Heart and Hands
Likewise exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility . . . . (Titus 2:6-7 NKJV)
I encounter a lot of people who say they have a heart after God, but their hands are not at the plow serving Him. I have also met a few folks whose hands are busy serving God, but their hearts aren’t exactly right with Him. Both of these scenarios distort what a believer’s walk should look like. God’s wants our hearts to be right with Him and our hands to be serving Him.
Pastor Titus had a positive impact on his congregation because his hands were serving God (good works) and his heart was right with God (doctrine). Doctrine without good works would have been the height of hypocrisy and good works without doctrine would have been the depth of drudgery. But together, they reinforced each other and made for an effective example.
The same can be said for King David, whose heart and hands where yielded to the service of the Lord:
He also chose David His servant, And took him from the sheepfolds; From following the ewes that had young He brought him, To shepherd Jacob His people, And Israel His inheritance. So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, And guided them by the skillfulness of his hands. (Psalm 78:70-72 NKJV)
It’s interesting that a person’s heart is roughly the size of a fist. And in a spiritual sense, the size of someone’s spiritual heart reflects the amount of work done with his or her hands, and vice versa.
DIG - What should a believer’s walk look like?
DISCOVER - What does God want for your heart? How does God want you to use your hands?
DISPLAY - What changes do you need to make in your life based on this principle?
This Bible Study was prepared by Pastor Bob Coy of The Active Word.
