“For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him...” 2 Chronicles 16:9

“For the Lord sees not as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” 1 Samuel 16:7b

“Keep your heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” Proverbs 4:23

“But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceeds evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies…” Matthew 15:18-19

We need to be concerned about the condition of our hearts if we are truly concerned about revival, because the key for the Lord to use us in His revival work or any work for that matter is our heart's condition. Before we can examine our hearts condition under the shining of the light in God's Word, we must understand that the Bible uses the word “heart” as convenient shorthand for the essential makeup of a person. It includes the mind, the emotions, the will and our conscience which is a part of our human spirit. To focus on the heart means, then, to focus on these aspects of our being.

The above quoted verses, among many others, underscore for us the importance of the heart. They join their voices, as it were, to give united and powerful testimony to this matter. They show us in the first place that the condition of our heart dictates the conduct and manifestation of our lives. The author of Proverbs gives testimony to this truth by affirming that “the issues of life” spring from the heart. Based on the Hebrew words used , “issues of life” can also be translated “springs of life.” For us Christians, our hearts can either be the wellspring of the divine life or it can be the outflow of horrible things as mentioned in Matthew 15:18-19 above... depending on which source we're drawing from, either the spirit of life indwelt by the Holy Spirit or our flesh. The Lord Jesus also gave testimony to this same truth. On one occasion, He likened the heart to a tree. If the tree is good it will bring forth good fruit; if it is bad it will bring forth evil fruit (Matt. 12:33-35). On another occasion, He said, "…those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies" (Matt 15:18-19).

When Simon Magus sought to purchase from the apostles the gift of the Holy Spirit, the apostle Peter traced the problem to his heart: “You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God” (Act 8:21). The state of the heart determines the character and the conduct of the person! What is it that causes a Christian to choose not to attend a church meeting? It is his heart! What causes him to harbor resentment toward a brother or sister in Christ? It is his heart! What is it that causes him to have no concern for the unsaved? It is his heart! What causes him to find the reading and teaching of God’s Word a drudgery? It is his heart! What causes him to so quickly lay down spiritual duties to embrace the fleeting things of this world? It is his heart!

The verses above give us yet another reason the heart is so very important. They tell us that God is vitally interested in the heart. God watches closely at a person's heart. What's important to Him is not so much what we say or what we do but what's the condition of our hearts. When Samuel went to Bethlehem to anoint one of the sons of Jesse to be the next king over Israel, he was immediately impressed with the first son. He looked at Eliab and said, "Surely the Lord’s annointed is before Him!" (1Sam.16:6). Samuel could not have been more mistaken. Immediately the Lord spoke these words to him: “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1Sam. 16:7). The prophet Hanani struck this same note in his message to King Asa of Judah: “…the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him” (2Chro 16:9a).

Human, including Christians that are less mature, seem to be easily impressed with all sorts of things: charismatic and polished personalities, entertaining and well-planned-out programs, clever and humorous sermons. But the Lord is interested in our hearts. He is not impressed with the size of our churches, how many people we can gather in a conference, the degree of schooling we've attained to, or the ostentatious display of our musical or speaking ability. He is interested in the condition of our hearts.

What is it the Lord wants to see in the hearts of His people? The prophet Hanani said the Lord looks for “those whose heart is loyal to Him.” The loyal heart is a devoted heart to the Lord. It is the heart that is wholly dedicated or surrendered to the Lord. To be loyal-hearted is to be wholehearted. The Lord calls for those of us who belong to Him to be wholehearted in our love for Him. He says: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength” (Deut 6:5; Matt 22:37). For this reason, the Lord calls us to be wholehearted in praise. He wants each of us to say with the psalmist: "I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart;…" (Psa 9:1). The Lord calls for us to be wholehearted in obedience to His commands. He wants us to also say with the psalmist: "Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; Indeed I shall observe it with my whole heart" (Psa 119:34). The Lord wants us to be wholehearted in praying, to take these words from the psalmist as our own: “I cry out with my whole heart; Hear me, O Lord!” (Psa 119:145). The Lord wants us to be wholehearted in repentance. His promise to us is the same as it was to the people of Jeremiah’s time: “And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jer 29:13). In short, the Lord wants nothing less than our whole heart given over to Him and dedicated to doing His will. I believe that is one of the reasons why God said of David that he was “a man after My own heart who will do all my will.”

The author of Proverbs puts it succinctly: "Keep your heart with all diligence,…" (Prov 4:23). “Keep” here is Hebrews can also be translated “guard.” What does it mean to keep or to guard the heart? We are to guard harmful things away from it. We are to keep the fiery darts of the enemy from lodging in and entrenching themselves in our minds, keep our natural inclinations and desires from seizing our emotions, and keep fleshly, whether good or bad, choices from governing our wills. The exhortation to guard also suggests that there is something of value that we need to guard from losing. We are told that we could lose our faith in the Lord and His Word in 1Timothy 1:19. We are warned that we could lose our crown in Revelations 3:11 if we do not hold fast to what we have. We could lose our peace if we do not commit all things to the Lord in prayer and allow the peace of God to garrison our hearts (Phi 3:6-7). We are warned that we could lose so great a salvation if we neglect to heed the precious Word of God (Heb 2:1-3).

The Lord also mentioned that we need to give an entrance to something into our hearts in Colossians 3:16. In this verse, we're told literally according to the Greek text that we're to “let the Word of Christ make his home in our hearts richly.” If we are to keep the Word of God in our hearts, we must read it, study it, meditate in it and walk accordingly with the Spirit's empowerment. We must give it a dwelling place, a working place and the ruling place in our hearts.

There is no need for us to talk about revival if we are not willing to deal with our hearts and to give our heart wholly to the Lord. Revival does not come by God’s people looking at the condition of others or by some human efforts and undertakings. Revival doesn’t come to those who look around at their fellow-Christians and say: "Woe are they!" It comes as we take up the words of the prophet Isaiah: “Woe is me, for I am undone!” (Isa 6:5). May we allow the Lord to purify our hearts from the love of so many other things and persons besides the Lord and rededicate our hearts in its entirety to the Lord for Him to rule, reign and operate within our hearts. Then the Lord may use us as He will for the revival of His own Church.