Prov 4:23 “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” (NLT)
The book of Proverbs is full of wisdom. But wisdom can be reduced to mere knowledge if not applied in our lives. Proverbs 4:23 gives us the key to having victory in life. You see the heart in the scriptures refers to one's inner being; the hidden person of the heart (1 Pet 3:4), the true person under the flesh, and not merely the mind. When someone says "take it to heart" they mean to say apply to your life or reckon it to yourself. To say that we believe in Jesus with our whole hearts but not serve him with our whole self is contradictory because the whole heart is synonymous of the whole person.
Proverbs cautions us to guard [watch over, protect] our hearts because the condition of the heart will dictate the direction of the person as a whole. If sin rules our hearts we will live a life of pain, disappointment, and constant defeat. But if Christ and His word rules our hearts we will walk in righteousness, and we will "walk not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of the scornful." (Psa 1:1) The reason the Israelite's couldn't have any more victory after they won the war against Jericho was because they were losing the battle inside of the camp. Achan had stolen and kept something hidden that God's word had said to stay away from. It wasn't till Joshua and the people of the camp dealt with the sin in the camp that they were able to have continued victory outside of the camp. God will not give you the victory on the outside until you address the defeat on the inside. Confess your sin, repent of your sin, and move on with the Lord. Win the battle inside and you win the war outside.
Proverbs cautions us to guard [watch over, protect] our hearts because the condition of the heart will dictate the direction of the person as a whole. If sin rules our hearts we will live a life of pain, disappointment, and constant defeat. But if Christ and His word rules our hearts we will walk in righteousness, and we will "walk not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of the scornful." (Psa 1:1) The reason the Israelite's couldn't have any more victory after they won the war against Jericho was because they were losing the battle inside of the camp. Achan had stolen and kept something hidden that God's word had said to stay away from. It wasn't till Joshua and the people of the camp dealt with the sin in the camp that they were able to have continued victory outside of the camp. God will not give you the victory on the outside until you address the defeat on the inside. Confess your sin, repent of your sin, and move on with the Lord. Win the battle inside and you win the war outside.
- READ PSALM 119:11 AND GALATIANS 5:16: WHAT STEPS CAN WE TAKE TO GUARD OUR HEART AND STAY THE COURSE?
- "Let a man set his heart only on doing the will of God, and he is instantly free." - A.W. Tozer