salvation: n. The process of being saved, the state of having been saved (from hell).
Do you know what a midden is? Do you understand and can you explain crop rotation or stock futures? How about symbiotic relationships or drying out? These terms may be unfamiliar, as they relate to specific lines of work, endeavors, or interests--each with its own unique, specific vocabulary. If you don’t know the meaning of the words, you might as well be listening to a foreign language.
Schooling encompasses teaching the language, its definitions
and practical applications. This applies to any field of activity, whether
physical in nature or intellectual. For example, an electrician will talk about
circuits or amperes, insulators and hertz, whereas an archaeologist may speak
of artifacts, grids, or a midden—an area used for trash disposal. Medical
terminology is the jargon the medical world uses to describe the body, its
functions, and the treatments they prescribe. In s[1] Sports,
banking, and real
estate industry, the world of politics,
parenting, education—every aspect of life has its own definitive terminology.
Religion and all things spiritual are no exception.
Salvation and the heart of man, eternal life, righteousness, fruits
of the spirit—Wwhat do they
all mean?
I was raised in a conservative home and an evangelical
church. I have no memory of life before church. A basice
foundational doctrine of my childhood religious education emphasized my need
for salvation. In accordance with the teaching of the church, inviting Jesus
“into my heart” fulfilled that necessity. As a youngster, I often reflected on
how that could be. I mentally peered into my inner self, trying to locate my
heart and ascertain—hHow could
Jesus dwell there?
Much of religious life takes place in the head. Those in
authority present doctrines as the gospel truth, with no room for questioning
or challenges. Religious peers and superiors expect obedience as proof of being
faithful. Often, Christianity is laid out in a few, easy
steps, followed by an offering plate. The list of accepted and required
behavior can be quite long, often with more “don’ts” than “do’s”.
Spiritual life and religious life are not one and the same. The one emanates from the heart, the other from the flesh.
Humans are a complex creation: Body. Soul. Heart. Mind. We share the commonality of these facets as each one coordinates with the others as we live life.
Our physical house contains our flesh-and-blood body. The
soul--our personality and make-up--consists of unique, individual
traits. It is the essence of who we are. My soul is me.
Thought and reasoning take place in
the mind. There we process ideas, make judgments and assessments, and come
to conclusions. In our minds, we make decisions, in concert with our soul.
We have been created with both a physical and a spiritual
heart. A muscular organ, the physical heart pumps lifeblood
through the body, flowing sending it to
the brain and other vital organs. Many tend it through exercise and health in
an effort to extend physical life. A faulty heart can even be replaced with
another by medical specialists—a heart transplant. When the heart stops
beating, life as we know it comes to an end.
Where does one find the spiritual heart? And what, exactly, is it? The spiritual heart will never show up on an X-ray or MRI. No instrument can check its health, pressure, or rate of beating. And yet we all have one. The way we live our lives indicates whether it has been touched by God’s hand. Or not.
God created humankind with the knowledge of His existence. The spiritual heart harbors the seat of an awareness and consciousness of God, our Creator. “In reality, the truth of God is known instinctively, for God has embedded this knowledge inside every human heart.”[1]
When Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden and ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the heart was cursed, in need of redemption. “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”[2]
When we acknowledge God and the provisional sacrifice of His Son, a cleansing takes place in the heart, changing it from its state of depravation and making it new. Only He can do this work. If that does not take place, a condition of rot and decay remain. “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.”[3]
I have discovered the location of my heart . . .… my
spiritual heart. It dwells in the very core of my being, and my physical
stature does not limit its depth. You could never tell by looking, but my
spiritual heart is deep within me. It cannot be touched, harmed, or damaged by
any foe—human or spiritual.
The Spirit of God quickened my spiritual heart and made it His home. There He fills me with His presence and His knowledge; there He teaches me and gives understanding.
In the same way my physical heart pumps life-giving blood
through my body, God’s spirit Spirit pumps
life into and through my spiritual heart. A renewed spiritual heart is the
ultimate heart transplant. It is eternal.
And that, my friend, is salvation—that simple, that complex, that true.
May each of you have the eternal, life-giving experience of a renewed heart.
For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.
Romans 10:10 nlt
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