Hobart Herd Devotional – Proverbs 4 – 4-4-20
This chapter in Proverbs is written as a father who passes on wisdom to his child. The son is reminded to never forget the words of wisdom that have been passed down to him, but to “let your heart hold fast to my words; keep my commandments, and live.” I am reminded of Psalm 119:11 – “Thy Word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee.” Somehow keeping God’s Word alive, focused and cherished in my heart brings me into His wisdom, guidance and blessing.
Probably the most well-known verse in this chapter is verse 23. “keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.”(ESV) The NASB says to “guard your heart”. Verse 24 tells us, “Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you.” My mind asked the question, what does “guarding the heart” have to do with my mouth and speech? Then the Lord reminded me of Jesus’ words in Matthew 15 where He reminded His listeners that what came out of the mouth defiled the man not the outward things like failing to ceremonially wash your hands.
When I was in Israel last spring, one of the things I noticed about the Orthodox Jewish people was their total commitment to cleansing outwardly and only eating kosher food. As we are dealing with this COVID 19 virus crisis, we are giving much more consideration to washing our hands and cleansing all surfaces. However, God gives us something that checks and guards our hearts, it is the inputting of His Word in our hearts and minds to keep ourselves clean, moral, and righteous in our actions.
So, one way for me to check if I am keeping (guarding) my heart diligently, is to listen and see what comes out of my mouth. If I want the wellspring of God’s goodness to flow in my life, I must input the wisdom of God’s Word so that the outflow of my mouth brings glory and honor to Him.
Father, thank you for Your Word that gives me the ability to keep my actions, attitudes and words right before You. Help me to watch the input into my heart so that I can guard it with the power of Your Spirit and Your Word. I want the words of my mouth to reflect the work of Your Spirit in my heart. I know I am not perfect and will fail but help my heart to be attentive to Your Spirit so that I will recognize when my mouth spouts filth. May Your Spirit through Your Word be able to convict, warn and correct my heart so that it is guarded and flourishing in Your wisdom and truth. In Jesus Name, Amen. Pastor Rob