Dwelling in God’s Heart – The Living Room

Dwelling in God’s Heart – The Living Room.

“Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.”  (James 4:8).

“I am inside My Father, and you are inside Me, and I am inside you.” (John 14:20).

Even though the phrase “accept Jesus into our heart” is not in Scripture, we get the picture. Accepting Jesus into our hearts means we receive Him into the very core of our being, into the centerpiece of who we are, affecting everything about us. When we receive Jesus into our heart-home, our identity becomes His, the essence of our personhood is intimately wrapped into the essence of Christ’s Personhood. When we make our home in His home, He miraculously become a resident inside each of us as well. And when we experience that Double Union with Jesus Christ, we discover that our spiritual location is inside of the very heart of God. In other words, if the Son is inside the Father, and we are inside the Son, then logically we are inside the Father! By dwelling in the Son’s heart, we dwell in the Father’s heart as well. By living inside the “Person after God’s own heart,” we find ourselves inside God’s heart! As Paul claims in Colossians 3:3, believers are “hidden within Christ, inside of God.”

Way back in 1954 there was a creative little evangelistic tract produced by Inter-Varsity Press, written by a pastor named Robert Boyd Munger. He entitled his brief tract, “My Heart – God’s Home.” I recommend it if you find it. Following up on Revelation 3:20, Pastor Munger imagined a believer opening his door and escorting Jesus through the home of his heart, now that Jesus has taken up residence in him. Now that Jesus dwells in him, and He has moved into his heart, what will Jesus see there? So the believer in the tract proceeds to give a tour of his heart-home with Jesus as he welcomes Christ into his heart. Together they tour the person’s study, dining room, living room, workroom, recreation room, bedroom and hall closet. I thought this was an engaging idea, but now I would like to give the other side of the story. Jesus lives within us, to be sure. But we also live within Jesus, hence inside the very heart of God. So if the Father was to give us a guided tour of His heart, what would we find? What will be waiting for us to discover in the many rooms of God’s heart? We could easily entitle this, “God’s Heart -My Home.”

Like anyone’s home, God’s heart will reflect His attitudes, motivations, personality, character traits, His heavenly “tastes” in interior décor. God’s deeply held convictions will be revealed in His heart-home, as they are in our own hearts. Using Scripture as our guide, we will explore God’s heart as we make ourselves at home and abide in Him. We will explore everything from the front porch to the front door, the living room to the dining room, from the kitchen to the study to the chapel. And many more rooms as well, like the bedroom, the bathroom, and the nursery. There may even be a sneak peek at the family room, the children’s playroom, and the school room.

 

THE LIVING ROOM. The Front Door of God’s heart opens to the comfortable, expansive living room. The room is so enormous that it seems it could fit everybody in the world, but on the other the groupings of furniture make it intimate as well. As crowded as the room might seem at times, our generous God continues to say, “There’s always room for more!” The living room is perfectly arranged for relaxation and conversation. In this room one can take a deep calming breath and have a coffee break from the world and its frantic pace. The first message said by Jesus to the visitors at the Door is “Come in,” as He welcomes all who are burdened and harassed, heavy laden or overwhelmed with worries.  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  (Matthew 11:28-30).

Jesus stands there as the entranceway to God’s heart and opens His arms wide. “Come to Me,” He says. Come to Me if you are finding life burdensome. Maybe your heavy burdens are all these extra regulations from the Pharisees that are laying heavy on you, and all their laws that seem meaningless and too demanding. Maybe your heavy burdens are due to all the responsibilities you carry that are difficult to manage. Maybe the heavy burdens you carry are simply the guilt you have from your sinfulness. Maybe you feel heavy burdened because life just isn’t turning out be the way you wanted and you don’t know what to do about that. Whatever your burdens, come to Me for a real rest and refreshment. While in God’s house you can share My yoke with Me, you can watch Me work, watch how I do things. You can learn My way while at My side. And we can be partners in carrying your load of burdens. Share your burdens with Me, and they will seem lighter to bear. For I am not a hard-driving taskmaster full of pride and ambition. I am easy to please, and I am meek, with My strength under God’s control. I am lowly and have learned to depend on God. With Me, your burdens will be more meaningful, satisfying and lighter on your spirit. Come to Me, and you will learn “the unforced rhythms of grace.” (Peterson). You know that the other meaning of yoke is a rabbi’s teaching, submitting to a teacher’s instruction of Torah. Well, my yoke, my teaching, will not give you more burdens to bear. My instruction inside God’s heart will be delightful, wholesome, comfortable to wear. If you come to me and submit to my Torah teaching, it will not be burdensome or heavy on your spirit, for I will help you live in the way I’m speaking about. It will be light and easier to bear.

In addition to the relaxing atmosphere, the living room seems to invite everyone to engage in meaningful, stimulating conversation. The very air of the room is full of common courtesy, the social graces, mutual respect, and a kind consideration of others. But healthy conversation doesn’t shy away from disagreements or honest conflicts. The living room is the site of many fascinating debates. But the tradition here is to use conflict as a way to arrive at truth and friendship. One noted rabbi, Jonathon Sacks, once said that the pursuit of knowledge might involve an extended argument between differing views, but it is all within the context of a deepening fellowship. God’s ethics of living room conversation are summed up in “speaking the truth in love.” (Ephes. 4:15). Learning to reason together in the pursuit of truth and friendship is godly, and of course God will have no rancor, argumentative or mean-spirited talk among one another. Wisdom seems to ask of all of us in the living room to say or at least think this thought before saying anything… “I could be wrong, but here’s what I am thinking at this point.” There is a poster on the living room wall of an acronym of REASON that serves as a reminder:

“Come, let us:    

Respect the thinking of each other;

Equally share the stage so all can participate;

Actively listen with an open mind without interrupting;

Support your own views and opinions;

Offer your comments with humility;

Never let your friends do your thinking for you.

Together.”  (Isaiah 1:8).

There is an old rabbinic saying that goes like this, “Conversation is a form of prayer.” There was the conviction that civilized, respectful words said in conversation with another made for holy words, because it prepares one to engage in conversation with God. The living room in God’s heart is perfect for just those types of conversations.