The Ways of the Heart
Frank Allnutt

Section 3: The Ways of Christ-Hearted Man

Page 4: "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. We all know that heart disease is a major cause of death. Fatty foods are sometimes the culprit. Fat can plug arteries and actually form around the heart and in the heart muscle. And that can impede blood flow and heart muscle function. In acute cases, fatty foods can lead to death.

There is biblical evidence that the ancient Hebrews were knowledgeable about the damaging effects of an overly rich diet on the biological heart and that it can be a condition of the spiritual heart as well.

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.” The motivation to do so stems from a fattened spiritual heart.

There are numerous examples and references in Scripture regarding self-pampering. Some of those refer to a fattened heart, such as James 3:3, Psalm 119:70, and Isaiah 6:10.

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 person wrongly seeks worldly nourishment, and that at the expense of spiritual nourishment.

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

What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. And you are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God (James 4:1-4).

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 in a worldly sense, but all pamper self.
The Bible reveals that the Fat-Hearted Christian is:

a. 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 such worldliness he fattens his heart.

His undoing is in his doing. Such worldly Christians hear the Word, but “the worry of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful” (Matthew 13:22). Jesus said, “He who loves his life [worldy, fleshly, or soulish lifestyle] loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal” (John 12:25).

b. 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 narcissistic—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.

To know one’s true identity and to take it to heart is humbling, and the humble are not prideful.

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

This self-indulgent person may believe that his perceived “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.

d. Libertine
The Fat-Hearted Christian is not uncommonly Libertine in wrongful response to laws in general and to God’s laws in particular. This believer may hold to the philosophy that “the end justifies the means.” He ignores the Apostle Paul’s teaching that “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable” (1 Corinthians 6:12). His choices are wrongly based on profitability to self’s fleshly desires rather than on observing God’s laws as motivated by a spirit of love for Him and His law.

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 heart 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.

The spirit of man can endure his sickness, but a broken spirit who can bear? (Proverbs 18:14).

The Bible refers to some believers as having wounded or broken hearts or spirits (Psalm 34:18; 109:22; 147:3; Proverbs 18:14; Isaiah 61:1). This is not in reference to those who experience a disappointment and then “get over it” (Paul is an example; see Acts 21:13). It is Half-Hearted Christians who are in view here—believers who are spiritually or emotionally traumatized by a devastating event or by numerous negative circumstances in life over an extended period of time. They don’t just get over it. They typically compound their problem by responding to negative circumstances in fleshly, sinful, or worldly ways.

“Wounded” and “broken” are translated from several Hebrew words in the Old Testament. When referring to the heart or spirit, the literal meaning is usually “stricken” or “crushed.”

Wounded-Hearted Christians share some characteristics with Fat-Hearted Christians, in that they have not placed their love, faith and hope in Christ, but rather in self, the world, and circumstances. Furthermore, they have not reached a point of giving up on self, repenting, and totally yielding themselves to God.

We discussed above how the Fat-Hearted Christian has confidence in self, has been “successful” in a worldly sense, and has, for the most part, experienced “positive” circumstances in life. A frequent result is that he experiences pridefulness, an elitist attitude toward self, and a self-deceiving sense of self-sufficiency.

The Wounded-Hearted or Broken-Hearted Christian, by contrast, may have little confidence in self, has not fared well in the world, and may have suffered much loss and suffering through adverse circumstances. He has attempted to get ahead in life by walking according to the flesh, but it has not worked out well for him. And yet he is not ready to give up on fleshly self and to trust God.

Let’s look at some typical functional characteristics of the Wounded-Hearted or Broken-Hearted Christian:

• Negative mind set. This believer dwells on painful memories, often seeing past experiences at their worst, ignoring the good, and even exaggerating the negatives of his life. He has become conditioned to detest the present and to fear the future. Worry, doubt, fear, and anxiety fill his soul. Such emotions are sinful because as each increases, loving faith in God and His Word diminish. When such emotions are not overcome with loving faith, “sin-debt” accumulates in the soul of the heart, dividing it from the spirit and the indwelling Spirit of Christ.—the residue of sinfulness.
  
  
• False identity. The Wounded-Hearted or Broken-Hearted Christian does not understand or experience his identity as a righteous new-hearted, new creature in Christ. He has based his identity on negative circumstances, rejection, failure, and sinful behavior, and this frequently results in poor self-esteem and a self-depreciating spirit or attitude. He may see himself as a victim who is doomed to go through life suffering. He expects to be victimized and exposed to even more and greater suffering. This makes him distrustful of others, especially of God. Because of his skepticism, he may misinterpret the mercies of God and good intentions of others to further “prove” that he is a victim and a sufferer. He may use his plight as an attention-getting means, only to find fault with those who care. And when his suffering and pain go unnoticed, he feels rejected, hurt, and all the more a victim and sufferer.
  
  
• Depression. This Christian has not achieved the level of self-sufficiency and comfort he has worked so hard to attain. He has become depressed (marked by feelings of loneliness, unfulfillment, disillusionment, defeatism, inability to cope, hopelessness, worthlessness, and unworthiness) because he cannot better control circumstances in life according to his will. He uses tactics of verbal and written communications, body language, behavior, and life-style to draw attention to life’s unfairness to him. However when others respond with sympathy he may turn against them and accuse them of not truly understanding or caring.
  
  
• Blames others. Rather than acknowledge the insufficiency of his own efforts, he may blame others and negative circumstances for his plight. He may even blame God, and will not trust Him.
  
  His soul has been negatively conditioned to disbelieve certain promises of God. For example, he may be familiary with Psalms 147:3 that speaks of Jesus: “He heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds,” but is resentful because he sees no healing in his life. This Christian may early on believe that, “God causes all things to work together for good...” (Romans 8:28a), but when circumstances do not improve, as he appraises them, his faith and trust in God wane. This believer ignores the rest of God’s promise which points to his role in the relationship: “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose.”
  
  A believer who walks according to the flesh is not “living out” his love for God and his calling by God because he walks in sin and fleshliness, and not in loving faith and in the Spirit. Paul writes that, “the one who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption” (Galatians 6:8).
  

A Wounded-Hearted Christian may go through a time of trying harder and praying more, but it seems to him that God no longer hears or cares. Some simply give up on self, others, and God. They may become bitter and resentful, and the wounds of their heart do not heal. Their heart may become hardened toward God and His Word. But circumstances only worsen and suffering increases. Life may become unbearable, and this may lead to the intensification of bitterness and increased resentment toward God and others.

What the Wounded-Hearted Christian ultimately does not comprehend is that his trials are allowed by God for the purpose of brokenness—to break him of self-will and self-reliance, and to turn to God out of loving obedience and trust.

5. The Double-Hearted Christian (Figure 3-7)

The Bible also speaks of the Double-Hearted Christian. This person does not actually have two spiritual hearts, but he functions as though he does. His heart fluctuates between self-centeredness and Christ-centeredness, fleshliness and spiritualness. In modern parlance, it is sometimes said that this person has a “Jekyll and Hyde personality” or a “split personality.”

The “double heart” is mentioned in Psalm 12:2, and “undivided heart” in 1 Chronicles 12:33 is in reference to a person without a “double heart.”

Practically synonymous with the “double heart” is the “double mind.” In the Greek of the New Testament, the “double-minded” believer is literally said to have “two souls” (Greek psuchē). However, the literal rendering is figurative in meaning: This believer only behaves as if he has two minds or two souls. Sometimes he chooses to live righteously, and other times he chooses to live sinfully.

James wrote of the “double-minded man, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:8). This vacillating condition between self-centeredness and Christ-centeredness arises when a person has not totally surrendered or forsaken all things apart from Christ, and has not totally surrendered or yielded all things to Christ. This person believes in God, but places more confidence in the flesh and the world than in God.

In Romans 7, Paul flashes back to his pre-salvation days as a devoutly religious though unregenerate Jew when he experienced a type of double-mindedness. “One mind” wanted to observe God’s law (good desire), but his “other mind” quite often compelled him to yield to his “old man” sinful nature (evil desire).

The war between the “two minds” of the believer is most intense in the conscience, with one “rein” or “kidney” fighting for the sake of righteous behavior, and the other fighting for sinful behavior. This fleshly believer either commits actual sin or hypocritically allows law to substitute for his conscience and does what is apparently righteous. The latter response may satisfy the letter of the law, but not the spirit of the law.

To use a contemporary example, this believer might donate a considerable sum of money to his church or a ministry to apparently satisfy the “law” of tithing, but all the while his true motive is to receive a lucrative tax benefit; were it not for the tax write-off, he would not make the donation. So, while his donation satisfied the letter of the law, it did not satisfy the spirit of the law because it was not done out of a love-motivated, pure heart.
__________________

Section Index >
__________________

Click here for further reading on this web site as well as available books, booklets and DVDs.