Can You Trust Your Heart?

Many critics of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints warn those who come in contact with the church, that deceit will be used to ensnare them. What deceit are they talking about? The Mormons will tell you to ask God in prayer if what they are teaching is true. The Mormons teach that God will manifest the truth to your heart, "like a burning in your bosom."

Then the critic will say, "do not pray to know if what they are teaching is true, for the heart can deceive you!" They will then quote scriptures like "out of the heart proceed evil thoughts."(Matt 15:19)

The logic of the critics on this point has always been hard for me to understand. How do they expect a man to know the things of God unless God reveals it to him?  Since most critics acknowledge that God does not verbally answer their prayers, how does He communicate his truths to them?  How does He help them know that a scripture means what they say it means, or means what they have been taught it means?  The post below will try to answer why the LDS people teach that man may know the truth by inquiring of the Lord and how He will respond by sending us impressions into our Hearts.

The LDS often share a scripture with those who are looking into joining the church. Moroni 10:3-5 which encourages the readers of the Book of Mormon that when "ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your heart(s)... I would exhort you that ye would ask God...in the name of Christ, if these things (are) true." Then the qualifier " if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you by the power of the Holy Ghost." This seems like straight forward direction for having God reveal his will to us. But many critics try to claim that this method is not biblical and that God never worked this way.

Paul tells us in 1 Cor 2:7-10 "we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the world unto our glory....But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things,yea, the deep things of God." Here we learn that God’s wisdom is a mystery and hidden before the world. We also see that man doesn't have the ability according to this verse to "think" (or make-up) in his heart the things of God. It is true that if man relies on his own heart, it will deceive him.  If man opens up his heart to the spirit of God; God will reveal his truths to him.  

So, how are we to gain an understanding of the wisdom of God?

Jam 1:5 says "if any of you lack wisdom,let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."

How will it be given?

 By the Spirit-see 1 Cor 2:10- this sounds strangely familiar…Where have I heard that before?  Oh yeah… Moroni  10:3-5. 1 Cor 2:14 says "the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." According to this verse, the scriptures tell us once again that man cannot find out Gods truth's on his own (aka “the natural man”), apart from God.

So how does the Spirit communicate these truths to us?

In Acts 2:37 the apostles have been teaching a gathering of Jews about the truth of Jesus Christ. When they are done speaking, the scriptures say, "Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart(s), and said unto....the apostles, Men and brethren what shall we do?” The Spirit touches the heart (or as Paul says the Spirit of man: Romans 8:16,27) of the people that they feel a need to follow Christ.

What is the heart for?

In the strictest sense, it is an organ used to circulate blood throughout the body. Yet, look at some of the ways God refers to the use of the "heart" in the scriptures. Isaiah 29:13- "as this people draw near [unto] me with their mouth, and ...do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me." Also Jeremiah 31:33- " but this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law... in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people." The Lord is using the heart as a symbol of the inner man. How will we know if our hearts are far from God, or whether his law is in our hearts? Through the feelings we receive from the spirit of God! 

Look at Luke 24:27-32- here the Lord appears in disguise to two of his disciples, as he reveals the scriptures to them. In verse 27- "beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he [Jesus] expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself."

What was the result of Christ teaching them out of the scriptures?

Verse 31-32 says, "and their eyes were opened, and they knew him: and he vanished out of their sight.  And they said one to another Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?" So we see that the Spirit confirmed the truth of what Christ was teaching them from the scriptures by what they felt in their hearts.

Listen to the words of Jesus himself:  "therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand." (Matt 13:13) Then he continues, "by hearing ye shall hear and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see and shall not perceive; For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should ...understand with their heart and should be converted, and I should heal them." (Matt 13:14-15) The Lord explains that those who rely on hearing and seeing in order to understand the gospel are missing it. (much like our critics who say we must not listen to feelings). But the Lord gives them the remedy, they could "understand with their heart and (be) converted, and (He) should heal them."(Matt 13:15)

Paul informs us in Eph 4:17-20 how not to be like the unbelievers.

"That ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind. Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, Because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness."

Are the critics once again yelling that the LDS people are teaching things that are not "biblical"?  While simultaneously ignoring the Bible truths that are taught that discredit their claims??? The answer is of course they are! The truth is that if people took the experiment of praying to God with a sincere heart, God would make the truth knows to those individuals by the power of the Holy Ghost.

They would not only know that their answer was correct, they would also feel it.

Paul showed how the critics of his day were blinded in their hearts too when it came to understanding the scriptures and how to gain knowledge of Godly things. "But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon (their minds???....noooo! it was…) their heart." (2 Cor 3:14-15) All one needs to do in order to know the things of God is to open their heart, and allow the spirit of God to fill it with the feelings of the Spirit, "but the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith." (Gal 5:22)

Paul reminds us in Rom 10:10 "for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness." The question to ask is why are critics trying so hard to keep people from following God’s plan?  What is God’s plan? Doctrine and Covenants 9:7-8 God’s plan is to search out answers in your mind, to ask for understanding on God’s word, and to listen to the feelings of the heart.  (Whereby, you will hear God’s voice.)

Maybe the prophecy of Paul to Timothy is being fulfilled right before our eyes:  "in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves...without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, in continent, fierce, despisers of those that are good...having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away" (2 Tim 3:1-5)

And why does Paul warn to turn away from such as these?

  The critic says, do not ask God, because he will not make that knowledge known to you, that man’s heart is too deceitful for God to penetrate.  The critics are right on one thing, that God will never penetrate their heart, if they do not ask Him to.  They seek learning outside the realm of God’s biblically approved method.  So turn away from such as these because they are "ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth." (2 Tim 3:7)

"Feelings, nothing more than feeeeelings"....Unless they come from GOD!