Once upon a time, quite a while ago, I actually composed a thoughtful post. Maalie made an equally thoughtful comment on a comment (see response to ESI) and requested clarification of my statement, “my whole point is that it all starts in the heart”.
You just have to love another scientist who leaves you the following comment, “The heart is a pump that circulates blood. I am not aware of any other function.” Indeed, his statement is factual to the core, testable and verifiable and shows that he is a scientist indeed!!!
Yet, this is not the only way that the Hebrew mind thought of the heart. To them, in both the writings of the Old and New Testaments, the heart referred to the seat of both physical and spiritual life. It represented the innermost being of a man, his emotions and his intellect, the things that make up the soul and make him unique among other men.
While this may seem a bit far-fetched and fanciful, something that a scientist might ignore as poetic language, it actually seems quite logical to me when I consider the role that blood, and therefore the heart, plays in the body. Physically, it is essential for all aspects of our lives, for without blood, not only does the body die, but also the soul as well since it looses its place of habitation. Without blood I am nothing because I am now no one.
Spiritually, blood was required for the covering of sin. While this notion of the redemptive power of blood is expressed for me most clearly in the book of Hebrews (9:22b), “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin”, it was instituted early in the Old Testament when God dealt with a result of the first sin, Adam and Eve’s awareness of their nakedness. He did not speak clothing into being as He did the rest of creation; He shed blood by killing an animal to cover them in its skin. Thereafter blood covenants were irrevocable. It is in this light that Jesus speaks of His own blood as being poured out to seal a new and better blood covenant to replace the old, providing for permanent forgiveness of sin (Matthew 26:28).
So yes Maalie, even as a scientist, the heart is more to me than just an organ that pumps blood. It provides for my very life, not just for my body, but also my soul; it allows the uniqueness of Susan to be expressed. And it is in the context of this soul, this source of my emotions, desires, passions - my intellect, my ability to understand, reason and choose – that I spoke when I said that all sin begins in my heart.
You just have to love another scientist who leaves you the following comment, “The heart is a pump that circulates blood. I am not aware of any other function.” Indeed, his statement is factual to the core, testable and verifiable and shows that he is a scientist indeed!!!
Yet, this is not the only way that the Hebrew mind thought of the heart. To them, in both the writings of the Old and New Testaments, the heart referred to the seat of both physical and spiritual life. It represented the innermost being of a man, his emotions and his intellect, the things that make up the soul and make him unique among other men.
While this may seem a bit far-fetched and fanciful, something that a scientist might ignore as poetic language, it actually seems quite logical to me when I consider the role that blood, and therefore the heart, plays in the body. Physically, it is essential for all aspects of our lives, for without blood, not only does the body die, but also the soul as well since it looses its place of habitation. Without blood I am nothing because I am now no one.
Spiritually, blood was required for the covering of sin. While this notion of the redemptive power of blood is expressed for me most clearly in the book of Hebrews (9:22b), “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin”, it was instituted early in the Old Testament when God dealt with a result of the first sin, Adam and Eve’s awareness of their nakedness. He did not speak clothing into being as He did the rest of creation; He shed blood by killing an animal to cover them in its skin. Thereafter blood covenants were irrevocable. It is in this light that Jesus speaks of His own blood as being poured out to seal a new and better blood covenant to replace the old, providing for permanent forgiveness of sin (Matthew 26:28).
So yes Maalie, even as a scientist, the heart is more to me than just an organ that pumps blood. It provides for my very life, not just for my body, but also my soul; it allows the uniqueness of Susan to be expressed. And it is in the context of this soul, this source of my emotions, desires, passions - my intellect, my ability to understand, reason and choose – that I spoke when I said that all sin begins in my heart.
206 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 206 of 206My goodness you all have been busy while I've been at work.
Dianne - once again, well said! No wonder I love you so much!
LtL - yes, you would like Dianne just fine - you have much in common, except of course she hasn't met Father Anne. She does, however, paint and quilt - so I think your artistic sides would line up well.
Ted - thanks so much for all your comments and keeping things going while I have been grant writing! I appreciate it very much!
Maalie, dear Maalie - I just happen to think Dianne is right - and I promise to try to post something new this weekend. I just got home from the airport (it's midnight) in the blinding snow (we've had 6-8 inches already) putting two grants in FedEx for tomorrow's delivery deadline!
Simon - I don't know quite what to say to you except maybe to ask you why, if we're all so offensive to you, you hang about on a Christian blog? You're welcome to, of course, but clearly you're not going to change my mind. We should talk one day about the parable of the wheat and the tares for it sounds like to me that you spend all your "church" years with a bunch of tares!
Rex - if you're out there - once back in the summer I was trying to rectify a mess I'd made in my life by deleting an email account I had - and since it was tied to my blog (which I had no idea!!), when I closed the email account my blog was lost. I wasn't getting any response from blogger or gmail to get it back so I started a new one - and then about a week later, guess what showed up? They found it in cyberspace somewhere and restored it. I have instructions on how to merge them, just haven't gotten to it yet. Sometimes I forget that if I'm logged into that email account (I had to reopen it to get my blog back)it posts with the hyperlink to the old rather than the new blog. So, the short and the long of it is that you're not crazy at all - I am!
oops! I commented with my daughters profile! ( she must not have signed out)
Susan- don't be "judgemental" of the people at the churches I went to- my point is- that they are no different to the world. ( as too is "even so".. he just wants your 10% etc)
not point in explaining parables to me either- I can quote them all. I can sing all the Keith Green songs too... :o)
and I am not hanging around your blog at all-
Maalie and Lorenzo are very good friends of mine and was curious to see what was going on, and it seems you are involved in their blogs ( which is cool)
Anyway healthy debate is exactly what jesus did ( didn't he??)
and healthy debate keeps us on our toes...
be cool! :o)
Halfmom: does Dianne have a blogsite I could visit?
Simon is lovely. I have met that naughty Australian twice, once during the week we all stayed with Maalie in Spain, and again this Christmas. His photo is on my blogsite. Phwar, as we say over here!
hi susan!
hope you are getting rested from all of your work.
hang in there...spring is on the way!
211 comments! Wow, this is like a little coffee shop here with lots of nattering going on! Two sugars please!
Hi Susan! Book arrived this morning! Thanks!
Lorenzo.
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