Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Incline my heart to thy testimonies, and not to gain!

• Psalm 119:36 (RSV)

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

• Revelation 3:20

“Do not wonder to see simple people believe without reasoning. God imparts to them love of Him and hatred of self. He inclines their heart to believe. Men will never believe with a saving and real faith, unless God inclines their heart; and they will believe as soon as He inclines it. And this is what David knew well, when he said: lnclina cor meum, Deus, in … (Psalms 119:36)”

• Blaise Pascal, Thoughts (284)

The NIV uses turn my heart.  It conveys the same message, but the KJV and RSV are closer to the Latin vulgate word that was used here.

I recently heard an old audio by R. C. Sproul who argued that we are taking partial credit for our salvation in that we accept Him, we say a prayer, we ask Him into our heart, etc.  He argued that in the conviction of our sin, that is totally on the part of the Holy Spirit.  Thus even our salvation is Soli Deo Gloria, only to God be the Glory.

This verse points in the same direction.  We freely and willingly want God to save us, and we accept His program in the process.  But it is God who inclines our heart to Him.

I had a testy, but polite, argument with someone who was Presbyterian, yet they demanded that I argue for free will coexisting with the concept of the elect and predestination.

I gave my testimony.  For over a year, everyone around me, or so it seemed, had Joy in their heart.  I wanted that Joy, but I had been a more faithful church attender than any of them had been.  Why me?  Why did I not have the Joy?

Finally, after possibly well over 500 times of saying the salvation prayer, I prayed, “God, I give up.  Do with me what you want.  I can’t take this anymore.”

He said that meant nothing regarding the argument.

My reply was that I personally feel that with the weight of my sins on my shoulders, with no one to help carry them, I was either going to surrender to God or end up in a mental institution.  The weight was that great and when I surrendered to Jesus, I felt I had no other choice.  But you have all these people who never had that crossroad in which to cross.  I was a member of the elect, and God was not letting go of me until I willingly and lovingly followed Him.  I used my free will to free myself from the guilt, shame, and pain of my sin.  I did so lovingly, having already reasoned with my intellect that God’s plan made more sense.  But God did all the work here.  Jesus knocked at the door, and with my last ounce of energy of my free will, I fell away from holding the door closed so that Jesus might enter.

Maybe other people have other experiences.  I am sure they do.  But as Pascal said, I really do not think I would be writing this today if God had not inclined my heart.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.