Heart Pollution

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? ” – Jeremiah 17:9

Our earth is not a clean planet anymore. The ground is polluted and therefore it does not grow wholesome, nourishing food anymore. The water is not clean anymore. The pollution in the rivers, lakes and even oceans cause diseases in the fish and the people who eat them become sick. Even clean drinking water is hard to find. I saw signs on small islands in the middle of the sea that no swimming was allowed because the water was polluted. Clean air does not exist anymore. Even at the north and south poles the scientists found air to be contaminated. In Mexico City 30,000 children die annually from air pollution.

The Bible brings out that the earth is defiled and therefore God will in the end cleanse it with fire.

“The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.” Isa. 24:5.

Yet the greatest pollution which is most damaging and causes the greatest suffering to people is heart pollution.
Jesus recognized this and said, “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: all these things come from within, arid defile the man.” Mark 7:21-23.

The first thing that Jesus mentioned was evil thoughts, actions.
Our thoughts produce words and God destroyed the world in the time of Noah because their thoughts were evil, “Every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Gen. 6:5.

The heart is the fountain from which the rivers start out, which are our words and actions. The dangerous thing of our heart is that we do not know the condition of it. Jeremiah said, “Who can know it.”

“Know yourself is considered as a divine oracle by the philosophers. Peter did not know himself when he said to Jesus, “though I should die with Thee, yet will I not deny Thee.” Matt. 26:35.

The Pharisees did not know themselves when Jesus told them that they are the children of the devil. (John 8:44) The Laodicean Angel does not know himself when saying, “I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.” Rev. 3:17.

We can see easier the mote in our brother’s eye than the beam that is in our own eye. For this reason heart pollution continues. We will not seek a remedy unless we see the sickness.

On our property was a large strong looking maple tree. It had withstood winds and storms for 50-60 years. Then suddenly one day it fell down from the wind. When I examined the stump, I noticed that all the inside had decayed and only a thin layer of solid wood remained on the outside. Therefore it had no strength to stand the heavy wind. This decay had not happened in one moment but during the years it had developed to the point that the strength was finally gone.

This often happens in our spiritual life. When a person is converted he is strong. In a short time he overcomes bad habits and changes his life completely. But then the progress often stops. If he is not careful, slowly he starts backsliding.

Little indulgences, neglected duties, little roots of bitterness and vanity start growing in the heart and destroys the love to God and to his fellow man. The empty form only remains but there is no Christ living in his heart. That time he is ready to fall and to lose his faith.

The heart is stronger than our knowledge. Adam and Eve followed their heart rather than their knowledge. Judas followed his heart and not his knowledge. Also David committed sin against his knowledge.

If our heart is deceitful above all things, it will easily deceive us and lead us into sin. Where does this evil come into our heart? We read of Judas, “And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him.” John 13:2.

Satan put it into the heart of Judas to betray Jesus. Adam and Eve were pure and holy, but Satan put it into their hearts to do sin. When the desire was aroused in the heart of Eve, it was not pure anymore. Now this polluted heart deceived her and she did eat of the forbidden tree.

Can Satan do this to our heart? Can he put sinful desire into it? By looking at the tree and watching the serpent eating the fruit aroused the desire in the heart of Eve. Satan knows this and therefore he tries to get us to look at sin and a desire will be aroused in us also. Many Christians are not careful in guarding their eyes and ears from worldly influences. By watching television and videos, Satan plants a sinful desire in the heart and the result is an act of sin. “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” Matt. 5:8.

A pure heart is the condition for our salvation. Therefore our lifework here is to cleanse our hearts from pollution. To empty it from selfishness, love of the world, pride, covetousness and envy is the purpose of a Christian’s life. Trials and afflictions have a purpose to remove these sinful characteristics from us.

We are born with a natural heart and it has always a tendency downwards. It is always seeking opportunities to gratify the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and ears. The natural heart seeks for human recognition and praise. It is revengeful, unforgiving and selfish in all its motives.

Paul said, “For I know that in me (that is my flesh) dwelleth no good thing.” Rom. 7:18.
Then it is not for a man to cleanse his heart alone. He needs God’s creative power to put into him a new heart. A new birth is necessaiy and then man can change his whole life. To hunger and thirst after righteousness means to seek a pure heart that is filled with God’s spirit. The Holy Spirit will not live in a divided heart. We cannot love the world and the things of this world and hope that God’s Spirit would dwell in us. This is impossible.

When the heart is pure, it is full of love and peace. When Jesus was nailed to the cross from His pure heart came only a prayer for His murderers. This is the condition that we also must reach.

Our heart is like a garden. We need to attend to it constantly. Satan is trying to plant weeds in our heart garden; which if allowed to grow will choke the good seed.

Almost all of old Israel perished in the wilderness for the hardness of their hearts. Every time we hear a rebuke or admonition and do not obey, our heart becomes more hardened.

Finally the strongest appeals and warnings have no effect on us. The heart becomes hard as a stone and the Spirit of God cannot work on it any more.

Let us pray daily for a new heart and close all the avenues to the heart that no worldly influence can enter. Then with a pure heart we can see God and walk with God as Enoch did.
AMEN

Timo Martin