“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews 3:15).
The Greek word for “harden” is skleros. This word is found in the name used for a condition commonly called “hardening of the arteries,” or arteriosclerosis.
Arteriosclerosis is a condition where arteries become thick, blocked and inelastic as a result of a film of fat forming on their walls. The disease hinders effective blood circulation depriving the body’s organs oxygenated blood. Left untreated, the disease is progressive and may lead to heart attack or stroke resulting in paralysis or memory loss. It may also impair and damage the eyes, kidneys, uterus or legs.
I remember my grandfather Combs had this disease. He first complained of pain in his legs and started getting blood clots there. Later in life, one of those clots went to his brain and caused a stroke. He lived into his eighties, but he didn’t know any of us. He could recount distant memories of his time in WWI, but he couldn’t recall what happened that morning.
Arteriosclerosis is a serious disease of the body, but there is another “hardening” condition that is even more deadly. This is a spiritual condition that the Bible calls the “hardening of the heart.” Like the former, “cardio-sclerosis” is progressive and ultimately fatal. Left unchecked, it will lead to a rebellious and prideful state of mind that is distant from God.
As the apostle Paul said, “They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts” (Ephesians 4:18).
But thank God, this spiritual condition is curable. We can humble ourselves before a holy and sovereign God and say, “Have thine own way, Lord.” We can ask Him to soften our hearts of stone and refashion them according to his will.
Don’t put this off. When God’s Spirit speaks to you, answer. Otherwise, the condition will continue to worsen and your ability to hear and respond may progressively diminish.