The world searches for answers to the problems we are now being flooded with. Truly, not only are there “rumors of wars,” but there are actual wars taking place in many nations; and now in America, it appears we have a “war” on Police Officers! Police Officers are no longer safe stopping to have a coffee and a donut, or going to investigate a reported crime. No, they cannot even go and do their duty of protecting those who are marching in protest, without fear of being shot! America is not used to this kind of thing!
As the “worldly wise” search in vain for answers, the “television talking heads” speak worthless words, and those holding elected offices, the leaders of our land, tell us it should not be this way; they have no real answers! The truth is, the answer has been in “The Book” in the books shelves and on coffee tables, but it has long left our hearts. Solomon wrote in such simple words: “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Pro. 4:23). Yes, in these fourteen words, Solomon laid before all of us the answer to the problems of today.
First, he identified the place of supreme importance: “thy heart.” Individually we each have one, but Solomon is not speaking of the pump in the chest, through which the blood is pumped through our body. No, the “heart” as used in the scripture refers more often than not to the mind. Notice with me how we can determine this truth. In Hebrews, the writer quotes Jeremiah 31:33 two times, but he interchanges the two words, “hearts” and “minds.” Here are the quotes of the part of the verses we are interested in: “I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts” (Heb. 8:10) and “I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them” (Heb. 10:16). If you will read with care, you will notice that the words in verse 10 “their minds” while verse 16 has “their hearts” in the first part and in the second part, verse 10 has “in their hearts” and verse 16 reads “in their minds.” Therefore, the inspired writer uses the words interchangeably and this means, the “heart” is the “mind” and the “mind” is the “heart!” So, Solomon is saying: “Keep thy mind with all diligence!”
Second, the word “keep,” (Hebrew naw-tsar) means: to guard, to protect, maintain. Third, this naturally brings us to the manner of doing so and Solomon used the word “mish-mawr” (diligence): as a guard on duty! One dare not fall asleep, for it is a twenty-four hour day duty! The danger is always present! In this regard Peter wrote: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Pet. 5:8). Peter gives to more words to put within Solomon’s word “diligence;” they are: 1) “sober” (nēphō) which means: “watch; and 2) “vigilant” (grēgoreuō) which means: “to keep awake.” Thus, the urgency is expressed in Solomon’s words, “keep thy heart with all diligence!”
Fourth, Solomon now takes us to the reason for this urgency, as he wrote: “for out of it (heart,mind, frw) are the issues of life.” Note that he started this phrase with the word “for” (kee), meaning “seeing, since.” In others words, this is a fact! But, what is a fact? “out of it (the heart, the mind, frw) are the issues of life.” What about this fact is so hard for the highly educated of our land to understand? What we put into the heart/mind is what we are! This is a simple fact! Truth is, it is a known fact, and the liberals of our nation has been very busy for years putting liberalism into the minds of our young; while they have taken away every effort by others to put into these same minds sound and proven truth!
Jesus said it this way: “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matt. 15;19). Thus, the conclusion is easy to reach; “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he!” (Pro. 23:7). Friends, the heart/mind controls the outward actions and this is not a mystery!
Our young have been fed with “evil” for the last sixty years and with an ever increasing amount of evil! God has been semantically removed from the minds/hearts of our young and good has been called evil and evil has been called good! This will not change until we put truth before this nation as it is in truth, the word of God!
Frank R. Williams