August 7
August 7
God is so loving and so committed to his plan of rescue that he will not settle for anything less than the total surrender of our hearts to him.
If someone were to ask you what God requires of you, what would you say? Would you point to the Ten Commandments? Would you talk about Sunday worship and regular giving? Would you talk about Christian ministry? What does God require of those who follow him?
An adequate answer has to begin with acknowledging that whatever God asks of us is good for us. The one who made us knows us and the world in which we live. He knows why he made us and how he designed us to live. He understands what sin has done to us and how we need to be rescued and restored by his grace. He understands every temptation we face. He knows the blessings that come when we follow him by faith. His infinite wisdom and knowledge, coupled with his perfect holiness, mean that it is impossible for him to ask anything of us that is not wise or good. His way is always the best way.
Knowing that God always wants what is best for us, we get back to our question, What is it that God requires? We find a clear answer to this question in Jeremiah 4:
Thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem:
“Break up your fallow ground,
and sow not among thorns.
Circumcise yourselves to the Lord;
remove the foreskin of your hearts,
O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem;
lest my wrath go forth like fire,
and burn with none to quench it,
because of the evil of your deeds.” (Jer. 4:3–4)
The seriousness of this passage should get our attention. Remember, God’s warnings of judgment are not judgment itself; they are a gift of grace. Because he loves us, he warns us. His warning is a mercy, giving us time to consider, examine ourselves, confess, and repent. God will not compromise his holy will, and that is good for us, because what he wills for his children is always what is best.
God requires nothing less than the circumcision of our hearts. What in the world does this mean? Remember that the physical act of circumcising every male Israelite was a sign that they were separated from the rest of humanity for the Lord. It was the sign of the unique blessing of being in the company of people whom God had chosen to be his people. But God was not satisfied with the outward sign; he wanted circumcision of the heart—that is, its complete surrender to him.
He wants complete control of our thoughts, desires, will, and emotions, because that which controls the heart controls everything else in our life. Only a circumcised heart can offer God true, loving obedience to his commandments. It is a blessing that God will settle for nothing less than the surrender of our hearts, because in requiring this he rescues us from us. Have you experienced the grace of this surrender?