Fix your lives on heaven part 1- The heart

The Bible talks of a transition in our spiritual state such as our new identity but scripture also recognises the conflict with our old self which we still have to live with until heaven. It uses phrases such as 'put off your old self...put on the new self'; the old has gone the new has come, if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation. We have crucified the sinful nature amongst others.

In order to help us live more in the new the Bible teaches us to be focussed and centred on things of God such as things regarding our new self our new identity in him and what we have in him. Very briefly this encourages us to do things like draw on the 'then', the future, what we will have, and the spiritual reality of who we are in him in order to deal with the now, day to day life from stress to persecution. How to we cope? We already know that if our hope is in this life, we will fall, as things in this life are not solid.

Colossians 3:1-4 (NIV 1984) 'Since then you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God, when Christ, who is your life appears then you also will appear with him in glory.'

This presents us with two primary areas which encourage us in ways which can lift us out of and above the troubles and trials of this world/life. When I say 'above the troubles' I do not mean that we do not have them but that these principles teach us how we, as Christians, cope with living in a fallen world, where hard, difficult and painful things can and do happen? Colossians, alongside other passages, encourages us to rise above these things, the worries alongside riches and pleasures of life.

This raises the question of what do we have our hope in? I mean, really, what is it? And, how do we stay in a place of having Christ at the centre?

Colossians 3v1-2 is your answer.

-Hearts centred on things above

-Minds on things above

Not our emotions-our emotions are reactions, when our hearts and minds are right, our emotions will respond better. In fact, to 'Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength' is helped in that if your heart and mind are fixed where they need to be, your soul and strength will follow in that your soul will be fed with the goodness of God and your strength will move to do the things of God.

So what is our heart and what is our mind? And how can we fix them on things above more in our lives? The rest of part 1 will focus on the heart.

The Heart

The heart, which is to be guarded, is described in proverbs 4 as the well spring of life. It consists of our desires and drives the motivations of our lives. It can also be what drives sin in our lives. Out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks Jesus said.

Psalm 37:4 (NIV 1984)-'delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart' The heart desires things, and drives what you do therefore, if you want something to truly change about yourself and your life, the heart is that which needs to change.

This basically means that what we focus on, we can end up desiring. It is actually how advertising works. With messages and images, they try to provoke desire. Because when you desire it, you will more likely buy it. In your heart are your desires, which become the foundation for your motivation-i.e. why you do what you do. In other words:

You do what you do, because you want something, you seek it, because it is in your heart.

If worldly things are in your heart, worldly desires will rule your life. Most Christians will have a mix. But one thing with Christians is that we can make the mistake of having wordly desires sugar-coated with Christian wrapping. Christianised worldly desires are just worldly desires.

For example, self achievement-become a CEO: Christianised achievement - become pastor of a mega church. Seek popularity? Christianise it in church with Christian friends? Be a good person? Christianise it by giving to Christian charities and following the Christian 'rules' for good living, which, as mentioned on the facebook page is challenged, can just be another form of self-love.

These behaviours are not all bad things in themselves, but I am looking at what the desire is in the heart that they fulfil. They may be no different to any non believer out there regardless of how Christian they seem on the outside. Do not forget Jesus' criticism of the Pharisees that they were white washed (on the outside) tombs (on the inside-having no life). We can easily be no different.

Matthew 6 offers us a perspective which reminds us to do the things we do for God, to be focussed on him in our prayer, fasting, giving and what we choose to worry about. But the principle goes way beyond that. When we come to verse 33, this is the real crux of the matter in one sentence:

Seek first his Kingdom and his righteousness.

Which leads to the question:

Why would you seek something, if it was not in your heart to seek? In fact, how could you possibly truly and honestly seek something if it was not in your heart?

Interestingly the NKJV of Colossians 3 reads: 'If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above....' in fact seek is perhaps the more accurate translation, but then we learn from scripture in general that the idea of seeking and the heart are intimately linked. Also, Jeremiah 29:13 'You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart'. God wants your heart to be turned to him always. It is only then that we can know God, when our heart desires him above all things.

Does this mean if we manage this, that life will be a breeze? That things will be easy? NO

Look at Jesus, his life, his ministry-he had battles with the Pharisees, rejection from family, hard questions, temptations, even his own disciples that just didn't get it, and obviously, his betrayal, trial and execution. But his heart was for God all the time. He faced all those things, knowing what he was doing, who he was doing it for, and who he belonged to. He was safe, secure, known, loved.

You have likely heard the idea of being more Christ like-give to the poor? non Christians do that. Be more Christ like? love others-non Christians love each other, some it seems more than Christians. You really want to be more Christ like? Have a heart that seeks God's in all things at all times, above everything, be centred on him.

Let me ask you a question: do you think that a heart which seeks God's above all else, is going to get so caught up in the trials of this life as it did before? Choked by life's worries riches and pleasures?

I want you to imagine that life, much freer from life's worries, and temptations and more genuinely for God...maybe that is hard right now, but imagine, all your desires, being centred on things above, things of the Kingdom of an almighty, glorious, Holy, eternally loving Father, Son and Spirit God. Imagine everything in communion with him.

If you want more of God in your life, get your heart on him, on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Remember that, always.