A Heart Like His Series

A. The story is told of a doctor who told his rich, old man that he was going to die if he didn't get a new heart soon.

1. The old man told the doctor to search the world for the best heart available, and money was no object.

2. A few days later the doctor called the old man and said he found three hearts but they are all expensive.

3. The old man reminded the doctor that he was filthy rich and implored him to tell him about the donors they came from.

4. “Well, the first one belonged to 22 year old marathon runner, never smoked, ate only the most healthy foods, was in peak condition when he was hit by a bus. No damage to the heart, of course. But it costs $100,000!”

5. The doctor continued, “'The second one belonged to a 16 year old long-distance swimmer, a high school kid. Lean. He drowned when he hit his head on the side of the pool. That

heart'll set you back $150,000!”

6. The doctor continued, “The third heart belonged to a 58 year-old man, smoked three packs of cigarettes a day, weighed over 300 pounds, never exercised, drank like a fish... this heart is going for $500,000!!!”

7. “Five-hundred grand?!?!” the old man exclaimed, “why so expensive?”

8. “Well,” said the doctor, “this heart belonged to a lawyer, so it was never used!”

9. I don’t mean to offend any lawyers among us, I just couldn’t resist using the joke.

B. Today we begin a series where we are going to be talking about having a heart like Jesus.

1. But, as I’m sure you know, we are not going to be talking about Jesus’ physical heart, rather we will be talking about His spiritual heart; the character of His heart; the attitude of His heart.

C. As you know, makeover shows have been very popular in the last few years.

1. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition has been the most watched of any makeover show.

2. May shows from the Today Show, to Oprah regularly have makeover segments where people are chosen from the audience to get a new clothes and a hairstyle.

3. Our family likes to watch Restaurant Impossible broadcast by the Food Network.

a. In each episode, Chef Robert Irvine is given the "mission" of making the impossible possible by renovating a failing restaurant.

b. He must be finished after two days, and can only spend $10,000.

D. The good news for us is that God is also in the makeover business.

1. His kind of makeover is also extreme – He takes the very worst of who we are, heals, forgives and enables us to become just like Jesus.

2. God makes us into new creations. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor. 5:17).

3. Rather than just some kind of external transformation, God does His work from the inside out.

4. In order for us to be able to look like and act like Jesus on the outside, first we must become like Him on the inside.

5. That’s why the place we must begin is in the heart.

E. God loves us just the way we are, but He refuses to leave us that way. He wants to help us to be just like Jesus.

1. This might explain why we face challenges and experience some discomforts in our lives – we are a “work-in-progress.”

2. Remodeling of the heart can be uncomfortable, just like surgery is uncomfortable.

F. C.S. Lewis wrote: “When I was a child, I often had a toothache, and I knew that if I went to my mother, she would give me something which would deaden the pain for that night and let me get to sleep. But I did not go to my mother - at least not till the pain became very bad.

And the reason I did not go was this: I did not doubt she would give me the aspirin; but I knew she would also do something else. I knew she would take me to the dentist the next morning. I could not get what I wanted out of her without getting something more, which I did not want. I wanted immediate relief from my pain; but I could not get it without having my teeth set permanently right. And I knew those dentists; I knew they would start fiddling about with all sorts of other teeth which had not yet begun to ache.”

G. Our Lord is like the dentist.

1. Many go to Him to be cured of some particular problem.

2. We want a simple aspirin and quick relief of pain.

3. Certainly, God will treat the pain, but He will not stop there. God is not content to simply remove the pain.