The heart of the matter by Gary Rose

I was thinking of the beauty of the thought contained in 2 Corinthians, Chapter 3:1-3 and wondered what that beauty would look like if it could be put on paper? After several attempts, the yellow graphic is the best I could come up with and although it looks beautiful to me, yet somehow it is lacking. Why? Because how do you really put a concept of love on paper? After some more thought, I realized that it was impossible. 

The nation of Israel was chosen by God and yet they couldn't keep the covenant HE made with them; even though it was plainly written by the finger of God on tablets of stone. Why couldn't they keep it? Because really doing what God wanted them to do required a strong desire to obey- in other words: they need a heart willing to obey. 

The Prophetic Message

Ezekiel, Chapter 36 (World English Bible)

 ²³ I will sanctify my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am Yahweh, says the Lord Yahweh, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.  ²⁴ For I will take you from among the nations, and gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land.  ²⁵ I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.  ²⁶ I will also give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. (emphasis added vs. 26) ²⁷ I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and you shall keep my ordinances, and do them.  ²⁸ You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

Jeremiah, Chapter 31 (WEB)

 ³¹ Behold, the days come, says Yahweh, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:  ³² not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they broke, although I was a husband to them, says Yahweh.  ³³ But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says Yahweh: I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people:  ³⁴ and they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Yahweh; for they shall all know me, from their least to their greatest, says Yahweh: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more.  (emphasis added vss. 33-34)

 

 

God's solution to the problem was simple- make a new covenant with those that wanted to obey him and give them a new heart!

 

 

 The New Testament Fulfillment

 Matthew, Chapter 26 (WEB)

 ²⁶  As they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks for it, and broke it. He gave to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”  ²⁷ He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave to them, saying, “All of you drink it,   ²⁸  for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the remission of sins. 

Hebrews, Chapter 9 (WEB) 

 ¹³ For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify to the cleanness of the flesh:  ¹⁴ how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without defect to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?  ¹⁵ For this reason he is the mediator of a new covenant, since a death has occurred for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first covenant, that those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.  ¹⁶ For where a last will and testament is, there must of necessity be the death of him who made it.  ¹⁷ For a will is in force where there has been death, for it is never in force while he who made it lives.(Emphasis added vs. 13-17)  ¹⁸ Therefore even the first covenant has not been dedicated without blood.  ¹⁹ For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, ²⁰ saying, “This is the blood of the covenant which God has commanded you.”

This new covenant was based on a perfect sacrifice, a sinless sacrifice- God's only begotten son, JESUS!

 

The Spirit of the matter

2 Corinthians, Chapter 3 (WEB)
 ⁴ Such confidence we have through Christ toward God;  ⁵ not that we are sufficient of ourselves, to account anything as from ourselves; but our sufficiency is from God; ⁶ who also made us sufficient as servants of a new covenant; not of the letter, but of the Spirit. (emphasis added vss. 4-6) For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. ⁷ But if the service of death, written engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the children of Israel could not look steadfastly on the face of Moses for the glory of his face; which was passing away: ⁸ won’t service of the Spirit be with much more glory?  ⁹ For if the service of condemnation has glory, the service of righteousness exceeds much more in glory.  ¹⁰ For most certainly that which has been made glorious has not been made glorious in this respect, by reason of the glory that surpasses.  ¹¹ For if that which passes away was with glory, much more that which remains is in glory.

Acts, Chapter 2 (WEB)
 ²²  “Men of Israel, hear these words! Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God to you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by him in your midst, even as you yourselves know,  ²³ him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed; ²⁴ whom God raised up, having freed him from the agony of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it.  ²⁵ For David says concerning him, 
‘I saw the Lord always before my face,
For he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved.
  ²⁶ Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced.
Moreover my flesh also will dwell in hope;
  ²⁷ because you will not leave my soul in Hades,
neither will you allow your Holy One to see decay.
  ²⁸ You made known to me the ways of life.
You will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

  ²⁹  “Brothers, I may tell you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.  ³⁰ Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,  ³¹ he foreseeing this spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was his soul left in Hades, nor did his flesh see decay.  ³² This Jesus God raised up, to which we all are witnesses.  ³³ Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this, which you now see and hear.  ³⁴ For David didn’t ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, 
‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit by my right hand,
  ³⁵ until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’

  ³⁶  “Let all the house of Israel therefore know certainly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” 

  ³⁷  Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 

  ³⁸  Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  ³⁹ For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.”(Emphasis added vs 38f.)    ⁴⁰ With many other words he testified, and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”

I know this is a lot to take in, but ask yourself- What is my heart like? Have I done what God has asked me to do? Have I obeyed like they did in the first century? The truth is that there is really no time like the present to make things right with God and keep them that way! So, what will you do????