1st John 3:18-22, “My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.”
Proverbs 15:3, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.”
I struggled for quite some time trying to understand what verse 20 means, “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.” I absolutely love that precious truth, “God is greater than our heart.” We have all experienced guilt over our sins and failures in life. Some would call it “religious scrupulosity.”
Religious scrupulosity is a subtype of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) characterized by intrusive thoughts about moral or religious issues, leading to excessive guilt and compulsive behaviors aimed at alleviating that guilt. SOURCE
1st John 3:18-22 emphasizes that true love is demonstrated through actions rather than just words, urging Christian believers to show their love in practical ways. It also reassures that when we act in love, we can have confidence before God, even if our heart may sometimes condemn us. That truth caught my attention, that God is greater than my heart, and even when I feel bad about my life, feeling like I am a failure as a child of God, the Lord sees the big picture. Proverbs 15:3, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.” I think most of us read this passage of Scripture and walk away thinking that God only sees the bad things we do, but the Bible says God also sees THE GOOD that we do.
It has been said that the Devil always calls Christians by our sins, but God calls us by our name (Genesis 35:10). That is so true. The heathen world defines believers by our sins. If you doubt that, go look up famous preachers like Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001) on Wikipedia. They even blame him for the alleged sexual sins of former associates, alumni and staff at the college. Yet, if you go read about the heavy metal band Van Halen's frontman David Lee Roth who has bragged throughout his evil career of having been a whoremonger with thousands of whores, Wikipedia is silent. Now read John 15:19, “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.”
1 John 3:20 means that even when our heart condemns us for our sins, we can find comfort in knowing that God is greater than our feelings and understands everything about us. These verses emphasize God's supreme knowledge and love, reassuring believers that He knows our true intentions and struggles. Proverbs 24:12, “If thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not; doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to every man according to his works?”
Many Christians have to learn the hard way, as did David in the Old Testament. David testified in this passage that before he was afflicted with chastisement, persecution and shame for his sins of pride, idleness, adultery and murder, he went astray. But after suffering for his iniquities, the fallen king had learned to fear and obey God (Ecclesiastes 12:13). I think all of us can relate to David to some degree.
That being said, we all feel down about ourselves sometimes. We are creatures of emotion. I once heard Pastor Jack Hyles say in a sermon that the best Christian in the church auditorium probably feels like the worst Christian there, and the worst Christian probably thought they were doing pretty good. You see, the closer you draw unto our holy God, the more wretched you will see yourself.
That is why the prophet Isaiah said in Isaiah 6:5, “Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” That is why the Apostle Peter fell down at Jesus feet and said in Luke 5:8b, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” The better of a Christian you become, the more sinful you will feel. That is a very good thing, because the only direction from the bottom is up.
But God is greater than our heart as 1st John 3:20 teaches. I humbly believe this verse is simply teaching that whereas we oftentimes dwell upon our own areas of weakness, failure and sin, God sees the whole shebang. God sees the good things that we do. The Lord knows our deepest thoughts, motivations and sincerity or lack thereof (Psalms 139:1-6). Nothing is ever hidden from the eyes of God. NOTHING! Hebrews 4:13, “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.”
So, when you feel down on yourself, or guilt over past sins come back to haunt you, just remember that God sees all the good things you do too. God sees when I grab that idle shopping cart a customer left in the parking lot. I take loose carts back into the store because I care, and I care because I am a Christian. God sees when I pick up a piece of litter on the ground and put it into a nearby garbage pail. God sees that I care. Most people dismiss those hundreds of small acts of kindness, concern and responsible behavior, but you can be assured dear reader that God sees everything...
Matthew 10:29-31, “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.”
God sees the bird that falls from the sky. He sees the squirrel that you gave a walnut to. The Lord knows the exact changing number of hairs upon your head, and the total number of stars in the unknown universe. God never needs to remember anything. Nothing ever occurs to Him. I know who holds tomorrow, and I am going to trust Him. God is greater than my heart. Just because I sometimes feel wrong, guilty or inferior as an imperfect Christian, doesn't mean that God sees me that way. It has been wisely said that God remembers the things we forget, and we remember the things that God forgets.
That all being said, my goal each day is to live my life in the fear of God in obedience to His inspired Word. Despite whatever guilt, sadness, conviction or failure that I might feel at times, I just decided years ago to place all of those feelings into God's hands for judgment, and not to worry about them or place emphasis upon them. Feelings are often misleading.
To be honest, I always feel like the worst Christian in the world. I feel like I let my dear Savior down every day. I feel so vulnerable, inadequate and inferior. But those are mere common human feelings. God is greater than my heart so that He knows the whole story, and God sees the things that I overlook, dismiss and forget. Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” It's been rightly said that God remembers what we forget, and God forgets what we remember.
I believe that is what the Bible means in 1st John 3:20. If our heart condemn us unjustly, God sees the big picture and He is the keeper of our soul. The truth to be learned is don't trust our frail human feelings, trust upon the Lord. Proverbs 3:5-7, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.”
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