How to Guard Your Heart

How to Guard Your Heart | Proverbs 4:20-27 Our sermon title this morning is "How to Guard Your Heart" and it is based off Proverbs 4:20-27. So, if you want to find that chapter in your bibles, now would be a good time to do that. Growing up, my brother and I always had to lock the door behind us, make sure the bar was in the windows, and before bed we always had to lock up, and double check everything. We didn't exactly live in a bad neighborhood, but this was just something we did. It has always fascinated me that people in and around my neighborhood leave stuff in their driveways, they leave their garage doors open all day, and how I hear that some people still don't lock the doors when they're home or lock their car doors overnight when its parked in the driveway. Why do we do this? We do this for protection. Think about the things that we protect. We protect our valuables by locking them in a safe. We further protect our homes by installing cameras and security systems. We protect our cars by locking them or storing them in the garage. You see, we protect - or guard - things that we feel are worth protecting. All the things I just mentioned are definitely worth protecting, but let's be honest, they all can be replaced. There's one thing, however, that is much more valuable to protect and guard, and that's our hearts. You see, I initially planned on speaking today on several areas of the heart according to the Scriptures, but after studying this topic this week, I believe that the idea of guarding your heart is essential in the life of a Christian, and once again is applicable in most other areas. So, we will start with a reading of the text, then we'll dive into answering that very question: How to guard the heart. 20 MY SON, BE ATTENTIVE TO MY WORDS; INCLINE YOUR EAR TO MY SAYINGS. 21 LET THEM NOT ESCAPE FROM YOUR SIGHT; KEEP THEM WITHIN YOUR HEART. 22 FOR THEY ARE LIFE TO THOSE WHO FIND THEM, AND HEALING TO ALL THEIR FLESH. 23 KEEP YOUR HEART WITH ALL VIGILANCE, FOR FROM IT FLOW THE SPRINGS OF LIFE. 24 PUT AWAY FROM YOU CROOKED SPEECH, AND PUT DEVIOUS TALK FAR FROM YOU. 25 LET YOUR EYES LOOK DIRECTLY FORWARD, AND YOUR GAZE BE STRAIGHT BEFORE YOU. 26 PONDER THE PATH OF YOUR FEET; THEN ALL YOUR WAYS WILL BE SURE. Verse 23 is the key verse in this passage, from there we will speak heavily on this topic. And it is from this verse that we can identify our main idea: A fool proof heart is a guarded heart. Before we shift further along, however, I believe the best thing to begin with is a definition or understanding of the term "heart" in respects to the original language and culture. Since I am not an expert in Hebrew, I came across this video that breaks this term down in an easy-to-understand way: Video (3.39 minutes) Simply stated, the heart - according to the Jews - is the key instrument for thoughts, emotions, fears, joy and peace, and the overall conscience of a person. One pastor said the Hebrew thought for the heart was that it was the "real you," the "whole person." It is the center of all parts of human existence. Because of this, they understood that the heart must be renewed. We'll touch on this throughout the sermon this morning. Hopefully this will allow us to appreciate this passage a little more. Notice, Solomon in verses 20-22 pleads with his son to listen to his words. If you are familiar with Solomon's story, you will know that back in 1 Kings 3, Solomon had the green light from the Lord to ask for anything he desired, and he asked for wisdom, so the Lord was very pleased, and gave him wisdom beyond anyone else, and he was also blessed with wealth and fame. So, when he writes these proverbs, the words he is asking his son to listen to were not his own, but from the wisdom of the Lord. Notice the progression of how Solomon's son was to listen to these instructions. Let's quickly go through it: * First, Solomon says to: be attentive to his words o Incline them to your ears, he says. In other words, listen carefully to my words. o I'm sure I'm not alone in being guilty of hearing someone speak, but not actually listening because I'm thinking of something else, or looking at my phone, or watching my mindless TV shows or watching the Dodgers. o This whole section really helps us to see how we are to do this. Beginning with ... * Let them not escape your sight o Seems odd that Solomon would connect listening with your ears to letting them not escape your sight. o He's telling his son to put these words before him, to follow this very intentional path that leads to wisdom and righteousness. o This is accomplished by ... * Keeping them within your heart o We'll see what this looks like shortly with the rest of the passage. Next, * They are life to others o The Word of God is alive, Solomon says. o And, he says it is also ... * Healing to their flesh o This wisdom, God's Word can be healing as it can lead us away from temptation. It can lead us away from destruction. You see, in the preceding verses, Solomon is urging his son to pursue God, and to pursue wisdom, and not so surprising, to guard that wisdom from wickedness. In verse 15, Solomon says to avoid the path of the wicked all together. Because we are talking about the heart, we see here that these words were more than just good advice, rather they were life altering and life directing, as we saw moments ago. With this, I think we can draw out our first principle: * A wise person goes to the Word. o Consider Psalm 119:11 I HAVE STORED UP YOUR WORD IN MY HEART, THAT I MIGHT NOT SIN AGAINST YOU. o Solomon was leaning on the wisdom he gained from the Lord, and doing the best thing a father can do, passing it on to the next generation. So, what was his word to his son? * Guard your heart. * Solomon is saying, "I'm going to share with you the wisdom that I have received, store it up, keep it in front of you, guard it." You may have noticed that the ESV doesn't say "guard," as it uses the term "keep." Other translations may use "watch." But they all refer to the same action: preserving and protecting the heart. Just like we talked about earlier, we protect the things that are worth protecting. Now, this may be a good time to put some pieces of the puzzle together. In our video we watched earlier, the narrator made mention of Jeremiah's assessment of the heart - that it was deceitful, and naturally evil. So. What makes this heart, the one that Solomon is warning about keeping safe, acceptable to guard? Well, it implies a changed heart. I was reading Romans last week and was reminded of these words from chapter 10: 9 BECAUSE, IF YOU CONFESS WITH YOUR MOUTH THAT JESUS IS LORD AND BELIEVE IN YOUR HEART THAT GOD RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD, YOU WILL BE SAVED. 10 FOR WITH THE HEART ONE BELIEVES AND IS JUSTIFIED, AND WITH THE MOUTH ONE CONFESSES AND IS SAVED. As I look around, I believe that all or most of you here have already done this, but if you have not, don't leave today without speaking with Pastor Pat or I about the most important decision you'll ever make. Because, you see, when the heart has been changed, it is worth guarding. So, lets discuss ... HOW TO GUARD YOUR HEART First, we must guard our hearts ... * With vigilance (23) o This idea of vigilance here is the way that the heart is protected. It describes a place of confinement, or even a prison or jail. It's the action that is taken to keep something guarded. o The verse further affirms what we saw earlier that everything flows from the heart. It's the central hub, therefore it must be protected. o Back in verse 19, we see that guarding the heart with vigilance protects it from wickedness and protects us from stumbling. o Finally, this phrase implies that we must work. It's not something that can be kept out in the open, we must intentionally put it away for safe keeping. Next, we are to ... * Put away crooked speech (24) o We touched on this last week, and we'll address it again when we get into James' epistle. o I think Paul's instruction to the Ephesian churches expands on this nicely. We read in chapter 4, verses 29-32 these words: 29 LET NO CORRUPTING TALK COME OUT OF YOUR MOUTHS, BUT ONLY SUCH AS IS GOOD FOR BUILDING UP, AS FITS THE OCCASION, THAT IT MAY GIVE GRACE TO THOSE WHO HEAR. 30 AND DO NOT GRIEVE THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD, BY WHOM YOU WERE SEALED FOR THE DAY OF REDEMPTION. 31 LET ALL BITTERNESS AND WRATH AND ANGER AND CLAMOR AND SLANDER BE PUT AWAY FROM YOU, ALONG WITH ALL MALICE. 32 BE KIND TO ONE ANOTHER, TENDERHEARTED, FORGIVING ONE ANOTHER, AS GOD IN CHRIST FORGAVE YOU. o We saw last week that what comes out of a person is what comes from the heart. So, "crooked speech" or "corrupting talk" is contrary to the heart that has been changed. o Solomon further warns to put away "devious talk," which we also saw from Paul in Ephesians. o Next, the text says to ... * Keep our eyes forward (25) o Solomon continues to use this imagery of a path and at the end of that path is the goal. For Christians, while we are still here, we should be walking on the path of righteousness with Jesus as the focus * I'm sure most of us have set goals for our lives before. Sometimes they are long term, other times they are short term. * I can remember learning some time ago that it is best not to have too many goals, as the more goals you have, the likelihood of achieving them all is near impossible. * In this sense, it is near impossible to keep your eyes forward when you have a hundred other things going on around you * Last week, we talked about intentionality. This is one of those moments where we need to be intentional. o Look again at verse 26: PONDER THE PATH OF YOUR FEET; THEN ALL YOUR WAYS WILL BE SURE. o This verse reminds us that not only are we to follow the path, but we are also to know the path. o When we are aligned with God's will, we will know exactly where to step on this path before us. o Finally, this section reminds us to ... * Stay focused (27) o Verse 27 reminds us to not swerve to the left or to the right. * This simply means that we must keep on track, we cannot veer off course, even a little. * I believe Pastor Pat used the example somewhat recently of a pilot who is off by a single degree. The further you go, the further you are from the destination. * That happens to us too. * Think about exercise. I've been exercising regularly since 2020, as you can obviously tell. Here's the issue, though, once I miss a day, that day easily turns into a week, and that week easily turns into a month, and so forth. * What about reading your bible daily? You miss a day, then that day turns into two days, etc. * Prayer? Same thing. When we begin to veer off course, even for a day, those days grow and grow, then next thing you know you're out of fellowship and back to your old ways. * The challenge is sometimes we can get distracted by good things too. * Your hobbies * Your job * Your spouse * Your kids * Because anything that takes your attention from the Lord, can lead to wickedness. Why? Because you're no longer focused on Him. * The goal of staying on the right path is in the second part of verse 27, to: TURN YOUR FOOT AWAY FROM EVIL * Evil is contrary to the character of God. * If we are declared righteous, then unrighteousness cannot live within us. So, HOW DO WE REALLY DO THIS? While we did touch on this when we looked at Romans 10 earlier this morning, let's dig a little deeper into what leads to this confession and change of heart. First, we must ... * Turn to the Lord o In Isaiah 45, the Lord speaks to His saving nature and states in verse 22: TURN TO ME AND BE SAVED, THE ENDS OF THE EARTH! FOR I AM GOD, AND THERE IS NO OTHER. o When we turn to the Lord, we are placing our faith and trust in Him, allowing us to ... * Delight in the Lord o Psalm 37:4 says, DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD, AND HE WILL GIVE YOU THE DESIRES OF YOUR HEART. o I think it was Steve Jacob on Monday that made the connection that the first usage of the word "heart" comes from Genesis 6:5-6. This chapter opens the section on the well-known story of Noah and the ark. Here is what it says: 5 THE LORD SAW THAT THE WICKEDNESS OF MAN WAS GREAT IN THE EARTH, AND THAT EVERY INTENTION OF THE THOUGHTS OF HIS HEART WAS ONLY EVIL CONTINUALLY. 6 AND THE LORD REGRETTED THAT HE HAD MADE MAN ON THE EARTH, AND IT GRIEVED HIM TO HIS HEART o You see, when man's heart is full of evil, it grieves the heart of God. o But verse 8 of Genesis 6 revealed that Noah found favor in God's eyes. Noah was the exception. He was delighting in the things of the Lord. o Noah (and his family) were spared of the judgement that followed because he was declared righteous before God. o This idea of God giving us the desires of our hearts confirms that our hearts are aligned with His, when - and only when - we are declared righteous by His grace, through faith in Jesus Christ. Are you guarding your new heart? Are you staying on that path that God has set you on? Are you delighting in the Lord? If you answered no to any of these, I have good news. Lamentations 3:22-23 states: 22 THE STEADFAST LOVE OF THE LORD NEVER CEASES; HIS MERCIES NEVER COME TO AN END; 23 THEY ARE NEW EVERY MORNING; GREAT IS YOUR FAITHFULNESS. You can experience this today. If you answered yes to these questions, then we can turn to many of the Psalms like 106:1 that states: PRAISE THE LORD! OH GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD, FOR HE IS GOOD, FOR HIS STEADFAST LOVE ENDURES FOREVER! Will you join me today and listen to the wisdom of Solomon and guard your heart against wickedness? Let's pray. 2