A HEART THAT IS SEARCHABLE

Once, during a long drive from the Teen Challenge farm in Pennsylvania to New York City, the Lord spoke to my inner man: “There is such a thing as a perfect heart. I want to show you what it is so you can seek after it!” At that time God revealed to my spirit that Christ commits Himself to those who walk before Him with a perfect, responsive heart.

“The Lord searcheth all hearts” (1 Chronicles 28:9). The perfect heart cries out with David, “Search me, O God, and know my heart . . . and see if there be any wicked way in me” (Psalm 139:23-24).

God also said to Jeremiah, “I the Lord search the heart” (Jeremiah 17:10). The Hebrew meaning for this phrase is, “I examine deeply.” Scripture says, “For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God” (1 Corinthians 2:10).

In Revelation 2:24, Jesus speaks about “the depths of Satan,” of going down into the profound depth of sin. He was saying that evil goes down deep into the soul; that it has roots that go down into hell. David said of the wicked ones: “The inward thought of every one of them, and the heart, is deep” (Psalm 64:6). “For a prostitute is a deep pit” (Proverbs 23:27, NIV).

These passages all are holy warnings: “You don't realize how deeply this association with evil affects you. It takes you down into the depths of Satan himself, depths that are mysterious, bottomless, profound. This path leads to hell.”

In these final days sin has become complicated, subtle, sensuous and more sophisticated. It comes disguised as art, culture and education. I believe there are new depths to sin now. It has taken on stronger, deeper roots. Our children are confronted with depths of sin that we never did or never will know! “Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark” (Isaiah 29:15).

The perfect heart wants the Holy Spirit to come and search out the depths of the innermost man, to shine into all hidden parts, to investigate and dig out and expose all that is unlike Christ.