Prepare Your Heart

I preached this sermon January 22, 2012

Text: 2 Chronicles 19:1-3

Introduction: A young couple rented a vacation cottage for a week. One afternoon the husband looked out a window at the swimming pool and exclaimed, "Let's change our clothes and go get some exercise!" His wife, who was washing the dishes in the kitchen and looking out the window watching some people play tennis, quickly agreed. While she dressed for a tennis match, he put on his swimming trunks. The window a person chooses to look out at the world often determines that individual's perspective.

As we prepare our hearts to seek God, we must make sure we are looking out the right window. There are many windows in our culture today. Some look out windows where there is no God in the picture. Some look out window and only see the big world in front of them and want to get as much out of the world as they can while totally ignoring God. Some look into a mirror and think it is a window, only seeing themselves and living to please themselves. But if you want to walk with God, enjoy the blessing of salvation, the freedom from condemnation, shame and guilt, to know the peace of God that passes all understanding, the have the deep abiding joy of Christ. To experience the resurrection power of God in your life, to walk in deep fellowship with the Holy Spirit, then you must make sure you are looking out the right window. If we want to see revival take place, if we want to see our church grow, if we want to see our nation turn back to the Lord, then we must look out the right window. But I am afraid that many of us today are looking out the wrong window and we are getting the wrong perspective.

As an artist, one thing I realize that can destroy a well composed painting is poor perspective (the art class). When you look at a painting something out of perspective is more noticeable than when everything is in perspective. How is your perspective? Are you looking out the right window? If you are to prepare your heart to seek God then you must look out the right window and get the right perspective. This morning I want to help us do that.

Know who we are

To prepare our hearts to seek God, we must know who we are.

We remember who we were apart from Christ

-Eph 2:1-3 ¹And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;

²Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:

³Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

-we were dead in our sins, condemned, destined for eternity in hell.

We understand who we are in Christ (only because of Christ)

-some say we are sinners saved by grace, but the scripture has a better word – saints – you are a child of the king

Eph 2:4-10 ⁴But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

⁵Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

⁶And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

⁷That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

⁸For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

⁹Not of works, lest any man should boast.

¹⁰For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

2 Peter 2: ⁹But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;

¹⁰Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.

-it is not anything good in us

We recognize we are not now what we shall be (we make mistakes) – Jehoshaphat was not perfect

- 1 John 3:2 ²Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

We make mistakes, we fail, we rebel, but we must not give up – we must persevere in the faith maybe like Paul Romans 7 ¹⁷Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

¹⁸For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

¹⁹For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.

- Luke 18:9 ⁹And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:

¹⁰Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.

¹¹The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

¹²I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

¹³And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

¹⁴I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

– the proper attitude is that of publican – have mercy on me a sinner

James 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

Know who God is

To prepare our hearts to seek God, we must know who we are and know who He is

We acknowledge that the Lord is God and there is none other – Jehoshaphat took the groves out of the land

Is 45 ¹⁸For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.

¹⁹I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain: I the LORD speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.

²⁰Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, ye that are escaped of the nations: they have no knowledge that set up the wood of their graven image, and pray unto a god that cannot save.

²¹Tell ye, and bring them near; yea, let them take counsel together: who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? have not I the LORD? and there is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me.

²²Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.

²³I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.

We can do nothing of eternal value apart from the power of Christ at work in us

-John 15:5 ⁵I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

We must daily depend on Him We adore, praise and thank Him

Gal 2:20 ²⁰I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.