/SINGLENESS OF HEART

"And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their stony, stubborn heart and give them a tender, responsive heart," Ezekial 11:19 NLT

"And I will give them one heart and one purpose: to worship me forever, for their own good and for the good of all their descendants.” Jeremiah 32:39 NLT

“Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.” Acts 4:32 ESV

When Jesus promised us that He will send us a Helper, the Holy Spirit, He indicated that He knew that no human was able to do what He was requiring of them. No amount of self-effort or zeal could produce oneness of heart. God does not expect us to transform ourselves. He sends His Spirit to dwell in us to accomplish that which is humanly impossible; to produce a church that is one Body, that is holy in all their conduct, and in all things pleasing to God. He promises to give us singleness of heart, a new spirit, to take away our stony, stubborn heart, and give us a tender, responsive heart (Eze.11:19). He gives us a one heart and one purpose, for our own good and for His glory (Jer.32:39). When the early church faced resistance and persecution, they prayed and were filled with the Holy Spirit, enabling them to be of one heart and soul, and even sold their possession to share amongst all of them (Acts.4:32). God is not a liar. What He promises, He will do (Num.23:19). The hindrance is lack of faith on our part. Jesus said that if we had faith like a mustard seed, nothing will be impossible for us (Matt.17:20).

PRAYER POINTS

ME: Bow low before God. Affirm again your faith in Him. Tell Him that you love Him more than anything else in this life. Give Him your old stony, stubborn heart and expect Him to give you a new heart.

US: Ask God to perform His heart operation on His church, to give us a one heart, filled with one purpose, to glorify God and to do His will.

THEM: Pray that God will remove from our hearts every hindrance that resists us loving our fellowmen as ourselves.

Remember your John 17 memory verse.

All culture, whatever significance it may have, just as all education, civilization, development, is absolutely powerless to renew the inner man. – Herman Bavinck.

Congratulations you have just completed 7 days of journeying with God on Reconciliation and Oneness starting in your own heart and praying for your church community and your society at large. We trust that God has started a wonderful work in and through your prayers. Why not consider joining us for another 7 days. Week 7 of our One Heart Series is called Be Blessed!

Some more Resources:

On Day 6 we prayed into having a mission focus. There are so many lessons that we can learn from the methods of the early church to overcome cultural boundaries. Read this fascinating article by Lausanne World Pulse: https://lausanneworldpulse.com/themedarticles-php/1061

As part of this journey we decided to capture stories of reconciliation both in South Africa and in other contexts where reconciliation doesn't make sense (but for Jesus). These have been captured in podcast format in partnership with The Follower Podcast . Available wherever you get your podcasts.

If you found the challenge to memorize John 17 tricky or too overwhelming, here’s a link for some ideas to help you Memorize the Bible.