"...for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).
"The Inner Heart" can be simply described as the "solidifying of the mind," the foundation of strength that controls the whole heart. While the "Inner Heart" can be inherited from the parents, there will be differences depending on how much people have accepted certain things and engraved them in their mind during their lifetime.
As you throw out from your heart anything that violates the truth but engrave truthful things in your heart, they will build up and solidify, resulting in a perfect inner heart formed by the truth.
We should have uprightness and goodness without the changing of mind
There are two standards to discern the good inner heart in the sight of God. First, God sees if one's inner heart is of uprightness or not. God also sees whether the inner heart is of goodness or not.
God loves the upright heart that has no changing of mind. One can be said upright if he accomplishes what he once decided without changing his mind at all. However, if he does it for his own benefit, this kind of uprightness can't be regarded as good.
Jacob had to suffer 20 years of trials although he was upright because he sought his own benefit in his own thoughts, wisdom, and self-righteousness. Even some worldly people accomplish what they once decided without even sparing their own lives. Even among the wicked, we can find people with uprightness that is worthy to be trusted. Of course, such people are likely to accomplish the good inner heart if they are able to be thoroughly broken in truth and change.
Therefore, the good inner heart consists of not only uprightness but also goodness. Being upright without goodness is of no use in the sight of God. We have to follow the will of God to accomplish a good inner heart.
Here, goodness refers to the innermost goodness inherited from birth. Just as one's innermost uprightness is largely inherited, the innermost goodness is also largely inherited.
However, a certain person is tainted with evil and his goodness is veiled though he has inherited innermost goodness in his heart because he has heard, seen, and learned what is wrong from his circumstances. But if such a person meets the Lord and changes in the truth, his hidden innermost goodness could be uncovered. Then he could be a person who loves God more ardently than anyone else and can be loved by God.
Apostle Paul is a good example. His thought and his self-righteousness and self-framework were broken into pieces when he met the Lord, and he was used greatly before God as his inherited innermost goodness was revealed.
We should obey the will of God
The inner heart can be likened to the material of a vessel or the quality of soil. The strength of a vessel and the brightness of a vessel are different depending upon the material from which the vessel is made. The quality of products is also different depending on the quality of soil. Even if you diligently polish the silver vessel, that vessel cannot emit the same shine coming from the golden vessel. The same applies to the inner heart.
However, this does not necessarily mean that once one's inner heart is inherited everything is already set. Even if one was born with gold for the vessel, if he leaves it as it is and does not polish the vessel, it won't have any of the value of the golden vessel. But even if one was born as an earthen vessel, he will be used as a precious one if he diligently polishes it and makes his vessel clean.
As for Jacob, although he had cunningness in his nature, God chose him because He saw his inner heart inherited from Abraham and Isaac. And God disciplined Jacob and made him go through the process to be a useful instrument for God's purpose.
God does not use vessels just because they have the good qualities. He chooses clean vessels (2 Timothy 2:21) and leads them to New Jerusalem the most glorious heavenly dwelling place.
By seeing one's reaction to the same situation, we can see their inner heart. People with goodness in heart pray to God all the time and change all things with goodness. Even though they cannot understand something from human perspective, they try to understand with the goodness of God and forgive, believing in God and committing everything to God.
On the contrary, someone finds the way to repay others' evil with evil instead of understanding with goodness and changing it.
If someone does not follow the will of God, although others teach him God's will, it means that he does not intend to obey God. If we want to obey the will of God from our inner hearts, we will be able to obey in any kind of situations.
Let's check whether our inner hearts obey the will of God when we learn about His will or we do not want to obey although we know the will of God. Check whether you try to understand others and change your thoughts into goodness although it means that you have to suffer due to their evil or you do not just repay evil with evil.
This inner heart is inherited but it can be changed by the power of God. The most important thing is how much you are willing to try to change yourself into truth and to cleanse yourself in accordance with the Word of God.
In order to become vessels that are proper to be used by God, we should change ourselves according to the will of God the Creator, not following our own personal will and hearts. When we become proper vessels of obedience who obey and believe from the depths of the heart, God will use us and bless us like He did to the forefathers of faith.
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