Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23
To get a better grasp of this verse, let’s dig into the meaning of some of these words used here. To “keep” means “to guard, protect, maintain” and the word translated “heart” refers not only to the heart specifically but also to the feelings, the will and the intellect.
The phrase “with all diligence” is like unto a sentry, one who stands guard. So, to write this verse another way, it would be something like: “Always be on your guard as one who stands as a sentry, ever vigilant and diligent. Keep special watch over your heart — your mind, will and emotions. Guard and protect them so that they only receive that which will be good for them and that which will be pleasing to God.
This truth has been with us since the beginning of time. In fact, the first command God gave to Adam related to this very thing; guarding his heart. God never intended for man to partake of the knowledge of evil, thus polluting his mind and therefore having a negative effect on his emotions and then on his will, leading to spiritual problems.
Eve also polluted her heart similarly by listening to the devil, that serpent of old, as he filled her mind and her intellect with lies. Before she realized it, she let down her guard, her heart was left unprotected and she received the lies of the enemy. Her wrong thinking led to emotions that were not based on truth and were therefore not in line with the command God had given them. Then, her will changed, she chose to disobey God and partake of that fruit of the forbidden tree.
Only you can be the sentry for your own heart. If you feed your mind and your intellect on lies as Eve did, you will find yourself at odds with the One who created you. Before you know it, you will have feelings and emotions that are negative toward the Lord or perhaps His people; your family of God. Your heart can believe something that is not true, as Paul warns us in Second Thessalonians, it is possible to believe a lie. No matter how true something seems to be, there is only one source of truth and that is the Word of God. No matter how good something seems to be, there is only one source of good and that is God.
Solomon, even though he had been granted the gift of wisdom from the Lord, still was not careful to guard his heart and, as a result, had a season in his life that was influenced by pagan companions. The first Psalm also reminds us not to stand, sit or walk with ungodly or scornful people. Your heart will be influenced by the company you keep. If you walk with those who are wise, you will find yourself growing in wisdom. Of course, the reverse is true as well!
Your soul is too precious to be contaminated with evil. God created you to have the knowledge of Him, not of evil. If your heart is filled with the knowledge of God and His Word, you will find there is no room for the world. Every minute of every day you must be standing guard, you have been entrusted with the task from your Creator; that of watching over God’s property – guard your heart!
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