Guide thine heart

Service Notes

Bible Exposition Overview

Testimony by Matt Rowan

Proverbs 23:19 (KJV 1900)

19 Hear thou, my son, and be wise, And guide thine heart in the way.

Introduction

The greatest lie is the one closest to the truth.

Follow your heart sounds like truth. SLIDE

We will spend a good bit of time on this because there is so much teaching on this topic.

Is the heart trustworthy?

Two views of Self

Traditional. Pride is the cause.

Modern. Low self esteem is the cause.

The Gospel is the answer to this dilemma. We will see that in 1 Cor 4.

This is gospel-humility, blessed self-forgetfulness. Not thinking more of myself as in modern cultures, or less of myself as in traditional cultures. Simply thinking of myself less.

Before we look at the answer lets look at the problem a but longer.

Pride is rooted in comparison.

1 Cor 3:1 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.

Dispute of being of Paul or Apollos.

They weren’t enjoying their relationship with Paul but using it to help support their ego.

It is not enough to be rich. If everyone has what we have then our ego is not gratified.

We are busy building egos.

Parents faking extracurricular activities for their kids. Building a resume for them. Things they do not want to do for the sake of people thinking good of them.

“And all of my will has always been to conquer some horrible feeling of inadequacy. I’m always struggling with that fear. I push past one spell of it and discover myself as a special human being and then I get to another stage and think I’m mediocre and uninteresting. And I find a way to get myself out of that. Again and again. My drive in life is from this horrible fear of being mediocre. And that’s always pushing me, pushing me.”

This is why the heart needs directing. Proverbs 23:19 Hear thou, my son, and be wise, And guide thine heart in the way.

Paul says that he does not judge himself because he knows that his identity is rooted in the person of Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 4:3–4 (KJV 1900)

3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self.

4 For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord.

Our view of self. Our emotions. Is determined by proper thinking.

Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Relationship between the heart and the head.

In college seeing a person who seemed to be all emotion and another person who was intellect and thinking that these two things should not be in such disagreement.

1 Peter 1:13 (KJV 1900)

13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

Let’s look at some reasons for the “wherefore of hope”

Reasons for hope 1 Peter 1:3-5 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Reasons cause us to rejoice

1 Peter 1:6-7 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: 7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

This book of full of reasons of hope

1 Peter 3:15 (KJV 1900)

15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

This is not primarily about winning an argument / reason

How do we “be ready”?

Gird up your loins - gear up your mind for actions

Be sober - think clearly

The mind serves the heart.

Romans 12:2 (KJV 1900)

2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Biblical thinking serves hope.

Your mind needs to take your heart by the hand and “say let’s take a trip” and you need to walk through God’s Word

We must look to God to sanctify our hearts.

Psalm 51:10 KJV 1900

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; And renew a right spirit within me.

David has already been forgiven of his sins.

Psalm 51:7 “7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.”

We are now looking at the work of sanctification.

The one that is promised to take place in the life of every believer.

The bus that will not stop we go on at salvation. Eph 1:11 “11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:”

What is his will for us? Eph 1:12-13 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

This is also expression in Romans 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

The Gospel has give us the ability to reckon.

Romans 6:11-12 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.

As unbelievers there is know reckoning. We are servants to sin.

Example of young man in Kenya. Realizing he had a choice.

What is key to this reckoning? What comes before this act of the will?

Romans 6:8-9 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.

This directing of our heart is how we yield our lives to God.

Romans 6:13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

Importance the Word & the need for you to teach it

Listen to this and think of the logical conclusion. “The Christian faith doesn’t rise and fall on the accuracy [or the inerrancy] of 66 ancient documents [or books we call the Bible]. It rises and falls on the identity of a single individual: Jesus of Nazareth” - Stanley

We need to go “off the map” with the Holy Spirit. - Johnson

What did Jesus command us to teach? Matthew 28:19-20 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

God has inspired all of Scripture, for the very purpose made clear by Christ in issuing the Great Commission 2 Tim. 3:16-17 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

As a church who understand the real issues of this world are of the heart we must say as they did in Acts 20:26-27 Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. 27 For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

Not contesting he taught ever verse of the OT.

But the Word was the content of His teaching. Acts 19:10 And this continued by the space of two years; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.

The ministry of the Word grows. Acts 19:20 So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.

Conclusion

Proverbs 23:19 KJV 1900

19 Hear thou, my son, and be wise, And guide thine heart in the way.

Hear what? The Word of God.

What is the result? We receive knowledge and wisdom.

How does this change our lives? Guides our hearts.

The battle for the heart of the next generation is fought by helping them guide their hearts in HIs way through understanding and obeying God’s Word.

We need you in this battle.

It is God’s plan for you to be equipped for this work.