THE SECOND PART: A BIRD’S-EYE VIEW OF THE NEW TESTAMENT
The Epistle of Paul to the Thessalonians
Message Two—Establishing Your Hearts
Scripture Reading: 1 Thes. 3:13; Prov. 4:23; 2 Cor. 3:16; Heb. 10:22; Phil. 4:6-7; Col. 3:13-15
I. The heart is the conglomerate of man’s inward parts, man’s chief representative, his acting agent—1 Thes. 3:13; Prov. 4:23: (2005 ST, msg. 8)
A. Our heart is a composition of all the parts of our soul—the mind, the emotion, and the will (Matt. 9:4; Heb. 4:12; Acts 11:23; John 14:1; 16:22)—plus one part of our spirit—the conscience (Heb. 10:22; 1 John 3:20). (2005 ST, msg. 8)
B. Our heart with its condition before God is organically, intrinsically, and inseparably related to the condition of our spirit, soul, and body before God—Eph. 3:16-17: (2005 ST, msg. 8)
1. The exercise of the spirit works only when our heart is active; if man’s heart is indifferent, the spirit is imprisoned within and is unable to show forth its capability—Matt. 5:3, 8; Psa. 78:8; Eph. 3:16-17. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
2. The soul is the person himself, but the heart is the person in action; the heart is the acting agent, the acting commissioner, of our entire being. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
3. The activities and movements of our physical body depend on our physical heart; in like manner, our daily living, the way we act and behave, depends on our what kind of psychological heart we have. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
C. The heart is the entrance and exit of life, the “switch” of life; if the heart is not right, life in the spirit is hindered, and the law of life cannot work freely and without obstruction to reach every part of our being; though life has great power, this great power is controlled by our small heart—Prov. 4:23; Matt. 12:33-37; cf. Ezek. 36:26-27. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
II. In order to live a holy life for the church life, we need the Lord to establish our heart blameless in holiness—1 Thes. 3:13: (2005 ST, msg. 8)
A. God is the unchanging One but according to our natural birth our heart is changeable, both in our relationship with others and with the Lord—cf. 2 Tim. 4:10; Matt. 13:3-9, 18-23. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
B. There is no one who, according to his natural, human life, is steadfast in his heart; because our heart changes so easily, it is not at all trustworthy—Jer. 17:9-10; 13:23. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
C. Our heart is blamable because it is changeable; an unchanging heart is a blameless heart—Psa. 57:7; 108:1; 112:7. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
D. In God’s salvation the renewing of the heart is once for all; however, in our experience our heart is renewed continually because it is changeable—Ezek. 36:26; 2 Cor. 4:16. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
E. Because our heart is changeable, it needs to be renewed continually by the sanctifying Spirit so that our heart can be established, built up, in the state of being holy, the state of being separated unto God, occupied by God, possessed by God, and saturated with God—Titus 3:5; Rom. 6:19, 22. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
III. In order to be “those who being sanctified” in living a holy life for the church life, we must cooperate with the inner operating of “the One who sanctifies” by dealing with our heart—Heb. 2:11; Psa. 139:23-24: Ezek. 36:26, Matt. 13:4: (2005 ST, msg. 8)
A. God wants our heart to be soft—Ezek. 36:26; Matt. 13:4: (2005 ST, msg. 8)
1. When God deals with our heart, He takes away the heart of stone out of our flesh and gives us a heart of flesh, a soft heart—Ezek. 36:26. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
2. To be soft means that our heart is submissive and yielding toward the Lord, not stiff-necked and rebellious—cf. Exo. 32:9. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
3. A soft heart is a heart that is not hardened by worldly traffic—Matt. 13:4. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
4. God softens our heart by using His love to move us; if love cannot move us, He uses His hand through the environment to discipline us until our heart is softened—2 Cor. 5:14; 2 Cor. 4:16-18; Heb. 11:6-7; cf. Jer. 48:11. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
B. God wants our heart to be pure—Matt. 5:8; Psa. 73:25: (2005 ST, msg. 8)
1. A pure heart is a heart that loves God and wants God; besides God, it has no other love, inclination, or desire—Psa. 73:25; cf. Jer. 32:39. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
2. Our heart should be single for God so that we are fearful of nothing except offending Him and losing His presence—86:11b. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
3. Our goal and our aim should be God Himself, and we should not have any other motive—Matt. 5:8. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
4. We must pursue Christ “with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart”—2 Tim. 2:22; 1 Tim. 1:5; Psa. 73:1. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
C. God want our heart be loving—2 Cor. 3:16; S. S. 1:1-4: (2005 ST, msg. 8)
1. A loving heart is a heart in which the emotion loves God, wants God, thirsts after God, and yearns for God, having a personal, affectionate, private, and spiritual relationship with the Lord—Psa. 42:1-2; S. S. 1:1-4. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
2. We must turn our heart back to the Lord again and again and have it continually renewed, so that we may have a new and fresh love toward the Lord—2 Cor. 3:16. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
3. All spiritual experiences start with love in the heart; if we do not love the Lord, it is impossible to receive any kind of spiritual experience—cf. Eph. 6:24. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
4. Our love for the Lord qualifies, perfects, and equips us to speak for the Lord with His authority; if we love the Lord to the uttermost, we will be filled and overflowing with Him—John 21:15-17; Matt. 26:6-13; 28:18-20. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
D. God wants our heart to be at peace—Acts 24:16; 1 John 3:19-21; Phil. 4:6-7, Col. 3:13-15: (2005 ST, msg. 8)
1. A heart at peace is a heart in which the conscience is without offense, condemnation, or reproach—Acts 24:16; 1 John 3:19-21; Heb. 10:22. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
2. If we confess our sins in the light of God’s presence, we receive His forgiveness and His cleansing so that we may enjoy uninterrupted fellowship with God with a good conscience—1:7, 9; 1 Tim. 1:5. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
3. The result of practicing fellowship with God in prayer is that we enjoy the peace of God, which is actually God as peace mounting guard over our hearts and thoughts in Christ, keeping us calm and tranquil—Phil. 4:6-7. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
4. We need to let the peace of Christ arbitrate in our hearts by forgiving one another to put on the one new man—Col. 3:13-15. (2005 ST, msg. 8)
IV. As our hearts are being established blameless in holiness by the continual renewing of the sanctifying Spirit, we are becoming the New Jerusalem with the newness of the divine life and the holy city with the holiness of the divine nature—Rev. 21:21 John 5:11-12; 2 Pet. 1:4. (2005 ST, msg. 8)