“‘But they refused to heed, shrugged their shoulders, and stopped their ears so that they could not hear. Yes, they made their hearts like flint, refusing to hear the law and the words which the LORD of hosts had sent by His Spirit through the former prophets. Thus great wrath came from the LORD of hosts. Therefore it happened, that just as He proclaimed and they would not hear, so they called out and I would not listen,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘But I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations which they had not known. Thus the land became desolate after them, so that no one passed through or returned; for they made the pleasant land desolate.’” (Zechariah 7:11-14)
If you were to ask me about how many responded to the sermon last Sunday, I would tell you, “100% ! Everyone responded. Some said, ‘Yes,’ and some said, ‘No,’ but all responded.” Each time you walk out of the meeting house doors, you leave better or worse—closer to God or farther away.
Notice in these verses how the rejection of the Word became more pronounced. Truth makes a heart healthy or hard.
Arteriosclerosis is a physical malady where the arteries that carry the life-giving flow of blood become hard and clogged by cholesterol. The result can be stroke, heart-attack, even death. It is all the more deadly because the development of the disease is slow, gradual, almost imperceptible.
Spiritual arteriosclerosis is the hardening of our heart against the Word and the Lord. Likewise, the sinister, subtle nature of it can be deadly to the state of our soul. There is a way back to God. Repentance can be the surgical scalpel to open our heart and begin restoring our health.
What you have just read will be helpful or hurtful, depending on your response. Don’t shrug your shoulders, stop your ears, and stiffen your neck against the Word, as these did in Zechariah’s day.
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