Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, Neither desire thou his dainty meats: For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; But his heart is not with thee.
Proverbs 23:6-7 (KJV)
Bottom line: The state of your life is only as good as the state of your heart.
Teaching
The heart of man is a sacred place for God. A person who is born again has received a new heart and a new Spirit.
26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
Ezekiel 36:26 (KJV)
Your heart is where you live. The Bible says for you to experience salvation, not only must you confess the Word of God with your mouth but you have to believe it in your heart.
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Romans 10: 9-10
Therefore, you are a result of what you believe in your heart. What you say is simply an expression of the content of your heart.
34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
Matthew 12:34
In the realm of the Spirit, the words you speak in your heart resound more than the words you utter from your lips. This is the reason why many Christians pray yet they experience little or no result. Because they speak words of faith, yet doubt in their heart. Therefore their words are powerless because it is faith that moves mountains, not words alone.
Our proof text says.
6 Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye,
Proverbs 23:6-7 (KJV)
neither desire thou his dainty meats:
7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:
Eat and drink, saith he to thee;
but his heart is not with thee.
As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. There are many Christians in the church of God who harbor evil thoughts against their brothers, sisters, neighbors, etc. They would behave godly around the pastor and church members but their hearts are not right with God. Such Christians will always find themselves enslaved by the devil because by keeping bitterness in their hearts, they have opened the door to evil spirits. The Bible says:
23 Keep thy heart with all diligence;
Proverbs 4:23 (KJV)
for out of it are the issues of life.
And
27 Neither give place to the devil.
Ephesians 4:27 (KJV)
Jesus encountered many such people in his days. He knew that not all who came around him to listen to him teach were indeed with him. Some came to listen to him while others came to bring him down. But the Bible says Jesus knew the thoughts of their hearts.
15 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk.
18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?
Matthew 22:15, 18 (KJV)
This is what he had to say about them.
27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.
28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
Matthew 23:27-28
A child of God must not harbor evil in his heart. The Bible says.
23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;
24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Matthew 5:23-24 (KJV)
Therefore, shun all evil thoughts the devil suggests to you. Keep a pure heart before the Lord. Live in peace with your brethren and your neighbor. Make your heart a comfortable dwelling place for the Holy Spirit and aseptic to evil.
Further Study
- Proverbs 27:19(ESV) [As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects the man.]
Reflection
- How do you guard the content of your heart daily?
- Do you still hold a grudge against anyone today?
- Is your heart pure before the Lord?
Prayer
Thank you Holy Spirit for giving me the heart of Christ. I forgive anyone who has ever offended me in the past just as you have forgiven me of all my sins. I declare that my heart is pure for your dwelling today in Jesus” name. Amen.
