Boy, Have I Been There!

Deuteronomy 29:19

"and so it may not happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he blesses himself in his heart, saying, "I shall have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my heart"--as though the drunkard could be included with the sober."

The last part of that verse is translated several different ways, depending on which translation you have, but it is the first part of that verse that strikes home with me.

This verses catches perfectly the way I lived most of my youth and young adult life. Hiding inside the community of God's covenant people, but saying in my heart, I shall have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my heart.

How arrogant and foolish!

Don't miss that this foolish person blesses himself. I can relate! I blessed myself every day of my life, with every thought, every action, every motivation, and every outward obedience. It was all about me blessing myself in my own heart. I think that is a great description of a Pharisee. A person who blesses himself in his heart, all the while following the dictates of his own heart, not the commands of the LORD.

And lest we forget, Jeremiah 17:9 reminds us of what we need to know about our own hearts, apart from the imputed righteousness of Christ.

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?"

If you go and read the Deuteronomy verse in it's context, it becomes even more powerful. Moses has just finished recounting to the Israelites the blessings of obedience, and the curses of disobedience. The section that covers the curses of disobedience is not for the fainthearted. It's pretty hard core stuff. (Maybe if you have never read if for yourself, this will sufficiently peak your curiosity enough to send you to your Bible! I highly recommend it!)

I keep trying to do a quick reading of the Old Testament, because I have never read through the whole thing before. My problem is that I keep finding things that are so interesting, I have to stop and think and look up all the cross references. At this rate it is going to take me years to get through the Bible cover to cover! Oh well, at least it will be time and effort well spent. I can't begin to tell you all of the amazing things I have discovered for myself. Only a fraction of it ends up on this blog. I'm only sorry that I didn't start this process sooner!