Ezekiel 36:26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
The heart is one of the most recognizable symbols of Valentines’ Day. There are cards with hearts, chocolate hearts, plush toy hearts, etc. A heart symbolizes love, caring, and compassion. In Ezekiel 36:26 God promised to give us a new heart. In some sense, it was like God’s Valentine to us.
God loves us and dearly wants a relationship with us. It is one of the great mysteries, at least to me, why the infinite, all-knowing and all-powerful Creator of the universe would want to have a relationship with a flawed creature such as myself, but the Bible assures us this is so.
Our dilemma is that sin has hardened our hearts to the point that we are incapable of responding to God’s love. The only hope for us to return God’s love is for Him to work in us and give us a new heart.
The whole of Ezekiel chapter 36 is about God’s mercy, redemption, and renewal of His people. God called Israel and made them a nation. He established them with His laws and statutes. They repeatedly rebelled but God continued to draw them back to Him and restore their relationship.
Too often Christians will criticize Israel, but we act individually as they did collectively. We regularly rebel (we call it sin) and turn our back on God and His truth. He then must draw us back to Himself.
God said that He will transform our heart that has been hardened by sin into a heart of flesh. A heart that can feel God’s love and is pliable to His will. A heart that can relate to God.
Most loving and gracious God. Thank you for Your mercy and compassion. Thank you for loving me and making it possible for me to return your love. Give me a heart that allows me to please You!