March, 2000

An Established Heart By Pastor Pete Norris

Proverbs 23:7 -- "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he..."

We are whatever we think in our heart, and not our minds. We must establish in our hearts that the covenant we have with God is everlasting and nothing can separate us from that covenant.

Luke 15:12 -- "And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living."

In this familiar parable recorded in the gospel of Luke, half of the family inheritance was given to the younger son and half to the older one. The younger son stayed at home and kept on working and enduring, but he did not realize what he had. He did not know what his part of the inheritance was. The father gave to the older and younger the very same. Everything in the Word of God is ours. However, if we never receive revelation of what we have, we will walk in darkness, bondage, sickness, poverty, etc. The promises of God must be established in our hearts! Otherwise, we will live defeated lives.

When God speaks into our heart and gives us a work to accomplish, no one can stop us from doing what we have been called to do. No one can stop us from pressing when God has actually spoken it to us. When the roadblocks come, they are an opportunity for us to press and to go forward. We cannot quit when we know it is God.

Many Christians want to play but no one wants to pray! Everyone wants to walk in victory but nobody wants to make the necessary sacrifices to accomplish it. People want everything to be easy, but we must go through the pressing times and endure.

Galatians 4:7 -- "Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ."

We are not servants any more but sons. We must get a revelation of who Jesus is and stop trying to find out what church is about. When we have really been "fixed," we will be around the feet of Jesus. You cannot stop someone whose heart is established in the covenant. They are unstoppable! You cannot hold him down because he has a covenant with God Almighty Himself.

The younger son as recorded in the prodigal Son parable did not know what he had received and he began to grumble. When church members do not know what they are supposed to do, they begin to grumble and complain. God is looking somebody who will press and stand. Endurance and obedience takes us from one point to another. A winner is somebody not willing to give up. If we have a calling inside, we will not quit. We will go through any struggle and turmoil, trusting God to take us to the other side. We will have a fixed heart, established in us through the living Word of God.

John 8:31-32 -- "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

The Word will often take us to places in our lives that we had no idea we would go. No matter where we find ourselves, we must continue pressing according to God’s Word. Jesus said that if we continue in His Word, then we would be His disciples; and that if we continue in the Word, we will know the truth. Often times, we do not receive God’s provisions because we are lazy….so lazy we fail to establish our lives in God’s covenant Word.

Psalm 112:1-9 -- "Praise ye the Lord. Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon earth; the generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in his house; and his righteousness endureth forever. Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness; he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous. A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth; he will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely he shall not be moved forever; the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. His heart is established, he shall not be afraid, until he sees his desire upon his enemies. He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor; his righteousness endureth forever; his horn shall be exalted with honour."

Read the above text carefully. It is God’s covenant promise to those that will establish their heart in Him. God wants us to prosper in every aspect of our lives. The Word “Blessed” means "empowered to prosper." Some of us are established according to our circumstances, not according to the covenant. “Horn” in verse 9 means "authority." Verse 8 talks about the heart being established, not the mind or body. An established heart cannot be moved.  God can change and deliver people instantaneously. They can go before God and have their hearts established.

The book of Acts records how the people tarried in the upper room for 10 days, waiting for the promised Holy Spirit. Many of us would have missed what happened there because we would not have waited that long. Peter was a liar and cursed, but after the upper room, he was changed. He came out different because he was filled with the Holy Spirit and he became established.

Colossians 2:10 -- "And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power;"

We are complete in Jesus. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are in us.

Joshua 1:8 -- "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

The Word will make us a success and we will deal wisely with all the affairs of our life if we will keep it before us and let it be established in our lives.

Proverbs 3:13-16 -- "Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding. For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies; and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her. Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour."

In Verse 15, "she" is speaking about wisdom. The length of our days is in our wisdom of God's Word. God does not want us lacking, struggling and living in bondage. Wisdom possesses riches and honor.

Psalm 91:16 -- "With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation."

The Word of God can increase our life span. Men and women of God are dying prematurely because they will not hearken to the voice of the Lord. They are trying to do things their way. We will not know God's ways if we do not know the Word or have God’s Word established in our hearts.

Hosea 4:6 -- "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge..."

I Corinthians 1:30 -- "But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption;"

We have wisdom in Christ Jesus; all we have to do is search it out. We are lazy. God’s word declares that a man who does not look after his family is worse than an infidel. God will not supernaturally do something for us that we will not do for ourselves. If we will work, sow our seed, and operate in God's spiritual laws, everything will fall into place.

Many are not living what the Word says or preaching it because they do not want the opposition. No matter how spiritual we are, we have to deal with the devil. Satan is defeated, but we have to prove it. We are overcomers and more than conquerors.

A man cannot pray or stand against the adversary if he does not know the Word. There is opposition that must come and we will have to endure if we are going to stand for Jesus.

It seems we can easily discern the problems in the lives of others, even though our own lives are in shambles. Often the reason God can not doing anything in our lives is because we are not submitting to Him. We should submit fully to Jesus.

James 1:5-8 -- "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 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. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways."

If we want wisdom, we should ask God. We will not get wisdom and faith by having people lay their hands on us. Faith comes by hearing the Word. We will receive wisdom for the affairs of life when we receive and establish God’s Word in our hearts.

Colossians 1:9-10 -- "For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;"

Speaking in Tongues alone will not deliver us. They will not rebuke the devil. The only way to get rid of the devil is to speak the Word to him. What worked for Jesus will work for us.

Hebrews 13:8 -- "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever."

II Corinthians 5:17 -- "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."

Some of us are still dealing with things in our old lives that have not passed away from us. We need to get in our prayer closet with Jesus, fall on our knees and let Him speak to us. He is the author and finisher of our faith and He will change us, if we will allow it. Many people want to be encouraged instead of delivered.

Our hearts must be established and fixed. People can take our dreams and goals if we are not established. We do not have enough discerning of spirits to know who we can trust and who we cannot.

Colossians 2:2-3 -- "That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge."

Where are the treasures of wisdom and knowledge? They are in us. We need to search ourselves for them. When we were saved, every bit of the Word was put inside of us. We are as full of God and just as holy as we will ever be. Some believe that if people dress appropriately, that is holiness. God begins on the inside. If the inside is cleaned up, the outside will be cleaned up. People should not merely look the part, but walk it. We should be holy as God is holy.

Some of us are prostituting God. We are using Him when we need Him to fulfill our desires. We are selling out to Satan. Judas sold Him for 30 pieces of silver; What are we selling Him for? Are our lives established in Him, or do we use God as a “fallback” when things go wrong?

Mark 10:17-22 -- "And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, "Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest; go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross and follow me. And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved; for he had great possessions."

This rich young man had kept the law. Jesus loved him just as he was. He told the young man first that He loved him and then asked him to give away his possessions. The young man did not know the Word. Jesus was trying to give him the best business deal ever. Every time Jesus called one of his apostles, He told them to leave all and come and follow Him. If the young man had given everything to the poor, he would have multiplied. Jesus did not explain this to the young man because if He had, the young man would have done it naturally instead of by faith. Doing things naturally does not please God. We please Him by faith.

Mark 10:23-30 -- "And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible. Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life."

Peter, James and John were professional fishermen. They were astonished at Jesus' words because they were blessed and prospering. Jesus was talking about having their heart in riches. We may think we have given up something, but all we have done is lent to the Lord. God is trying to increase in our lives.

Mark 10:21 -- "Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest; go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow me."

Jesus “beheld and loved him”. The great commandment is to love one another. Some of us will not leave what we have because we are not walking in enough love with God. We cannot believe that God can sustain us. A man cannot walk in the fullness of God until that man dies to himself and begins to love other people. Our lives should not be based on ourselves but on the voice of God. It has to be established in our hearts. We have to be willing to leave everything for God's Word to come forth. We should stop looking for fruit. God gives the fruit. He gets glory from the fruit of our lives. God’s fruit will come from a life that has it’s heart established in the Word of God.