does

When Jesus was on the earth, He said these words: "The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks" (Luke 6:45). There are several other places where Jesus talks about how the heart and the mouth and the heart and actions are directly connected. In fact, His ministry was about exposing and changing the heart because He knew that if the heart was changed, everything else would fall in place.

He said some crazy things like if you have lusted after a woman in your heart, you have committed adultery. If you hate your brother you have murdered him. He didn't mean the act of adultery was literally committed or that you literally murder your brother when you hate him, but He was teaching people that the heart and the mouth and the heart and the hands are inextricably connected.

So what. How does this impact me? In a couple of ways.

First, as you watch what you do and what you say, you can find a window into your heart. The bad news: sometimes that window looks into something that is dark and evil. The good news: God wants to meet you here and restore the heart to holiness/health!

Secondly, as you interact with others, they reveal their heart in what they say and do. When jokes are said, satirical comments are made, criticism is given, etc. - people are revealing what they think and feel deep in their heart. Most often, people are smart enough to filter the dark things that come from their heart. In times of stress, in their deeper relationships, when they have had a bit to drink, when they feel very comfortable with you, that filter is removed and you can see into their heart more. As you work with people, you can help them identify dark areas of their heart and hopefully, propel them to allow God to change it. (I find that often, people don't even realize that this is a dark area of their heart.)

Think about this one and listen for what you say and what others around you are saying..... See if this is true!

Principles so far:
#1 You reap what you sow
#2 God is good all the time
#3 Fruit of the Spirit is the yardstick
#4 Forgiveness is a key to unlocking spiritual growth
#5 Love God, love people