Sermon Central
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Stewardship Of Our Heart Series
Contributed by Patrick O'loughlin on Mar 7, 2011 (message contributor)
Summary: This is part one of a series on stewardship that deals with stewardship of the heart
Topic: Stewardship
This month we are going to do a series of 3 messages on Stewardship.
What is stewardship? Stewardship is an individual’s responsibility to properly manage everything which God has entrusted to his or her care.”
What are we to be stewards of?We are to be responsible stewards of everything which God has entrusted to our care.“The earth is the Lords and everything in it. “
In this series we are going to hit on a few big areas of stewardship.Now everything is big to God
The small things are big to God. If you give a cup of water in my name God notices it and God rewards it. By big I mean those things in our lives that directly affect everything else. Is there one area of stewardship that’s bigger than all others? I believe there is.
Some people say that…
•A man is what he eats…
•A man is what his wife says he is
However the Bible says that
•A man is what he thinks in his heart.
“As a man thinks in his heart so is he.” (Proverbs 23:7 KJV)
So we are going to begin our series by looking at the biggest area of stewardship; Being good stewards of our Hearts!
The Bible says
“Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” (Proverbs 4:23)
Your heart is the wellspring of your life-Guard it! How do you guard your heart? One way we can guard our hearts is by being a good steward of it.
The Bible also says
Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart.” (1 Sam. 16:7)
If God is always looking at our heart we need to be looking at our heart also. We need to be looking to make sure that we are being good stewards of our hearts.
There is a common belief: Everyone in the world is born with a good heart
Is everyone in the world really born with a good heart? What does the Bible say?
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” Jeremiah 17:9
Does that verse support the belief that everyone is born with a good heart? No! So who deceived us into believing everyone is born with a good heart? Our hearts deceive us into believing that everyone in the world is born with a good heart. Right now your heart is telling you-you were born with a good heart! The truth is - Everyone in the world is born with a deceitful heart.
Here is what Jesus said about man’s heart
“For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man unclean.” (Mark 7:20-21)
According to Jesus everyone in the world has a sinful heart. The bottom line is everyone of our hearts are both deceitful and sinful.
I hope it is now clear when I say we need to be good stewards of our hearts I’m not referring to the deceitful and sinful heart we were born with.
Trying to be a good steward of the heart we were born with is like trying to be a good steward of fake money.
The heart we were born with doesn’t need stewardship – the heart we were born with needs salvation. We must be born again. We must have a new heart!
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26-27)
How do we get our old heart of stone removed?How do we replace it with a new heart of flesh?
Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live! (Ezek. 18:31-32)
The answer is thru repentance.Repent and Live!
I don’t get a new heart by just saying I’m sorry. I get a new heart by living in such a way that shows I’m sorry. When I turn away from my offenses. When I rid myself of all the offenses I have committed.God gives me a new heart
On the day of Pentecost Peter preaches a message of salvation when the people heard this, they were…cut to the heart
They said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brother’s, what shall we do?”
Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
