Heart Check

Last night I was working on journal entries for my New Testament class. I was a bit behind so I was determined to catch up and maybe get a head. I was reading 1Peter chapter 1, typing notes as I read a long. I came to verses 18-19, “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty was of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” I made a note- “bought not with perishable, but with blood” and started to move on. Then I stopped. Was I even thinking about what I was reading? “The precious blood,” I read it again. What do I call precious? I don’t use that word every day. If I describe something as precious, it means something significant to me. It evokes heartfelt emotions. My brother is precious to me. That baby is precious. “The precious blood of Christ.” I thought of Peter writing these words, later in his life. He could look back on his experience and remember his Lord and indeed, his heart must have been moved and full when he wrote these words. How could I have just brushed over them? How could my heart not be moved? Is not Jesus’ blood precious to me as well? Oh how I wished I could reach back in time and take Peter’s emotion and plant it in my heart. How could I callously read such powerful, significant words? Being in such a setting as Southern and being a religion major, there is a danger that the Bible can become academic. What a fearful thing that is. I became almost angry with myself. I no longer cared about my journal entries. I closed the file, left the room and grabbed my Desire of Ages. I turned to the chapter on Calvary, curled up on the couch and prayerfully read for a good 40 minutes or so. Ellen is right; it would do us a great service to ponder the life and death of Christ for at least an hour each day. What a powerful scene Calvary must have been. What agony Jesus went through. For me. My Savior.

That time certainly did me good. I needed a heart check. My heart had to be softened. My focus had been entirely off. It’s good to stop, think, and consider….what does this mean to me? Does the Gospel still move your heart? If for second you are not sure, examine your hearts. Who is Jesus to you? He’s my Savior. Is He yours?