The word “heart” appears more than 800 times in the Bible. A few of the references actually relate to the physical heart. I Sam. 25:37 tells us Nabal’s “…heart died within him…” But, the majority of references in the Bible deal with the spiritual heart. Prov. 4:23 admonishes us, “Keep your heart with all diligence.” The spiritual heart is what motivates us to do what we do.
Think for a few moments about keeping your heart. It has to be important and Solomon correctly calls for genuine effort in doing it. We could ask and answer two simple questions about keeping the spiritual heart.
Why? We could answer, “Because the Bible tells us to do it.” That would be correct, but there is more to it than that. Your heart is the cause of your thoughts, desires, and actions. Solomon says the “issues of life” come from the heart (Prov. 23:7a). Jesus added, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matt. 12:34). He also noted how dangerous this can be: “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matt. 15:19).
We could also say that the more secure or well-guarded the heart is, the less you will struggle with the choice of doing right or wrong. Also, if your heart is not guarded, life becomes more difficult.
How? How do we do it? Recognize the dangers. II Cor. 11:3 warns us our minds (hearts) may be corrupted. Solomon, in his old age, did not have the heart of David (I Kings 11:4). The heart can be deceived (James 1:26). Sadly, we can do it to ourselves.
Stay occupied in doing good. Adopt the lifestyle of Jesus who “…went about doing good…”
Don’t forget to ask God’s help and don’t forget the benefit of continually going to His word for guidance. …Allen Hahn
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