A New Heart

We are approaching the new year of 2024, and this is the time of year when everyone begins to make resolutions. We want this new year to be different or should I say we want to be different? We are not pleased with certain aspects of ourselves. We feel the need to be better. We can easily identify things about ourselves that are less than perfect. But how do we become a better version of ourselves?

Look at Psalm 51:10.

Create in me a clean heart, O God,

And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

David is coming before God full of guilt and ready for confession. There is no doubt he has sinned. He has been called out. He committed adultery with Bathsheba and murdered her husband, Uriah. God knows. He knows. The world knows.

He has run long enough and now is backed into a corner. He can pretend innocence no longer. But instead of simply confessing his sin and asking for forgiveness, David asks to be remade. He wants his heart to be recreated perfectly. His sinful self needs to be made new so he will no longer be a slave to sin.

A sacrifice would be a temporary fix. His next sin would place him right back in the same position. Not measuring up. Missing the mark. Forgiveness without change leaves one wanting. David cannot just confess and be forgiven; he needs to be renewed. He needs to be recreated. He needs to be purified.

We do this when we ask Jesus to be our Lord and Savior. We ask to be made new. We must desire to take every thought captive for Christ. (2 Cor 10:5) We must desire to be clean, pure, and holy. Set apart for God. Change doesn’t just come from confession. It comes from purging all that is within. As Paul said in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ lives in me.”

Jesus paid our debt of sin with His sacrifice and now we must undergo the change required to be His. Too many believe they can follow Christ without undergoing an inner change, but that implies they are fine the way they are. Why would we follow Christ if this were true?

As we look at this New Year and vow to change our diet, our exercise habits, our attitude, or charity; why not look at giving ourselves to Jesus and allowing Him to make real changes. We not only need to change the way we behave but we need to be changed by God Himself. He has given us a way to do this through Jesus, God the Son.

Will you ask God to create in you a clean heart? Confess your sin. Accept Christ as Lord. Submit to His authority. Be adopted into God’s family. Be completely changed.

This year could be a New Year, a changed year. This could be a year like no other.

Give

God commands us to give and to give cheerfully. He tells us to do this for His glory, but also for our good. We are to give as an act of worship. We are to give as a reminder of where our blessings originate. We are to give so we will be dependent upon the One who made us and provides for us each day of our lives. We are to give so we will be able to see the difference between what we need and what we want. We are to give because we love God, and we are to worship Him.

Giving is worship. Worship is love. We love our God and want to show our love for Him by being involved in ministry. One of the best ways to be involved is to give. The money we give goes to the mission of the church, to reach the lost. The time we give drives the church programs and outreach. The talents we give are used to lead others in worship through song, teach classes, counsel others, or minister to the poor, or any number of diverse ways.

2 Cor 9:7

⁷ Each person should do as he has decided in his heart—not reluctantly or out of compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver.

Giving is an expression of love. If we feel coerced to give, then we are not giving out of love. I love my wife. I am not forced to love her. I chose to love her years ago and I continue to choose to love her each day.

We made a commitment to each other on the day we were married to love each other until God calls us home. We choose to honor that commitment to each other. Our lives are intertwined. It is hard to imagine one without the other. We give, share, and care for each other. We do not do this with any amount of remorse. We do this because we love each other. We celebrate birthdays and victories throughout the year, and we never forget the source of each of those victories.

Is this how we love God? It should be. We should love Him because we want to; because we choose to. He doesn’t want us to love Him through force or fear. He wants us to love Him because we choose to, and we want Him to love us because He chooses to. He wants us to give to His work so others can hear about His love and love Him. He wants us to give to further His kingdom. He wants us to love Him enough to place our treasure and talents cheerfully in His hands. He wants us to love Him. He wants us to show our love willingly and cheerfully. Are we showing Him our love?