United Heart
Teach me Your way, O Lord;
I will walk in Your truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name.
Psalm 86:11
This Psalm has been resonating with me over the last few days. Several things have come together to expose my un-united heart. I’ve been reading about Jonathan Edwards who had an incredibly united heart for Father. Then I’ve been thinking about Keith Green who would rival Edwards for an equally united heart. It’s funny how Holy Spirit works in my life. He brings together seemingly unconnected issues and ties them together with a single verse to provoke me to go deeper in my intimacy with Jesus. So He unites Edwards, Green, and David to give me a picture of how I have let a sliver of my heart stray. My heart has been democratic in that the vast majority votes for God but the sliver is in rebellion. We focus on works but the real issue is the heart. I can do all the right things but if there is a sliver of rebellion in my heart it taints the whole. Rebellion by the way is me being in control, wanting my own thing. I can want good things but again if Jesus doesn’t reign over all my heart, He isn’t really reigning at all. I think there is a chorus like that. Not until Christ sits on the throne in the kingdom of the soul can there be peace and prosperity there. W. Graham Scroggie writing about this verse, p.214.
The verse itself is powerful – teach me, I will walk, unite my heart. I would logically start with requesting a united heart which would lead to being taught the way of God which would result in walking in truth. Scripture seems to turn this around a lot. Maybe we have to be taught and walk in the truth before we can see that our heart is divided? This would fit in to Puritan doctrine of Edwards’ generation. Another interesting point is that this verse begins and ends with Father. My responsibility is sandwiched between Father teaching me His way and Father uniting my divided heart. I can only walk in truth when He teaches me and unites my heart. It kind of makes us dependant on Him, doesn’t it? My responsibility is to receive what He is doing in my life and be obedient.
I will walk in Your truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name.
Psalm 86:11
This Psalm has been resonating with me over the last few days. Several things have come together to expose my un-united heart. I’ve been reading about Jonathan Edwards who had an incredibly united heart for Father. Then I’ve been thinking about Keith Green who would rival Edwards for an equally united heart. It’s funny how Holy Spirit works in my life. He brings together seemingly unconnected issues and ties them together with a single verse to provoke me to go deeper in my intimacy with Jesus. So He unites Edwards, Green, and David to give me a picture of how I have let a sliver of my heart stray. My heart has been democratic in that the vast majority votes for God but the sliver is in rebellion. We focus on works but the real issue is the heart. I can do all the right things but if there is a sliver of rebellion in my heart it taints the whole. Rebellion by the way is me being in control, wanting my own thing. I can want good things but again if Jesus doesn’t reign over all my heart, He isn’t really reigning at all. I think there is a chorus like that. Not until Christ sits on the throne in the kingdom of the soul can there be peace and prosperity there. W. Graham Scroggie writing about this verse, p.214.
The verse itself is powerful – teach me, I will walk, unite my heart. I would logically start with requesting a united heart which would lead to being taught the way of God which would result in walking in truth. Scripture seems to turn this around a lot. Maybe we have to be taught and walk in the truth before we can see that our heart is divided? This would fit in to Puritan doctrine of Edwards’ generation. Another interesting point is that this verse begins and ends with Father. My responsibility is sandwiched between Father teaching me His way and Father uniting my divided heart. I can only walk in truth when He teaches me and unites my heart. It kind of makes us dependant on Him, doesn’t it? My responsibility is to receive what He is doing in my life and be obedient.
posted by brent at 11:42 AM
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