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A Valentine for You

We are now in the midst of winter, but we have a special day to celebrate this month — Valentine's Day. Rather than thinking about all the history and tradition surrounding Valentine's Day, let us take a closer look at that great symbol of Valentine's Day: the heart. The heart is prominently displayed all over our stores, on TV commercials, and greeting cards, and there are even hearts made out of chocolate!

The Bible has much to say about the heart. The heart, our heart, besides being the body organ that continually pumps blood throughout our body to keep us physically alive, is seen as the center of feeling, emotion, affection, desire, and even of the intellect and conscience. So what is this center of our being really like according to the Bible? Jesus says in Matthew 15:19,

Matthew 15:19

"For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander."

Not a very pretty picture of the center of our very being, is it? This is a description of the heart that we are all born with: the sinful heart, our sinful nature, sometimes also called the "old Adam."

Many times when people are facing a big decision in life, some well-meaning family member or friend says to them, "Just follow your heart!" This response seems to be given a lot especially in issues of love, like "Should I marry this person or not?" Then someone says, "Just follow your heart!" But according to what Jesus said about the natural heart, that might not be the best idea! My heart may be full of lust, or selfishness, and not love, for the person I am thinking about marrying. So how good of advice is "Just follow your heart?" Answer: It is NOT good advice. Our heart must be changed!

I cannot change my heart or clean it up. We pray with the Psalmist David, when we say,

Psalm 51:10-12

"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast (right) spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me."

God has restored the hearts of all those who put their trust in Him and believe in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, as their Savior. Through God's action in baptism, He washes our hearts clean as we are told in Acts 2:38: "Repent and be baptized, everyone of you, in the Name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven. And you will receive the Gift of the Holy Spirit." God has taken the initiative to reach out to us and save us. Our hearts and lives are cleansed from sin by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, which Jesus gave for us on the cross on Good Friday. He died and rose again that you may live. He gives us a pure heart that we "may see God." (Matt 5:8) We live now in daily repentance and forgiveness as we seek to serve Him with a heart committed to Him.

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Let my heart be fully committed to You that I may serve You in righteousness all the days of my life. In the Name of Jesus, and trusting in His death and resurrection, I pray. Amen.