…But He Knows My Heart!
Have you ever noticed that when you are talking to someone about obeying the Scriptures, often that person will conclude that even though what he is doing is not Scriptural, he believes it is okay because the Almighty “knows my heart”?
In writing this article, we have included excerpts from George Gabler’s article, “He knows…My Heart” which addresses the state of mankind’s heart and what Yahweh expects of His followers.
Does our Heavenly Father overlook our ignorance or even carelessness when we call to Him with a right heart? Indeed He does look upon our heart! However, while we like to think well of ourselves, He sees us differently than we see ourselves. How does he see our heart? He says…
Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
It is our nature to follow our own imaginations which are contrary to Him.
Genesis 6:5 And YAHWEH 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.
Genesis 8:21 And YAHWEH smelled a sweet savour; and YAHWEH said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth;
Ecclesiastes 9:3 This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.
We do not see our hearts as evil because we are doing what we think is right.
Proverbs 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Deuteronomy 12:8 Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes. 9 For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which Yahweh your Elohim giveth you.
Yes, Yahweh looks upon the heart, and He says it is desperately wicked, but spiritual seekers tend not to see it that way and are likely to deny it.
Proverbs 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.
Proverb 28:26 He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.
Even Paul acknowledged that he was not good because man’s carnal or natural mind is hostile to Yahweh’s laws. We are able to equate man’s carnal or natural mind with his “heart” based on the previously cited Scriptures in Genesis, which speaks of the “thoughts and imaginations of the heart”. Two other passages also equate man’s heart and mind.
Mark 7:20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. 21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22 thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: 23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
Matthew 15:18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. 19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: 20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.
Other Scriptures also demonstrate that Yahweh’s Law and Spirit and man’s carnal mind are at odds with one another.
Romans 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against the Mighty One: for it is not subject to the law of YAHWEH, neither indeed can be.
Romans 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Romans 7:14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
So to be spiritually minded one must be in harmony with Yahweh’s Law! Or to put it another way, since the Law is Spiritual, being against the Law is being against the Spirit. Therefore the natural mind cannot understand spiritual things.
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of YAHWEH: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
So if we want to obey the Spirit and not the carnal mind, i.e. our “hearts”, we must obey Yahweh’s Law, including all of His commandments. We must not obey our hearts because Yahweh clearly tells us our hearts can deceive us. Yahweh makes it crystal clear in His Word that what He most wants from believers is obedience to His Law and Commandments.
Deuteronomy 10:12 And now, Israel, what doth YAHWEH thy Mighty One require of thee, but to fear YAHWEH thy Mighty One, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve YAHWEH thy Mighty One with all thy heart and with all thy soul, 13 To keep the commandments of YAHWEH, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?
Psalm 103:17 But the mercy of YAHWEH is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children; 18 To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.
Ecclesiastes 12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear The Mighty One, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
1 Samuel 15:22 And Samuel said, Hath Yahweh as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of Yahweh? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
Why is it so important to obey Yahweh’s commandments? Yahweh tells us that those who obey His commandments are “blessed” which also means “happy” and is the Greek word “makarios” (#3107).
Revelation 22:14 Blessed (#3107) are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Deuteronomy 7:9 Know therefore that Yahweh thy Elohim, he is Elohim, the faithful Elohim, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;
Psalm 119:1 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of Yahweh. 2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.
Instead of obeying our “deceitful hearts” we should want obey Yahweh’s “heart” by being obedient to His commandments. After all, is the point of the whole exercise for Yahweh to discern our hearts (i.e. “but he knows my heart”) or is it instead that we must make it our business to please Him, that is, to discern His heart, i.e. His will for us?
The Israelites in Exodus 32 got tired of waiting for Moses and decided to worship Yahweh in their own way with disastrous results. Yahweh was greatly displeased and would have destroyed the Israelites if not for His servant Moses’ intercession on their behalf. They broke the Second Commandment that they had just agreed to keep, by building a “mighty one” for themselves….a graven image in the form of a golden calf. When Aaron saw it, he declared that “tomorrow is a feast to Yahweh” so we can see that the Israelites sincerely thought they were worshipping Yahweh in this manner. But they were sincerely wrong and Yahweh was highly displeased.
Exodus 32:1 And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. 2 And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. 3 And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. 4 And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to YAHWEH. 6 And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play. 7 And YAHWEH said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: 8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 9 And YAHWEH said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: 10 Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation.
And what about Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, who decided to provide a sacrifice to Yahweh that was not commanded by Yahweh?
Leviticus 10:1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before Yahweh, which he commanded them not. 2 And there went out fire from Yahweh, and devoured them, and they died before Yahweh.
And lastly, we see King Jeroboam in 1 Kings devising a Holy Day outside of those commanded by Yahweh, again with disastrous results.
1 Kings 12:32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made. 33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.
1 Kings 14:7 Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith Yahweh Elohim of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, 8 And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes; 9 But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: 10 Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone. 11 Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for Yahweh hath spoken it.
We are reminded of Christians’ “submission” to Yahweh when they make up and keep Holy Days to Him, such as Christmas and Easter, which are completely unsanctioned by Him, full of lies and pagan-influenced. Again, they are putting their hearts and will before the Almighty’s. They too are sincere, but sincerely wrong. For more information on Christmas and Easter, please read the articles “Christmas” and “Passover and Easter”.
We are told to worship Yahweh in Spirit and Truth (John 4:23). So does it make a difference what name we call Him in worship because “he knows my heart”? It is clear that the Almighty’s name is “Yahweh” not “Gd”, which, by the way, is a separate deity distinct from Yahweh. If you continue giving your praise and worship to “Gd”…you are blaspheming Yahweh!
Isaiah 42:8 I am Yahweh: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.
Jeremiah 16:19 O Yahweh, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit. 20 Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods? 1 Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know mine hand and my might; and they shall know that my name is Yahweh.
Jeremiah 33:2 Thus saith Yahweh the maker thereof, Yahweh that formed it, to establish it; Yahweh is his name;
Amos 5:8 Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: Yahweh is his name:
Yahweh states that His Name is a memorial to all generations and is His Name forever.
Exodus 3:13 And Moses said unto Elohim, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The Elohim of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 14 And Elohim said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 15 And Elohim said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, Yahweh Elohim of your fathers, the Elohim of Abraham, the Elohim of Isaac, and the Elohim of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.
Psalm 135:13 Thy name, O Yahweh, endureth for ever; and thy memorial, O Yahweh, throughout all generations.
And Yahweh tells us through His prophet Isaiah that His people shall know His name!
Isaiah 52:5 Now therefore, what have I here, saith Yahweh, that my people is taken away for nought? they that rule over them make them to howl, saith Yahweh; and my name continually every day is blasphemed. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name: therefore they shall know in that day that I am he that doth speak: behold, it is I.
And that His Name alone is excellent!
Psalm 8:1 O YAHWEH our Sovereign, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens through the paths of the seas. 9 O YAHWEH our Sovereign, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!
Psalm 148:13 Let them praise the name of Yahweh: for his name alone is excellent; his glory is above the earth and heaven.
Isaiah 12:4 And in that day shall ye say, Praise Yahweh, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted.
It is critical to call on the name Yahweh when addressing the Almighty. Every deity has its own name and it is supremely important not to call on the “god of this world” when we pray. Satan is much more powerful than most people realize and he does answer the prayers of those who call on him. For more information on Yahweh’s great name and the origins of the Hebrew name “Gd”, please read “Should we exclusively use the Name Yahweh for the Almighty”?”
How do we expect to receive Yahweh’s mercy and blessings if we defy His commandments? Yahweh tells us that he who loves Him…keeps His commandments! Do you love Him? That would mean keeping the commandments is proof of your Love!
1 John 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of YAHWEH, when we love YAHWEH, and keep his commandments. 3 For this is the love of YAHWEH, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
2 John 1:5 And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another. 6 And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.
1 John 2:4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of Yahweh perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
John 14:23 Yah’shua answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
Why is all of this important? Yahweh tells us that the evil man believes he is not required to obey Yahweh’s commandments.
Psalm 10:13 Why do the wicked renounce the Mighty One? He has said in his heart, you will not require an account. (NKJ)
Thinking you are not required to obey is wickedness to Yahweh and a direct condemnation of His Will! Remember, evil comes from the human heart! (Mark 7:20-23 and Matthew 15:18-20)
So back to the original question: “Does our Heavenly Father overlook our ignorance or even carelessness when we call to Him with a right heart?
To continue a practice after being told to cease and desist is not “ignorance” or “carelessness”…it’s rebellion! Someone who is told stealing is a sin is expected to stop stealing and start giving. Someone who is told to stop committing adultery is expected to stop his adulteries and begin practicing faithfulness. And someone told to stop blaspheming the name of Yahweh is expected to stop blaspheming and start honoring His sacred name! Does the adulterer say…I continue committing adultery out of love for my creator, and He knows my heart? Or does the thief continue stealing because in his heart he believes he is doing good by tithing on his thefts or giving to the poor and needy? Clearly they are only trying to justify their sinful ways! Therefore, it is not an act of ignorance when justification is made for continuance of sin. Those who claim “it doesn’t make any difference” now KNOW it does! GRACE IS NOT A LICENSE TO SIN!
Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? YAHWEH forbid. 2 How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
The fact that there is sin is proof that the Law is still in force, because where there is no Law, there is no sin, so sin is the transgression of the law. (Romans 5:13; 1 John 3:4). Therefore, we are expected to be righteous according to the law!
If our lives are dedicated to being obedient to His Law, we are free from sin because we no longer habitually and knowingly break the Law! We obey the Law…that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled IN US! And we are stricter than the scribes and Pharisees!
Matthew 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Saying “What difference do Yahweh’s commandments make because He knows my heart” is choosing to willfully sin against Yahweh! You have been given truth and been told to obey Yahweh’s commandments, not your heart. If you willfully go against Yahweh’s commandments, you will stand in judgment of Yahweh and His vengeance. We may feel like we are okay, but final judgment is not based on how we feel or what we think. Judgment is based on His Word, and we are all accountable! He says so!
We have presented truth in this article and all who have received the knowledge of the truth are now accountable in Yahweh’s eyes.
Hebrews 10:26 For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, 27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. 28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: 29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of YAHWEH, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith YAHWEH. And again, YAHWEH shall judge his people. 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living Mighty One.
HalleluYah
(8/13a)