God's Way For Man's Heart
Carlos M. Aguilar

Over a period of years, but increasingly as the years have gone by, it has become obvious the most of the problems and troubles of our world are a result of man's unwillingness to heed God's directions. Mankind has problems, most of which could have been avoided if those involved had only lived according to God’s directions. The greatest need of our world today, both for individuals and for nations, is to make God's way man's way.

In the Old Testament book of 1 Samuel the opening verses of the 16^th chapter tell of Samuel's search for a new king for Israel. In the course of this account, there comes the statement in 16:7, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” We immediately recognize this as the explanation of why God chose David to be king rather than one of David's more impressive older brothers. Let us consider for a moment a broader and more basic point---God's concern for man's heart.

God is more concerned about man's heart that he is about anything else concerning man. The reason is obvious. In Prov 23:7 we read, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…” What a man thinks in his heart will determine what he will be. Earlier Solomon had written in Prov 4:23, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” The scripture emphasizes the vital importance of controlling what goes into man's heart, or to put it another way, what man hears or sees, for these are the two primary avenues into the mind r heart of man. In Matt 12:34 our Lord added, “…For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” The most important part of any man is his heart, or mind, for out of it come the words that he speaks and the deed that he lives.

In Gen 12:1-3 we find that God's call to Abram was courageously accepted. In the new land into which God had led him, Abram prospered greatly. However there was one thing that Abram longed for but did not have. He had no child. If think we can understand at least something of the great yearning of Abram's and Sarah's hearts. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Ur of the Chaldees, and he and Sarah were not to have a child until Abram was one hundred years old and Sarah was ninety. For a quarter of a century after God had made his promise to Abram, Sarah was unable to bear a child. Surely this was a period of longing and expectation, a period of hope and disappointment. Ultimately when Sarah was able to bear Isaac, he was loved in a very unusual way. Isaac was a child given in answer to fervent prayer; he was a child of their old age; he was their only son; he was to be the means of blessing all the families of the earth. The love that Abram had for Isaac must have been an intense love for all these reasons. All of us love our children. We pray for them, we work for them, and we yearn for their proper development. One of the great moments in OT history is the tragic moment when word came to David that his rebellious son, Absalom, who had tried to win the kingdom away from David, had been slain in battle. David's love for Absalom was so full of sorrow that his words continue to live in our hearts (2Sam 18:33).

We find the story of Abraham coming to its climax in Gen 22. The key word in this opening verse of the chapter is the word "tested." So great has been the love of Abraham for his son Isaac, that God feels the need to test or prove the heart of Abraham. The test is very simple one, vs 2 says..."Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you." What a trial or test this was for a father who loved his child as Abraham loved Isaac. Abraham might have said, "Lord, when you called me from Ur of Chaldees I came. When the famine sent me to Egypt I went without murmuring. For a quarter of a century I have lived in a strange land among foreignors. Is not all of this enough to prove my love for thee?" But Abraham did not argue any of these things. Rather, the Scripture indicates that he immediately complied with the Lord's command (22:3). Taking two of his servants and Isaac, Abraham traveled three days until he came to the site on which the city of Jerusalem would eventually be built, the mount of Moriah. Leaving the servants behind he and Isaac went to the top this rock-crowned hill and there he made an altar. On the altar he placed the wood that he had brought and then, having bound Isaac, he placed him on the wood. At that point he was ready to slay Isaac in compliance with God's command (22:10-12). The key expression here is "now I know." Abraham had passed the test; he had shown that his heart belonged to God. Note especially the expression (vs 16) "because you have done this thing." God had tested Abraham's heart and had found it solid and sound. We too must have this kind of heart. Mark 12:28-31 teaches us where are heart must be, “…And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these.”

CHURCH HISTORY: A BIBLICAL VIEW
Part I No.2 Compiled and written by Gary Eubanks

Regardless of the view one holds of Jesus, it must be admitted that no man has ever influenced the course of human history as He has. From this standpoint alone, He and His life demand serious consideration. Moreover, it is His pervasive influence that constitutes one of the strongest evidences for His claims, for His influence is out of all proportion to the relative obscurity of His life. Men far greater by the standards of this world have had far less influence. Actually, His life was rather unpromising, historically speaking. Born in a stable to peasant parents of a despised race, He never obtained much education, never wrote a book, never acquired any wealth, never marshaled an army, never held political office and, with the exception of a brief period during His infancy, never even traveled more than a 100 miles from His home. He was 30 years of age before He began His public ministry, which ended ignominiously at a Roman cross. In short, He had, and did, nothing to portend greatness and everything to insure, seemingly, that it would be squashed. Yet, whose life has not been touched in some way by His?

This is the historical question concerning Jesus: "how do you account for Him?"

The search for answers only uncovers more questions. Is He a mere myth? Not only does Jesus defy the mythological mold, but such an assertion would have one believe that an imaginary Jesus could accomplish what a real Jesus could not! Is He a mere man? He claimed to be the Son of God (Jn. 10:36), equal to the Father (Jn. 5:17,18; 10:30; 14:7-10), sinless (Jn. 8:46), and the Savior (Lk. 19:9,10). He also claimed to perform numerous and various miracles (Mt. 11:2-5). Such claims are so bold and fantastic that it is doubtful men would have even heard of Jesus were they not true. Men who make such claims are either ignored or shut away by society.

Yes, others have gained great followings - Buddha, Muhammad, Joseph Smith, etc. - but not by making the claims and doing the things Jesus did. The false prophet knows that the greater his claims are the greater the chances of exposure are. Even if his lies are not provable, they must not be disprovable by ordinary observation. Jesus made the greatest claims a man could make, and He has substantiated them with the inspired records, the institutions, and the faith He has given to men. Jesus' eminence in history can only be explained as men look to Him and exclaim with Thomas, "My Lord and my God!" Jn 20:28.

Information about the birth and youth of Jesus is sparse. Only Matthew 1,2 and Luke 1,2 have anything to say about the early part of His life. This should not be surprising, considering that it was what He taught and did during His public ministry which was especially pertinent to His purpose in coming to the earth. He was miraculously conceived by a virgin, Mary, who was betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the lineage of David. In order to register for a census they traveled from their home in Nazareth of Galilee to Joseph's ancestral home, Bethlehem of Judea, where Jesus was born. He was given the name "Jesus", roughly meaning "Savior", while "Christ" (Hebrew, "Messiah"), meaning "anointed one," became His title. The date of Jesus' birth can only be approximated. He cannot have been born later than 4 BC, since this is the year of the death of Herod the Great, in whose reign Jesus was born. Luke provides more exact and concrete information by noting that John the Baptist began His ministry in the fifteenth year of Tiberius' reign Lk 3:l, 2 which would be 26 A.D. It appears that Jesus was baptized by John not long after the latter began his ministry, so a date of 26 A.D. is also assigned to Jesus' baptism. Luke also notes that Jesus was about 30 when He was baptized Lk 3:23, meaning that He could have been 28 to 32 years old. This would still place Jesus' birth in the range of 6-4 BC. After a flight to Egypt to escape the wrath of Herod and a brief stay there, Mary, Joseph, and Jesus returned to Nazareth, where Jesus seems to have lived and worked as a carpenter Mk 6:3 until the time of His ministry. The only view of Jesus' youth is that provided by Luke in an account concerning Jesus' attendance at the Passover in Jerusalem when He was 12 years old 2:41-52.

After His baptism and a 40-day period of fasting and temptation in the wilderness, Jesus began His public ministry. Since the first Passover of Jesus' ministry was the 46th year of the temple's building Jn 2:13,20, and Herod began to renovate the temple in 19 BC, a date of 27 A.D. is placed upon this first Passover of Jesus' ministry. It appears that Jesus' public ministry lasted a little over three years. This determination is made, not only by counting the references to the Passover, the second of which is questionable, in the Gospel of John 2:23; 5:1; 6:4; 13:1, but also by the consideration that the activities of Jesus could not very well be squeezed into a shorter period.

Jesus' ministry may be divided into three parts.

(1) Early. This part of His ministry lasted from His public identification by John until the arrest of John. Though Jesus did spend some time in Galilee, this part of His ministry was primarily spent in Judea and is detailed by John 1-3.

(2) Middle. This was by far the lengthiest part of Jesus' public ministry lasting at least two years. The basic setting for this period was Galilee though intermittent trips were made to such places as Judea, Caesarea Philippi. and Phoenicia. During the early part of this ministry Jesus preached His sermon on the mount and chose His twelve apostles, who stayed with Him and were trained during the rest of His ministry. Matthew and Mark are primarily concerned with this part of His ministry.

(3) Late. The setting for this part of His ministry was primarily Perea and Judea. Luke (9:51 - 19:28) and John (7:2 - 11:57) provide the most information about Jesus' Perean ministry and His final journey to Jerusalem.

All four Gospels devote a disproportionately large part of their records to Jesus' last days in Jerusalem. One-third of the Gospel of John 13-19 is devoted to one 24-hour period. Jesus entered Jerusalem in triumph on the Sunday before the Passover, 30 A.D., delivered His Mount Olivet discourse on Tuesday Mt 24, instituted the Lord's Supper during the Passover meal on Thursday night, was arrested, tried, convicted, crucified, and buried on Friday, and was raised from the dead on the following Sunday, the third day after His death, as He had predicted Mk 16:9; Mt 16:21. Thereafter He taught His apostles over a 40-day period which ended with His ascension to heaven from Mount Olivet Acts 1:1-12. 

The best inheritance a parent can give to their children is a few minutes of their time each day.