Matthew 9: 3 At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!” 4 Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts?”
The response of the Lord to these teachers of the law who were accusing Jesus of blaspheming was—”why do you entertain evil thought sin your hearts?”
Jesus is here confronting the evil of sin—that undercurrent of unbelief that can taint the holy moments before the Lord. The word ‘entertain’ can also mean ‘allow’, ‘let it remain’, ‘let it ‘fester’, ‘infect’, ‘rot’, and ‘become septic’. The question that Jesus is asking is “Why do you in the midst of God’s holiness and goodness, let evil thoughts fester and infect your hearts?”
Are there inward thoughts that tend to fester in your heart, such as—I am not favored by God, I failed the Lord again, He must be really sick of me, my shame will always be with me, etc.
Today the message of the Lord is very clear: Do not entertain evil thoughts! For God is always good, will always do good, and His goodness will follow us all the days of our lives!
Spend time asking the Lord to cleanse our minds of ‘evil’ thoughts that are contrary to His love and grace. Spend time in worship today with the song ‘Fullness’ (click here).
-GK