The Holy of Holies

The Holy of Holies

"Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being." Psalm 51:6

Working at America's KESWICK has taught me so much about me -- my own wicked, sinful heart. Interacting with the men of the Colony has caused me to not look at them in judgment, but to look at my own heart.

There are occasions when we have to give a man a urine test if we suspect that he has somehow used his drug of choice (at least chemical like tobacco, alcohol or drugs). I tell the men that there are three things that they need to know about this test. I remind them that the results of this test will reveal what is going on. While we think we can lie and cover up, there are three people we can't lie to: 1. God 2. The Redwood Toxicology Lab, and 3. ourselves. We know the truth about US.

God desires truth in our inward being. Listen to these pointed words from Dr. Paul David Tripp, from his book Whiter Than Snow -- Meditations on Sin and Mercy:

In the holy of holies,
Where my deepest thoughts dwells.
In the secret place, of the heart,
Where no one sees,
And no one knows,
In that place where worship sets the course,
For all I say and all I do,
In the holy of holies,
Where thoughts afraid to be verbal,
And desires, never quite spoken, determine,
What I will seek, and say, and do.

In the holies of holies,
where greed lurks dark, and anger stands dangerous.
In the shadows, where lust captivates, and envy enslaves.
In that sacred place of the heart,
Where I plan what I will do, and rehearse what I will say.

In the holy of holies,
where love is born or succumbs to hate.
Where gentleness falls to vengeance.
In that place where thinking never ends,
and interpretations become a way of seeing.

In the holy of holies,
where feelings grow in power and overwhelm
what is sensible, good, and true.

In the holy of holies,
where I stand naked, all covering gone,
Before you, what I am, as I am, void of defense,
Stripped of excuse. No where to hide.
No reputation to polish.
In the place where YOU,
can see,
and hear,
and know.
May you do there what I cannot do.
May your create there what only mercy can give.
May you hold back what I deserve and give what I could never own.
May you create me a clean heart!

How are you today in the "holy of holies" of your heart? Do you desire truth in your "inward" being? Allow the Holy Spirit to work that truth into your heart today. -- Bill Welte is President and CEO of America's KESWICK

God's WORD for YOU: Proverbs 7; Jeremiah 40-42; Hebrews 4

He who is armed with the power of God will not tremble at the noise raised by the world, but will reckon it honorable that wicked men mark them with disgrace. -- John Calvin