If you are to know me, you must know my heart. But if you do not know my heart, you will never know me.
For me to know you, then I must know your heart. But if I do not know your heart, I will never know you.
What, then, can we say to these things?
If you do not know my heart, you will only know the me that I present to you through my personality, at which time I can appear to be the person that you believe is me from my own imagination.
Likewise, if I do not know your heart, I can only know the you that you present to me through your personality, at which time you can appear to be the person that I believe you are through your own imagination.
As long as people look through the eyes of others, they will see those things that others see, believe in those things that others believe, do those things that others do, stand together, sit together, kneel together, and even pray together: after which they trot along their merry ways, doing as others do, and though they are apart, they are like-minded, for each is a carbon copy of the other.
A hollow soul is a person who does not know his own identity. Often, this can be the time of life when people will say, "I am trying to find myself". And in trying to find ourselves, we look for ourselves in all the wrong places, for we look for ourselves in the lives of others, or when we try to see ourselves through the eyes of others, and form an image of ourselves with our own imaginations, which is a false image.
If the me I am presenting to you is formed from me looking at myself through the eyes of others, then I am presenting a false image of myself. And if I am presenting a false image, then I must also work to keep the image that I imagine myself to be propped up.
An image of who you are to be can also be fashioned in you from the minds of others as they desire you to be. They can educate your mind with their values, their likes and dislikes, their political views, as well as their religion, which can include an image of God, which is a god that they believe is God.
You can know a person's mind by their talking points, for people talk about those things that interest them the most: Cars. Money. Possessions. Food. Movie stars. Music stars. Vacations. Or their image of God. These are the things they talk about for these are the things they value, adore, and even love.
On the other hand, a person with a hollow soul does not desire to talk about God, for God in not in his soul; therefore he does not desire to talk about God, for he has nothing to say. Neither does he desire to talk about the Bible, for the Word of the Lord is not in his soul. And neither is Christ. He can, however, talk about God from the opinions of others, and these can also be his own beliefs about God, for his mind has been transformed to believe as others believe. But he has no personal relationship with God, therefore his knowledge of God is impersonal. And because he does not have a personal relationship with Christ, he has nothing to say about Christ from his own heart, for Christ is not in his heart.
That which we hide from others the most is the substance of our own hearts, which is why a person with a hollow soul prefers to talk about the things that are in his mind, for he has an empty heart; and he works to keep his heart filled with everything that is in their world, yet his heart is never full because his heart is a bottomless pit. And as he constantly craves the things of this world, he is continuously hungry, for he is never satisfied.
The soul of a man is created by God, and God desires to fill the souls of men. But when people continuously feed on the things of this world, there is no room for God in their souls, and therefore God is not in their hearts.
Knowing this, a person with a hollow soul can go on living and believing in the things of this world even though he can know that Christ is the only begotten Son of God. For he would rather feast on the things of this world, and he would rather live his life without Christ than to surrender his desire for the things of this world while also preferring to cling to his religion, which is a world without God.
As long as people see themselves through the eyes of others, they will live an image that they believe in their imaginations, and they will only see themselves as they believe that others see them. Obviously, they will seek the praises of people as they work to keep their image polished. But they must constantly be changing because the things of this world keep changing. They must constantly adjust their mask to fit various situations because this world is constantly changing.
But when people come to see themselves through the eyes of Christ, a miracle happens. They stop living for the things of this world as they begin to live a new life. No longer do they need to keep changing, nor adjusting their image, or mask, for Christ never changes. For Christ is now in their hearts, and He becomes their one and only talking point. Now they have something to say that is important, that is everlasting, and that is worth sharing with others, for Christ will never pass away.
As Jesus said,
A good man out of the treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. (Luke 6: 45)
For me to know you, then I must know your heart. But if I do not know your heart, I will never know you.
What, then, can we say to these things?
If you do not know my heart, you will only know the me that I present to you through my personality, at which time I can appear to be the person that you believe is me from my own imagination.
Likewise, if I do not know your heart, I can only know the you that you present to me through your personality, at which time you can appear to be the person that I believe you are through your own imagination.
As long as people look through the eyes of others, they will see those things that others see, believe in those things that others believe, do those things that others do, stand together, sit together, kneel together, and even pray together: after which they trot along their merry ways, doing as others do, and though they are apart, they are like-minded, for each is a carbon copy of the other.
A hollow soul is a person who does not know his own identity. Often, this can be the time of life when people will say, "I am trying to find myself". And in trying to find ourselves, we look for ourselves in all the wrong places, for we look for ourselves in the lives of others, or when we try to see ourselves through the eyes of others, and form an image of ourselves with our own imaginations, which is a false image.
If the me I am presenting to you is formed from me looking at myself through the eyes of others, then I am presenting a false image of myself. And if I am presenting a false image, then I must also work to keep the image that I imagine myself to be propped up.
An image of who you are to be can also be fashioned in you from the minds of others as they desire you to be. They can educate your mind with their values, their likes and dislikes, their political views, as well as their religion, which can include an image of God, which is a god that they believe is God.
You can know a person's mind by their talking points, for people talk about those things that interest them the most: Cars. Money. Possessions. Food. Movie stars. Music stars. Vacations. Or their image of God. These are the things they talk about for these are the things they value, adore, and even love.
On the other hand, a person with a hollow soul does not desire to talk about God, for God in not in his soul; therefore he does not desire to talk about God, for he has nothing to say. Neither does he desire to talk about the Bible, for the Word of the Lord is not in his soul. And neither is Christ. He can, however, talk about God from the opinions of others, and these can also be his own beliefs about God, for his mind has been transformed to believe as others believe. But he has no personal relationship with God, therefore his knowledge of God is impersonal. And because he does not have a personal relationship with Christ, he has nothing to say about Christ from his own heart, for Christ is not in his heart.
That which we hide from others the most is the substance of our own hearts, which is why a person with a hollow soul prefers to talk about the things that are in his mind, for he has an empty heart; and he works to keep his heart filled with everything that is in their world, yet his heart is never full because his heart is a bottomless pit. And as he constantly craves the things of this world, he is continuously hungry, for he is never satisfied.
The soul of a man is created by God, and God desires to fill the souls of men. But when people continuously feed on the things of this world, there is no room for God in their souls, and therefore God is not in their hearts.
Knowing this, a person with a hollow soul can go on living and believing in the things of this world even though he can know that Christ is the only begotten Son of God. For he would rather feast on the things of this world, and he would rather live his life without Christ than to surrender his desire for the things of this world while also preferring to cling to his religion, which is a world without God.
As long as people see themselves through the eyes of others, they will live an image that they believe in their imaginations, and they will only see themselves as they believe that others see them. Obviously, they will seek the praises of people as they work to keep their image polished. But they must constantly be changing because the things of this world keep changing. They must constantly adjust their mask to fit various situations because this world is constantly changing.
But when people come to see themselves through the eyes of Christ, a miracle happens. They stop living for the things of this world as they begin to live a new life. No longer do they need to keep changing, nor adjusting their image, or mask, for Christ never changes. For Christ is now in their hearts, and He becomes their one and only talking point. Now they have something to say that is important, that is everlasting, and that is worth sharing with others, for Christ will never pass away.
As Jesus said,
A good man out of the treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. (Luke 6: 45)
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