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Sermon Outline - The Heart and its Issues, Proverbs ch.4 v.23

Date11/07/2004
Time10:00
PreacherRev. Maurice Roberts, Inverness
Sermon TitleThe Heart and its Issues
TextProverbs ch.4 v.23
Sermon ID884

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Introduction

  1. The heart
  2. how to treat it
  3. why.

The keeping of the soul/heart. Only Bible teaches us this properly.

  1. THE HEART

    1. What:
      1. special part: "hidden man" (outward/inward)
      2. soul = spirit (TWO not THREE)
      3. called 'heart'. Far more important than body. The very SELF: "I".
      OBSERVE: To value soul: "gain the whole world."
      APPLICATION: Only Christ enables us to see its importance.
    2. The heart needs attention - must not be neglected:
      Its faculties:
      1. mind
      2. will
      3. affections
      4. conscience
      5. memory
      OBSERVE: Of course, we need to keep our body too as we keep our soul/heart. Because ear/eye are the gates through which temptation and evil may come.
      APPLICATION: SOUL = the most valuable treasure you have.

  2. HOW TO TREAT OUR OWN HEART:

    "Keep" = Guard/Watch, Lock and Key.

    1. "Keep" = look very carefully to it.
      ILLUSTRATION: body, hair, face, weight; medicine, diet, etc.
      So the soul to be attended to. But how?
    2. The manner of this keeping:
      1. MIND: Intelligence Officer. Our thoughts very important - "As a man thinketh". "Carnal mind/spiritually-minded".
      2. WILL: The Door-Keeper of the soul: What he lets in or not.
        ILLUSTRATION: RAF Base - SENTRY.
      3. AFFECTIONS: What we allow ourselves to love/hate. This affects character. "Set your affections..."
      4. CONSCIENCE: Policeman of the soul. "Void of offence".
      5. MEMORY: Librarian of the soul. Store it well.
      3. ILLUSTRATION: a garden: "God's acre": weeds - feed - water - watch - fence.
      APPLICATION: "with all diligence": DAILY/HOURLY

  3. THE REASON FOR THIS

    1. "the issues of life"
      (World - issues of death = where death will find us.)
      The rest of our life from now to death will be profoundly influenced by how we keep our soul.
    2. In more detail:
      1. happy life or sad?
        We need to be careful how we put this: We may have outward happiness but God's love will give us joy? But if we do not keep our soul and heart we shall have sorrow.
      2. blessed or not so blessed?
        Certainly: "As we sow, we reap."
        The thing we mean is: much grace in our soul/much joy in our heart/much wisdom too.
      3. serviceable to God or not?
        "man's chief end", i.e. shall you and I have brought glory to God or not?
        Q. Is not this your greatest desire?
        Q. Do you not wish to be commended in the end: "This man...kept his soul".
      OBSERVE: The way to keep our soul will affect all our life and even our eternity (reward).
      APPLICATION: "lay up - treasure - in heaven".

APPLICATION:

Illustration:

"OUTREACH" - yes, but "INREACH".

  1. Outward usefulness begins with inward care for our own heart. Don't neglect it!
  2. God is sovereign but we can only blame ourselves in the end if we have neglected our soul: "How have I hated..." (Proverbs 5:12)

FOR:

"Herein is my Father glorified...much fruit".

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