What Hardens a Heart?

What Hardens a Heart?

Hebrews 3:7-19 (NASB)

7 “Therefore, just as the Holy Spirit says, “TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE,

8 DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME, AS IN THE DAY OF TRIAL IN THE WILDERNESS,

9 WHERE YOUR FATHERS TRIED Me BY TESTING Me, AND SAW MY WORKS FOR FORTY YEARS.

10 THEREFORE I WAS ANGRY WITH THIS GENERATION, AND SAID, 'THEY ALWAYS GO ASTRAY IN THEIR HEART, AND THEY DID NOT KNOW MY WAYS';

11 AS I SWORE IN MY WRATH, 'THEY SHALL NOT ENTER MY REST.”

12 Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.

13 But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

14 For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end,

15 while it is said, "TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME."

16 For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses?

17 And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?

18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient?

19 So we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.”

    The warning in Hebrews 3 is a serious one. Anytime we ignore what God has said, it may be evidence of a hardened heart. Although we usually think this condition applies only to those who reject Christ, the reality is that believers can “be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb. 3:13). 

    When the Lord begins to convict us, we could rationalize our disobedience, thinking it’s not that big a deal. Or we might be tempted to preoccupy ourselves with other things to avoid facing the issue at all. Perhaps we’re unwilling to deal with that sin because we’re afraid of the changes God is challenging us to make. Therefore, we distract ourselves with other thoughts and activities, pushing Him further and further from our mind in hopes of silencing His conviction. 

    We may think ignoring the Spirit in this way is not a serious issue, but it is rebellion against God, which is the very core of sin. And rebellion often begins with a refusal to relinquish control and trust the Lord. When we start catering to our own preferences, it’s not long before we redefine what God has said in an attempt to make ourselves feel better and quash the nagging sense of guilt.

    The danger in such behavior is that we lose sight of our “first love”—our actions testify that we love our sin more than Christ (Revelation 2:4).

Revelation 2:4 (NASB)

4 “But I have this against you, that you have left your first love.”

    The result is a heart that is desensitized to the sin. By ignoring the Spirit’s warnings, we can become acclimated to unrighteousness and adopt a sinful lifestyle. This is why we must carefully guard and examine our hearts.