A few weeks ago, I had a dental check-up. I entered the appointment thinking that everything was going to be okay. They started with X-rays to see things that aren’t visible to the naked eye. Then they began cleaning and checking the overall health of the mouth and gums. When the dental tech finished the cleaning, the dentist came in to give me his prognosis and diagnosis. He said everything looked great, but one of my molars had a soft white spot, and then he poked it with an instrument to demonstrate how it was weaker than expected. He said it was the beginning of a cavity, and we needed to remove it and come in for a filling in a few weeks.
Prior to this visit, my teeth didn’t hurt. I was unaware of the hidden problems within my mouth. Unchecked, my tooth would have continued to decay, and my issues would have worsened over time. For the most part, we have no idea what is happening in our mouths. Unless we have routine check-ups, we can harbor harmful conditions in our teeth. To put it another way, we are blind to our present situation, and we can often live ignorantly in a state of decay until something more traumatic happens. However, because of the expertise and knowledge of the dentist, I trusted his advice and was delivered from the ensuing threat.
As humans, we are blind to our corrupt condition. We think, “I am okay, I don’t have any pain or problems.” Or even more dangerous, we declare, “I’m good.” We stumble through life without knowing the true jeopardy of our position. Yet. When the Creator of the universe, described as the Life-Giving Spirit, communicates with us through His prophets and apostles, He says:
Jeremiah 17:9 NASB20 – “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?”
Mark 7:21-22 NASB20 – “For from within, out of the hearts of people, come the evil thoughts, [acts of] sexual immorality, thefts, murders, [acts of] adultery, 22 deeds of greed, wickedness, deceit, indecent behavior, envy, slander, pride, [and] foolishness.”
Romans 3:9-18, 23 NASB20 – “What then? Are we [the Jews] better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin, as it is written:
“THERE IS NO RIGHTEOUS PERSON, NOT EVEN ONE;
THERE IS NO ONE WHO UNDERSTANDS; THERE IS NO ONE WHO SEEKS OUT GOD;
THEY HAVE ALL TURNED ASIDE; TOGETHER, THEY HAVE BECOME CORRUPT; THERE IS NO ONE WHO DOES GOOD; THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.
THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN GRAVE; WITH THEIR TONGUES, THEY KEEP DECEIVING,
THE VENOM OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIP;
THEIR MOUTH IS FULL OF CURSING AND BITTERNESS;
THEIR FEET ARE SWIFT TO SHED BLOOD,
DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS,
AND THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN THE WAY OF PEACE.
THERE IS NO FEAR OF GOD BEFORE THEIR EYES.”…
23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
When we read this, we become aware of our actual disease. We think we are better than we are. We believe that we are impervious to decay, and the virtue of our character upholds us. Yet, we are rotting under the surface. Humanity has cavities that are not visible to the naked eye; therefore, we must trust the expertise and knowledge of the One who made us. That alone takes a considerable amount of faith; however, this is our understanding that we don’t have all the answers.
I think about the dentist poking my tooth to demonstrate the lack of hardness in my enamel. We can do the same thing spiritually. If we are honest with ourselves, we realize we aren’t perfect and have deficiencies. We can tell we are not complete. And no amount of metaphorical brushing or fluoride will fix our problem. First, sin-sickness must be rooted out and destroyed within our hearts. Then, we must fill our hearts with something else. Something more durable that is not prone to the harmful effects of sin. Something eternal and everlasting.
Ephesians 3:14-21 – “For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge–that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”
We must admit on some level that our hearts have these areas of decay and corrosion. How will we choose to fill our troubled hearts? Will we ignorantly dismiss the warnings presented to us? Or will we find our security in God and His Son, letting Him fill our emptiness or cavities?
Richland Church of Christ