Knowing God With Your Head & Your Heart

June 21, 2007 by Shane Kastler.

Knowing Jesus with your head won’t save you. You must know Him with your heart. One of the most brilliant Jewish scholars of the 1^st century was a young man named Saul of Tarsus. By his own admission, he was advancing in Judaism “beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen , being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions.” (Galatians 1:14 NASB) Not only was Saul bright and zealous, he was also educated by the best Rabbi in all of Jerusalem. Gamaliel poured his vast Hebrew knowledge into his protégé Saul, and no doubt longed to see Saul reach the pinnacle of Judaism. Gamaliel was so highly respected in Jerusalem that he had earned a nickname among the Jews. They called him, “The Rabbi.” Not “A Rabbi” mind you, but “THE Rabbi.”

For a young Jewish man to be educated at the feet of Gamaliel would have been the 21^st century American equivalent of having a Ph.D. from Harvard. Just as the Old Testament King Saul was “head and shoulders” above his cohorts, so this New Testament Saul, was “head and shoulders” above his contemporaries in a Jewish intellectual sense. In fact, Saul may have even reached that pinnacle of Judaism by serving as a member of the ruling group of 70 men, known as the Sanhedrin. And it was about this time, when Saul was around 30 years of age…that he first became acquainted with the Name of Jesus.

Stephen was a Christian. And not just any Christian, he was a faithful, and you might even say, zealous Christian. In fact, he was to be the first Christian martyr, stoned for his faith by the 1^st century Jews. Saul was there when they killed him…and he couldn’t wait to see Stephen die. Saul hated Stephen, and everything Stephen stood for. When it came time to vote on his execution, Saul heartily cast his vote against him. (see Acts 26:10) But Stephen wasn’t quite ready to die. Though his death was imminent, he was going to go down in a blaze of glory. He would die preaching the very gospel that led to his fate. In Acts 7, we read Stephen’s final sermon. In an amazing combination of Old Testament history, reasoned argumentation, and Spirit empowered zeal, Stephen starts with Father Abraham and goes all the way to Jesus. As the Spirit inspired Stephen, his rapid-fire dialogue became more and more bold. With one final pronouncement of judgment upon the Jews, Stephen rails, “You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did. Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.” Acts 7:51-53 (NASB)

And now…Stephen must die. To say the Jews were livid would be the understatement of the millennium. They gnashed their teeth and charged him. Like any good thug, they first took off their coats. It wouldn’t do to get blood on the cashmere jacket. Saul, guarded their coats for them, while they furiously flung rocks at Stephen’s head and torso, until he was savagely bludgeoned to death. But Stephen’s final sentence was chilling: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” (Acts 7:60 NASB)

Saul was now, not only enraged…he was also inspired. Young men can be very dangerous, if they believe in a cause. Many have been willing to kill and be killed for something they believe in……even if they’re wrong. And so it was with Saul. He made it his life’s work to destroy these followers of Christ. He would chase them down. He would imprison them. If need be, he would see to their death. And yet, what was it about this message that SO ENRAGED Saul? Perhaps, it was because, way down deep within Saul…if he was honest…he had to admit, that Stephen’s gospel…………made sense. Saul HATED even thinking that…and would have never said it aloud. But that message stuck with him. That witness. That boldness of Stephen. Saul knew the Old Testament as well as anyone. And if he were honest, he had to admit, that Stephen’s sermon was right on. The Jews REALLY HAD killed the prophets sent to them. The Old Testament REALLY DID speak of a coming Messiah. And Jesus Christ fit the description down to the tiniest detail. Saul’s HEAD was starting to believe Stephen’s message……but his hardened heart, cried out against it. And at least for now, Saul’s emotion triumphed over his reason. He would destroy this Christian threat to his brand of Judaism.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Today, some people know the gospel, with their head. If you tell them of their sin and God’s forgiveness through Christ…they know that. If you tell them they deserve Hell, but can go to Heaven…they know that. If you point out that they’re life doesn’t show any commitment to Christ…they know that. They know ALL OF THIS, with their head….but Jesus must be bowed to…with the heart. The responses can be varied. Some people know they’re not living right and simply put off change. They plan to get right with God sometime before they die. Of course 99% of them NEVER WILL. Others, don’t seem to have plans of turning to Christ. They know the truth of the gospel with their heads……and it infuriates them. The more they hear it, the angrier they get! Any talk of Jesus, causes the blasphemy and insults to fly. They don’t want to hear about it! They want to destroy this message that is a threat to their sinful pleasures. They are……just like Saul.

Do you know what causes this anger? The Holy Spirit does. Conviction stings, and they want none of it. Jesus finally had enough of Saul’s antics. On a murderous rampage to Damascus, Saul is knocked off his horse, and flat on his back by none other than Jesus Christ Himself. The biggest problem (from Saul’s standpoint at least) was that Jesus had died. Everyone knew he had been crucified by the Romans, on behalf of the Jews. And yet this blinding figure, towering over the flattened Saul identified Himself, clearly: “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” (Acts 9:5) And then Jesus says something, very telling. Jesus reveals to Saul, and to every reader of the Bible, that the vicious killer Saul, had in fact, been mulling over the claims of the gospel. Saul had, in fact, been convicted by the Holy Spirit. Saul, had in fact, begun to see the truth of the gospel. Jesus said to Saul, “It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” (Acts 26:14)

Just like a stubborn cow that refuses to adhere to the shoot…Saul refused to submit to the gospel. His head could see that it was true. But his wicked heart refused to believe……until now. Saul, NOW, would be forever changed. “You are My chosen instrument,” Jesus said. And so it was. Finally Saul’s head and Saul’s heart converged at the feet of Jesus. There was no denying the resurrection, when the risen Christ is standing over you talking. And if the resurrection is true, then the gospel must also be true. Deep down, Saul knew this. His Old Testament knowledge clearly pointed to this Jesus of Nazareth as the long awaited Messiah. At last, Saul was saved.

The Lord’s conviction is a sheer gift of grace. So often, we kick against the very thing we know to be true and saving. God might let us continue on in that rebellion, and many do. They have rejected the truth and will pay for it in an Eternal Hell. Others submit to Christ. If you have come to Christ, be thankful for His Grace that saved you. It wasn’t your brilliance, nor your character…it was HIS GRACE. If you’re feeling that conviction right now…that’s also grace. Stop running. Bow before Him. Find forgiveness. Commit your life to Him. And be forever changed. Saul was. In fact he even changed his name. As a Jew, he went by Saul. But as a Christian he went by Paul. As in “The Apostle Paul.” He’s remembered to this day as one of the greatest followers of Christ.  He wrote half of the New Testament. And just as Gamaliel was known as “THE Rabbi.” Paul is often know as “THE Apostle.” He loved Jesus more than anything. He lived for Him, and He died for Him. And now…he worships Him forever, in Heaven. All true followers of Jesus will one day worship Him there too. Will you?

………

And Paul said, “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief.” (1 Timothy 1:12-13 NASB)

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