Listen to your heart... ??

We’ve all had tough decisions to make. As Christians we know the bible says “Seek out wise counsel”

You see, we know that when emotions are involved our brains get a lil foggy.

Have you ever approached a friend for advice and got a reply like this:

You gotta listen to your heart

Or

Follow your heart

Sometimes people just don’t know how to respond to the lil jams of life we seem to get ourselves into. Others are scared to tell you what they really think and others yet still, cant deal with their own problems let alone offer you advice on yours.

“Listen to your heart”

Your friends think they are giving you a deep intellectual response. They think they are offering you good advice. Is it?

We all know who Dr. Phil is. On one of the message boards on his website a woman spoke of divorcing her husband. She posted her thoughts on the message board there and this is the sort of advice she received :

If you can't give 100% to this relationship, then it's not fair to your husband or your children. I have actually started divorce proceedings against my husband. I can't stay wondering if there is something else out there. You are not being selfish!!!! You need to follow your heart. Like someone told me not to long ago......If you don't take care of your heart who will?

The woman seeking advice responded with this:

Thank you sooo much for that understanding.... I do feel so guilty, he is trying everything he can to make me happy and fix everything I've asked to be fixed, but it is not in my heart and I know what I must do. My son turns 18 this week and as soon as that is over, I'm going to make arrangements..... I have no money of my own and I don't know what i'm going to do, but I have to follow my heart. I feel that there is something out there for me and I want to discover it...

Friends, maybe that sounded like good advice to you. But GOD Forbid you or I ever offer up advice like that to anyone, whether they be Christian or not!

Pr 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

When we seek out worldly counsel we get worldly counsel.

Friends, my question for you this morning is :

Can you trust your heart?

Can you trust the world?

Can you trust the wisdom of the world?

What is truth and where do you find it?

Who…. Really, Who do you trust?

Jeremiah 17:9

Jer 17:5 Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.

Jer 17:6 For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.

Jer 17:7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.

Jer 17:8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

It seems as if the word of God and the wisdom of the world is at odds doesn’t it? Isn’t that always the case?

Even though The world tells us to listen to our heart, The bible says "GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

In Numbers, God says “remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring.”

Friends, I think I’ve made a point already with you but I wanna make sure your getting this. This is important.

Here are 5 lies that the world tells us. If you go to WikiHOw.com and search “follow your heart” this is the 5 points given.

1. Do what you want to do, not what other people think you should do. Listen to yourself and don't pay attention to anyone else's opinion (unless they're positive) In other words, if a man’s words don’t tickle your ears, ignore it!

2. Listen to your conscience. Part of following your heart, (assuming that your not an evil person) is doing what is right, and what feels right. Your conscience will most likely tell you this. This is the world’s way of inserting morality. But notice it said that the world has to start with the premise of “you’re not an evil person”. The bible says there is none righteous, no not one.

3. Ignore criticism, never respond to it. Don't pay attention to anything negative anyone else has to say. Doesn’t the bible say A wise son heareth his father's instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke.?

4. Don't be afraid to stand out. Most likely, you may not be following the same path that other people will, but that's okay.

a. : Mt 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:

5. Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself. Follow your heart.

Even though the world tells us to listen to and follow our hearts, the bible is pretty clear on the matter.

Have you ever been given the advice:

You have to do what’s right- for you?

This is a philosophy known as moral relativism. Do you buy into its doctrines? I think maybe all of us buy into it a little bit, whether we admit it or not.

Moral relativism is this: the claim that no ethical system is better than another. It stems from the fact that to judge an ethical system, it must be judged by a moral standard. Since every ethical system should evaluate itself as the best and only moral system, and every other system is flawed and immoral, it is assumed that moral judgments about ethical systems are meaningless.

Moral Relativism rests on the belief that values are subjective. It is holds the belief that there is no objective morality, that there is no such thing as right and wrong, good or evil.

Basically, moral relativism leaves the judgment of what is right and what is wrong up to the individual. Whats right for me may be wrong for you and whats wrong for me may be right for you. In other words, let me decide whats right for me and you decide whats right for you and we’ll just agree not to judge each other based off of our own heathonous acts.

Have you ever wondered why the world hates God so much?

Its for this reason right here. Sin.

God hates sin and if they admit that there is a God then there must be a right and a wrong.

If right and wrong can be defined in absolute terms then they have to admit that they are sinners. Admitting that they are sinners implies that some of their actions are deemed filthy, atleast in the eyes of God.

If this is the case, then they have to admit that they have filthy lusts. If they want to square up with God they must humble themselves before him.

But, Pride says there is no God. When our pride has us convinced of that then not only is there no God but there is no sin. When there is no sin then we have no reason to give up the filthy sin we hold so tightly to.

We can roll around in our in squaller like pigs rolling in the slop. They love it. Wash a pig and whats it do? Returns to the mud just as fast as it can.

You may say, I’ve never doubted the deity or supremacy of God.

Friend, when we buy into this moral relativism, that’s exactly what we are doing.

We all seek after the truth. Its where we look for it that gets us into trouble. The only truth that can be found absolutely is right here: contained in the word of God.

Gods holy word has no supplement and needs no help.

Friend, Jesus Christ died on the cross that we might live in fellowship with him. This world is going to offer tough times and tough choices.

Lean not upon thine own understanding. Lean not upon the intellectual ramblings and philosophies of the world.

If you cant trust the wisdom of your heart then how can you trust the wisdom of your friend, unless your friend quote the bible.

Hate not rebuke. Seek truth only in the word of God. Remember, even the bible says sin can be fun for a season. Take your joy in the Lord.

Or you have to do whats going to make you happy in the long run.

I bet a lot of people following their hearts are going to be doing the things that make them happy are gonna have a lot of fun in this world.