The Hidden Person of the Heart

Everyone of us is two persons.

One is what we show on the outside, and the other is what's inside. What's the status of our hearts today?

Our HEARTS are under attack.

Today, emotion is the new truth. The world tells us to follow our hearts. The Bible tells us to be introspective.

* The IMPORTANCE of our hearts

When the Bible talks about the heart, it talks about the hidden inner person. We are what our hearts are.

(See 1 Samuel 16:7, Luke 6:43-45, Proverbs 14:14)

* Keeping our hearts

Keep = ^guard/protect, ^^maintain

Both of these meanings are fitting to our heart.

^Maintain - look at the condition of your heart when you first got born again, maintain it

Rev 2:4-5

^^Protect - we love God but we also love sinning

Romans 7:23

Keep your hearts in all vigilance.

We are diligent and vigilant about things dear to us, but the most important thing we tend to neglect is what lies inside of us.

John Gills

1. Keep the mind from vanity

2. Keep the understanding from error

3. Keep the will from perverseness

4. Keep the conscience clear and clean of guilt

5. Keep our affections from being inordinate and set on evil objects

6. Keep your thought from being employed on bad subjects

* Preach the Gospel to our hearts on a daily basis.

3. Life in our hearts

Goal of personal devotions - to move your heart

"...for from it flow the springs of life."

We live in an environment where we are so overstimulated that we struggle for quietness.

Sometimes you need to say "No" to things that are distracting you from your devotion with God.

1 Cor. 10:23 “All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful,” but not all things build up.

It is not only our goal to not sin but to love God with all of our hearts.

---------------------------------------------

Psalms 77:3-4

The author was forlorn, depressed.

v. 5-9

He maintains his heart by meditating on the character (e.g. graciousness) of our Lord, in his heart.

v. 10

His heart moved unto the Truth