The Heart of the Matter

Scripture

".......for as he thinks within himself, so he is. 'Eat and drink." he says to you, but his heart is not with you." -Proverbs 23:7

If we are faithfully walking with the Lord, then we can attest to the fact that He challenges  our character. His Spirit closely examines the contents of our heart and reveals what is there. If we're honest, there may have been times in our lives when we have said something with our mouths, but thought something else in our hearts. God challenges what is in our hearts because the contents of our hearts reveal who we really are. 

Though Christians often quote this scripture, it is taken out of context. If you read verses 6 and 7, you will see that it is discussing a stingy miserly person who with his mouth says one can partake, but his heart his calculating. This means that he will give goods, but count up the cost of what he provides. What is in his heart does not match what he says. His heart is not even with the person he's inviting to partake. Beloved, our hearts must match what comes out of our mouths. Pretty words are worthless if our hearts contain hateful sentiments. It is the heart that blesses, cheats, or condemns.

I will admit, the way we use the part of this scripture that says, "for as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he" isn't altogether incorrect. Our thoughts are important because they are closely knitted to what's in our hearts. What you find yourself thinking, you will also find that it mirrors what's in your heart. So, let's examine ourselves and think about what we're thinking. What are our motives when we encounter people? Are we hypocritical, thinking one thing in our hearts, but saying something completely different? Our thoughts make us the people we are. So, what are we thinking? Are our thoughts on God and His word, or are they on ourselves? Let's ask God to closely examine our hearts today.

Prayer

Father, we ask for your grace and strength to honor you in our thinking. Holy Spirit, we ask that you give us the power to think and act as you would. Help us to think on things that are true, honorable, just, pure, and lovely, things of good report, and things that are virtuous and praiseworthy. Amen