Six chapters into the Bible and only three chapters after Adam and Eve committed the first sin against God, the hearts of humanity have turned in on themselves. They desire to please themselves alone. God’s heart is broken. Listen to the narrative in Genesis 6. It’s a remarkable glimpse into God’s emotional life,
The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” (Gen. 6:5-7)
Verse 6 is a stunning verse. “And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.” When was the last time you grieved? Can you remember how your stomach was turned in knots? Did you have difficulty breathing? How did your body respond to the emotional pain of grief? We physically feel our emotional and spiritual pain. God’s pain isn’t less than ours, it is greater. Do you think it’s possible to hurt God’s feelings? Because that’s what we do every time we sin. Our sins break God’s heart.
Our fickle and deceptive hearts whisper lies to us, “No one will know.” “This won’t hurt anyone.” “Protect yourself.” “It’s really not that bad.” “It only happened once.” Even if those lies are true about others (are they ever?), they are never true about God. Our sins grieve God.
One of the passages in the gospels that makes my heart stop every time I read it is Jesus’ encounter in the synagogue in Mark 3.
Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. 5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. (Mark 3:1-4)
Can you hear the silence in the synagogue as Jesus looked around? What were those who saw this scene pondering in that space? Their compassion for this man’s plight and understanding of God’s heart was eclipsed by their fear of others. Fear is like a dehydrator, shriveling up hearts into dried, lifeless organs. Fear causes us to live in small worlds.
Christ’s fleshy heart is grieved and angry at these bloodless, hardened hearts.
The hit comedy sitcom Seinfeld concluded controversially. After laughing along at the selfish quartet’s antics, the show’s co-creators, Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David, held up a mirror to the audience in the finale. The four best friends watch on as an overweight man has his car jacked. Caught up in their own inconvenience (having their private jet delayed), they video tape the carjacking, mocking the victim, as they casually watch the crime take place mere yards away from them. They are put on trial for breaking the Good Samaritan law and failing to act. The prosecution parades a host of witnesses who speak to the selfish character of the four friends. And, lo and behold (spoiler alert!), they are found guilty. Seinfeld fans were up in arms. How could the show end tragically? Why didn’t Jerry and Elaine get together?
America missed the point. Sin isn’t to be trifled with. Outside the rescuing work of God, things don’t work out for a heart bent in on itself. Even Seinfeld and David, both unbelievers, understood this.
We are far too casual about our sin. Why is that? Because we forget that our sin grieves God’s heart.
In his letter to the church at Ephesus, Paul concludes chapter four with a picture of what it looks like to live a new life in Christ. He speaks of the things we need to “put away,” and then he comments about the things that characterize the heart of Jesus that we need to display in our lives. Among the sins we are to “put away” are lying, anger, stealing, being lazy, foul and destructive speech, bitterness, slander, and malice. Instead, we are to put on righteousness, holiness, purity, and forgiveness. Tucked into this passage is an admonition that is easy to overlook. Paul says, “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”
Because of our tendency to de-personalize the character of the Holy Spirit, many of us miss the anchoring “why” of Paul’s admonition here. He isn’t urging us to become more like Christ primarily because we ought to or because it’s good for us. No, he urges us to pursue Christ-exalting and Christ-exemplifying transformation because to reject the Spirit’s work in us breaks the Spirit’s heart. The Holy Spirit is the person of Jesus living and breathing in us; he is, therefore, the most intimate and treasured part of our being.
I can think of a handful of friends who were able to make major transformations in their lives once they had children. Their battle to conquer addiction now had a face. They had the motivation to lose weight, to stop smoking, to quit drinking, or stop viewing porn because they looked into their children’s eyes and knew the harm their sin would bring into their lives.
When we are tempted to sin, Paul urges us to look into the heart of our Triune God and see his love for us and know that to choose sin is to break his heart. Maybe that’s the breakthrough realization you need in your fight against your flesh. Focus less on your sin and more on the heart of your Savior.
It just might free your heart. And it will please his.
You might also appreciate: