The mystery of spiritual heart failure

Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken (Luke 21:26 KJV)

Heart failure is a medical condition in which the heart fails to do its job as a pump to send blood to the organs of the body. The most common cause of heart failure is coronary artery disease. When the heart fails, one key symptom is fatigue that results as the muscles do not get enough blood. The scripture above teaches us that the spiritual heart of man( the inside of us with our emotions, thoughts and will) can also fail. I have called this condition “spiritual heart failure”.

Luke 21:26 tells us “men’s hearts failing them for fear” as they will watch the events taking place on the earth as the end of the world draws near. It tells us here that fear causes people’s hearts to fail. As with the natural heart, when the spiritual heart fails, it affects the entire person. This is a critical truth to grasp. Joshua 2:11 gives us a classic description of spiritual heart failure and its symptoms: “And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man”. When the heart fails, everything about the person, emotions, intellect, will, and their physical body gets affected. Fear incapacitates, that is, makes us function below our normal capacities.

One of the military tactics military generals used in the Old Testament was to instill fear in their enemies. Why? Fear by itself will damage and weaken them even before the enemy army attacks. Do you see why Satan loves fear with all his heart? Fear makes his job so easy. Heed the word of the Lord and fear not, guard your heart from anything that causes your spiritual heart to fail including fear (Prov. 4:23)

MEDITATE

I want you to take a moment and answer these questions before you continue: what is spiritual heart failure described above? What is one cause as described above? How does it manifest?

APPLY THE WORD

When our hearts fail, everything else will fail. Fear is only one cause of heart failure. Other causes I often write about are depression or sorrow in the heart or bitterness. Guard your heart with all diligence for it will determine the quality of life you will have( Prov. 24:23)