A very successful business man parked his brand-new Mercedes in front of his office, ready to show it off to his colleagues.

As he got out, a truck passed too close and completely tore off the door on the driver's side.

He immediately grabbed his cell phone, dialed 911, and within minutes a policeman pulled up. Before the officer had a chance to ask any questions, the business man started screaming hysterically. His Mercedes, which he had just picked up the day before, was now completely ruined and would never be the same, no matter what the body shop did to it.

When he finally wound down from his ranting and raving, the officer shook his head in disgust and disbelief. "I can't believe how materialistic you are," he said. "You are so focused on your possessions that you don't notice anything else."

"How can you say such a thing?" asked the man.

The cop replied, "Don't you know that your left arm is missing from the elbow down? It must have been torn off when the truck hit you."

"What!" screamed the man. "My Rolex is gone!"

Sounds a little silly, but the point is that the man wasn’t thinking clearly because his heart is in the wrong place.

Today we hear of an event where people aren’t thinking or acting clearly, because their hearts are in the wrong place.

Let’s review what’s going on: Jesus has been healing all sorts of people, he’s fed over 5,000 people, he’s calmed a storm and he’s even walked on water to name just a few things.

So some Pharisees and some Scribes from Jerusalem come to see him – to check him out.

They didn’t just “drop by” – Jerusalem is about as far from Sea of Galilee as Albany is from Delhi – they made a specific trip to see him – there weren’t cars in those days, so they either walked or road on a donkey, but either way it was a real effort.

You think they would come because they’ve heard of the amazing things this Rabbi was teaching and doing – you think they would come to listen and learn.

But instead they pick at his disciples – they ask why his disciples don’t wash their hands.

They aren’t being frivolous; the religious of Jesus day were very serious about keeping a long list of laws, many of them man-made laws, thinking they were following God.

But they were thinking and behaving the wrong way because their hearts were in the wrong place.

God wants us focused on the right things.  Jesus knows that and points out that these Pharisees and Scribes have gotten so corrupted in their thinking that instead of taking care of their parents, they say that the money they would use to take care of them, they’ve given to God! 

I doubt God needs that money.

This isn’t a new problem, people who start out seeking to serve God, end up getting focused on the wrong things; here is what we heard in the Old Testament:

“…these people draw near with their mouths and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their worship of me is a human commandment learned by rote…” Isa. 29:13

So let’s make sure I’m clear here, the OT reading is talking to people who are trying to follow God.

In the Gospel, the Pharisees and Scribes, are trying to follow God.

And so Jesus, after his interaction with these men from Jerusalem, turns to the people and says:

“Listen to me, all of you, and understand:  there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.”

Jesus knows his disciples can get focused on the wrong things and so in private he starts teaching his disciples.

 “It is what comes out of a person that defiles.  For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come:  fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly.  All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

We read the same thing in the Letter to the Ephesians – a letter to a church:

“…you must no longer live as the Gentiles live, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of their ignorance and hardness of heart. They have lost all sensitivity and have abandoned themselves to…every kind of impurity.”

The OT, Jesus’ instruction to his disciples, and a letter to the early Church in Ephesus – all telling the people who consider themselves followers – that would be you and me – that if we want to behave the right way we need to take care of our hearts.

It kind of makes sense, doesn’t it?  We spend all kinds of effort worrying about our physical hearts:

We work on:

–       What we put in our bodies,

–       We exercise to make our hearts stronger,

–       We get ourselves checked out, and

–       If we find they need help – we get it

We work on taking care of our physical hearts – and so it makes sense to take care of the broader organ of our hearts.

You know that place where our beliefs and attitudes are held.

¹⁹ As a face is reflected in water, so the heart reflects the real person. Prov 27:19 (NLT)

So how do you care for and develop your heart?

Well it is similar to your physical heart:

–       Be careful what you put in it

o       ²³ Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Prov 4:23 (NIV)

–       We need to exercise our hearts

o       ¹ My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, ² turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, Prov 2:1-2 (NIV)

o       The Psalmist wrote today that “I delight in your law and meditate on it day and night”!

–       We need to check our hearts out – where do we go for a check up – To God

¹⁷ I know, my God, that you test the heart… 1 Chron 29:17 (NIV)

So the question is, “Where do we as a church and as individuals need to improve?”

The question isn’t, “Are we perfect?”  We already know the answer to that, but instead where is God leading us to improve?

Have you ever thought about it that way?

So often I would come to church and hear these Scriptures and think that either:

–       They didn’t apply to me because they were talking about people who didn’t go to Church, or

–       I would feel like the Church was condemning me.

o       Why would I feel condemned?  Because I didn’t understand what made me “right with God”.

But if we stick with the model of taking care of our hearts we rarely would think “things don’t apply” or “feel condemned”, and we would more be interested in “how am I doing, what do I need to do more of and what should I be doing less of”.

You see that is what Jesus was doing with his disciples, he was saying “Make sure you stay focused on the right thing – keep checking your hearts.”  Not to condemn, but to help us stay focused.

So let’s ask ourselves: How are we doing?

Are there days when my heart has anger, or envy, or pride in it?  Sure there are, so I need to get those things out of my heart by coming to God and seeking his help.

Are there days when my heart is filled with peace and gentleness? There are those too!

Following Jesus is a journey, he has already secured our destination hasn’t he, we know that because of his love we will spend eternity with him, but his point to his disciples is, while you are on the journey – keep focused – take care of your heart.

¹³ May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. 1 Thess 3:13 (NLT)