"The heart of the matter"
For from within, out of a person's heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you." (Mark 7:21-23 NLT)
This passage is in the context of a conversation Jesus is having with the religious leaders about ritual washings. They want to know why he & his disciples don't wash their hands before they eat. Jesus shows them & us that it's not what goes into our body that defiles but what comes out. What comes out of our mouths & lives in behavior is really rooted in our hearts.
Our hearts are what defiles us not simply our behavior. Our behavior comes from our hearts. So, we don't need behavior modification, we need new hearts. Until Jesus has our hearts, our behavior will never change.
We don't need an increase in religious activity to make us right with Jesus. We need a decrease in us & an increase in him.
So if we are struggling with sin & godless behavior, we need a heart transplant. We don't need to do better next time, we need to be made new.
So don't go to church more, go to Jesus more. Don't read your Bible more, seek to know Jesus in his Word. It's not about us & what we must do, it's about him & what he has done.
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