#DailyDevotion The Heart Of The Wicked Is Only Evil Continuously
Psalm 36 The wicked man has rebellion in his heart. God doesn’t terrify him. 2He flatters himself in his own eyes, and is not aware of his sin to hate it. 3He talks only of doing wrong and deceiving, and has stopped doing what is wise and good. 4Lying on his bed, he plans to do wrong and sets himself on a course that’s no good. He doesn’t reject evil.
What a picture of humanity as a whole. Indeed all humanity is wicked. Even for Christians, this describes their fallen flesh. In Gen. 8:21, the LORD says, “man’s thoughts are evil from his youth,…” Paul says in Rom. 3, “9…We have already accused everyone, Jews and Greeks, that they are under sin, 10as the Bible says: No one is righteous, no, not one. 11 No one understands. No one is searching for God. 12All have turned away and have one and all become worthless.” Concerning our flesh, Paul says in Rom. 8, “7This is so because the fleshly mind hates God. It refuses to obey God’s Law because it can’t obey it.” Again, concerning our flesh, in Rom. 7 he says, “14…I am flesh, sold to be a slave of sin. 15I am doing something strange, because I don’t do what I want to do, but I do what I hate. 16And if I do what I don’t want to do, I agree that the Law is right. 17It is really no longer I who am doing it, but sin living in me. 18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh.”
So the wicked man has rebellion on his heart. That God punishes the wicked who do not repent, that doesn’t terrify them. They think evil is good and good is evil. We see this all around us these days. Those who are wicked only talk and plan what is evil. You should know, your flesh, when you are a Christian continues in this thinking even if in your spirit you think only the good things of God. We must continually be on the alert lest we let our flesh dominate us. Those who are wicked have no struggle. They do not reject evil but embrace. They will accuse you of being evil for pointing out their wickedness. They will hate you for it and call you hateful because you do not accept their wickedness. Pray continually that your flesh may not get excited by such people and you join them in their wicked ways.
5O LORD, Your mercy is high as the heavens, Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
Despite our wickedness, and despite the wickedness of humanity, the LORD’s mercy is as high as the heavens and his faithfulness reaches the clouds. The LORD does not want the wicked to perish and die. He wants us to turn from evil and to turn to Him. He desires to have mercy on all men and to forgive their sins. The proof of this is Jesus Christ. Jesus, lifted up on the cross, has drawn all to Himself to redeem it. He has taken upon His flesh our sins, our transgressions, our iniquity, our guilt and our shame and nailed it to the cross. The free gift of salvation is offered to all who confess their sins and turn from them. Everyone who believes Jesus did this for them receives the gift of the Holy Spirit and are now pleasing to God based on their faith in Jesus’ salvific work. This faith is the gift of God given through the Word and Sacraments.
Through these same means, our Father continues to keep us in this faith, has us reject wickedness and confess the LORD our God is good in all His thoughts, ways, and plans. His word of condemnation of our sins is good. His word of mercy in Christ Jesus is even better. His mercy overcomes our wicked hearts and minds and converts them to His heart and mind.
Heavenly Father, grant us to continually have the means of grace, that we may turn from our wicked flesh and to the mercy You have shown and given us in Christ Jesus, Your Son our LORD, and that we may live in Your grace forever. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.