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"Watch Over Your Heart With All Diligence"

by Chris Simmons

When Solomon wrote in Proverbs 4:23, “Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life,” he clearly understood the importance of the heart of man. When God promised that He would grant any request that Solomon would have, his request to God focused on the needs of his own heart. We read in I Kings 3:7-9, “And now, O LORD my God, Thou hast made Thy servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. And Thy servant is in the midst of Thy people which Thou hast chosen, a great people who cannot be numbered or counted for multitude. So give Thy servant an understanding heart to judge Thy people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Thine?” God granted his request and blessed Solomon with a “wise and discerning heart” (verse 12) unlike any other man on earth had been given.

Solomon also clearly understood the dangers that assail the heart of man. God warned His people, and those who would serve as King in particular, about not marrying foreign wives “lest his heart turn away” from serving God (Deuteronomy 17:17). That same context also warned that arrogance and failing to be devoted to God’s word would also turn one’s heart away from faithful service to God (Deuteronomy 17:18-20). Yet Solomon failed to heed these warnings and his heart was turned away from God. We read in I Kings 11:1-4, “Now King Solomon loved many foreign women… from the nations concerning which the LORD had said to the sons of Israel, ‘You shall not associate with them, neither shall they associate with you, for they will surely turn your heart away after their gods.’… For it came about when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been.” Solomon should know therefore of the need to “watch over your heart with all diligence” as much as any man ever has.

We are continually exhorted by our doctors and health experts to take proactive measures to make sure our physical heart continues to function as it should. But the heart that Solomon speaks of does not refer to the organ of the human body that pumps our blood but rather to the invisible inner man represented by our intellect (Matthew 9:4; Romans 10:10), our will (Romans 6:17; II Corinthians 9:7) and our emotions (Mark 12:30; II Corinthians 8:16).

What does it mean to “watch over” (NASB) or “keep” (ASV & KJV) our hearts? Thayer defines the Hebrew word “natsar” as, “to watch, to guard, to keep - to preserve, to guard from dangers - to keep, to observe, to guard with fidelity” (Thayer's Greek Lexicon). It’s about protecting, preserving and guarding the moral integrity and purity of our hearts. Why is this so important? Solomon says, “for from it flow the springs (issues) of life.” The Hebrew word for “springs” (NASB) or “issues” (ASV & KJV) is “motsa” which literally refers to “where the sun rises” and which Vine further defines as the “starting point” or “place of departure.” Everything that transpires in our life, things good, bad and everything in between, originates or has its root in our heart. Jesus taught this same point in Matthew 15:18 when He said, “the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man.” It is out of the heart that come our heartaches and sin (verse 19) as well as our faith and obedience (Romans 6:17; 10:10).

It is clear from scripture that to “watch over our heart” is all about controlling our thinking. It’s about taking seriously our individual responsibility to take “every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (II Corinthians 10:3-5). It’s about being able to “gird your minds for action” (I Pet. 1:13). It’s about the discipline necessary so that we only “think on these things” (Philippians 4:8). It’s about choosing the circumstances of our life to the extent we’re able, so that we “set no worthless thing before my eyes” (Psalms 101:3; cf. Job 31:1) nor make “provisions” for our heart to be led astray (Romans 13:13-14). Solomon wrote in Proverbs 23:7, “For as he thinks within himself, so he is.” We become what our hearts and minds are focused on and our life becomes the result of how we think. Will we have the honesty, courage and conviction to make sure that we choose carefully what we see and hear and then “take every thought captive”?

Solomon addressed other needs of our heart in the book of Proverbs. Including the need to “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6). Throughout life we will be confronted with choices that we must make in which we choose between the “way that seems right to a man” (Proverbs 14:12) and God’s way (John 14:6; Matthew 7:13-14). It’s not up to our own hearts to “direct” our steps (Jeremiah 10:23). We cannot afford to “lean on your own understanding.”

Rather than worldly, carnal and sinful thoughts dominating our lives, Solomon wrote of the need for our heart to remain focused on God’s word. Proverbs 4:4, “Then he taught me and said to me, ‘Let your heart hold fast my words; keep my commandments and live.’” The sad reality is that many who profess to be Christians spend precious little time with God’s divine revelation. Unless we ensure for adequate time for meditation on God’s word (Psalms 1:1-3; Joshua 1:8), we’re in danger of the truth no longer remaining in our hearts (cf. Galatians 2:5). We need to continually remind our hearts of the truth revealed in His word (II Peter 1:12-15).

Solomon warned about our hearts focusing on the temporal pleasures of sin that those of the world enjoy. Proverbs 23:17, “Do not let your heart envy sinners, but live in the fear of the LORD always.” Sometimes it seems that the wicked get to enjoy the fruit of their sinfulness and never suffer the consequences for their wrong-doing. This is the issue that is raised in Psalms 73 where it is observed that the wicked are “not in trouble as other men” (verse 5) and are “always at ease” and have “increased in wealth” (verse 12) though they mock and despise God (verse 11) which would lead many to conclude that “in vain I have kept my heart pure, and washed my hands in innocence” (verse 13). It can be “troublesome” to ponder this until we stop to reflect on the outcome of such ways of life. It didn’t make sense “until I came into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end” (verse 17). Remember the words of Solomon in Ecclesiastes 8:12-13, “Although a sinner does evil a hundred times and may lengthen his life, still I know that it will be well for those who fear God, who fear Him openly. But it will not be well for the evil man and he will not lengthen his days like a shadow, because he does not fear God.”

The outcome of our life will undoubtedly depend on how carefully and diligently we “watch over your heart.”

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