Rend your heart

And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. – Joel 2.13

The Old Testament custom in times of great grief or remorse or repentance was to tear of your clothes and sit amongst the ashes. It was visibly a humbling and embarrassing and shameful act. The problem was that though it may have been genuine at one point eventually it became nothing more than a show. If you sinned just tear your clothes and go sit in a pile of ashes and everything would be sorted.

The truth is though that it takes make more than a show of religiousity. Something has to happen inside before the outside does any good. As a song puts it you ‘have to change your heart before you change your shirt. God says here that the way back is to rend your heart and turn to the Lord. He is ready for us to turn back because God is gracious and merciful. He is slow to anger. He is kind and it is His nature to turn from His wrath and pour out mercy.

But it all starts, not with religion, but with a change of heart. There must be a work inside or all the religion in the world is only a waste.

We Christians need to be sure that we are not just playing a religious game and putting on a churchy show. All of us need to make sure things are right in our hearts or all the giving and going to church and amening and praising the Lord and singing the songs means nothing.