Proverbs 4:23 Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.
We need to keep our hearts pure. Charles Spurgeon said “Now, the heart is just the reservoir of man, and our life is allowed to flow in its proper season. That life may flow through different pipes—the mouth, the hand, the eye; but still all the issues of hand, of eye, of lip, derive their source from the great fountain and central reservoir, the heart; and hence there is no difficulty in showing the great necessity that exists for keeping this reservoir, the heart, in a proper state and condition, since otherwise that which flows through the pipes must be touted and corrupt. May the Holy Spirit now direct our meditations.”
What you say, what you think, what you do, are all reflections of what you are. Listening to secular music and watching movies or television aren't sins. However, if the music you are listening to promotes sin and the movies or television shows you are watching glorify or encourage sexual immorality, profane language, drunkenness, greed, pride, lust and violence then that is something different. You will be polluting the source of your innermost being. We seriously need to recognize and consider the importance of guarding our hearts for the purpose of maintaining our spiritual lives and impacting the kingdom. Jesus warns us about what our hearts are capable of in Matthew 15:19, "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.”
Our hearts are the seat of our total personalities. What we hear is important, what we study is important, what we see is important. We should recognize that out of the heart will come all of the great issues of our lives. Jesus said that it isn’t what goes into a man that defiles him, but what comes out of a man. That’s why it is important to “Keep our hearts with all diligence." If you are constantly being filled with corruption, corruption will flow out. “For whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.”
In John 7:37 Jesus said, “If any man thirst, let him come after me and drink.” It is more important for the spirit to fill the reservoirs of our hearts so that His love may flow forth. Read the Word, hear the Word, and censor your TV & movie watching and the music that you listen to. Jesus said in Matthew 12:34 “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Watch what you allow into your ears and your eyes, because what you see and hear will filter through those pipes into the reservoir of your heart. In the end it effects your meditations and how concerned you are with the more important things like salvation for the lost and the edification of the saints. Paul tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:2, "Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season."
Some of us could look at our CD collection, ITunes, TV programs, movie collection, or even carnal friends that in someway encourage or glorify sexual immorality, profane speech, intoxication, or rebellion to authority. The wisest thing we could ever do is to get rid of them to keep our hearts with all diligence and continue to run this race. Or we can be like a man who smokes a cigar and leaves a terrible smell everywhere he goes. Give your heart to Jesus Christ!! “Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Out of a heart well kept will flow living issues, good fruit , the glory of God and the edification of others.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
another lengthy response. :)
It is incredibly important to remember that the heart is sensitive and is directly connected to one's innermost being. A believer might find himself stumbling once he has given in to the lie that he is strong in and of himself or that he has the means and the mind to map out a victory. The temptation in moments like this is to pick up the weapons of this world and enter a battle one was never called into by God. Listening to one's own voice rather than the voice of God is a serious mistake that may or may not have extreme consequences.
The sin of presumption is dangerously linked to the afore-mentioned selfish ambitions. It is easy to set goals and aspirations that have no relation to the will of God. It is even easier to rationalize the motives behind such action and become convinced that the end justifies the means. The word of God teaches that the human heart is desperately wicked. That truth is a great sorrow to be lamented by all mankind. Therefore, christians have a greater responsibility as the called out people of God. If God's children will not have an overwhelming burden for the souls that are presently on the path to hell and the determination to act upon that burden, who will?
It is necessary and crucial that christians ask themselves the difficult questions. "Am I making this decision for myself or for Christ?" "Does my life line up with God's will for my life?" "What does the word of God teach about His will for the lives of His people?" The Bible hides nothing from us. Christians are called to be set apart. They are called to preach the gospel. They are called to abide in Jesus Christ Himself. If christians live lives that are inauthentic, filled with compromise, and littered with selfishness the only result is the complete destruction of the simplicity, beauty, and effectiveness of the gospel they attempt to preach.
Do not choose the pleasures of this world over the goodness of God. It grieves the Father beyond comprehension. It suppresses genuine growth in the life of the believer. It robs God's children of the joy and peace which was intended for them.
Christians cannot rely on the tools of this world to fight a winning battle. 1 Corinthinas 2:9-10 says: "No eye has seen no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed it to us by His Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God." Therein lies the key to an effective walk with God. Believers need to be filled with the Holy Spirit and be fully aware of their necessary dependency on Him.
Do not fall into the sticky web of Satan where it becomes easy to forget that light can absolutely not (in no way shape or form!) dwell with darkness. Do not be deceived, abused, or devoured any longer. Repent and move forward. This time do not look to the right or to the left. The fleeting pleasure of personal indulgence is not worth the abolition of one's soul.
Post a Comment