Guard Your Heart With All Diligence
From Pastor Kevin King
In Proverbs 4:20-27 Solomon explains how important the heart is and that we should guard it diligently so as to control what goes in. He explains that out of the heart flows the issues of life. This means that our attitudes, motivations, and behaviors come out of what is stored in the heart. Jesus said it this way: an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil things, and a good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things (Matthew 12:35). The heart is neutral in the sense that it is not discretionary as to what it stores in. It stores good or evil and whichever one is in abundance is what will come out in our lives.
This is what Solomon is ultimately trying to explain. In verses 20-22 he essentially describes the Word of God being stored up in the heart. He adds that the Word that we find is life to us and health to all our flesh. So the Word is both life to our spiritual side and health to our natural side. Having said this, he then says in verse 23 that we should keep our hearts with all diligence because out of the heart flows issues, or forces, of life. Again, those forces can be good or evil. Which one depends on us, the heart doesn’t care.
The remaining verses ,24-27, tell us how to guard our hearts. Solomon starts by saying that we should put perverse lips far from us. Perverse means to deviate from what is moral and right. Basically, mouths that demean, judge, curse, put down, and just plain talk negative. Solomon is urging us to put away a bad mouth because that stuff will enter our hearts and come out in our lifestyle. Secondly, he says to let our eyes look right on and straight before us. So, we must be mindful and careful what we put before our eyes, what we gaze and stare at. What we look at stamps images in our minds and eventually gets into our hearts. You know the rest, it will come out in our lifestyle. Thirdly, he says we should ponder the path of our feet. In short, we are to think before we act, think before making decisions. Consider where our decisions and actions will take us. When we act hastily, it means we don’t have much discretion. The scripture continues by saying that if we think before acting, our ways will be sure. Lastly, Solomon tells us to not turn to the left hand or the right hand, but to remove our foot from evil. Stay on the straight and narrow. Do not deviate this way or that as evil may be in waiting. Keep straight, and you will be safe.
In summary, Solomon is telling us that in order to guard our hearts - not only to keep evil out, but to guard the good that is in - we have to change how we talk, change what we look at, think before we act, and keep walking a straight path. Note that these four habits are conduits to the heart, and whatever we’re doing with these habits is what is going to get in our hearts and come out, good or evil. So guard your heart will all diligence, for out of it will come good or evil.
