A Heart Divided

I’ve seen a lot of people who have received the Spirit of God into their lives and are very devoted. And to some extent many of them are at least partly devoted to the Lord. But almost all are at least partly, if not largely devoted to the religious tradition that they have learned of men, and not of God. And this is nothing new. Hosea spoke of the same condition existing in God’s people in his day: “Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: he shall break down their altars, he shall spoil their images" (Hos. 10:2). God has some really fine people who struggle to follow the leading of his Spirit, because they have been taught contrary to what his Spirit is saying and leading in. I see it all the time, up close and personal. People with good hearts, trying to follow the Lord in reality, but greatly hindered by being in effect inoculated against what God’s Spirit is saying to his people. That inoculation is accomplished by many of the traditions and doctrines of Christianity, which are directly contrary to the truth of God; and have conditioned the body of Christ to see his truth as something foreign, if they even have an opportunity to hear it at all. As I said, I see it all the time, up close and personal. Should this be a thing to marvel at? Well, let’s take a look at history: "But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?” (Mat. 15:3) Now who said that? Jesus of course. And who did he say it to? The leaders of God’s people, whom he instructed the people to obey in all things pertaining to God’s law (Mat. 23:2,3).But he also instructed the people to beware of the hypocrisy of their doctrines and traditions that were contrary to God’s law (Mat. 15; Mat. 16:6,11,12). So was this a new thing that Jesus found when he was here? “For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed" (Isa. 9:16). That statement was from around seven hundred years before Jesus came, so the answer is no; and we could go on with a long list of confirmation, but I think this is sufficient to the point.

So the question [which is already answered] is, have things changed now, seeing we’ve had so much history to teach us this lesson? Not one bit. Many of the traditions and doctrines of Christianity today are erroneous and full of hypocrisy after hypocrisy, and contradiction after contradiction. The true body of Christ is scattered throughout Christianity, but largely concentrated within the Pentecostal affiliations and sects. This has resulted in many believers with good hearts having the condition of a ‘divided heart’ imposed upon them. And being loyal, many are quite devoted to the traditions that they have received of men, assuming that these doctrines and traditions are of God. So they will fiercely defend what they believe to be of God, not knowing that the very thing they are defending is a hindrance to their souls. I am not the judge of anyone’s heart, for God alone knows where someone is truly at in their heart toward him. But I am a judge of this: It is spiritually harmful to be led and taught contrary to the Spirit of God (I Jn. 2:27). I also know that a good heart can go bad if it is subjected long enough to poisonous doctrine that is not of God, and I have proof of that: "Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?" (Jer. 2:21) Now look at the new testament match for that scripture: "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned" (Jn. 15:5,6). So how do we abide in Jesus? "Now the Lord is that Spirit" (II Cor. 3:17). The only way we can abide in Jesus, is if we are being taught and led by the holy Ghost (Jn. 16:13; Rom. 8:14). Friend, this is a very serious matter that can bear eternal weight. Seek and follow hard after God’s Spirit alone, and forsake the religious systems of men. Amen.