Day 30 - 90 Days in Proverbs – It Starts with the Heart
Proverbs 6:18 [ESV] 18 a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil,
God is concerned with more than just the act of a sin. He is concerned with a heart that is not right, that leads to wrong thoughts, which left unchecked can motivate a person toward planning wickedness and ultimately to committing sin. Sin often germinates in the heart and mind before it becomes an action and God wants us to learn to stop it there.
Jesus warned us about this. Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28 [ESV] 21 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.' 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire. ... 27 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' 28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Because sin begins before we act, the battle against sin becomes a battle in the heart, for the heart. God knew that. He is ready to remove the hearts that are hardened by sin and replace them with new hearts. Ezekiel 36:26 [ESV] And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
If we try to fight our battles with sin at the action level, or only at that action level, we’ll be too late. So, how do we win the battle at the mind and heart level? It begins by putting the right things in our minds, as we are advised in Philippians 4:8 [ESV] 8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Galatians 5 contrasts the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit. Then, in verse 25 it we are told [ESV] If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. So, after realigning our thoughts, we realign our paths so that we are in step with the Spirit – the Spirit that gives us the new heart of love, joy, peace, etc.
Sweet sisters, the battle against sin begins long before a sinful action occurs. Therefore, we must begin by asking each day for God to help us to focus our minds on what is good, just and right, and also to fill us with the Holy Spirit in order to replace our human hearts with hearts of love, joy and peace. That way, we can stop sin before it even starts.
Prayer — Father God, it is too easy to have a hard heart in this sin-filled world. It’s too easy to focus on the sad, painful, frightening, sinful or angry parts of the world today. But I want to be like Jesus, with a heart full of love for everyone, with a heart for You, Your words, Your laws and your ways, and one that leads me away from sin and toward obedience. I want to have a mind focused on the good in the world. Help me today to have a soft heart of love and peace, and help me to have a mind focused on good. In Jesus’ name I ask. Amen.
Your thoughts —
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