Why does Christianity put so much emphasis on the human heart?

Q: Why does Christianity put so much emphasis on the human heart? It is just a muscle, right? I’m not sure how a heart can be changed without a transplant — H.T.

A: Most people understand when someone says they have a “broken heart.” It is not a physical break, but an emotional break. The Bible speaks very specifically about the human heart. It devises wicked imaginations (Proverbs 6:18), it is deceitful above all things (Jeremiah 17:9), it is far from God (Matthew 15:8), and it is foolish and darkened (Romans 1:21). This is a sad state, for the heart is the seat of emotion and the seat of belief. It symbolizes the center of life.

But God has not left the human heart in this state. He devised a way to make Himself known. He came to get at the very heart of man’s disease — SIN. This was the sole purpose in Jesus coming to earth, to save us from the sin that can destroy us.

This is the meaning of the phrase, “Invite Jesus into your heart.” When we seek the Lord and turn from sin, He comes into every facet of life and transforms our thinking, our speaking, our deeds, our relationships, our desires, and He replaces our fears with trust. He changes our hate into love. He makes our hearts new.

It is God who evaluates the state of our hearts. He is the One who ponders our hearts (Proverbs 21:2), and searches our hearts (Jeremiah 17:10). The Bible tells us He also weighs our hearts, and we come up short (Romans 3:23).

But the heart of Christ, full of compassion and love, bled on the cross for our sinful hearts. His pure heart, His perfect heart, and His tender heart, made a way for us to have clean hearts before Him. Oh, that we would turn our hearts to this wonderful Savior.

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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)

©2020 Billy Graham Literary Trust. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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