Hardness of the heart (2)

Hardness of the heart does not only refer to stubborn and wilful disobedience. It also means spiritual dullness. Jesus Christ frequently associated hardness of the heart with failure to readily believe God’s word, failure to quickly perceive Him correctly and failure to be fully persuaded that God is a wonder-worker. Wilful disobedience is a problem of the unconverted. But lack of spiritual perception or discernment is a problem of the converted.
Jesus’ disciples were true believers. They had believed in Him, accepted His call and became His followers. But how come Jesus frequently rebuked them for lack of faith? The reason is that they were slow of heart to believe. They doubted as circumstances changed. They lacked the ability to perceive the position of Christ in their lives or they put limitations to God’s power.
For instance, Christ expected His followers to perceive Him as the supplier of all their needs after performing many dumbfounding miracles of supply. He had fed five thousand men with only five loaves. He had also fed four thousand men with only seven loaves. All these miracles he had performed in the very presence of His followers. And the last thing He expected of them was to worry about provision or to doubt His ability to meet their needs. He expected them to understand Him as their provider and not to be afraid in times of lack. He expected them to trust in divine providence. Since He had demonstrated that He was Jehovah Jireh, they needed not worry but to simply ask for supply in times of need. However, the disciples were not quick of understanding. They were dull in their spirits.
It was this spiritual dullness that invited the master’s reproof as in the following account. One day Jesus was warning His disciples of the leaven of the Pharisees by which He referred to their false doctrine. But due to their spiritual dullness they reasoned Jesus was saying so because they lacked bread. Perceiving their failure to understand what he meant and failure to perceive Him as the supplier of all they needed, He rebuked them saying, “O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread? Do ye yet not understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? How is it that ye do not understand? (Matthew 16:7-11). The phrase ‘ye of little faith’ means the same as ‘you doubters’ or ‘you hard-hearted’ or ‘you who are slow of heart to believe.’ The question ‘how is it that you do not understand’ shows the disciples lacked insight. They failed dismally to learn the lesson Jesus wanted them to learn.
Are you any better than the twelve disciples? When you face a challenge do you remember how God helped you overcome in the past? When you fall sick do you remember how God healed you long ago? When you get sacked from your employment do you take it lightly and believe God for another job? When you have a need do you expect God to supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus? If you do, then you have a soft heart; you are quick of understanding. You are a person of faith. You have spiritual perception. But if you do not, then you are dull and slow of heart to believe.
You see, God wants us to believe Him to meet our needs today based on our past experience of His goodness and mercy. If God delivered you from trouble yesterday, He expects you to have confidence in His deliverance today. Paul wrote, “I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work” (2 Timothy 4:17, 18). When facing new problems, Paul approached them with faith based on past victory.
This is the spiritual discernment God is looking for. This is the confidence that pleases God. When facing the giant Goliath, David encouraged himself by counting on past victories over bears and lions (1 Samuel 17). David had insight into the Lord’s doings, no wonder why he was a man after Gods’ heart.
The problem with us is that we want to reason too much with our minds. Yet God wants us to perceive His moves or the meaning of things with our spirits. A reasoning person will always come to a place where He sees no way out. But a believing person always sees God as a way-maker even where there seems to be no way.
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