Does Jesus Reside in Our Hearts?

　　There are moments when we tend to ask God into our hearts when we pray. In troubling moments, we often do this and, most especially, when we are under temptation. We ask Jesus to come into our hearts and save us from eternal doom.

　　But is asking Jesus to reside in our hearts biblical? While there is no mention in the Bible that asking Jesus into our hearts is wrong, sometimes, this statement leaves out a wrong impression among children and believers — that Jesus is not in our hearts yet and we have to ask Him to come to us. For this reason, it is more proper that we have these following mindsets towards Jesus.

　　

Jesus Already Resides in Our Hearts

First is the fact that Jesus already resides within our hearts. But why, then, do we not feel Jesus within our lives sometimes? This is because we have not communicated with Jesus that often through prayer. In Paul’s letter to Ephesians, he says,

　　So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:17-19)

　　Paul’s writing emphasizes that Jesus is present with His believers through the Holy Spirit. He is drawing awareness to this fact.

　　

Jesus Asks Us to Believe in Him

Instead of praying for Jesus to come into our hearts, we must think that Jesus asks us to believe in Him,

　　For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

　　This passage talks about how Christ saved us from our sins by dying on the cross and rising again. This is a firm example of His power and, more importantly, his kindness in forgiving us from our sins. The gospel did not talk about us asking for this kindness from God, rather, God deliberately decided to save us by His own will.

　　We can also read this in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

　　This verse enlightens us that God so loved the world that He gave His son. This also further emphasizes that God gives His Son, salvation, to us and not the other way around.

　　Furthermore, Acts 16:31 says, “They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved — you and your household.’”

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Jesus Asks Us to Receive Him

While it is not emphasized in the Bible that we should ask Jesus in our hearts, it is emphasized that Jesus asks us to receive Him. In John 1:12, it is written, “Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”

　　Receiving Jesus means baptizing in His Holy Name. This is a direct command that He asks us to do. Yes, Jesus resides in our hearts, yet we must undergo baptism to receive His salvation and with this salvation, we are assured of eternal life with Him.

　　Baptism gives us one more step in being with Christ, and continuously doing His will allows us to connect with Him even more.

　　

Jesus Asks Us to Repent from Our Sins

Lastly, instead of praying for Jesus to enter and reside in our hearts, we must repent from our sins. Since Jesus is already with us, regardless if we ask for him in our hearts or not, one of His direct commands is to prepare our bodies for Him through repentance.

　　In Revelation 3:20, it is written, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”

　　In this passage, Jesus is talking to the church of Laodicea who has forsaken His name by excluding Jesus from their fellowship. In this passage, Jesus assures that if they repent, they will receive Him and be with Him.

　　In Acts 3:19, repentance is also emphasized, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”

　　In this verse, repentance is described as something that the Lord also gives, and it refreshes the soul — if only we turn to God through it.

　　

What Does This Mean?

Asking Jesus into our hearts and to reside there is not deliberately stated in the Bible. However, it is not necessarily incorrect as long as we think of it in the right notion: That Jesus is already in our hearts regardless if we consciously pray for Him to be there or not, but only if we believe in Him, receive Him, and repent of our sins so, that we may be refreshed in the eyes of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, which is also with us.