He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
Honoring Jesus isn’t so much a matter of good behavior as it is a matter of the heart. It can be said that good behavior reflects the content of the heart, for as Jesus himself said, “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” But words of the mouth, what our hands find to do, or what we set before our eyes, is not what demands our attention here. Every single human being on earth, and all that have come before us, and all who will come after, have said things, done things, sought things that dishonor the Son.
What is found in our hearts is the focus point of God. He alone among all that have life can see into our hearts. Indeed, he is life itself.
A popular saying is, “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.” Yet Jesus has made it abundantly clear that it is the intent of the heart that interests God. It is the intent of the heart that God evaluates.
There is an interesting word that I picked up somewhere along the path I have walked. It is the word, “proclivity.”
pro•cliv•i•ty [proh-kliv-i-tee]
-- noun, natural or habitual inclination or tendency; propensity; predisposition
My question then, is, ‘What then, is the proclivity of my heart?’
Like all others, I fail to honor the Son in my life and behavior. These failures are habitual and while I can’t seem to turn it around, I can also tell you this: There is nothing so natural, so elemental, so sincere, so deep within me as the desire to honor the Lord. This, too, is a proclivity. And this desire, this intent of the heart is seen by God, and despite the considerable hiccups in my life, brings honor to the Son.
Search me, O God, and know my heart.
Examine me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
Sometimes, it seems, the intentions of our hearts, what we want and desire, are better than a Hallelujah!
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The way we define 'human' determines our view of self, others,
ReplyDeleterelationships, institutions, life, and future. Many problems in human
experience are the result of false and inaccurate definitions of humankind
premised in man-made religions and humanistic philosophies.
Human knowledge is a fraction of the whole universe. The balance is a vast
void of human ignorance. Human reason cannot fully function in such a void;
thus, the intellect can rise no higher than the criteria by which it perceives and
measures values.
Humanism makes man his own standard of measure. However, as with all
measuring systems, a standard must be greater than the value measured. Based
on preponderant ignorance and an egocentric carnal nature, humanism demotes
reason to the simpleton task of excuse-making in behalf of the rule of
appetites, desires, feelings, emotions, - and glands.
Because man, hobbled in an ego-centric predicament, cannot invent criteria
greater than himself, the humanist lacks a predictive capability. Thus, his
man-made criteria rises no higher than eyebrows - and too often, no higher
than pubic hair! Without instinct or transcendent criteria, humanism cannot
evaluate options with foresight and vision for progression and survival.
Lacking foresight, man is blind to potential consequence and is unwittingly
committed to mediocrity, collectivism, averages, and regression - and worse.
Humanism is an unworthy worship.
The void of human ignorance can easily be filled with a functional faith
while not-so-patiently awaiting the foot-dragging growth of human knowledge
and behavior. Faith, initiated by the Creator and revealed and validated in
His Word, the Bible, brings a transcendent standard to man the choice-maker.
Other philosophies and religions are man-made, humanism, and thereby lack
what only the Bible has:
1.Transcendent Criteria and
2.Fulfilled Prophetic Validation.
The vision of faith in God and His Word is survival equipment for today and
the future. Only the Creator, who made us in His own image, is qualified to
define us accurately.
Human is earth's Choicemaker. Psalm 25:12 He is by nature and nature's
God a creature of Choice - and of Criteria. Psalm 119:30,173 His unique and
definitive characteristic is, and of Right ought to be, the natural
foundation of his environments, institutions, and respectful relations to
his fellow-man. Thus, he is oriented to a Freedom whose roots are in the
Order of the universe. selah
Well said, Jim. I just finished reading a book entitled, "Einstein's Universe." It was supposed to make his thought and discoveries understandable to the non-scientific layman. It did not succeed in that purpose. Still, as I read, I was struck by the massive intellectual arrogance of the writer. More arrogant, it seemed to me, than Einstein himself. Given the brevity of human life, given the brevity of human existence, I am not impressed with how much we know, or how much we brag about what we know, or how much what we certify as certain, unambiguous and definitive,changes after a few years, or in some cases after a few days. We should take no comfort in how much we know, or how much we progress. How much we do not know, and how gross our ignorance should elicit at least a palpable measure of intellectual humility. I think your thoughts here underscore this. Thanks. PDM
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