Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord: How do we Prepare our Heart

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

Saturday a.m.

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

We need to prepare the way of the Lord, we must primarily prepare our heart. The next question becomes, "How do we prepare our heart?"

Although there is no magic formula for anything pertaining to Christianity, let us consider a solution to almost any problem

(1) we must see a need. 
(2) we must see that we cannot fulfill that need in our own strength or by our own understanding.
(3) we must therefore cry out to God, "Lord, help me. I cannot fulfill my need." 
(4) Then we thank the Lord for His help. For if we ask anything that is according to His will, we know that He will answer. 

Let us apply those simple 4 steps to the question of how do we prepare our hearts. 

(1) We must see a need

My maternal grandmother was a wise woman who always prayed fervently for all of her family. She went to be with the Lord about the time that the Lord apprehended me. After she passed to eternity, I found many notes she had written in one of her bibles. One note was, "Lord, let me create hunger in their hearts; for until they hunger they cannot be fed." How true! Unless we are hungry in the natural realm we will not eat natural food. Unless we are hungry spiritually, we will not partake of and digest spiritual food. This purpose for us all is not simply to present or listen to good teaching or preaching. Our purpose is that the word might become flesh ... Christ in you, the hope of glory! Unless we see a need for something spiritually, all of the words in the world will not phase us. 

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8

To be pure in heart means the decisions we make, desires we have, the thoughts and intentions of the will, are untarnished by sin, and that the will is determined to be pleasing to God. It describes both an inner purity and a singleness of mind. 

The promise for those who are pure in heart is that they will see God. What an incredible statement! The Bible says that no one has ever seen God. (Exodus. 33; 1 Timothy 6) People have seen appearances of the Lord in various forms, Moses on Mount Sinai, Isaiah in Isaiah 6. 

The reward of this beatitude is truly marvelous because when the believer becomes pure in heart, not only will he see God in eternity, but he will see God right now, not with his natural eye, but through our spiritual vision, through the faith which is in Jesus Christ. He will see God in all the events and circumstances of life. As Job said,

Job 19:25-27
25 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:
26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:
27 Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.

The description of the human "heart" outside the household of faith is at its worst. It is constantly acting selfishly and causing pain.

Genesis 6:5-7

5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.

Jeremiah 17:9

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

Jesus said,

Mark 7:20-23

20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.

21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,

22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:

23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

One of the most important questions we can ask is how can we be pure in our hearts and clean of filth and sins? How can we be pure in our imaginations, our thoughts, our words, our decision making, and in our desires? How can we think what God thinks, will what God wills, desire what God desires, hate what God hates, and love what God loves? In other words, how can our hearts be pure hearts, free from sins like pride and envy, free from evil thoughts and evil deeds?

(2) We must see that we cannot fulfill that need in our own strength or by our own understanding

The path to a pure heart begins with the revelation that we have impure hearts. The entire Bible revolves around a central theme that the Lord looks at the heart of the person and not at their external appearance, their behavior, or their achievements. The Lord does not applaud education, intellect, business success, or social position, as the world does.

Deuteronomy 7:6-7

6 For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.

7 The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people:

Isaiah 6:5-7

5 Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.

6 Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar:

7 And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.

Job 42:5-6

5 I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.

6 Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.

Matthew 19:23-26

23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.

24 And again I say unto you, 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.

25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?

26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

John 15:5 

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Man, even Christian man, frequently struggles and struggles in many situations. Then he finally "gives up" and says, Lord, I cannot do it! Help me! Likewise, we must see the omnipotence of God. Nothing is impossible with God.

Philippians 4:19

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

(3) We must cry out to God, "Lord, help me. I cannot fulfill my need."

Create in me a clean heart, O God; And renew a right spirit within me. Psalm 51:10

Nothing short of a change of heart will bring about a pure heart; being born again begins the process.

Ezekiel 36:25-27

25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.

26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

This all happens (by faith) the moment when we are saved, because when we are born again we become a brand new person who is walking arm and arm with Jesus Christ on a road to spiritual purity, spiritual growth, spiritual maturity, and spiritual strength. Transformation from a heart of flesh to a pure heart will come by following Christ, but it is not an easy or a swift change. Those who enter this kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy (the kingdom of God) must have this new heart.

Now there is a great tendency for a believer to say, Well I have not killed anyone, I have not robbed a bank, I have not ... So my heart is not desperately wicked.
Further, I am saved and baptized in the Holy Spirit.

 I'm OK; you're OK. That is the deceit of the heart. That is why many believers are somewhat lukewarm and apathetic.
That is why many believers do not see a need for further preparation of the heart.

We know that the Lord knows the hearts of all men.

1 Kings 8:38-40
38 What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house: 

39 Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;)
40 That they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers.

We do not and cannot know our own heart.

David, whom God called a man after His own heart, said,

Psalm 139:23-24

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:

24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:13

That verse expresses an intense level of seeking. We know from Revelation 3 that if we are lukewarm, the Lord will spew us out of His mouth.

Psalm 18:25-27

25 With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright;

26 With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself froward.

27 For thou wilt save the afflicted people; but wilt bring down high looks.

For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments. Ezra 7:10

How did Ezra prepare his heart? Scripture does not tell us.

What is our responsibility in this process? We can't reform ourselves. We can't self clean ourselves. Many people have tried to clean themselves. Some have tried to do this through asceticism or leading a life of complete self denial, or by going away from the world and living in solitude. They have tried to cleanse themselves through celibacy, fasting, and prayers. But such approaches are not biblical and will not result in purity of heart. Some folks try to help the Lord out by our works. That is a major reason why Paul wrote the Epistle to the Galatians.

Galatians 1:6-7

6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:

7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.

Galatians 3:1-5

1 O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?

2 This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

3 Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

4 Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain.

5 He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

The truth is we can't do any of these things on our own.

The Lord must clean us.

God alone is able to make rotten people pure in their imaginations, thoughts, words, deeds, and desires. So if God is the only one who can cleanse us, then how does He do it? How does God clean and purify us? It is a mystery. Bible tells us that God has a plan to deal with the problem of sin infected hearts. God has a plan to save us and make us holy in thought, word and deed. His plan is found in many places such as in Romans 8:29-30, where God tells us ... He wants "to conform us to the image of His Son". His purpose is nothing less than that we become pure in heart just like Jesus Christ is. When we become born again and completely surrender ourselves to Jesus Christ and put our entire faith and trust in Him, God will supernaturally regenerate us and give us a brand new nature. We become a brand new creation.

Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, Who loved me, and gave Himself for me.

It begins with conversion when God gives us a "new heart," and it continues through spiritual growth as we follow Christ. That process called sanctification. Walking in the light, meaning learning to live by the word of God, will change the way we think so that our hearts will grow more and more pure.

But as the light of the word reveals impurities, we must deal with them and change. Something else extremely important occurs ... the Holy Spirit moves in and takes up residence within us. We have the earnest of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the one Who guides us and teaches us and shows us exactly what to do and how to do it, in order for us to become pure in heart. All the believer needs to do is constantly and continuously keep our focus on Jesus Christ.

(4) Then we thank the Lord for delivering us and making us whole

First, the result of NOT thanking the Lord in all things.

Romans 1:21-22

21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

2 Chronicles 5:13-14

13 It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD;

14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.

Psalm 92:1-3

1 (A Psalm or Song for the sabbath day.) It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High:
2 To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,
3 Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound.

Psalm 100:4

4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

16 Rejoice evermore.

17 Pray without ceasing.
18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Hebrews 13:15

15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.

Does this process of sanctification ever end?
Praise God! The answer is YES!
Tonight we hope to share with you in great detail how the Lord makes us completely whole.