A study on a whole heart



    A whole heart means that there is nothing else, totally fixed.


WHOLE , a. Hole. [G., Gr. This seems to be connected with heal, hale. Of this the derivative wholesome, is evidence.]
1. All; total; containing the total amount or number, or the entire thing; as the whole earth; the whole world; the whole solar system; the whole army; the whole nation.
2. Complete; entire; not defective or imperfect; as a whole orange; the egg is whole; the vessel is whole.
3. Unimpaired; unbroken; uninjured.
        (From Webster's 1828 dictionary )

Exod 20:1 (KJS) And God spake all these words, saying,
2 I [am] the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth:
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God [am] a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth [generation] of them that hate me;

   God commands us to have no other gods before Him. He is to be our WHOLE focus as God.

God or gods - GOD, n.
1. The Supreme Being; Jehovah; the eternal and infinite spirit, the creator, and the sovereign of the universe. God is a spirit; and they that worship him, must worship him in spirit and in truth. Jn 4.
2. A false god; a heathen deity; an idol. Fear not the gods of the Amorites. Judges 6.
3. A prince; a ruler; a magistrate or judge; an angel. Thou shalt not revile the gods, nor curse the ruler of thy people. Ex. 22. Ps.97. [Gods here is a bad translation.]
4. Any person or thing exalted too much in estimation, or deified and honored as the chief good. Whose god is their belly. Phil.3.
        (From Webster's 1828 dictionary )

   So, anything exalted above the Supreme God of the universe would be a false god by this definition and Ex 20.

   God also says much about a whole heart:

Psal 119:1 (KJS) ALEPH. Blessed [are] the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD.
2 Blessed [are] they that keep his testimonies, [ and that] seek him with the whole heart .
3 They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways.
4 Thou hast commanded [us] to keep thy precepts diligently.
5 O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes!
6 Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments.
Psal 119:7 (KJS) I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments.
8 I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly.
9 BETH. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed [thereto] according to thy word.
10 With my whole heart have I sought thee : O let me not wander from thy commandments.
11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.


    We are to seek God with a whole heart per Ps 119:2 & 10

Isai 55:6 (KJS) Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

   This verse fills out Ps119:1 - 3, 7 & 9.
We have to forsake our ways and choose God's ways. (Is 55:8) We have to take thoughts captive...because the unrighteous man has unrighteous thoughts! 2Cor 10:5 (KJS) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

   And yet, if we are seeking God with our whole heart, then what about everything else that we have to do?
Matt 6:33 (KJS) But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

   Well, that's nice, but that takes faith...
Hebr 11:6 (KJS) But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

   So, not only should I seek Him with my whole heart, I should trust Him with my whole life.
If there is something that keeps me from seeking Him with a whole heart, then, by definition, it is divided, double-minded! That could be areas in my life!

Jame 1:8 (KJS) A double minded man [is] unstable in all his ways.
Which follows:
Jame 1:6 (KJS) But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.

Thayer's Bible Dictionary and Strong's Concordance says this about double minded:

1374 dipsuchos {dip'-soo-khos}
from 1364 and 5590; TDNT - 9:665,1342; adj AV - double minded 2; 2
1) double minded
1a) wavering, uncertain, doubting
1b) divided in interest

Jame 4:8 (KJS) Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse [your] hands, [ye] sinners; and purify [your] hearts, [ye] double minded. [same word]
This would indicate that James was saying that the double minded needed to cleanse their hands, and purify their hearts!

Psal 12:1 (KJS) Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men. 2 They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: [with] flattering lips [and] with a double heart do they speak.
We can know that the godly are ceasing and the faithful are failing when they speak with a double heart!

Deut 4:29 (KJS) But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find [him], if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
   If we want to find the Lord...it has to be with ALL our heart...and SOUL! This is another aspect...what is the difference?

Strong's says:
Heart:
03824 lebab {lay-bawb'}from 03823; TWOT - 1071a; n m
AV - heart 231, consider + 07760 5, mind 4, understanding 3, misc 9; 252
1) inner man, mind, will, heart, soul, understanding
1a) inner part, midst ; 1a1) midst (of things); 1a2) heart (of man); 1a3) soul, heart (of man)
1a4) mind, knowledge, thinking, reflection, memory; 1a5) inclination, resolution, determination (of will)
1a6) conscience ; 1a7) heart (of moral character); 1a8) as seat of appetites
1a9) as seat of emotions and passions; 1a10) as seat of courage

Soul:
05315 nephesh {neh'-fesh} from 05314; TWOT - 1395a; n f
AV - soul 475, life 117, person 29, mind 15, heart 15, creature 9,body 8, himself 8, yourselves 6, dead 5, will 4, desire 4, man 3, themselves 3, any 3, appetite 2, misc 45; 751
1) soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion
1a) that which breathes, the breathing substance or being, soul, the inner being of man
1b) living being; 1c) living being (with life in the blood)
1d) the man himself, self, person or individual
1e) seat of the appetites; 1f) seat of emotions and passions; 1g) activity of mind
1g1) dubious; 1h) activity of the will; 1h1) dubious; 1i) activity of the character
1i1) dubious

   The only way to put these two together is that we are to seek the Lord with all of our
*inner man, mind, will, heart, soul, understanding; soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion, knowledge, thinking, reflection, memory, inclination, resolution, determination (of will), activity of mind, activity of the will, activity of the character.
   In fact, we are to seek the Lord with all of that which breathes , the breathing substance or being, soul, the inner being of man.
   Now, without breath, we don't live...at all. And then, to make it even more all encompassing, we are to seek him with our whole living being (with life in the blood). This pretty much describes the man himself, self, person or individual.

   There is NOTHING left to seek after anything BUT God!!! This constitutes our WHOLE being! Anything that comes between us seeking God is either a stumbling block we need to ask Him to remove, or it's an idol that we have given too much estimation to...elevated it above God.

   Some more verses about seeking God:

1Chr 16:11 (KJS) Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually.

1Chr 22:19 (KJS) Now set your heart and your soul to seek the LORD your God ; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of the LORD God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and the holy vessels of God, into the house that is to be built to the name of the LORD.

Psal 34:10 (KJS) The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good [thing] .

Prov 28:5 (KJS) Evil men understand not judgment: but they that seek the LORD understand all [things] .

Hose 10:12 (KJS) Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for [it is] time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

Amos 5:6 (KJS) Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour [it], and [there be] none to quench [it] in Bethel.

    We need to seek the Lord!

   If our hearts are divided, He will unite them, when we ask:

Psal 86:11 (KJS) Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name.
12 I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.

Ezek 36:26 (KJS) A new heart also will I give you , and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

Psal 51:10 (KJS) Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

Strongs:
Clean - 02889 tahowr {taw-hore'} or tahor {taw-hore'}
1) pure, clean;
1a) clean (ceremonially - of animals);
1b) pure (physically);
1c) pure, clean (morally, ethically)

Spirit - 07307 ruwach {roo'-akh} AV - Spirit or spirit 232, wind 92, breath 27,
1) wind, breath, mind, spirit;
1a) breath

   A heart dies when it had no oxygen, is clogged up, dried up or is under fed. When we seek God, He is able to breathe new life into us, clean us out, wash us with the water of the word, and feed us again. (Gen 2:7; Job 33:4; Ps 51:10; Eph5:25-27)
    Only God can revive a dead heart, and renew a dead spirit.

   There is a distinction between divided heart and broken heart.
I think it's when we realize that we were divided, and we are sorry, repentant about it, and ask Him for help...then He is even able to pull our broken heart back together.
Psal 147:3 (KJS) He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
Sin is that which separates us from God, right?
(Isai 59:1 (KJS) Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: 2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid [his] face from you, that he will not hear.)

    We can check our hearts, by our fruit:
Luke 6:45 (KJS) A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

   He delights in our broken-ness:
Psal 34:18 (KJS) The LORD [is] nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
Psal 51:17 (KJS) The sacrifices of God [are] a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
1Joh 1:9 (KJS) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
   

And, here, God makes a difference between those who give Him their whole heart, and those that do not:

Psal 73:25 Whom have I in heaven [but thee]? and [there is] none upon earth [that] I desire beside thee. 26 My flesh and my heart faileth: [but] God [is] the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. 27 For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee. 28 But [it is] good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.

    And may this be our prayer: Psal 19:14 (KJS) Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. Isai 26:2 (KJS) Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in. 3 Thou wilt keep [him] in perfect peace, [whose] mind [is] stayed [on thee]: because he trusteth in thee. 4 Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH [is] everlasting strength:

In Jesus' Love,
~Christi
J.C.A.A.S.F.R.
christi@rossberry.com
Ps 63:7 "Because You are my help, I sing in the shadow of Your Wings."

7/12/2001

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