Hebrews 3:7-14, 19 Hardening Your Heart

That is why the Holy Spirit says, “Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled, when they tested me in the wilderness. There your ancestors tested and tried my patience, even though they saw my miracles for forty years. So I was angry with them, and I said, ‘Their hearts always turn away from me. They refuse to do what I tell them.’ So in my anger I took an oath: ‘They will never enter my place of rest.’” Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ. So we see that because of their unbelief they were not able to enter his rest. (Hebrews 3:7-14, 19 NLT)

Observation:

This is a warning for Christians to not harden their hearts. Hardened hearts happen when we don't understand why we are going through a terrible circumstance, we get mad at God and we don't take our hurts to Him. They also happen through busyness, we exclude God from so much of our lives, that we barely know Him. The result of a hardened heart is a lack of trust and therefore a lack of obedience. 

A hardened heart will never enter the rest of God. It is a life filled with wandering and anxiety. The Hebrew writer compares this wandering to the Israelites wandering in the desert because they responded in fear instead of obedience when God called them to walk into the promise land. 

Application:

The writer of Hebrews doesn't just define the problem, he also gives the solution. He says for us to make sure that our own hearts are not evil and unbelieving. We need to have consistent spiritual check up's where we Go to our heavenly Doctor and ask Him to search our hearts and see if there is any evil there. We need for Him to cleanse us from all unrighteousness and lead us in the everlasting way (Psalm 139). This means consistent prayer time devoted to adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and then supplication. Once this conversation begins, we receive a revelation of God's great love for us, and we respond in obedience to His call, because we know whatever He asks us to do is for our good (Romans 8:28).

Prayer:

Father, I praise You for being my Shepherd, the One who lays down His life for His sheep, for me. I know that in me is selfishness and self righteousness, I ask that You forgive me and reveal any other areas where evil might be lurking in my heart. Father, please lead me in paths of truth, life, and love. Thank You for the assurance I have that You will never let me go.