Human Heart Conditions - Does Your Heart Beat for God?
by Mark Parsec(373)
Blogz
I have been thinking a lot lately about matters of the heart. Perhaps it has something to do with my wife’s recent heart attack and the host of medical tests and examinations she has been undergoing. Between the echocardiograms, stress tests, blood pressure tests, and lab work with all of the poking, and prodding and pricking… one would be remiss not to consider the importance of the heart in matters of life and death.
Recently, I watched a documentary that elaborated upon many of the amazing advances that have occurred in heart surgery. Since the first heart transplant in 1967, modern medical science has not only invented mechanical hearts, but now are in the process of growing living hearts from real living tissue. If your heart fails… no problem! The doctors will just pull a spare heart off the shelf and give you a new one as easily as changing a carburetor in an automobile. In fact, those in the know are talking about extending human life not to 100 or 120 years, but to 1,000 years!
It’s hard to imagine living to be 1,000 years old, and for the “life” of me, I can’t understand why someone would want to live so long. Yet, even the Bible tells us that Methuselah lived to be 969 years old before he died (Gen. 5:27). Like everyone who was born before him, Methuselah did die… eventually. His heart quit and he went the way of all flesh.
Speaking of hearts… the American Aztec Indians retain the infamous reputation of human sacrifice whereby they would extract hearts from their victims while they were still beating and hold them aloft to the sun god. The Aztecs believed that life was in the heart… that it was a piece of the sun trapped inside of a person, and that by cutting it out and offering it to the sun god that the sun god would be pleased.
We need our hearts. It is really quite simple. If the heart stops, the blood will cease circulating throughout the body to deliver the essential oxygen that is required to survive. The body will die. This is something that we all know and understand and it is something that even the Bible spoke about in ancient times. In Leviticus 17:11 the Bible tells us, “For the life of a creature is in the blood.”
But, there is another aspect of the heart that I would like to focus upon… and that is the heart as the seat of love and human emotion. We should all be familiar with this concept for there are few people whom have lived very long without giving or receiving a little note with the words “I love you” inscribed upon a heart. And most of us are familiar with such terms as, “My heart beats for you” or “My heart longs for you” or “I have a broken heart.”
Yet, what few people grasp is a biblical perspective of the heart. You see, much like us, people during biblical times understood the heart to be the seat of human emotions. When somebody was angry the heart would beat faster. When someone was in love the heart would pound. When somebody lost a loved one their heart would melt within them. And just as the ancients had no city lights to obscure their vision of the night sky so that they could travel by following the stars… so also they had no televisions, stereos, computers or automobiles to obscure the functioning of their hearts. They were acutely aware of their beating hearts to the point where they found a relationship between their heartbeats and their thoughts. And this should not surprise us, for part of our modern lie detector tests consist of monitoring the heart, for few people can tell a lie without their heart fluttering to some degree
So, unlike us, the biblical heart was not just the seat of human emotion, but also the seat of human thought. Thoughts and emotions were intricately woven together and could be discerned in the heart . To them, the heart and the mind were in union.
Is Your Heart and Mind In Union?
The reason this is so important to us is because in the eyes of the Lord the true measure of a man is not to be found in what he does, or even in what he or others may think of him, but in his heart.
When the people of Israel were looking for a king they chose tall Saul because he was head and shoulders above the rest of his countrymen. But, later, the Lord rejected Saul because his heart was not right. When searching for someone to replace Saul the prophet Samuel came upon Eliab and thought to himself this must be the king. “But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart ” (1 Samuel 16:7).
The Lord looks on the heart! That is so important for us to remember in our relationship with God. Because, not only does the Lord look at our heart, he measures us by our heart. Proverbs 21:2 tells us, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart .”
The Bible teaches us that, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). And many people would like to think that it is their behavior that falls short of perfection. But, what they fail to realize is that their sinful behavior is only symptomatic of a deeper problem… a heart condition. That is why wise king Solomon proclaimed, “Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?” (Proverbs 20:9). And his father before him, King David cried out, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10)
The point I am trying to make here is that sin comes from the heart and the great quest of believers is to have a right heart before God. We need to realize that our behavior, whether it be good or bad, are reflections of our heart, where our emotions and thoughts come together and guide all of our behavior.
In Mark 7:20-23 Jesus put it this way when he said, “What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men , proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”
Consideration of this is particularly important for those believers who are trying to become “better” Christians by fasting, praying, abstaining and refraining. For the intent of these disciplines is not to show how strong we are but how very weak we are, not how perfect we are but how imperfect we are, not how sinless we are but how sinful. And when we realize these things it should draw us to consider deeper things about us… matters of our heart condition.
So let me get to the “heart” of the matter. Did you catch that? Why do we say that? Why do we say, “The heart of the matter?” Because we understand that there are deeper truths that may be discovered to get to the middle of things. This is something else the ancients believed.
You see the ancients were much more holistic than we are today. They believed there was a purpose and reason in the design of everything ... and this included the human body. They believed that the heart was placed in the middle of the human body for a very important reason. Why else would it be centrally located on our body? So, to them, the heart became a symbol of the core of a person’s being, in a sense - the inner chamber of the holy of holies. It was the place where the fullness of a person dwelt.
So important and so valuable was the heart of man considered to be, that it was the one place that Scripture identifies as being absolutely essential in the conversion experience and a relationship with God that leads to salvation.
In Jeremiah 29:13 the Lord tells us, “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart .” Notice the Scripture says ALL your heart, not a portion or a part but ALL… emotions, thoughts and behavior. This is particularly important because it has a bearing on a person’s salvation.
In Romans 10:9-10 the Apostle Paul tells us, “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Notice the Apostle says that if you “believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Remember how the lie detector test? The heart will flutter if a person lies. I can only wonder what kind of lie detector results we would get from people who claim to be Christians if we were to ask them if they really believed God raised Jesus from the dead.
But, that is not all… we must believe in our hearts … not our heads. We can’t intellectualize our faith.
One more thing… there are a lot of Christians who proclaim Jesus as their Savior, but whom are not confessing Him as Lord Jesus. As Lord, Jesus should reign over our lives. We can’t just give him a token tribute. He is either Lord over our finances, our relationships, our thoughts, feelings and behavior or he is not.
There are a lot of people running around proclaiming to be Christians, but based on their behavior you can’t really tell them apart from people of the world. That is called deceiving not believing. Jesus spoke about people like this when he said, “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.”
In 2 Timothy 3:1-5 the Apostle Paul told us, “that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despiers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away “
Proverbs tells us, “As a man thinketh in his heart so is he” (Proverbs 23:7). The behaviors that Paul described portray a heart that is far from God. There are some people who go to church who have a form of “godliness” but they deny the power and Lordship of Jesus Christ in their lives. They are into religion… but not into a relationship with Jesus Christ as their Lord.
In Matthew 12:35-36 Jesus said, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.”
Maybe you have been striving to have a closer, more intimate, relationship with God, but you’re falling short. Maybe you have tried to become a godlier person through fasting and prayer and self-sacrifice, but don’t seem any better today than you were before you started. Maybe… just maybe… the problem is with your heart.
I would like to encourage you to examine your heart. Does your heart beat for God or does it beat for the things of the world?
Dear friend, if you are to draw closer to God let it be your earnest prayer that you may willingly sacrifice your heart to Him; not through the cutting of the flesh as the Aztecs, but as a living sacrifice. That the Lord might purify your heart and find a place to dwell within you that He has made holy and pure. That all of your thoughts and feelings, actions and deeds may be pleasing to Him. For then you will be able to say with our Lord, “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8).
May the Lord be with you in your quest for a more intimate relationship with Him!
Article submitted Sunday, March 07, 2010 & read 724 times.
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» left by Kenny from Fall River, Mass. (145 days 1 hour ago.)
“Does Your Heart Beat for God?”*** NO!!!! Emphatically!I have been thinking a lot lately about matters of the heart. Perhaps it has something to do with my wife’s recent heart attack and the host of medical tests and examinations she has been undergoing. Between the echocardiograms, stress tests, blood pressure tests, and lab work with all of the poking, and prodding and pricking… one would be remiss not to consider the importance of the heart in matters of life and death.*** Life is impossible without it.Recently, I watched a documentary that elaborated upon many of the amazing advances that have occurred in heart surgery. Since the first heart transplant in 1967, modern medical science has not only invented mechanical hearts, but now are in the process of growing living hearts from real living tissue. If your heart fails… no problem! The doctors will just pull a spare heart off the shelf and give you a new one as easily as changing a carburetor in an automobile. In fact, those in the know are talking about extending human life not to 100 or 120 years, but to 1,000 years!*** That's okay IF our quality of life also increases. Otherwise, it's a ridiculous notion.It’s hard to imagine living to be 1,000 years old, and for the “life” of me, I can’t understand why someone would want to live so long. Yet, even the Bible tells us that Methuselah lived to be 969 years old before he died (Gen. 5:27). Like everyone who was born before him, Methuselah did die… eventually. His heart quit and he went the way of all flesh.*** Anyone who takes the Bible literally is a fool! Why would anyone want to live to be 1,000 years old when, at 52, I have trouble remembering my kids names.Speaking of hearts… the American Aztec Indians retain the infamous reputation of human sacrifice whereby they would extract hearts from their victims while they were still beating and hold them aloft to the sun god. The Aztecs believed that life was in the heart…*** Not so for those who's heart was extracted though – NO? It's a bit difficult to enjoy life when your heart has been “pulled” from your chest.that it was a piece of the sun trapped inside of a person, and that by cutting it out and offering it to the sun god that the sun god would be pleased.*** Beliefs are for idiots who are incapable of seeing reality.We need our hearts. It is really quite simple. If the heart stops, the blood will cease circulating throughout the body to deliver the essential oxygen that is required to survive. The body will die. This is something that we all know and understand and it is something that even the Bible spoke about in ancient times. In Leviticus 17:11 the Bible tells us, “For the life of a creature is in the blood.”*** Yes, “in the blood,” and also in the heart, mind, loins, and limbs of each of us.But, there is another aspect of the heart that I would like to focus upon… and that is the heart as the seat of love and human emotion. We should all be familiar with this concept for there are few people whom have lived very long without giving or receiving a little note with the words “I love you” inscribed upon a heart. And most of us are familiar with such terms as, “My heart beats for you” or “My heart longs for you” or “I have a broken heart.”*** And to experience such a thing is beautiful.Yet, what few people grasp is a biblical perspective of the heart. You see, much like us, people during biblical times understood the heart to be the seat of human emotions. When somebody was angry the heart would beat faster. When someone was in love the heart would pound. When somebody lost a loved one their heart would melt within them.*** Just because the “heart would beat faster, or it may have pound(ed)” doesn't necessarily mean “people during Biblical times” UNDERSTOOD the heart was the seat of human emotions. My heart pounds when I eat too much sugar. Does that imply an emotion? What it implies is a chemical reaction takes place.And just as the ancients had no city lights to obscure their vision of the night sky so that they could travel by following the stars… so also they had no televisions, stereos, computers or automobiles to obscure the functioning of their hearts. They were acutely aware of their beating hearts to the point where they found a relationship between their heartbeats and their thoughts.*** If they were all so “acutely aware”, then why were there wars?And this should not surprise us, for part of our modern lie detector tests consist of monitoring the heart, for few people can tell a lie without their heart fluttering to some degree.*** But it's not the heart that's monitored. It's applied to the nervous system. That's why heroin addicts usually pass lie detector test with ease. They have no conscience and their nerves are relaxed.So, unlike us, the biblical heart was not just the seat of human emotion, but also the seat of human thought. Thoughts and emotions were intricately woven together and could be discerned in the heart . To them, the heart and the mind were in union.*** You generalize too much. Once again, if “the heart and the mind were in union,” why were there wars?The reason this is so important to us is because in the eyes of the Lord the true measure of a man is not to be found in what he does, or even in what he or others may think of him, but in his heart.*** That may be true, but you don't need a “belief” in God to know or feel that.When the people of Israel were looking for a king they chose tall Saul because he was head and shoulders above the rest of his countrymen. But, later, the Lord rejected Saul because his heart was not right.*** Earlier you said, “They were acutely aware of their beating hearts to the point where they found a relationship between their heartbeats and their thoughts.” If that were so, then why did they choose “tall Saul” as “head and shoulders above the rest?” If they were ACUTELY AWARE, then why did they not see that “his heart was not in the right place?” Sounds like just another Biblical contradiction to me.When searching for someone to replace Saul the prophet Samuel came upon Eliab and thought to himself this must be the king. “But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart ” (1 Samuel 16:7).*** Once again, how can you say they were so “acutely aware of their beating hearts to the point where they found a relationship between their heartbeats and their thoughts,” yet say, “the LORD sees not as man sees?” What exactly DID man see then?The Lord looks on the heart! That is so important for us to remember in our relationship with God. Because, not only does the Lord look at our heart, he measures us by our heart. Proverbs 21:2 tells us, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart .”*** Does that mean that only those who believe in God “weigh the heart of a man?” I know many people who are non-believers, yet still weigh what's in another person's heart above all else.The Bible teaches us that, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). And many people would like to think that it is their behavior that falls short of perfection. But, what they fail to realize is that their sinful behavior is only symptomatic of a deeper problem… a heart condition. That is why wise king Solomon proclaimed, “Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?” (Proverbs 20:9). And his father before him, King David cried out, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10)*** This makes no sense to me. How can you say, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God?” At what point, and by who, are we declared successful in our endeavors to understand and do right. After all, we are only human!The point I am trying to make here is that sin comes from the heart and the great quest of believers is to have a right heart before God. We need to realize that our behavior, whether it be good or bad, are reflections of our heart, where our emotions and thoughts come together and guide all of our behavior.*** It's not just the heart – it is also the mind that decides for good and bad. For instance, a mentally challenged person has a better chance of not sinning than a normal human. A mentally challenged person is not faced with such decisions as whether to revolt against a political, economic, or religious system. “Living is easy with eyes closed. Misunderstanding all you see.” John LennonIn Mark 7:20-23 Jesus put it this way when he said, “What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men , proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”*** If what you claim is true, then wouldn't that make GOD responsible for the design of the heart and all it's flaws? Why would I worship or follow such a degenerate as God? Are you so afraid of this fictitious God that you can no longer see correctly?Consideration of this is particularly important for those believers who are trying to become “better” Christians by fasting, praying, abstaining and refraining. For the intent of these disciplines is not to show how strong we are but how very weak we are, not how perfect we are but how imperfect we are, not how sinless we are but how sinful. And when we realize these things it should draw us to consider deeper things about us… matters of our heart condition.*** Then why do Christians allow themselves the audacity to “pray for others” when they are not fit to even help themselves?So let me get to the “heart” of the matter. Did you catch that? Why do we say that? Why do we say, “The heart of the matter?” Because we understand that there are deeper truths that may be discovered to get to the middle of things. This is something else the ancients believed.You see the ancients were much more holistic than we are today. They believed there was a purpose and reason in the design of everything ... and this included the human body.*** Beliefs are just beliefs and nothing more. If there is a purpose and reason then I say, Prove it!They believed that the heart was placed in the middle of the human body for a very important reason. Why else would it be centrally located on our body? So, to them, the heart became a symbol of the core of a person’s being, in a sense - the inner chamber of the holy of holies. It was the place where the fullness of a person dwelt.*** Yes, and they also “believed” the Earth was the center of the universe. How did that belief turn out?So important and so valuable was the heart of man considered to be, that it was the one place that Scripture identifies as being absolutely essential in the conversion experience and a relationship with God that leads to salvation.*** Common sense, tells me more than that.Notice the Apostle says that if you “believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Remember how the lie detector test? The heart will flutter if a person lies. I can only wonder what kind of lie detector results we would get from people who claim to be Christians if we were to ask them if they really believed God raised Jesus from the dead.*** Good point! I say, very few. Most Christians are dictators and phonies. They spend more time telling others how they should live rather than practicing their own preachings.But, that is not all… we must believe in our hearts … not our heads. We can’t intellectualize our faith.*** Faith? Why would any GOD allow himself to be within the realm of “belief?” I know if I were God I'd make myself perfectly known and available, thus eliminating the need to “believe.”One more thing… there are a lot of Christians who proclaim Jesus as their Savior, but whom are not confessing Him as Lord Jesus. As Lord, Jesus should reign over our lives. We can’t just give him a token tribute. He is either Lord over our finances, our relationships, our thoughts, feelings and behavior or he is not.*** He is not! People are! Whether individually or collectively.There are a lot of people running around proclaiming to be Christians, but based on their behavior you can’t really tell them apart from people of the world. That is called deceiving not believing. Jesus spoke about people like this when he said, “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.”*** Again, the audacity for those who think man can only have a good heart through Christian thinking. For those who think like that may as well be considered legally blind.In 2 Timothy 3:1-5 the Apostle Paul told us, “that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despiers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away “*** And how has God helped to change things?I would like to encourage you to examine your heart. Does your heart beat for God or does it beat for the things of the world?*** Neither!!! My heart beats for man, and for those who seek justice, fairness, and facts!Dear friend, if you are to draw closer to God let it be your earnest prayer that you may willingly sacrifice your heart to Him; not through the cutting of the flesh as the Aztecs, but as a living sacrifice. That the Lord might purify your heart and find a place to dwell within you that He has made holy and pure. That all of your thoughts and feelings, actions and deeds may be pleasing to Him. For then you will be able to say with our Lord, “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8).*** PRAYER? Isn't that the thing where if you pray and what you prayed for comes true, it's because God made it so, but if it doesn't come true it was God's will? How convienient!Respond to this comment
» left by Mark Parsec(373)
Hi Kenny,
I appreciate your comments. I once "believed" very much like you. I was agnostic and cynical. It sounds to me like your heart is filled with bitterness. But, instead of addressing the many points you brought up due to time constraints, please allow me to share a brief personal experience...
There was a time in my life when I refused to go to church because it was filled with hypocrites. Then one day, I decided to go to a church just to see the hypocrites... and there I was! Only then I could I change my perspective of others.
I hope you can find peace.
God bless you,
Mark
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» left by Anonymous (144 days 14 hours ago.)
Kenny,
Because you protest so much, (a couple of pages) I tend to believe that you do believe.
"protest too much" is to insist so passionately about something not being true that people suspect the opposite of what you are saying. Example: "Do you think he is telling the truth?" Answer: "I think he protests too much." (original quote from Shakespear)
I am also a hypocrit (because I am human and therefore make mistakes).
God Bless you.
Fran Larson
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» left by Kenny St.pierre from Fall River, Mass. (139 days 15 hours ago.)
If you believe that I believe then you apparently have not read my article, "Proof that God does Not Exist."
In the article I clearly state that anyone who believes is guilty of being "unsure." To be unsure of something is not proof. It means one doesn't know, and if they don't know, then why do they talk as though God were a definite?
You can't say, "I believe," and then talk about God as though he/it exist undoubtedly.
As for "my bitterness," you have generalized and attributed a negative word to my character. Everywhere I go I am highly respected. I don't steal, cheat, hate, talk behind people's backs, or hurt others, yet without knowing anything about me you say I am bitter because I question "your God." How unfortunate! Apparently YOU are the one BITTER towards ME because I have the courage to ask the tough questions.
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» left by Mark Parsec(373)
Hi Kenny,
Well, it is good to hear that you are all well and wonderful. However, I believe that my comment referring to your bitterness was clearly appropriate based on your comments. You seem to have some rather strong resentments towards Christianity. And, no, I am not bitter towards you... I feel sorry for you. I have no problem with you asking "tough" questions. However, I saw more accusations than questions in your comments.
God bless you,
Mark
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» left by Kenny from Fall River, Mass. (119 days 14 hours ago.)
My comment was not for you Marc. It was for Fran.
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» left by carol fernandez from uk (141 days 15 hours ago.)
'A Christian is something one can never really become, it is something one can only aspire to'. W.H Auden.
I am an infamous Bible 'unfan' because it made me frightened of God and unable to love him until I understood how its origional meanings have quite simply and inevitably become changed over the centuries. Then I fell in love, in love with God, but not the scary one. My very own one.
I could not find God in the Bible myself, meditation and spirits did the trick. Psychics never usually do religion. However that does not mean that Mark has not managed it. Prayer, in its quietness can access the higher self, I imagine. There are many and varied paths leading back to the source; what works for one may not work for another. I do agree with Mark about the heart thought, that is where God is-at least mine was there. When I help others to understand spiritual/psychic matters, I always say; put on your heart glasses.
Whatever, it is the fault of no particular individual that parts of the Bible are iffy. Some parts contain great truths and wisdom, I think, and it is very hard to expect people to believe only certain parts of it.
The point is that Mark is trying to reach God intimately and may already have done so; he is just trying, I think, to help others to do this the best way that he can. He never makes people feel threatened or forces his views. His intent is good and I believe he is a being of the light.
I am sorry you seem to feel unhappy and maybe angry . If there is anything I can do to help then shout, or 'holler' as the Yanks say.
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» left by Mark Parsec(373)
Hi Carol,
Thank you so much for you kind remarks. Religion is a great plague upon mankind. There is no doubt in my mind, that a real, personal, life transforming relationship with God is vital if one is to find true peace and purpose in this life. As someone said to me recently, "We are only spirits, traveling through this world in human bodies... speak to the spirit within each man (person)."
God bless you,
Mark
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» left by carol fernandez from uk (140 days 18 hours ago.)
That is what I have been trying to say, but not very well. The whole point is 'heart' and 'personal'. my God can be very funny because so can I . Is Tony Blair,s God funny? Probably not. As for Jeshua (Jesus), my old sparring partner Paul Shroeder explained in half a sentence what I have been struggling to explain in many ( I hope he will not mind my quoting him); 'Jesus pointed but they all looked at his hand'. But Paul can write, I cannot.
All suffering is caused by separation from Him and it is all our own work, not his.
In my role as eccentric psychic I am glad to inform you that this separation is nearly over but, as always, you have free will.
Here's to our new world! See you there Mark!
Love and blessings,
Your English friend,
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» left by Olufemi Ladeinde from United Kingdom (144 days 21 hours ago.)
Thank you for this article. More of us need to remember our need for God and for our heart to be right before Him. May the Lord bless you indeedRespond to this comment
» left by Mark Parsec(373)
Hi Olufemi,
Thank you for your comments.
God bless you!
Mark
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» left by Linda DeWitt (143 days 4 hours ago.)
One of my favorite Psalms is 51 where David says create in me a clean heart, renew a right spirit within me, etc. When my great grandmother died, my grandmother died soon after and the doctor said she died of a broken heart. I always thought that was an interesting but true comment. Good article Mark, thank you for sharing.Respond to this comment
» left by Mark Parsec(373)
Hi Linda,
It is said that the torture of crucifixion is such as to cause bodily fluids to build up, vital organ overload, to the point that the heart actually explodes! Jesus too, died of a broken heart.
Thank you for your comments, Linda. You are loved!
Mark
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» left by Marijo Phelps (142 days 12 hours ago.)
PS 51, I agree it is a favorite. Thanks Mark for these insights - challenging and right on I feel. Appreciate you taking the time! MarijoRespond to this comment
» left by Mark Parsec(373)
Hi Marijo,
Thank you for your comments. May the Lord continue to bless you.
Mark
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» left by Terri Atwell (137 days 7 hours ago.)
Sorry it took me so long to get around to reading this absolutely beautiful article. I can tell it was definitely written "from the heart"!You really unleashed a flood of both positive and negative comments with this one. One comment in particular from Linda, and your answer to it, really struck me. You stated the physical outcomes of crucifixion and that Jesus literally died of a broken heart. That's true, but also-He loved us SO MUCH that his heart was broken that we did not return His love but rather placed Him on the cross. Thanks for this timely article!Respond to this comment
» left by Mark Parsec(373)
Hi Terri,
Thank you for your wonderful comments. And, yes, it is true... we nailed Him there. Oh, what great love God has for us.
God bless you,
Mark
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