The Whole-Hearted Christian

Frank Allnutt

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Part 3: Varieties of Half-Hearted Christians
Scripture describes many varieties of half-heartedness, or fleshliness, among believers. Because of limited space, we will examine only six of the most common varieties:

1. Hard-Hearted Christians

2. Shallow-Hearted Christians

3. Fat-Hearted Christians

4. Broken or Wounded-Hearted Christians

5. Double-Hearted Christians

6. Broken and Contrite-Hearted Christians

Jesus taught about the condition and modes of the heart
The condition of the heart was of utmost importance to Jesus, and He taught on the subject frequently. In the following passage, He addressed a question about what food is permissible to eat, and in doing so gave us insight into what defiles the heart of man:

And after He called the multitude to Him, He said to them, “Hear, and understand. Not what enters into the mouth defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”

Then the disciples came and said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this statement?”

But He answered and said, “Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

And Peter answered and said to Him, “Explain the parable to us.”

And He said, “Are you still lacking in understanding also?

“Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated?

“But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man.
“For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.

“These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man” (Matthew 15:8, 9).

On another occasion, Jesus said, “For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. The good man out of his good treasure [in his heart] brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of his evil treasure [in his heart] brings forth what is evil” (Matthew 12:34b, 35).

In teaching the Beatitudes, Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). Is it not logical to assume that only those with pure hearts are qualified to receive the other blessings mentioned by Jesus?

The parable of the sower
Now, let’s consider what Jesus taught about the modes of the heart in His parable of the sower:

And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. And others fell upon the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. And others fell on the good soil, and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear” (Matthew 13:3-9).

The disciples asked to have the parable explained to them, and the response of Jesus is recorded in verses 19-23. As we read through these verses, I’ll make comment.

Jesus began His explanation by saying, “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart.” This verse indicates that the sower is a witness, the seed is the Word of God, and the soil is the spiritual heart. The hard soil by the wayside is too hard for the seed to take root. This person has a hard heart and so rejects the Word.

Jesus continued, “And the one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word, and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away.” Having “no firm root” indicates that this man has a shallow heart: The Word establishes shallow roots in his soul but not deep roots in his spirit.

Jesus then explained the third type of heart: “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.” This man has a worldly heart that “cultivates” the things of the world at the expense nurturing the Word. This brings to mind the question, “How does your garden grow?”

Then Jesus explained the fourth man: “And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundred fold, some sixty, and some thirty” (verse 23). This man has a whole heart—functionally united soul and spirit—that is open to receive and understand, through the Holy Spirit’s illumination, the truth of God’s Word. As a result, the Word in his heart is dynamically alive and produces “fruit for God” (Romans 7:4).

In summary, then, Jesus mentioned four modes of heart:

1. the hard heart

2. the shallow heart

3. the worldly heart

4. the understanding heart

The context of our Lord’s parable of the sower suggests that He applied the various modes of the heart to the reaction of nonbelievers on hearing the gospel. As we move further along in our study, we will discover that those modes of heart are also found in some Christians and in their response to the Word of God.

It is of utmost importance to keep in mind that the modes of the heart refer to the variable conditions, functionalities, and behaviors of the individual and do no refer to the absolute characteristics of the person’s ontological make-up, spiritual relationships, or position.

Now, let’s begin a closer look at the varieties of Half-Hearted Christians.

Figure 4: The Hard-Hearted Christian

God promised that He would “remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of “flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26). This promise was fulfilled in you at the time of your salvation. At that moment you were baptized into Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection (Romans 6:3-6; Galatians 2:20). This united you with Him in an everlasting relationship. Concurrently, your petrified old heart was removed and replaced with a new spiritual heart of “flesh.” “Flesh” here does not mean fallen nature, but rather stands in contrast to a heart that is stone-cold dead. This heart of flesh is a new heart that is soft and alive. It has relationship with God, and is capable fellowship with Him and of spiritual growth.

Though all believers are substantively “softhearted,” we can, at any time, function hardheartedly, as if we still had stone-hard hearts. Paul quoted God to his “holy brethren”:

"Do not harden your hearts as when they provoked Me, as in the day of trial in the wilderness, where your fathers tried Me by testing Me, and saw My works for forty years. Therefore I was angry with this generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; and they did not know My ways’; as I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest.’” Take care, brethren, lest there should be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart, in falling away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end; while it is said, “Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me” (Hebrews 3:8-15; see also 4:7).

On two occasions, the disciples experienced a conditional hardening of their hearts. The first came after the incident of the loaves and when Jesus walked on the water to reach His disciples in their boat. Mark wrote that, “they had not gained any insight from the incident of the loaves, but their heart was hardened” (Mark 6:45-52). The second incident came after the multitude of 4,000 was fed the fish and loaves, when the disciples discovered they had no bread left for themselves. Jesus said to them, “Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a hardened heart?” (Mark 8:17).

Both of those incidents infer that believers can experience a conditional hardening of the heart.

Functional hardheartedness in the Christian refers to a hard-shelled soul with a closed and skeptical mind toward God and His Word. Due to this hardness, the mind, emotion, and will are also closed to the enlightenment and filling of the Holy Spirit.

Hardheartedness in the Christian can be a prolonged condition or episodic, particularly in times of distress. Hardheartedness can be of a “show me” “doubting Thomas” kind. It might be directed toward certain aspects of God’s Word, such as His promises, prophecies, and His declared love, faithfulness, and sufficiency for the believer. This person may even experience a temporary period of doubting that Jesus is “real.” Such doubt and unbelief will divide the Christian’s heart and strain if not severe his fellowship with God. But it will not result in the severance of his relationship with God. The believer’s salvation, in all of its implications—including a new heart and the indwelling of the Spirit of Christ—is absolute, permanent, and irreversible. A believer can fall away from God in terms of fellowship, but not in terms of relationship.

We need to be clear on this point: Hardness of heart, and thus functional division of the soul and spirit, is a condition brought about by sin. Referring back to Hebrews 3:13, Paul warns us not to let our hearts become hardened by the “deceitfulness of sin.”

Figure 5: The Shallow-Hearted Christian

In the parable of the sower, Jesus spoke of the seed “sown on the rocky places.” He explained that, “this is the man who hears the word, and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away” (Matthew 13:20, 21). Such a believer is a Shallow-Hearted Christian— spiritually immature. The Word takes shallow root in his soul but not deep root in his spirit. In good times, he rejoices in God and his Christianity, but in times of affliction and persecution, he drifts away from fellowship with the Spirit of Christ.

Shallow-heartedness is common among new believers and others who have experienced stunted spiritual growth.

Figure 6: The Worldly or Fat-Hearted Christian

Continuing on in the parable of the sower, Jesus next spoke of “the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns.” He explained, “this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful” (Matthew 13:22). Such a believer is a Worldly-Hearted Christian. Scripture also describes him as Fat-Hearted because his heart is fattened by worldliness.

“Fat-hearted” is a very rich metaphor. Heart disease is a major cause of death in America. Obesity is pandemic, and “fatty” foods are the culprit. Fat forms around the heart, causing excessive strain on it, and cholesterol clogs the arteries and reduces or stops blood flow to the heart.

There is biblical evidence that the ancient Hebrews were knowledgeable about the damaging effects of an overly rich diet on the biological heart. In the book of James, reference is made to the “fattened heart,” which literally is the “wheat-strained” heart (James 5:5). Here we see a correlation between a fattened biological heart and a fattened spiritual heart. To “fatten” (Greek, trepho) is to “pamper oneself with nourishment,” biologically or spiritually, and not uncommonly both at the same time. There are numerous examples and references in Scripture regarding fatness or self-pampering. Two of those refer to a fattened heart: The one by James, and another in Psalm 119:70. Believers as well as non-believers can have fat spiritual hearts, because the fat spiritual heart is not ontological but the product of behavior.

The believer’s spiritual heart must be nourished psychologically and spiritually to satisfy certain needs and desires. We “feast our eyes” upon things of wholesome beauty and wonder, “digest” Scripture, “eat” the body of Christ, and “drink the blood” of Christ’s covenant (Matthew 26:26-28). However, the self-indulgent, Fat-Hearted Christian wrongly seeks worldly nourishment.

James offers more insight into the soulical condition and behavior of the Fat-Hearted Christian:

Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rush will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasures! Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter (James 5:1-5).

Not all Fat-Hearted Christians are rich, but all pamper self.

The Bible reveals that the Fat-Hearted Christian is:

• Worldly. The Fat-Hearted Christian so loves his worldly life-style that his quest for self-aggrandizement and self-sufficiency take him to great lengths to protect his worldly possessions, social standing, and wealth. His dependence on such worldly resources, coupled with fear of losing them, have conditioned him to develop a complex structure of self-protective measures.
  
  He may profit greatly (in worldly terms) from interaction with the world. He depends on the world to help him meet his needs and desires.
  
  Indeed, he loves the world and his worldly life-style. And he pampers himself with a rich diet of worldliness—a diet of reaping financial gain, a higher social status, a greater sense of self-importance, more controlling power over others, a prestigious reputation. Through all his pursuits he fattens his heart.
  
  But his undoing is in his doing. Jesus said such worldly believers hear the Word, but “the worry of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful” (Matthew 13:22). And “He who loves his life [worldly life-style] loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal” (John 12:25).
  

• Prideful. The fattened heart is a “puffed-up” heart—a heart that is self-absorbed and prideful. “Puffed-up” (Greek, phusioo) mans to inflate, as inflating one’s ego. Paul admonished the Corinthians for being puffed-up (1 Corinthians 4:6, 18, 19; 5:2; 13:4), and pointed out to the Colossians that a puffed-up heart is caused by a fleshly mind (Colossians 2:18).
  
  This prideful believer is self-centered, arrogant and conceited. He places self above others, regards himself as superior, and credits himself for his self-sufficiency. He probably does not know his true identity, and so he proudly perceives who he is in terms of his physical appearance and prowess, wealth, social standing, intellect, and so on. His self-centeredness, arrogance and conceit may well be self-protection mechanisms born out of the insecurity of the transient nature of his pseudo identity and the potential insufficiency of his self-sufficiency.

• False Identity. His mind set and behavior are inconsistent with his true identity (a new-hearted, new creature in Christ), and so he proudly perceives who he is in terms of his physical appearance and prowess, wealth, social standing, intellect, and so on. His self-centeredness, arrogance and conceit may well be self-protection mechanisms born out of the insecurity of the transient nature of his pseudo identity and the potential insufficiency of his self-sufficiency.

  To know one’s true identity and to take it to heart is humbling, and the humble are not prideful. Scripture tells us that “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling” (Proverbs 16:18).

• Self-indulgent. The news media often inform us of wrong doings of Christians in high places who have fattened their hearts and feathered their nests with worldly luxuries by exploiting their God-given positions of leadership and influence for selfish gain.

  This self-indulgent person may believe that his “good works” has earned him favor over others with God, for which he is rewarded special worldly as well as heavenly blessings.

  I once met a TV evangelist who lived in a Spanish villa on a vast estate. I learned that he and his gaudily-bejeweled wife drove luxury cars and vacationed at exotic places throughout the world—all in the name of “ministry” and, of course, at ministry expense. Though this wealthy evangelist paid himself extremely well from donated funds to the ministry, his staff were so lowly paid that even his top management qualified for food stamps. This man fits the biblical description of a Fat-Hearted Christian.

  Fat-Hearted Christians consider their wealth, possessions, time—their very lives—to be their own to do with as they wish. Paul contends that we belong to Christ and are beholden to Him: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19, 20).
  Since we belong to Christ, then all we have belongs to Him. We are to be good stewards of what He has entrusted to us. This is not to say that the Lord will not bless us with certain things for our own enjoyment and comfort. And for reasons known only to Him, He chooses to give to some more than He gives to others. When it comes to the responsibility of stewardship, however, the parable of the talents, as taught by Jesus, makes clear that, “to everyone who has shall more be given, and he shall have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away” (Matthew 25:29). Each of us must examine the motives of our hearts and learn to trust Him in all things, to be content in all things and not covet, and to be good stewards of all He entrusts to us.