“For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, ....” (Romans 10:10)
“Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you shall find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7-8)
Would it surprise you to know that just as we have access to our houses through the door, our hearts have entry points as well? Indeed, to reach anybody you must first get to the person’s heart. To do so, you must knock to gain entry. Nothing takes residence in your heart without walking through its door.
You may be a Christian and yet have not given your heart wholly to Jesus. Then something is amiss. Unless we open our hearts so he can take centre stage, we cannot claim to be his true followers. If you have not yet accepted Jesus as your Saviour, then know that he is standing at the door of your heart this very moment knocking. Listen! “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” (Revelation 3:20) That is fellowship.
Notice it won’t be forced entry. We would have to invite him in. If Jesus is not in your heart, then someone else or something else has occupied the place reserved for him. Our Lord is in the business of recovering souls and snatching them from the hands of the devil, whose mission is “to kill and steal and destroy.” (John 10:10) Satan can disguise himself ‘as the angel of light’ or as the serpent in the Garden of Eden, but his intentions are far from noble. Whatever he claims to be, see him as an intruder. Flush him out!
Be careful who or what rules your heart! The one you have given your heart to, will dictate where you will spend eternity. The Bible warns: “Above all, guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life.” (Proverbs 4:23) If you can read what is in a person’s heart then you can tell the kind of person you are dealing with. Anything we do springs from the heart. Our Lord Jesus sums it up thus: “The good man brings good things out of the good stored in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45)
We are identified and even judged by what we do and say because our actions are the products of our hearts. We cannot deny the link; the status of our hearts determines our behaviour. Therefore when Jesus comes knocking at your door, do not harden your hearts. Jesus is speaking to your heart this very moment. “Today, if you hear (my) voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert....” (Hebrews 3:7-8)
The Children of Israel were stubborn and rebellious during their journey in the wilderness from Egypt to the Promised Land. They would not listen to God’s instructions given to Moses. Only two from among all those who left Egypt entered the Promised Land. They were made to go round and round until they perished one after the other. Therefore, an eleven-day journey lasted forty years.
God is still speaking to our hearts through his Son and we have no excuse. The Old and New Testaments of the Bible summarise what God is saying to us for our personal wellbeing. A medical practitioner can give you advice pertaining to your health, underlining the consequences if you pay no heed. But then you went seeking the doctor. In this instance, it is Jesus who comes looking for you. He says; “I have come that you might have life and have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10)
He says that he would withhold no good thing from those who love him. (Psalm 84:11) He also says; “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Matthew 28:18) His desire is that we be empowered to run this race. We cannot run it on our own ticket, because we will not go far if we do. On the other hand, he has done it all for us. “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24) Open the door of your heart to Jesus, that he may come in!
