Inside Out
Scripture Reading — Hebrews 4:7-13
“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”
Hebrews 4:7
Rededication or recommitment never begins on the outside. It always begins on the inside. No wonder God said, “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts” (Jeremiah 31:33).
There are many ways to describe an external cleaning. We scrub, polish, and paint. We give the outside a new look. The exterior is shined and cleansed. People walk by and say, “Wow! The place looks brand-new.” But if the inside also needs changing and nothing inside is redone, the result is only a face-lift.
Suppose an old warehouse is sold to new owners who gut the place for a new use: upscale apartments. When the transformation is complete, the building is rededicated to the new use. An open house puts it on display, and a rededication event is held. There is celebration because the inside is new.
Hebrews 4 reminds us that God is not satisfied if we only clean up a few bad habits. Those are externals. God desires an extreme makeover of our inner lives. His law must penetrate our thinking and feeling so that we become new people from within.
If that has happened in your life, then it is time for a rededication celebration. God has changed our lives for his honor and for the benefit of others.
God our Father, open our hearts today to have you do an extreme makeover of our inner lives, that we may honor you in all we do. Thank you, Jesus. Amen.
About the author — Jack Gray
Jack Gray recently retired after forty years as a pastor in the Christian Reformed Church. During that time he served seven churches from coast to coast in the United States. He and his wife, Wanda, have four sons and three grandchildren. They also have ministered to 44 foster children. This month’s devotions are inspired by his reflections on time at this transition in his life.
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