Giving God Your Heart

III. GIVING GOD YOUR HEART

Let us deal with the heart. The book of

1 Samuel 16:7

says, But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, BUT THE LORD LOOKETH ON THE HEART.

Inside this study guide, I will endeavor to show where responsibility lies. God is a good God and He is faithful to us as we walk in Christ. He gave us His Son Jesus who, in turn, gave His life for us. Then God gave us the Holy Ghost. In all honesty, God has given us so much. In fact, He has given us more than enough but ALL HE REQUIRES FROM US IS OUR HEARTS. Giving God our hearts is a responsibility that belongs to us.

Deuteronomy 6:5

And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

A man is only as strong as his love for the Father. The love of the Father is the might of the Son. Well, by now some of you are saying, “Michael, I know I do not love the Lord with all my heart, but how do I get there?” If you find yourself with a lack of love for the Father it is because you do not know Him, and you cannot know Him while walking in the flesh. This is why walking in the Spirit is essential. When we walk in the Spirit we walk in Christ and we feel what He feels for the Father. We feel His love for the Father. We feel whatever the heart of Christ feels. This process gives us fellowship with the Father and causes us to know Him.

1 John 1:3

That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his son Jesus Christ.

The first thing John mentioned in this chapter was how they were exposed to the Life and how “That Life” brought them into fellowship with the Father. Then Apostle John goes on to say,

1 John 1:5

This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

John’s revelation of the Father came after he walked in the life that Christ had showed him. This makes perfect sense. Remember when Christ said, St.

John 14:6

Jesus saith unto him, I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

This truth still remains. We must allow the Life of Christ, which we experience when we walk in the Spirit, to disciple our hearts into the love of the Father. This cannot happen if we keep vacillating from the Spirit to the flesh. We must remain in the Spirit until our hearts prefer the light that is in the Father. Now I feel I need to clarify “in and out of the Spirit.” Let us understand that if we have the Holy Ghost we reside in the Spirit.

Galatians 5:25

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Our heart determines if we will continue in the Spirit. God’s responsibility is to give us access to the Spirit through Christ Jesus. IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY to walk in the Spirit after we have gained access to the Spirit. It is a choice given to the heart to either agree with the Spirit and walk after Him, or agree with the flesh and follow its dictates.

Romans 8:1

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

We must AGREE with the Word of God. Though you may hear this word a lot there is really no way around it. The word is AGREEMENT. If your heart does not agree with the leading of the Spirit it will eventually revert to the flesh. This is why we must purify our hearts so they will remain in agreement with the Spirit. “Mike, how do we do this?” Do not ask me. Let us ask Paul . . .

2 Corinthians 4:1-2

1. Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;

2. But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.

The phrase “faint not” is synonymous with “do not cease.” Paul is saying the reason we do not cease (faint) in this ministry is because we have purified our hearts. How did we purify our hearts? We renounced everything dishonest in them so we could continue in ministry. Our hearts must be pure from all lust and wantonness. Our responsibility also lies in the fact that we must be honest with ourselves about the things we really want from the flesh. We must admit the truth to ourselves no matter how ugly it may seem, and then agree to deny ourselves of these things so we may continue in the Spirit. Lust and wantonness are weights that hinder us. This us why the scripture says,

Hebrews 12:1

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

Listen, young ones, God has given us His best, which is Christ. Let us cling to Him. Let us treasure fellowship for the Bible says, St.

Matthew 6:19-21

19. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:

20. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Now I would like to transport you to the last M.S.O.G session to show how we minister inside of our sessions. What you will be reading are the minutes from the session, Converting The Heart.