The Parables of Jesus - The Heart of Man

Introduction

Today, we are going to look together at this teaching of Jesus, building on what we saw last week, which speaks about salvation by faith in Him—that is, love expressed through complete trust in Him.

The gospel of Christ has always been a matter of the heart, which is the center of life. For without a heart, we cannot live, and without a heart that is united to Jesus Christ and regenerated by the Holy Spirit, we are without spiritual and eternal life.

The Bible tells us that the heart and the soul are the inner life of man—the created, invisible part of our being that guides us. As it is written, “then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature” (Genesis 2:7), showing us that life on earth comes from God, and that eternal life also comes from God through Jesus Christ.

For God sent His only Son not to save what we possess or what we have built in this world, but to save our soul—this life within us, this heart that lives either according to the world or according to God through Jesus Christ, and is enlightened by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

In this teaching, there is one essential truth that we must understand, and it is this: it is not what enters into us, or what enters into our body, that defiles our heart, but what comes out of it.The main question we must ask ourselves is this: what defiles us, and before whom? The answer is sin—and before God.

For what defiles us is the sin we commit against Him—not the food we eat, but our thoughts, our words, and our actions. For as the Word of God teaches, what comes from the heart shapes our actions and leads to consequences that are either pleasing to God or not.

Before reading the passage, let us first look at the context in order to understand it better.

Reading of the context of the passage “And he called the people to him again and said to them, ‘Hear me, all of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him. 16 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear’” vv.7:14–16

This teaching takes place during a time when Jesus was performing many miracles and healings in the region called Gennesaret. It was a very fertile land, rich in agriculture, described by historians such as Flavius Josephus as a place of abundance, almost like a “paradise” in Galilee because of its many natural resources and sources of water.

The many events that took place there show that Jesus was accessible to all, no matter their physical or social condition. He performed miracles, revealing His compassion and His authority over all creation. In this way, this region, full of life, also became a picture of the spiritual renewal and the miracles that Jesus offers to those who come to Him by faith and are saved.

The context shows that Jesus is actively addressing the crowd. He calls the crowd to Himself and speaks to them in a direct way, challenging their way of glorifying God. He confronts their religious practices—practices that were given by God, yes, but that had become, in the way they were lived out, far from what God truly desired. As Jesus Himself said, to love God and to love others: these are the two greatest commandments and the fulfillment of the Law.

For the problem was not the Law itself, which is good and perfect, but the heart of man, which applied it without understanding its meaning or living its inner reality.

What the Lord is teaching here is, once again, a matter of the condition of the human heart. For to follow commandments, especially those related to food laws, while thinking that this makes us right before God, while the heart remains evil and far from Him, is an abomination before God.

For God does not first look at the outward appearance, but at the heart. And a heart that is far from God cannot produce anything but works that, even if they appear religious, still remain defiled before Him. The Word of God tells us that “the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6).

For example, Abraham was justified by his faith—the condition of his heart—not by what was written on a scroll. This shows us that from the beginning, God is concerned with the heart, and that true obedience flows from a heart that believes.

This means that following commandments without a sincere heart, transformed and attached to God, leads to a dead religion—not a legalism based on the Law written on tablets of stone, but a life shaped by a Law now written on the tablets of our heart.

For what God desires is not simply outward obedience, but a renewed heart. A heart like David’s: not perfect, but upright, repentant, and genuine before God—a heart that recognizes its sin, that returns to God, and that seeks to please Him in truth.

This transformation, which means living in the Kingdom of God, is exactly what Jesus came to reveal, proclaim, and teach: that what comes out of our heart shows our true spiritual condition—revealing our standing before God, not according to the Law, but through the fruits and the thoughts that come from our heart. Let us now read today’s passage.

Reading of the first part “And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. And he said to them, ‘Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?’ (Thus he declared all foods clean.)” (Mark 7:17–19, ESV)

We can see that the disciples had not really understood what their Master had said to the crowd, and we can also see how Jesus answered them. Yes, Jesus responds with a kind of astonishment at their lack of understanding; and yet, when the Bible tells us that God is patient, it once again confirms this truth.

This was not the first time that Jesus spoke to His disciples about the heart of man, about religiosity, and about the hypocrisy of those who say they love God but do not bear its fruit. Jesus confronts His disciples with their lack of understanding, almost placing them in the same position as the crowd, to show them that they were not truly listening.

Listening without understanding does not produce fruit. However, true understanding is a matter of the heart, not only of the intellect—it is a faith that believes out of love, not a blind faith without foundation. It is to believe that God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, who is our Lord and Savior, the One who was, and is, and is to come.

That is why Jesus explains to them in a very direct way, so that they understand that a person is not made unclean before God by what he puts into his body—that is, food considered unclean according to the Law—because this food goes into the stomach and is then expelled from the body.

These things do not enter the heart of man. In other words, they do not affect our relationship with God or with others. They concern the body—our physical condition—which is also important, since the body belongs to God and is the temple of the Holy Spirit. 

However, this is not the spiritual condition that Jesus is addressing. He is speaking about the heart, which has a direct impact on spiritual death—that is, our separation from God Himself, and therefore from all the blessings that come from Him

Reading of the second part “And he said, ‘What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.’” vv.7:20–23

So what comes out of man in this passage? It is what comes out of our heart, which is sin—this is what defiles us, what makes us impure before God, and what separates us from Him. Not because God punishes arbitrarily, but because our own heart defiles us and distances us from His holiness. This condition is the sinful nature of man—the one we have inherited from Adam and Eve.

Yes, when we believe in Jesus Christ and repent of our sins toward God, we are forgiven and cleansed from our past, present, and future sins. However, our heart must be renewed and transformed by the Holy Spirit, and we are called to submit to Him. 

When we do not submit, we experience an inner conflict—the struggle between the flesh and the Spirit, as Scripture teaches. The Spirit leads us toward holiness, while the flesh pulls us back toward sin. In this way, we learn to live according to this new identity, leaving behind our old life and fully embracing our new identity in Christ.

If our heart deceives us, it is because it has not been renewed. It remains in our old life, in our old patterns, in our old ways of thinking. We are not submitted to the will of God for our lives. The Bible tells us that the heart is deceitful, and that we cannot rely on it.

And what was the heart of the religious people toward Jesus? It was closed in what they thought they understood, refusing to receive what God was doing by sending them the Messiah. They heard heavenly truths, but remained in the hardness of their hearts, saying that they loved God with their lips, but did not love Him in their actions.

We see here a list of the consequences of the condition of the human heart when it does not belong to God, or when the one who belongs to Him does not rely on the Holy Spirit, but instead on their own strength or their own understanding—just like this crowd to whom Jesus was speaking while proclaiming the Kingdom of heaven. But Jesus also exposes what is truly in the human heart.

1. Our thoughts and desires

Evil thoughts are at the origin of sinful actions. In the book of James it is written that “each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death” (James 1:14–15). This means that we cannot blame God for what happens, but that our own heart is the source of evil.

Covetousness is denounced as idolatry: “covetousness… is idolatry” (Colossians 3:5), because it replaces God with material things. Jesus warns us: “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness.” For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils.

Envy is a destructive jealousy: Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him (Genesis 4), while we are called to learn contentment in every situation. Comparison leads us away from what God has entrusted to us. It shows that we do not fully understand our identity in Christ, as we look at others instead of living faithfully the life God has given us.

2. Our actions

Sexual immorality includes all behaviors (thoughts, deeds, and words) outside of God’s design for a man and a woman in their union through marriage: “Flee from sexual immorality… your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:18–20).

Theft shows a lack of trust in God and is clearly condemned: “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15). God provides for our needs, and by faith we trust in His provision.

Murder—and even anger in the heart—reveals the seriousness of inner sin: “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13), and Jesus says, “everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment” (Matthew 5:21–22). Taking a life, one of God’s creatures, reveals the condition of the heart.

Adultery is also condemned: “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14), and Jesus says, “everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27–28). Adultery is unfaithfulness—not only toward a spouse, but also a picture of unfaithfulness toward God. How can someone claim to be faithful to an invisible God if they are not faithful to a visible person?

3. Our words

Slander is also condemned: it destroys relationships, while we are called to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). It comes from a heart driven by pride, bitterness, or jealousy, and it tears others down instead of building them up.

Deceit is condemned: “You shall not bear false witness” (Exodus 20:16), and Jesus says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Deceit goes directly against the truth of God. Lying has been the enemy’s tool from the beginning, as the serpent deceived humanity and led it away from God.

4. Our condition before God

Wickedness expresses a corrupt heart that is far from God. It is not only outward actions, but the inner condition of a heart that does not seek God, does not submit to Him, and does not desire what is good.

Sensuality shows a life given over to excess and stands in opposition to a holy life: “Do not get drunk with wine… but be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). It also includes addictions that lead to destruction: “With much seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him. All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter… he does not know that it will cost him his life” (Proverbs 7:21–23).

Pride leads to destruction: “Pride goes before destruction” (Proverbs 16:18), because to exalt ourselves is to rise against God. But Jesus teaches that true greatness is found in humility.

Finally, foolishness in the Bible is not a lack of intelligence, but a rejection of God and His wisdom. Finding a true sense of purpose means seeking God’s will for our lives.

Conclusion

For if the problem of man is his heart, then the solution cannot come from man himself. Man cannot purify himself, he cannot change his own heart, and he cannot, by his own efforts, come to God.

But God, in His mercy, has provided the solution: He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to accomplish what we were unable to do. And it is through the work of the Holy Spirit that our heart is transformed, renewed, and regenerated.

Therefore, it is not by our works, nor by our religion, nor by our will, but by grace alone that we are saved. This is why salvation is a work of grace: only the salvation of God in Jesus Christ, through the regeneration of the Holy Spirit, can transform our heart of stone into a heart of flesh.

If we are here today, it is to receive this Word that can set us free from our sin, which separates us from God and from His holiness. It is also what makes us pleasing to God, as we have the Holy Spirit as our helper and our guide. Without Him, we will always be dominated by the temptations of this world and the consequences that come from them.

Whether for those who do not yet know the love of God revealed in Jesus Christ, or for believers who are living according to the rhythm of this world, let us submit ourselves to His holy will and believe that God rewards those who seek Him with a sincere and pure heart.

May the grace of our God, through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, and through the work of the Holy Spirit, set us free from our sin, so that we may walk in the ways and the purposes that God has prepared beforehand for His glory—He alone, the one true God.

To Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior be all praise and glory. Amen.