A Heart to Know Him
God promises to give us a new heart and the power to overcome sin through the Holy Spirit, and we can abandon ourselves to Him by believing in His promises.
David Wilkerson emphasizes God's promise to give us a new heart that desires to know Him and obey His commands. He highlights the transformative power of the Holy Spirit, who not only teaches us about God's nature but also empowers us to overcome sin and live a life reflective of Christ. Wilkerson reassures believers that God is merciful and patient, providing the strength needed to fulfill His demands. He encourages listeners to rely on the Holy Spirit in times of temptation and to fully surrender to God's promises for a new life. Ultimately, through faith in Christ, we become new creations, leaving behind our old selves.
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God has sworn by an oath to give us a new heart--one that is inclined to obey.
"I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the Lord: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart" (Jeremiah 24:7).
"A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh" (Ezekiel 36:26).
God promises us not only to give us a new heart, but to write on our hearts his commands. In other words, he promises to cause us to know him. Again, the Holy Spirit is the one who accomplishes this work in us. He teaches us about the Father's nature and way--and in the process, he transforms us into Christ's divine image.
Our Lord has sworn a sovereign oath to be merciful to us in our struggles against sin. And until full victory comes, he will be patient and loving with us, never casting us aside. He promises, "No matter what I demand of you, I will supply you with all the power you need to accomplish it. I won't ask anything of you for which I have not made provision."
Today, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead--and which enabled him to fulfill God's law through a perfect, sinless life--now abides in us. God's own Spirit is alive in us, providing all power over every work the enemy tries to bring against us.
When the enemy comes flooding into your soul, enticing you toward an old lust, call upon the Holy Ghost. Listen to his every whisper, and obey his every command. Don't shut him out. If you are prepared to do whatever he empowers you to do, he won't withhold his word from you.
You can move out of the old life and into the new in a single leap. It happens when you see how impossible it is for you to overcome sin by your own human efforts. It dawns on you that a faithful God has sworn to give the Holy Ghost to all believers who ask, and that he will accomplish in you what the Lord has promised by oath. So, finally, you abandon yourself totally to God and his promises. You believe he will perform what he has promised.
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new" (II Corinthians 5:17).
Sermon Outline
- I. God's Promise to Give a New Heart
- A. Inclined to obey
- B. To know God as Lord
- C. To be God's people
- II. The Holy Spirit's Role
- A. Teaches us about God's nature
- B. Transforms us into Christ's image
- III. God's Sovereign Oath
- A. To be merciful in struggles against sin
- B. To supply power for obedience
- IV. The Power of the Holy Spirit
- A. Raised Jesus from the dead
- B. Enables us to fulfill God's law
- V. Overcoming Sin
- A. Call upon the Holy Ghost
- B. Obey his commands
- VI. Abandoning Self to God
- A. Believe in God's promises
- B. Trust in his performance
Key Quotes
“I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the Lord: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart' (Jeremiah 24:7)” — David Wilkerson
“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh' (Ezekiel 36:26)” — David Wilkerson
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new' (II Corinthians 5:17)” — David Wilkerson
Application Points
- We can overcome sin by calling upon the Holy Ghost and obeying his commands.
- We must believe in God's promises and trust in His performance to abandon ourselves to Him.
- God's sovereign oath promises to supply us with power for obedience, so we can trust in Him to help us in our struggles against sin.