As A Man Thinks In His Heart

Introduction

Well done, Scott. What a compelling song that was to leave before the lesson. I think we might find ourselves at times languishing in the sum of self, sum of thee category. Perhaps today’s efforts together will lead us to less of self and more of thee, and then ultimately may the Lord conquer. None of self and all of thee. Before I delve right into the material today, I must plug the meeting at Kleinwood this week because my friend Mark Roberts is there. Mark and I have been friends and preaching colleagues for 30 years, and you will not get bored listening to Mark Roberts. He is a fireball. He has and the energy of a child. I mean, it’s amazing. So if you could go hear him either Monday or Tuesday night, you would profit from that.

I want you to turn in your Bible to the book of Proverbs. We are going to be looking at a number of Proverbs this morning. There’s no way to take all the information and to remember all the verses that we’re going to read, but I want you to get the flavor of the Proverbs this morning and in regard to one topic in particular. When you think of the Proverbs, what themes or subjects come to mind? If you could put it in theme or subject. The first thing that hits my mind always, of course, wisdom is what the whole book is about. But if but one thing that wisdom leads us to is the right use or employment of the tongue. And if I would pick just one section of Proverbs, and I want you to turn now to Proverbs chapter 15.

Because even within the space of these 33 verses, there are five references to the tongue. And Proverbs 15 always stands out to me for that reason. It begins with a gentle answer, turns away wrath. But a harsh word stirs up anger. Oh, how we need Proverbs 15, verse 1. In all of our relationships. Verse 8, the sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is his delight. Employ your tongue in praying. Going on down in Proverbs chapter 15 to verse 23, a man has joy in an apt answer. How delightful is a timely word. Verse 26. Evil plans are an abomination to the Lord. But pleasant words are pure. Verse 28 The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer.

Focus on the first two words of that proverb. The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours forth or pours out evil things. What other subjects or themes? Oh, let me not forget. Proverbs 18 21. Death and life are in the power of the tongue. And those who love it will eat its fruit. What’s another subject? Discipline. Self discipline. How many Proverbs, and some of them are quite humorous about the sluggard who’s hinged to his bed. I love that one. So many passages about the sluggard. Go to the ant, oh sluggard. Your own personal work ethic. Look at verse 32. He who neglects discipline despises himself. But he who listens to reproof acquires understanding. And not only our own personal discipline, but discipline that we impose upon our children that involves training and instruction of our children.

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he shall not depart from it. Proverbs 19, verse 18. There is the corrective discipline. Discipline your son while there is hope.

Young people, listen to counsel and accept discipline, verse 20, that you may be wise the rest of your days. And then one of my favorites in 2313.

Although you beat him with the rod, he will not die. Like that.

Relationships. He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord. Proverbs 18, 22. Are you still back in 15? No, you aren’t. We go back there. 15, 17. Two more Proverbs of chapter 15. 15 17, better is a dish of vegetables. Where’s the meat? Well, better is a dish of vegetables where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it. Interesting proverb. Possessions, the verse earlier. Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and turmoil with it. And there are many other proverbs in just these themes that we could reference from this book. But the pervading, predominant theme that coincides with wisdom for living in the book of Proverbs has to do with a man’s heart.

We’ve already seen one verse in Proverbs 13. I hope this doesn’t take too long. I want to do this. Go back to two. We’re going to go through Proverbs quickly and notice how many times the heart is referenced, and I want to tell you, we’re going to go through a lot of things here, and we’re not going to be exhausted with all the Proverbs that talk about the heart. What is the heart? We’re not talking about the organ inside of our bodies that it’s that it that’s at the center of our being that pumps blood throughout our whole body so that we can live and have oxygen and all the other organs can function. But the biblical heart is at the center of everything, just like your physical heart is, and it really is just a little bit north of your heart.

It’s the mind, it’s the inner man that involves your thoughts, your judgments, your affections, what makes you tick, what you love. Your affections, your values, the way you measure things. Everything happens in the heart, and that pertains to a man’s conscience as well. The inner man. Look at all of these references. 2 verse 2. Make your ear attentive to wisdom. Incline your heart to understand. Verse 10. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. 3 1. My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments. Verse 3. Do not let kindness and truth leave you. Bind them around your neck. Don’t strangle yourself. That’s not what he’s saying. Make that, bring that close to your life.

Bind them around your neck. Write them on the tablet of your heart. Trust in the Lord with all your heart. And do not lean on your own understanding. No, we’re not going to do every chapter, but go with me to chapter 4. Then he taught me and said to me, let your heart hold fast my words. Keep my commandments and live. Do not let them depart from your sight. Verse 21. Keep them in the midst of your heart. And then this familiar one, right? Keep your heart with all diligence. For out of it flows the issues of life. Oh, let me help you by this. You know what I did so I could help myself remember all of these verses? Is I put an asterisk beside each one in my context.

So if you wanted to start doing that next to all these verses, then you have all these verses on the heart with an asterisk beside them. Don’t know how you do it on the iPad, but that’s how you do it in the book. 6 14. Who with perversity in his heart, okay? If the heart is not right, perversity in his heart devises evil continually, who spreads strife, therefore his calamity will come suddenly. Verse 21, bind them continually, these wise statements and sayings, bind them continually on your heart, tie them around your neck. Verse 21. Verse 25, speaking of the one who would seduce or entice you. Do not desire her beauty in your heart, nor let her catch you with her eyelids. Chapter 11. See, we’re moving on.

11, verse 20. The perverse in heart are an abomination to the Lord, but the blameless in their walk are his delight. Well, back to 15 again. 15. We’ve already read seven or eight verses here already, but look at 15.15. All the days of the afflicted are bad. But a cheerful heart has a continual feast. I told you to look carefully at verse 28. The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things. 16 5. Everyone who is proud in heart, everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord, assuredly, he will not be unpunished. The wise in heart, verse 21, will be called discerning, and sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness, verse 23. The heart of the wise teaches his mouth and adds persuasiveness to his lips.

Proverbs 17, verse 22. A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones. 19, 3. The selfish or the foolishness of man subverts his way, and his heart rages against the Lord. Verse 21.

It will stand. Hold that thought, if you would. 2215, again back to training up a child. Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child.

Well, our context this morning that we’re going to be looking at, if you want to put a ribbon there, in chapter 23, proceeding from the verses that we’re actually going to look at in verse 12, he says, apply your heart to discipline, and your ears to words of knowledge. Verse 17, do not let your heart envy sinners, but live in the fear of the Lord always. Listen, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart in my way, or in the way. Give me your heart, my son, verse 26, and let your eyes delight in my ways. Two more, 28. 28, 14. Then we’re going to go back to 23.

How blessed is the man who fears always. But he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity. Boy, that’s a good one. Verse 26. He who trusts in his own heart is a fool. But he who walks wisely will be delivered. They’re all good, but perhaps we save the best for life. Now I want you to go back to 23 and look at this familiar one, almost as familiar, I’m sure, as Proverbs 4 23, keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it flows the issues of life. And I want you to look at this verse with me that says, For as a man thinks in his heart, or as he thinks within himself, the New American Standard says, so he is.

Couldn’t find it, so I wrote a new one. Here’s the new one. Proverbs 23, verse 6. Do not eat the bread of a selfish man, or desire his delicacies. For as he thinks within himself, so he is. He says to you, eat and drink. But his heart is not with you. You will vomit up the morsel you have eaten and waste your compliments. What in the world is that context about? I want to share three things with you as we conclude the introduction. Number one, there is a lesson here about measuring faith by externals. More on that momentarily. Number two, there is a message here about manipulating the perceptions of others. And what we learn most definitely in these three verses is God’s true measurement of a person.

God’s true measurement of you is who and what you are on the inside. What your mind is, what your heart is. And remember that passage in 1 Samuel 16 and verse 7, when God was selecting his second monarch over all the nation of Israel, in contrast to the first monarch, Saul, who was the people’s choice, he certainly looked like the kind of king that all the nations around them had. And then he had various spiritual problems that developed. But the second king would be chosen by God, unique and different, not the oldest, not the tallest, not the most strapping soldier in appearance. But what did he tell Samuel? The Lord looks upon the heart. And thus David, the youngest, is selected, the youngest of Jesse to be the next king in Israel.

1. We Must Not Be Content With Mere Externals

Where am I going with all this morning? I want to make three points about this text that I think are very important, as they pertain to us having the right heart and us learning important things today. Number one, as I suggested a moment ago, we must not be content with mere externals. Now, the reason why this message is important is because it’s much easier to do this. It’s much easier to fall into the trap, as some in the Bible did, to fall into the comfort of the external trappings of religion, the external actions of things that are right, but not embrace all that God has said about what is right. But becoming content with some things that we know are right and doing those things, but perhaps not with the heart that God intends.

Rather than developing thoughts that match God’s.

Loving things that he loves, and hating things that he hates. And there’s probably more that could be said just about that. But what we fall into is a checklist kind of Christianity. Assemblies of worship. Executed consistently with God’s truth, no error added. Check. Certain number of prayers that must be prayed. Prayers before mealtime. Prayers when you wake up before you go to bed. Check. Preparation for Bible class. Bible class teacher’s going to get on me if I’m not prepared. I prepared ahead of time. Check. There’s supposed to be some acts of service and hospitality. Pad somebody over last year. Check. A respectable morality in my conduct. I don’t do a lot of things that a lot of other people do in the world. Check. I wouldn’t belittle any of those things that I mentioned.

They are all a part of God’s design to mold our hearts after his. But those can be reduced to mere ends in and of themselves. And the heart that is essential, the heart that God is measuring, the heart that God will judge our eternal destiny can be removed from those activities if we’re not careful. They must be accompanied by right attitudes for those things to be meaningful. And if that does not happen, if we lose that, we become like those Pharisees that we talk so much about. They honor me with their lips. And we’ll talk more about this text tonight. They honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Remember Jesus told the parable about the Pharisee and the publican? I reference it quite often because I think it’s a pitfall of our generation.

We do a lot of religious things, maybe not fast twice a week, like the Pharisee does in Jesus’ story, but a lot of the other things that he mentions, those are the things that we do. And we look at others, they don’t do them. I’m better than him. That’s the whole point of that parable. The publican who was unwilling to even look up into heaven but smote his breast and said, God be merciful to me, the sinner. He goes down to his house justified, while this religious Pharisee does not. And Jesus tells that parable, Luke tells us, because the Pharisees trusted in themselves that they were righteous and they viewed others with contempt. Look, if you view others with contempt, no amount of religiosity is going to save us.

2. As He Thinks in His Heart, So He Is

No amount of assemblies, no amount of prayers, no amount of good deeds or morality, none of that is going to be good enough to save us if we hold others in contempt. Okay, let’s go back to Proverbs 23. This man in Proverbs 23 is engaged in an act of hospitality. That’s a good thing. But he is clearly inhospitable. Here is a man who is engaged in hospitality, but who is clearly inhospitable in his heart. This goes back to a sermon I preached not long ago that I preached in a meeting some, when good deeds don’t count. Did you see what he’s saying? While he seems to be generous and giving, all the while in his heart, he is selfish. The only thing he can think about while this man is seating at his table, eating at his table and seated at his table, the only thing he can think about is this man is costing me money.

He says, eat and drink. That’s what those are the words that come out of his mouth, but his heart is not with you.

Eating my food. And so who is he really? That’s what the proverb is saying. Who is he really? He’s not the hospitable man that his guest perceives him to be, you see, the perceptions of others. He wants other people to think he’s hospitable. He’s not that man. He’s the man that he is on the inside. He’s the selfish, self-consumed man. And God says, as he thinks in his heart, so he is. And if you knew, if you were sitting at his table and you knew that about him, his food would all of a sudden not taste so very good. In fact, you wouldn’t want it at all, even if it was a delicious medium filet mignon. With a huge Texas sized baked potato lathered and sour cream and butter with big Texas toast and your favorite vegetable.

There is one of those in there. And then dessert. Pecan pie. Ice cream. How about strawberry pie chocolate? Here we’re eating all the man’s delicacies, but I don’t want them because he really doesn’t want me to have them. And so we vomit up what we have eaten, the text says. And you waste your compliments, or the King James says, you lose thy sweet words. Disgusted with this guy’s true character, all pleasantries would disappear. Now, the act of worship is no different.

If we come here merely because we’re commanded or expected to, but we’d rather really be doing something else. We don’t have a heart for God.

Do you have a problem of checking out mentally? Are you still here? Because I’ll tell you what worship’s going to require. It’s going to require a diligent investment of yourself, of your mind. The pursuit of the holiness of God and learning more about the kind of person He calls us to be is going to require an expenditure of effort. We have to seek personal spiritual growth. Effective worship is going to involve an investment of my mind and being in what we’re doing. We’ve got to invest something when we’re here. We’ve got to give something. We’ve got to do some diligence. And for a lot of folks, that’s just too much. And so their heart checks out on a rather consistent basis. Look, that checked out heart, that’s who you are.

That’s who you are. Not the religious person, not the worshiper. What goes on in our hearts and beyond these assemblies, how we live, why we do things, motives are everything. I mean, I could glose all over you. I learned a new word this week. It means flattery. I could glose all over. I could flatter you. Oh, well, thank you very much. That compliment. That’s so nice. And but you know what? Instead of that being an encouraging thing designed to build you up, how twisted it could be that it’s really about me and how I want to be perceived as a person. If I twist that it becomes somehow about me and how I want others to regard me and the perceptions that others have. That’s not encouragement.

It looks like an act of encouragement, but it’s really a very selfish thing. How many more examples could I give? Oh, the heart. Jesus tells that parable about the sower. Four kinds of soils. The wayside soil. That first soil that the devil comes and snatches the word away so that it cannot germinate, produce fruit. The soil that there’s no lasting root, and in time of temptation, you fall away. The third soil is choked by the cares and riches and worries. But that fourth soil, that’s what we’re trying to be, right? That’s good heart stuff. Good soil that takes the word, holds it fast, and bears fruit with perseverance, some 30fold, some 60fold, some 100fold. Good soil. Most of us, hopefully, all of us in this assembly, at some point in our past, hopefully even now, are the good soil of that parable.

3. The Heart Is More Deceitful Than All Else

But just because we were the good soil at some point in our past does not mean our soil is that right now. What was once good soil can become thorny soil. Where the cares and riches and worries of this life begin to choke out the productivity of the word in our hearts and lives. Just because you were once good soil does not mean that you have not degenerated into thorny soil. And we ought to constantly be watching for that. Jeremiah says something interesting as I’m trying to get through this hurriedly now in Jeremiah 17, verses 9 and 10. The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick. Who can understand it? The Lord says, I search the heart, I test the mind, even to give each man according to his ways, according to the results of his deeds.

The man with the flawed heart, it’s ultimately going to be evidenced in some of his deeds. But the Lord is going to measure a man on the basis of what he is within. And it’s interesting that this statement is made when it’s made. When is Jeremiah prophesy? Babylonian destruction is looming. There’s not anything that he or Ezekiel or Daniel, the righteous people of his time, can do to change the tide of things. They’re about to be destroyed. The hearts of these people are desperately sick. And the problem is, they don’t see it. They’re atheists, right? They’ve quit worshiping God altogether. They’ve rejected the word of God. They believe this is a pack of lies. Oh, no. No. They still revere.

The Old Testament is the law of God. The Torah.

They still worship. They still sacrifice. They still pray. But it has become merely a religion of externals to them. What do people do? The heart is deceitfully sick above all else. When people are engaged in conduct that is not consistent with the scriptures, they most often, instead of admitting that is so, will spin. They will take what they’ve done, and they will try to find a way to make it jive with the word of God to soothe their conscience. Almost everybody that sins does this. Finds a way to make it not that bad, or even to make it right. And convince themselves. I know sometimes we look at things. We look at Jeroboam’s religion in the Old Testament. How could he not see that was wrong?

Oh, there may have been a twinge somewhere when he first had this thought that perhaps this shouldn’t be done. But after a while, Jeroboam says, this is a good thing. This is good. And that’s what people do. There may have been this twinge of conscience somewhere along the way, but now they’re saying, no, this is good. You need to accept this. This is good. And they convince their hearts that it is so.

4. Allegiance and Loyalty, Not Merely Religious Activity

In a man’s heart. But the counsel of the Lord, it will stand. What will stand is what God has revealed in his word. One more point about this. A right response to Jesus involves allegiance and loyalty. Not merely religious activity. A lot of people will claim to be Jesus’ disciples. He addressed that on several occasions. But he said things about if you don’t do this, if you don’t do this, if you don’t do this, you cannot be my disciple. So it stands to reason after Jesus and the apostles are gone that there would be those among the Lord’s people who would try to follow Jesus and yet do all these things that Jesus said you can’t do. And be my disciple. Love father and mother more than me, son or daughter.

Love even your own life. Reject the cross and still claim I’m your disciple. The bottom line of religion has been and always will be allegiance and loyalty. And that’s more than just a once-a-week assembly, isn’t it? Hosea 6, one more passage I want to share with you. Hosea 6. I used to misunderstand what was being said here because I didn’t look carefully at the context. Got to thank the long departed Bill Roberts for cluing me in on this. I would often turn to Hosea 6 and verse 1. Come, let us return to the Lord, for he has torn us, but he will heal us. What could be wrong with that? He will revive us after two days. He will raise us up on the third day, that we may live before him.

Interesting choice of words there. Somewhat prophetic, I would say. Verse 3, so let us know, let us press on to know the Lord. His going forth is as certain as the dawn, and he will come to us like the rain, like the spring rain watering the earth. I want to tell you, those are some beautiful words. I can preach those words. I can tell everybody in this assembly this morning, let us press on. Let us press on to know the Lord. He will come to us like the rain. Let’s return to him, and he will heal us. Wonderful words. But don’t miss God’s response. Verse 4. What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? For your loyalty is like a morning cloud.

And like the dew which goes away early. Therefore I have hewn them in pieces by the prophets. I have slain them by the words of my mouth. And the judgments on you are like the light that goes forth. For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice. And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings. No wonder that passage in the New Testament says, Let us not love in word or in tongue, but indeed in truth. Because what he’s saying is, all the right words are not sufficient without a loyal heart. The issue and true religion before God has been, always will be the heart of man. And my allegiance and my loyalty. He wants our hearts. The eyes of the Lord search to and fro throughout the earth to strongly support those whose hearts are completely his.

2 Chronicles 16 and verse 9. Again, another verse that I’ve often taken out of the context, but it’s talking about poor King Asa, who I’ve studied a lot about recently, who used to be that guy, whose heart was completely the Lord’s, but now he was trusting in other people and in other things. And Hanani the seer is telling him, you don’t have that heart anymore, Asa. And so what did Asa do? He cried to the Lord, acknowledged his sin, and changed his ways. No, he did not. He lashed out at the people and persecuted some of them at this time. He did not respond favorably to the words of Hanani the seer. You see, just because he was once good soil does not mean that he is good soil now.

Allegiance and loyalty. He wants us, God wants us to be convinced that his way is best in everything.

Conclusion

And whenever our behavior is inconsistent with that, whenever our thoughts are inconsistent with that, we’ve got to come back to that. His way is best in everything. The true disciple, who displays allegiance and is loyal to Jesus, comes to him and learns of him and follows him. As Jesus said, Come unto me, all you who are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Come, take my yoke upon you and learn of me. For I am meek and lowly of heart. And what a tremendous blessing flows out of that. For you shall find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. If you’re in this audience this morning and you’ve not chosen allegiance to the King, we provide an opportunity for you to make that declaration.

Confess your faith in Jesus Christ, to turn from sin that has gripped your life and your heart. And to become one with him, one spirit with the Lord, being baptized into his death and rising to walk in newness of life, so that you can begin on the awesome, uplifting, ennobling path of bringing your heart to the king. And submitting to him in every way. And knowing the joy of having done so and having the hope of immortality.