Our hearts are like a garden. For there to be long-lasting transformation often times truth needs to get to the core of our hearts –the truth (seeds) needs to be formed their and the lies (weeds) need to be uprooted so that the truth doesn’t get choked out. I think of passages like Jeremiah 1 and the parable of the sower. The core of our being – our hearts could also relate to our inner man – our spirit. The part of us that has been born again and now through the Holy Spirit, His Word, Christ in us, being a part of a body of believers, prayer, silence and solitude and other spiritual disciplines – Christ is formed in us – who He is and our new nature in Him is now at the core of who we are and that core affects what kind of flower, tree, plant etc will grow from our lives – what type of fruit we will produce. And that when our indwelling self is transformed by the Spirit – we will manifest the fruit of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal. 5:22-23) and our part in this is not passive – but rather we are in cooperation with God and submit to His working in us.
Dallas Willard cites 2 Peter chapter 1 in his book Renovation of the Heart – where Peter writes, "But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
The words ‘giving all diligence’ – suggests effort on our part – yet it is God who does the work in us. These spiritual disciplines also serve as means of grace in that we are called to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. As we practice the spiritual disciplines – we are sowing in the spirit and cultivating our spirit before the Lord. This results in more life – more eternal life in us and more abundant life to give to others. The spiritual disciplines are not the end – they are rather the means to know Christ more intimately, for us to be strengthened in our inner man, and to become imitators of God – wholly His. We can then look like the man or woman that is described in Psalm 1 – a tree planted by the water that bears much fruit in its season – whose leaves do not wither or fade away. We can allow God’s pruning, purging, cleansing, uprooting, planting, and molding – make us into what He wants us to be and also make us be what Christ has called us to be in the world.
