The honest and good heart of a born again believer
Arthur Pink wrote in “Holy Spirit:”
If you are unwilling to be tested and searched, that is clear proof that you lack an "honest heart."
An "honest" heart desires to know the truth.
An "honest" heart hates pretense.
An "honest" heart is fearful of being deceived.
An "honest" heart welcomes the most searching diagnosis of its condition.
An "honest" heart is humble and tractable, not proud, presumptuous, and self-confident.
O how very few there are who really possess an "honest heart."
Luke 8:15 "But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience."
Jesus taught us in the Parable of the sower that there are four types of ground whereby the hearts of all men may be represented. They are:
the wayside heart.
the stony ground heart.
the thorny ground heart.
the good ground heart.
Of these four types of heart, only the good ground heart is capable of bringing forth fruit meet for repentance. According to Luke 8:15, the good ground heart is an honest and good heart, but what is exactly an honest and good heart? The heart of a born again believer is like the ground by the rivers of water, as in:
Psalms 1:3 "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."
The best type of soil for planting crops is the "alluvial soil." According to www.sciencedirect.com, “Alluvial soil has the highest productivity with respect to other soils. It is present mostly along rivers and is carried by its streams during weathering of rocks.” The honest and good heart of a born again believer is also like alluvial soil, which is mostly found along river banks. It is the most productive type of ground whereby the "seed," which is the word of God (Luke 8:11) when sown can take root and bear fruit: some thirty, some sixty, and some a hundredfold.
2 Thessalonians 2:10 "And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved."
An honest and good heart is always characterized by the “love of the truth.” Precisely, because born again believers are saved by the grace of God through faith in the word of God. The word of God is the truth. Without the love of the truth, one cannot expect to have faith in the word of God. Then, there are those who claim salvation by decisionism. Again, Arthur Pink has this to say:
“We are not Christians at all unless we are servants of God, fully surrendered to His will, walking in obedience to His Word. Alas, Satan is deceiving so many today by leading them to suppose that they are savingly trusting in the “finished work” of Christ, while their hearts remain unchanged and self-will rules their lives. “He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1John 2:4). What could be plainer than that?” — Arthur Pink, “God’s Word and Obedience”
What is decisionism? Simply said, decisionism teaches that a person is saved based on the outward gestures he demonstrates rather than the inward conversion of his heart. It was a liberal theology developed by Charles G. Finney in the early 1800s. Most churches I've come across teach decisionism as a method of salvation. However, the Holy Bible is very clear. It is not the acts of coming to God that saves a person, for hypocrites also do the same. It is an “honest and good heart” that will bear fruit unto God. Without an honest and good heart, one cannot love the truth, and if one cannot love the truth, he cannot possibly know the way, the truth and the life. He cannot possibly know Jesus.
John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Without knowing "the way, the truth and the life," one cannot possibly come to God the Father. There is no other way under heaven whereby we are saved apart from the knowledge of the truth that is only found in the 66 books of the Holy Bible, and except for an honest and good heart, one can never come to the knowledge of the truth whereby we are liberated.
John 8:31-32 "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
John 8:36 "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed."
Only an honest and good heart that loves the truth is capable of continuing in the word of God, and the possessors thereof are the true disciples of Jesus Christ. They have known the truth and the truth has liberated them. They are the ones who Christ came and gave his life for. In John 6, we see two groups of disciples:
John 6:66 "¶ From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him."
John 6:66 is the place where we read that many of Jesus’ disciples went back, and walked no more with him. They did so because of a “hard saying” (John 6:60) that Jesus said to them, and they found it hard to accept. Bear in mind that those thousands of disciples just witnessed the miracle of the five fishes and two loaves. But even that, they still hardened their hearts and chose to walk no more with Jesus. That was when Jesus asked the few who stayed behind "Will ye also go away?" Notice the words of Simon Peter:
John 6:68-69 "Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. 69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God."
An honest and good heart of a born again believer is like Peter who said “Lord, to whom shall we go?” Yes, even the "hard sayings" (John 6:60) are the truth — very words of the LORD. But it is normally those hard sayings that most Christians find it hard to accept, because they attack the golden calf they are hiding in their hearts, a secret idol which they loved above the words of the LORD. These are "Christians" up to the point where they are made to choose between their idol and the Holy Bible. Ultimately, the truth has no effect on them because of their hearts.
James 1:18 "Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures."
The 66 books of the Holy Bible is “the word of truth,” and it is by the word of truth that God the Father has begotten a new man in us. Jesus Christ is “the Word” (John 1:1), and the Word is a reference to the 66 books of the Holy Bible. The Spirit of the LORD is in the 66 books of the Holy Bible. Jesus is the truth that came in the form of the Son of man. One cannot be decoupled from the other.
John 10:1 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber."
It is not possible for any man to come to Jesus except he first love the written word of God in the 66 books of the Holy Bible.
Revelation 2:4 "Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love."
The word of God must be his “first love,” without which he cannot bear fruit unto God. Only an honest and good heart is capable of being faithful to his first love, and the possessor of which will come seeking salvation in the word of God, and the Spirit of the LORD will open the door of the sheepfold for him. Any other means to come to Jesus is to enter into the sheepfold as a thief and a robber who climbeth in by “some other way.” (John 10:1) This includes those that teaches decisionism as a method of salvation, making others thieves and robbers in the sight of God.