Defining “heart” – Biblically speaking, “heart” is both the pump for your blood and the center of your soul or immaterial being. Just as your physical heart gives life to your physical body, your spiritual heart gives life to your spiritual body.
Have you heard that everything comes at a price? You know that grace is free, but what about everything else? You know that not all costs are monetary, and some are hidden. Economists speak of opportunity cost, that you can only do one thing at a time, and so a commitment to do one thing costs you the opportunity to do other things. Trade-offs are inevitable in life, but do not let this discourage you. It is beneficial for you to know the truth, and walk in the light.
I call on you to love your enemies. Do you extend human dignity to them? Certainly you have heard others make up derogatory names for prominent persons (and others) they dislike. Have you ever done this? It is easy to withhold common courtesy from those you disagree with, but is this justifiable? Do you see them as totally alien to you? But you all belong to the same brotherhood of humanity. Are you fussy about who is your brother? I responded to a similar question about who is my neighbor, and the answer was broader than the questioner liked.
Are you constantly looking for things to do more of? Your culture operates on the principle that more is better in every area of life. Does this always work in your favor? Is your life already filled up with activities? So if you find something new that you must incorporate into your life you will have to choose something that you have already committed to doing that you can do less of. I did promise you and abundant life. Would you describe everything that you are currently busy with as contributing to abundance? The things you give your time to you give your heart to.
I was 100% convinced that if I ate right, exercised, and didn’t drink or smoke, I had zero chance of ever having a heart attack. And yet I had one. How could I have made such a cataclysmic mistake? As a teacher of truth I was upset, angry and aghast that I held such a mistruth or half-truth. When I experienced chest pains, my wife had the presence of mind to give me a dropperful of Dr. Schulze’s “Cayenne” in some water, so my pains subsided and I walked into the urgent care facility 10 minutes later.
Do you understand the concept of presence? People who are with you aren’t necessarily with you. They can be distracted, so that even if they are present in body they can be absent in spirit. You have been aware of this in others and they have in you too. I am not with you in body right now, but I am always with you in Spirit. Are you aware of this? Do you find your awareness of my presence is greater when you are alone than when you are with other people?
Do you resent the troubles in your life and the times that you need to trust me for basic necessities? You could look at this as a consequence of the fall, or you could see it in a more positive light. I have chosen the poor to be rich in faith. What do you notice about the affluent and self-sufficient? Their abundance allows them to live at ease, with no conscious awareness of dependence. The poor do not have this luxury. Atheism, when not imposed by a regime, is more prevalent among those who are well-off.
Do you know that there are many types of questions? The most basic form is a request for information. Yet you are also familiar with trick questions, leading questions, and loaded questions. So don’t think that all questions are innocent. I encountered loaded questions myself, from my adversaries who were trying to trap me. I responded to their false dichotomies with transcendent truth. Have you ever asked me a loaded question? This could be one that challenges my goodness and benevolent intent about events in your life.
Do you think that sin normally involves sex or money? What about the first sin? Sex and money were not issues for sin in the garden, but I told the inhabitants not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, lest they die. You live in a culture that values knowledge highly, so much so that it is even called an information culture. Learning is universally sought and admired. Most people don’t think of this as a sin. Do you?
Titles of nobility are not as common as they were in times past. You can be glad this class structure is going away. Such titles were passed down through family lines, or they could be bought. But having an ancestral name or money doesn’t make you noble. Now you think of nobility more as an attribute of an individual, according to their character and conduct, and this is a positive development. This opens the door to everyone regardless of wealth or status. Strive to conduct yourself in this manner, for I have appointed you a position in my Kingdom and made you kings and priests.
