“The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” – Luke 6:45
A credit card marketing campaign has long asked, “What’s in your wallet?” Jesus, however, asks a much more important question: “What’s in your heart?” He also tells you how to figure out the answer to that question. Since most of us have difficulty being honest about our heart condition, Jesus teaches us how to do the hard work of self-examination.
First, examine your words. What comes out of your mouth in startling, unplanned, unexpected, or stressful situations? Is it good or evil? Honoring to God or not? Encouraging or discouraging? Do you speak optimism or pessimism? Patience or anger? Kindness or cruelty? Building others up or tearing them down? Be honest! What comes out of your mouth in unguarded moments? The answer to that question reveals the remaining work to be done in your heart. If ugly things come out of your mouth, then there are still ugly parts of your heart. Take these parts to Jesus in prayer, repentance, and meditation on Scripture. Don’t be afraid to do that work – embrace it! Don’t be ashamed – we all have work to do. Jesus didn’t go to the cross just to change your eternal destination – He went to change every part of your heart. Invite Him and permit Him do His work!
Second, examine your actions. Are they the loving, gentle, kind, others-oriented actions of blessing that Jesus would do? Or are they, at heart, actions designed to benefit yourself, make yourself look or feel good, or manipulate others? Once again, be honest! Why are you doing the good things that you do? Are you doing Christ-like things or the same things any non-believer does? Your actions, and their underlying motives, also reflect your heart condition. Is it good or bad? Christ-transformed or untransformed? Are you bringing out good treasure that blesses the world because your heart is filled with the blessed, holy treasure of Jesus Christ Himself? If not, turn your heart over to Jesus and let Him replace the bad treasure with more of Himself. #FollowJesus