Does Jeremiah 17:9 apply to the born-again believer’s heart?
Dr. John Piper, on his podcast, Ask Pastor John, provided a great answer to a man that asked that question about this verse.
Since I am always writing about sin, I wanted to post Dr. Piper’s comment for anyone who might have questions about it.
His answer is thorough.
As Pastor John was concluding, he talked about the presence of the Holy Spirit working in the new heart, and mentioned:
2Co 3:18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
I want to emphasize that Paul is talking about the Spirit working in us. This work cannot be done by us, but by our concurrence with the Spirit, our desiring His working in us.
In other words, when we partake of God’s appointed means of grace (Bible reading, praying, taking the Lord’s supper, fellowship with believers around the word, baptism) we are humbled and instructed by God’s Spirit. The transformation occurs therein, when we submit to His Spirit via these means. (Where else does one behold the glory of the Lord but in His word? It is one of the means of grace; furthermore, isn’t it He who removes the veil from our faces, via His Spirit–the means of grace are not effective without His Spirit working them into us.)
When we begin to see our sinfulness because we are partaking of God’s means of grace, then we must continue therein, being more submissive to Him as we become more humbled…transformation.
But abiding in the means is not done via the power of our flesh, as in Psalm 119:25ff, we must acknowledge our weakness and beg for His quickening power which He gives.
The following link is a downloadable pdf on my December post of Psalm 119:25:
You could ask pastor John any question you desire about the Bible at: DesiringGod.org/askpastorjohn.