Devoutness

What does it mean to be committed to God, to love and worship Him, to be neither cold nor lukewarm but hot in dedication to Him?

Clearly, it does not merely mean to experience an emotional response to God; for, if it did, then us Christians would be swinging in and out of devotion as our feelings fluctuate, and the bulk of our spiritual lives would be considered cold, or worse, lukewarm. No; happy and fuzzy emotions are not identical to devoutness.

But nor can it mean to merely obey many of God’s commands, or at leat to be a good person who strives to uphold moral duties; for, if it did, then many non-Christian or non-religious people would be “committed” to God.

What, then, does it mean to be a devout Christian? The answer, I believe, is suggested in David’s prayer in Psalm 86:11:

O Lord, teach me how you want me to live. Then I will obey your commands. Make me wholeheartedly committed to you (NET).

This prayer expresses a heart that strongly, sincerely, deeply wants to be devoted to God. And therein lies the irony: to want to be devout is to be devout; to have a strong desire to love God is to love God; to have a heart that yearns to be committed to God is to be committed to God; for such a heart naturally produces spiritual obedience and worship and perseverance. Thus, Jesus tells us, “If you love me, you will obey my commandments” (John 14:14), and “the one who remains in me – and I in him – bears much fruit, because apart from me you can accomplish nothing” (John 15:5).

So, to answer our initial question: to have a heart that yearns for God is to be a devout Christian. And I, for one, yearn for God. How about you?