“So, as the Holy Spirit says: ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.’ … See to it that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.”
Hebrews 3:7, 12
Pharaoh, the Israelites, Nebuchadnezzar, the Pharisees—these all had something in common: a hardened heart. From the early chapters of the Old Testament on into the New Testament book of Acts, we read of people whose hearts were set firmly against the Lord.
That hardening can happen in us slowly over time as things other than the Lord begin to hold a place of honor in our hearts. The allure of all the world has to offer in the name of beauty, success, or ease can cause us to drift. Long periods of time without church attendance can harden the heart until it’s convinced that the in-person worship time of God’s children is really not that necessary at all. A hardened heart may stray to unbelief altogether.
But even a hard lump of clay can be molded into the softened heart the Lord desires. Pray the words from Isaiah 64:8: “Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” Ask Him to change your own or someone else’s hard heart like a potter kneading and shaping something beautiful.
That hardening can happen in us slowly over time as things other than the Lord begin to hold a place of honor in our hearts. The allure of all the world has to offer in the name of beauty, success, or ease can cause us to drift. Long periods of time without church attendance can harden the heart until it’s convinced that the in-person worship time of God’s children is really not that necessary at all. A hardened heart may stray to unbelief altogether.
But even a hard lump of clay can be molded into the softened heart the Lord desires. Pray the words from Isaiah 64:8: “Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” Ask Him to change your own or someone else’s hard heart like a potter kneading and shaping something beautiful.
Scripture Focus
Hebrews 3:7-15
Insight
“I will … put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26)
Bible In A Year
- 2 Kings 11-12
- Proverbs 16
- 1 Peter 4-5
