Let's pick up with Proverbs 4:20:
My son, pay attention to what I say;
turn your ear to my words.
Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart,
for they are life to those who find them,
and health to one's whole body.
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
I spoke previously about how your character is formed inside of you as a result of countless small decisions that you make. Notice that King Solomon says, "Son, listen to my words," He doesn't say, "Son, now that you've heard my words go obey them." As Christians, you and I are very application oriented. And it's right that we are because as evangelical Christians, we think that the Bible has something to say about how we're supposed to live. But what happens when a person has so many sources of application in their life - podcasts, reading the Bible, radio shows, books, and the list goes on - that they’re trying to apply all at the same time? They are applying one thing one day and something else the next. My suspicion is if that’s who you are, you're about an inch deep and a mile wide in your faith. It shouldn't surprise us that we’re fairly shallow people when we don’t dig into application.
Application is more than just exerting your will. It’s more than “Pastor, tell me what I'm supposed to do,” and more than reading a Bible verse and saying, “Okay, now I’ll do that.” That's going to lead us in one of two ways: Either we’re going to be filled with pride. Look at how well I'm keeping the rules. Or we are going to feel fear. I can't do this enough. I can't hit the mark.
How do we apply what we learn from the Bible and these good sources in a way that isn’t shallow or all about exerting our will? Theologians have been talking about this for centuries. It has to do with your heart. We're going to talk more about that tomorrow, but let me leave you with this: the gospel is good news to you. The gospel says to your pride, You really aren't the deal. There's a lot more sin inside of you than you even realize. And yet the gospel is also this profound truth that Jesus died on the cross knowing exactly all the sins inside of you. And he still went to the cross. His invitation to you is to come out of hiding. The gospel deals with both our pride and our fear.
Prayer for Today
Father in heaven, we realize that when we try to change ourselves in our own power, we end up either feeling prideful thinking we are really good, or we're feeling fearful like we always fail. Thank you that the gospel is this message that calls out our pride and says that we are not the stuff. And yet, it soothes our fear to say that Christ died on the cross for us. He knows us and his invitation is always to come out of hiding. Thank you that the gospel speaks clearly to both our pride and our fear. We pray that you give us the courage now to look even into our own hearts. In Jesus name, amen.
