“I the LORD search the heart
Jeremiah 17:10 NIV
and examine the mind,
to reward each person according to their conduct,
according to what their deeds deserve.”
There has been a lot of negative news recently, and I find myself reacting to what I see without trying to understand why it is occurring. It is very easy to pass judgement on the actions I see, whether good or bad, without understanding why they took place. It is much harder to understand why people are acting in the way they are. The motivations behind people’s actions are oftentimes overlooked. Motivations that, if I took the time and effort to understand, might well change my opinion about what took place.
Getting to the heart of a person’s motivation is difficult for me. I just don’t have access to a person’s inner thoughts. But God does. He knows exactly why a person does what they do. And the Lords judgement will be tempered by what he finds when he searches our heart and mind.
And this tempered judgement is not just associated with what we perceive as wrong. There are folks who do the right thing, but with the wrong motives. They are similar to the Pharisees Jesus accused of being like white washed tombs. Looking good on the outside, but full of dead men’s bones on the inside (Matt. 23:27-28). While we might judge them as good, God knows their heart and will judge accordingly.
The Lord searches the hearts and minds of all people, and they will be rewarded according. So make every effort to keep your motives pure. And look to be rewarded accordingly.
