Saturday, January 7, 2017
When Jesus speaks of the new heart, He means the mind, the life, the whole being. To have a change of heart is to withdraw the affections from the world, and fasten them upon Christ. To have a new heart is to have a new mind, new purposes, new motives. What is the sign of a new heart?—A changed life....
One of the most earnest prayers recorded in the Word of God is that of David when he pleaded, “Create in me a clean heart, O God.” Psalm 51:10. God's response to such a prayer is, A new heart will I give you. This is a work that no finite man can do. Men and women are to begin at the beginning, seeking God most earnestly for a true Christian experience. They are to feel the creative power of the Holy Spirit. They are to receive the new heart, that is kept soft and tender by the grace of heaven. The selfish spirit is to be cleansed from the soul. They are to labor earnestly and with humility of heart, each one looking to Jesus for guidance and encouragement. Then the building, fitly framed together, will grow into a holy temple in the Lord.
The youth especially stumble over this phrase, “a new heart.” They do not know what it means. They look for a special change to take place in their feelings. This they term conversion. Over this error thousands have stumbled to ruin, not understanding the expression, “Ye must be born again.” John 3:7.
Satan leads people to think that because they have felt a rapture of feeling, they are converted. But their experience does not change. Their actions are the same as before. Their lives show no good fruit. They pray often and long, and are constantly referring to the feelings they had at such and such a time. But they do not live the new life. They are deceived. Their experience goes no deeper than feeling. They build upon the sand, and when adverse winds come, their house is swept away....
When Jesus speaks of the new heart, He means the mind, the life, the whole being. To have a change of heart is to withdraw the affections from the world, and fasten them upon Christ. To have a new heart is to have a new mind, new purposes, new motives. What is the sign of a new heart?—A changed life. OHC 159
At the end of one thousand years, Jesus, the king of glory, descends from the Holy City, clothed with brightness like the lightning, upon the Mount of Olives—the same mount from whence He ascended after His resurrection. As His feet touch the mountain, it parts asunder, and becomes a very great plain, and is prepared for the reception of the Holy City in which is the paradise of God, the Garden of Eden, which was taken up after man's transgression. Now it descends with the City, more beautiful, and gloriously adorned than when removed from the earth. The City of God comes down and settles upon the mighty plain prepared for it.—Spiritual Gifts 3:83, 84. Hvn 122
"A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh." Ezekiel 36:26 (King James Version)