Measuring our hearts against God's heart

There is nothing that challenges me more than to understand the amazing heart of the eternal God and then measure my heart against His. Think about this:

While I find it so hard to forgive at times, He forgives easily and quickly because He does not want to live out of fellowship with us.

While I can tolerate injustice small and large, His heart is broken by the injustices that are so much a part of our fallen world.

While I can become deeply engrossed in my own ministry, His heart is for all ministries - His is a big and generous and non-parochial heart.

While I quibble over fine points of doctrine, He is driven that all men and women and children hear the Gospel and find a relationship with  Jesus.

While I am loyal to my denominational brand He cares for His whole Bride.

While I pray for my own needs, His heart is for the needs of a world gone wrong through sin with all the brokenness that comes with that fact.

While I can marginalize some people who are not like me, He sees every human being as made in His Image and equally worthy of His love. His heart never marginalizes anyone.

While I like to hang out with people who are respectable His heart is for the unrespectable as well - just look who He hung out with in the incarnation.

While there are people I would pass by, there is no-one He would pass by.

While I am impatient, critical and condemning of those who don't meet my standards, He is patient and gracious and forbearing.

Take a moment this week and consider where your heart is against His heart. His greatest goal for us is that His heart would become our heart. 

Self interest or Kingdom interest

In Philippians 2:19, Paul makes a very interesting comment where he compares Timothy’s ministry motivation with the ministry motivation of others.

“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel” (Philippians 2:19-22).

Paul uses two descriptors for Timothy. First, that he takes a genuine interest in the welfare of the Philippians – that is he really cared about them and their welfare. And then Paul contrasts that with the majority of people when he adds, “For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.” That is a sobering statement! Are we like Timothy who takes a genuine interest in the welfare of others or like the majority who look primarily after their own interests?

The proof, says Paul has been Timothy’s partnership with Paul in the work of the gospel. Timothy has a track record of faithful ministry to others and a genuine interest in their spiritual welfare, and he was willing to serve under Paul as a young minister – a mark of followership and humility – rather than to carve out a name and a place for himself.

The ministry world is full of people who are carving out names for themselves and under the guise of “ministry” are actually looking after their own interests, pursing their own dreams and doing their own thing rather than working under or with others for the spread of the gospel. And when it comes down to basic motivations it is really about them not others! Paul nails their motivation when he says they are not looking after the interests of Jesus Christ.

Paul’s comments cause me to ask myself today. What is my motivation? Is it “genuine” like Timothy’s or is it more about me than Him. Whose interests am I really looking after? The answer is often not how it looks on the outside but the motivation from the inside.