The Good Side of Heart Burn!

They call it the “purple pill.”   Nexium.  It dissipates heart burn, acid indigestion over a 24 hour period of time.  It works wonders…trust me.   Heart burn is a literal pain in the chest.  It is uncomfortable and to a lot of people it can come across as a heart attack because there are similarities in the symptoms.

I wonder what the two Emmaus road disciples felt like after spending some time with the resurrected Lord?  They said of the experience, “Our hearts were burning with in us!” (Luke 24.32).   Heart burn!  There is a good side to it after all.  I just wonder how many of the Lord’s believers understand what real spiritual heart burn is?  Are we really hungry for more of Jesus?  Are we really thirsty for more of Him? 

I mentioned this on Wednesday night in my class.  I know I was spewing off some shepherd frustration…but it felt good anyway.   There are times I struggle to understand the body of Christ.   We say we’re hungry but we don’t come to the table.  We say we’re thirsty but we won’t volunteer at the well to help bring water up.   We describe our heart condition with one set of words and then live out our life with another.  I get confused and if it weren’t for Father God being perfect I’m confident He would be a little confused with us also.   We speak with our heads and fail to engage that dialogue with our hearts. 

Kim and I have been fasting and praying for a spiritual breakthrough at VH.  I want to see our congregation show signs of hunger.  I am desirous to see men and women make their way to the altar to express their hearts before the Lord.  Ahhhhhh!  That may be the key.  The altar!   Can it be that simple?   Are we afraid of the altar?  Has the altar become a place for sinners to go and those who need deliverance to reside?  If so then we have missed an opportunity to express ourselves before the Lord.

The root meaning of the word altar means “to sacrifice; offer or kill.”   What about going to the altar to offer praise?  What about going to the altar to offer a “sacrifice of praise” to the Lord?  Are we that inhibited in our worship that we can’t publicly demonstrate a sacrifice to the Lord?

Romans 12.1 teaches us that we are to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to the Lord.  In the Old Testament an animal body was used as a sacrifice for the atonement of sin and or paying homage to Jehovah for His goodness.   Our bodies then become a living sacrifice through the New Covenant as a sacrifice of praise.   Our sins have been atoned through the final sacrifice of Christ.   Our very life is an act of praise to the Lord.   All that we do with our body is an act of praise to the Father. 

In Jewish theory the body of a dead animal offered for sacrifice could not be offered again.  Death made sure of it.  Once offered it was over.  Another animal would be chosen and another sacrifice made.  But we, as living sacrifices, are a perpetual sacrifice of praise to the Lord.   Death equals inactivity.  The term “living” is indicative of a lively sacrifice.  Our “life” becomes an ongoing, active, engaged, lively, mobile, ecstatic and joy filled sacrifice.  We are to be a living sacrifice unto the Lord.  

With this in mind…are we all that?  Does our heart burn within us?  Are we like the bush of Moses?  Does our heart burn within us but never burns up because we are a living sacrifice?  Are we on fire?    We can’t burn up – we are a perpetual sacrifice.   Oh I know there are those who speak of “burning out” but even I have a hard a time with that terminology.  When we are on fire inwardly – we can neither burn up or burn out.  Seriously.  Burn out sometimes is merely a cop-out in disguise.  When our energy and strength comes from Him can we really burn out or burn up?   A balanced stewardship of one’s life may help us better manage our time and stress levels but that’s another lesson for another time.

Heart burn.  I would to God that we could experience spiritual heart burn.  The kind that pushes us toward the altar as a living sacrifice of praise.  Living.  Life filled.  Not dead, cold, lifeless and motionless.  Living sacrifices that offer excitement and demonstration of praise and worship.  I hear from time to time that we need the “good ol’ days” when people shouted, ran the isles and in uninhibited fashion praised God.   I don’t want the good ol’ days.  I want the fresh new day of God’s Spirit breathing into my spirit man.  I don’t want yesterday.  I want today.  I don’t want to look at yesterdays sacrifice on the altar.  I want to lift my hands and worship Him today.  I want to express life and not death to Him.  I think when Father looks at the earth He sees enough death – both spiritually and physically.  I would like to think that He is really looking for a sacrifice of praise.  As a matter of fact…I think Jesus mentioned that Father is looking for people to worship Him like that (John 4.23-24).   If Father is seeking for people to worship Him in spirit and truth then I would like to think we can oblige Him.   Oh! My goodness!  Is that…really…is that a tinge of heart burn I’m beginning to feel?  What about you?