The wisdom of Paul, a reflection of Jesus
I believe Paul understood this feeling well because he also had to come to terms with what he endured in his life. I am sure Paul had his moments when he wondered why he devoted so much of his life serving Christ to have so many people either reject or give lip service to the message he was trying to bring. But the innermost desire of Paul’s heart was to hear the Lord say to him, “well done, thou good and faithful servant.” It would be impossible for Jesus to say those words to Paul if his heart had become hardened.
A hardened heart is not concerned with sharing the gospel of Christ with others. And sadly, a hardened heart is not troubled with the suffering and pain of others, either. We live in a broken and fallen world where people are hurting. Jesus says, Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid (Matthew 5:13-14). We are to be different than those around us. We are not to allow ourselves to become so toughened that we become indifferent to the pain and suffering of others.
It’s a choice we make
In both the Old and New Testaments it is clear that we have a choice in allowing our hearts to become hardened. If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother (Dueteronomy 15:7). Sure, this is Old Testament law, and as Christians, we are under grace. This concept is also found throughout Jesus’ teachings in the New Testament. But it is a choice whether we act out of love to meet the needs of others or if we turn a blind eye.
Another Old Testament reference is found in Psalms 95:8: Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness. This is an interesting verse and each time I study it, I learn a lot about myself. Sure, it is a reference about the exodus from Egypt, Moses, the golden calf, and the ten spies. But it is much more than that, too. Each of us have a spiritual wilderness we travel through. And each of us have days when temptation surrounds us. We are constantly provoked to sin, to anger, and wrath. Each of these things make it easy to allow our hearts to harden and to pull away from the Lord.
There’s a remedy that can prevent and cure a hardened heart
In dealing with my own pain, I came to a point where I had to give it to the Lord. In a morning Bible study, the Lord reminded me of an important truth. And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding (Job 28:28). While reading that verse, another verse came to mind. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin (James 4:17). Burying pain and hiding it, not allowing the Lord to heal me was nothing more than me doubting He could handle my pain. As Christians, we find it so easy to tell others not to doubt the Lord. But it is so easy for us to live out “He can solve all your problems but mine.” Our doubt becomes sin.
The fear Job speaks of is not the fear we think of in our modern usage of the word. When the KJV was translated, fear had another meaning. Fear, “in the Old Testament, [meant a] designation of true piety… It is a fear conjoined with love and hope and is therefore not a slavish dread, but rather filial reverence (Easton). It is our coming to the point when our love for the Lord overcomes the hidden sin, shame, and pain where we allow ourselves to heal.
The remedy is as close as a prayer
There’s an interesting verse about the Lord and Hilkiah, the king of Judah. The verse reads: Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me; I have even heard thee also, saith the LORD (2 Chronicles 34:27). The king of Judah, facing overwhelming difficulties, humbled himself before the Lord and reached out. It would have been easy to become hardened. Instead, he prayed and poured his heart out to God.
When we choose to turn to the Lord rather than to give in to bitterness, I believe He blesses us. And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD (Isaiah 11:2) Ever notice when we turn to the Lord first, there is calm and peace that you can’t explain except that it comes from the Lord? In my own life it always amazes me how after taking time to pray about problems, the Lord is ready to help me with those problems. And the solutions He offers are permanent solutions that work out better than the plans I made.
The blessings of trusting in the Lord
There really are blessings in trusting the Lord with our pain. And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure (Isaiah 33:6). When our love of the Lord becomes a treasure to us – something we hold very dear – we hold nothing back from him. I believe this is what gave Paul the strength to every moment of his life to spreading the gospel. It is this love of the Lord that allowed each of the other apostles the ability to look at evil in the face and continue to do the Lord’s work. It is the same love for the Lord we can have that will sustain us when we face hardships.
Don’t let bitterness harden your heart. And certainly, don’t let a hardened heart rob you of the joy and happiness the Lord desires for you to have. I know you’re probably thinking “but you don’t know about my past… about what I’ve been through…” and you are right. But the Lord does. He doesn’t want you to continue to be chained to that pain you carry around. Just as He did with me, He wants you to trust Him with those hurts and pains you keep hidden so He can make you whole.
References
Easton, M. G. (n.d.). Fear of the Lord – Easton’s Bible dictionary online. biblestudytools.com. Retrieved October 6, 2021, from https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionaries/eastons-bible-dictionary/the-fear-of-the-lord.html. Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 3rd Ed.
