Guarding the Heart: A Father's Call to Wisdom

Devotional

Day 1: The Heart as the Command Center

The heart is the command center of our lives, directing our actions and decisions. Guarding our hearts is crucial because the trajectory of our lives flows from it. We must be vigilant in understanding and protecting our hearts from deceit and sin. [05:26]

"Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life." (Proverbs 4:23, ESV)

Reflection: What specific steps can you take today to guard your heart against deceit and sin, ensuring it remains aligned with God's will?

Day 2: The Deceitful Nature of the Heart

The heart is inherently deceitful and sinful, often leading us astray. It is not merely external influences that corrupt us, but the sinful impulses within. Recognizing this helps us understand that transformation must come from God, who sees and knows our hearts completely. [07:00]

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds." (Jeremiah 17:9-10, ESV)

Reflection: In what ways have you noticed your heart leading you astray? How can you invite God to transform these areas of your life today?

Day 3: The Danger of Admiring the Wrong People

Admiring the wrong people and living for the present can lead our hearts astray. Solomon warns against envying sinners and making decisions based on short-term comfort. Instead, we should focus on eternal truths and invest in wisdom and understanding. [19:18]

"Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord. There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off." (Proverbs 23:17-18, ESV)

Reflection: Who are the people you admire most in your life? Are they leading you towards or away from God's eternal truths?

Day 4: The Cautionary Tale of Rehoboam

Rehoboam's story is a cautionary tale of a heart not set on seeking the Lord. Despite his godly heritage, his heart led him to a life of conflict and rebellion. This highlights the importance of setting our hearts on God and seeking His wisdom. [34:28]

"And he did evil, for he did not set his heart to seek the Lord." (2 Chronicles 12:14, ESV)

Reflection: Reflect on your own life. Are there areas where you have not set your heart to seek the Lord? What changes can you make to align your heart with God's wisdom?

Day 5: Praying for a New Heart

To set our hearts right, we must pray for God to search and change our hearts. Like David, we should ask God to reveal our heart's condition and create in us a clean heart. Transformation comes from God, who promises a new heart and spirit through Jesus Christ. [39:08]

"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." (Ezekiel 36:26, ESV)

Reflection: What specific areas of your heart do you need God to transform today? How can you incorporate prayer into your daily routine to seek this transformation?

Sermon Summary

On this Father's Day, we reflect on the profound wisdom found in Proverbs 23:26, where a father implores his son, "My son, give me your heart." This plea is not just a father's request but echoes the voice of our Heavenly Father calling us to surrender our hearts to Him. Solomon, known for his wisdom, speaks these words to his son Rehoboam, highlighting the importance of the heart as the command center of our lives. The heart's condition determines the trajectory of our lives, and thus, it is crucial to guard it vigilantly.

The heart is a mystery, often deceitful and sinful, as Jeremiah 17:9 and Matthew 15:19 remind us. It is from the heart that evil thoughts and actions emerge, not merely from external influences. This understanding is vital for parents who may feel responsible for their children's choices. The heart's condition is not solely a product of upbringing but is inherently marked by sin. God, however, looks beyond outward appearances and sees the heart, as 1 Samuel 16:7 tells us. This divine insight should prompt us to seek God's understanding and transformation of our hearts.

Solomon's concern for Rehoboam's heart is evident as he warns against envying sinners and living only for the present. The heart goes astray when it admires the wrong people, makes decisions based on short-term comfort, and invests in fleeting pleasures rather than eternal truths. Solomon urges his son to buy truth and wisdom at any cost, emphasizing their eternal value.

The tragic story of Rehoboam, who did not set his heart to seek the Lord, serves as a cautionary tale. Despite having a wise father and a godly heritage, Rehoboam's heart led him astray, resulting in a life of continual conflict. This narrative underscores the importance of setting our hearts on God and seeking His wisdom.

To set our hearts right, we must pray as David did, asking God to search and change our hearts. Psalm 139 and Psalm 51 offer prayers for God to reveal our heart's condition and to create in us a clean heart. The message is clear: we cannot achieve a right heart on our own; we must come to God, who promises to give us a new heart and spirit through Jesus Christ.

Key Takeaways

1. The heart is the command center of our lives, directing our actions and decisions. Guarding our hearts is crucial because the trajectory of our lives flows from it. We must be vigilant in understanding and protecting our hearts from deceit and sin. [05:26]
2. The heart is inherently deceitful and sinful, often leading us astray. It is not merely external influences that corrupt us, but the sinful impulses within. Recognizing this helps us understand that transformation must come from God, who sees and knows our hearts completely. [07:00]
3. Admiring the wrong people and living for the present can lead our hearts astray. Solomon warns against envying sinners and making decisions based on short-term comfort. Instead, we should focus on eternal truths and invest in wisdom and understanding. [19:18]
4. Rehoboam's story is a cautionary tale of a heart not set on seeking the Lord. Despite his godly heritage, his heart led him to a life of conflict and rebellion. This highlights the importance of setting our hearts on God and seeking His wisdom. [34:28]
5. To set our hearts right, we must pray for God to search and change our hearts. Like David, we should ask God to reveal our heart's condition and create in us a clean heart. Transformation comes from God, who promises a new heart and spirit through Jesus Christ. [39:08]
** [39:08]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:20] - Introduction to Proverbs 23:26
[01:15] - The Father's Plea
[02:15] - Solomon's Wisdom
[03:03] - Rehoboam's Story
[05:06] - Why the Heart Matters
[06:12] - The Heart's Influence
[07:00] - The Mystery of the Heart
[08:34] - The Sinful Heart
[11:17] - God Looks on the Heart
[12:36] - Heart vs. Mouth
[14:21] - Roots of Unbelief
[16:58] - Where the Heart Goes Wrong
[19:18] - Admiring the Wrong People
[23:14] - Living for the Present
[29:43] - Investing in Truth
[34:28] - Rehoboam's Tragic End
[39:08] - Setting the Heart Right

Sermon Clips

The heart very simply in the Bible is the command and control center of the life. That's what the heart is. Your heart is the very, very deepest thing about you. So where your heart is is always the central question with regards to the trajectory of any person's life. [00:05:45]

Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. So straightaway, you see that a Bible is saying to us you have a responsibility, brother, sister, for your own heart. If your heart is cold, there will be some reason why your heart is cold. [00:06:21]

The heart is deceitful above all things. We'll come to that in a moment, and desperately sick. But notice the last part of the verse: who can understand it? Who can understand it? Can you explain your own heart? Can you explain why it is that you feel what you feel? [00:07:03]

The heart is sinful. Matthew chapter 15 and verse 19: out of the heart come evil thoughts and murder and adultery and sexual immorality and theft and false witness and slander. Of course, we all like to think that bad things come from out there, but Jesus says to us, no, bad things come from in here. [00:08:51]

The Lord sees not as man sees. Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart. Let's just pause and take that in for a moment. Here's what that means: that God looks into your life more deeply than any other person ever can or ever will. [00:11:24]

Solomon fears that while his son professes the faith that came from grandfather and was being followed by father, and son professes the faith as well, and everything in the family is just fine, the father is wise enough to have this anxiety that there may actually be some secret longing in his son's heart to aspire to the way that godless people live. [00:20:28]

Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off. Now, I think that that tells us that Solomon saw in his son a growing tendency to live only in the present and to lose sight of the future. Why else would this wise man say to his son, surely there is a future? [00:23:14]

Buy the truth at any price because it is of infinite value, and to sell it, what you're left with isn't worth a hill of beans in the light of eternity. So here are three places where the heart goes wrong, where lives drift off onto a wrong path and end in a dark eternity. [00:29:43]

Rehoboam grew strong after his father's death, and he reigned. He was 41 years old when he began to reign. So I wonder how old he was when Solomon was speaking these words to him—maybe in his teenage years, maybe in his early twenties. But by 41, he came to the throne and he began to reign, and he reigned for seventeen years in Jerusalem. [00:34:28]

He did evil. Why? Why did he do evil? For he did not set his heart to seek the Lord. Solomon was famed for his wisdom. I say this too because I prayed that this would be a help to some people today, especially some fathers who condemn themselves. The wisest father who ever lived had a rebel son. [00:35:14]

The message today, friends, is not get a right heart so that you can come to God. The message today is come to God so that you can get a right heart because he says to us in Jesus Christ, a new heart I will give you and a new spirit, the Holy Spirit, I will put in you. [00:39:08]

Father, please bring heart change in all of us today and in some of us in a marked way that will shift the trajectory of life and change the experience of eternity. For these things, we ask in the Savior's name, and everyone together said. [00:41:20]

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