Sip Saturday

Week #40 Hebrews 3:8

**Sip Saturday is written by our Saturday morning contributor, M.H. Elrich. A beautifully gifted Christian author who seeks to honor the Trinity in her writing. She hopes that her words will encourage women to draw closer to God, whether that is through her fantasy series or her weekly devotionals.

Cornerstone Scripture:

“Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness…”

-Hebrews 3:8 KJV

If you’re a fan of superhero films, you may be familiar with Wolverine. A mutated human with the ability to heal from any injury, Wolverine is subjected to an experiment where the hardest metal in this fictional world, Adamantium, covers his bones. This causes him to be nearly invincible and immortal.

Can you only imagine if that metal coated your heart? How hard would it be? Even worse, what if it became so impenetrable that you couldn’t feel anything anymore?

This is exactly what God warns against in these verses. The Israelites continually whined and grumbled. This was despite the fact that God provided food and water for them and protected them from Pharoah’s might. Almost as soon as they were free, they turned to worshiping a golden calf (Exodus 32). This was just one of many sinful acts.

As a result of their evil, God exiled them to wander the wilderness for forty years, essentially waiting until the older generation died off and the younger generation took their place. The hope was that the younger generation would have softer and braver hearts to conquer the Promised Land. Ultimately, God wants our hearts to be softened to him, too (1 Samuel 16:7; Isaiah 29:13-14).

For a time, the new generation was faithful. But as any reader of the Old Testament knows, the Israelites struggled with remaining that way. Sometimes they had hearts for God, but other times they persecuted the Lord’s prophets.

This is exactly why God sent Jesus. He knew that human beings are incapable of having soft hearts on our own. Years before Jesus came, he made a promise to give people new hearts that would turn and worship him (Ezekiel 36:26). These hearts would be filled with the Holy Spirit instead of sin.

Some of you reading this may wish you had Wolverine’s ability. Maybe then you would be unable to feel pain or other troublesome emotions. Perhaps you’ve cut yourself off from others, afraid to hurt again. You might have distanced yourself from God because of some suffering that you’ve experienced.

Becoming like Wolverine isn’t the answer. Don’t push others or God away. Listen to the Holy Spirit and soften your heart. When you do, you may find him making it new.

Let’s pray.

Dear Lord, please help me to identify areas in my life where my heart has hardened. Help me to have a soft heart, knowing that you will mold it and cherish it, as you always have. In your Son’s name, Amen.