The heart according to the Bible is the center not only of spiritual activity, but also of all the operations of human life. The heart is "the home of the personal life," and hence a man is designated, according to his heart.
1 Kings 3:12 Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
Solomon had a wise and an understanding heart.
In the gospel of Matthew, we have another reference to the heart.
Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Here we see the heart described as pure. Look at Psalm's.
Psalm 11:2 For, lo, the wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart.
Once again, we see reference to the heart as upright. So far, all of these references have presented the heart of man in a positive light.
However, the heart is described as hardened in EX 4:21 speaking about Pharaoh. In Leviticus, the heart is capable of hate.
Leviticus 19:17 Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.
It is spoken of being wicked in Deuteronomy 15:9a Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart…
Jesus spoke of hardness of heart in Mark 3:5a And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts…
So far, we have seen that the heart has been presented from both positive and negative viewpoints.
Let me show you the first occurrence of the Hebrew word Leb , which is translated heart.
Genesis 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
Isn't that a sad testimony the first occurrence of the word Leb heart? In context, we see that the word heart here reflects the wickedness of man and the evil thoughts, purposes and desires of his heart. So evil, God destroyed mankind from the earth all but Noah and his family.
The Hebrew word Leb signifies not only the imagination, but also the purposes and desires of man's heart. The word continually according to the Hebrew means every day or daily. That's a far cry from what God gives us daily.
Psalm 68:19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah.
Another occurrence of Leb heart is found a little later in Genesis.
Genesis 8:21b ... for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth;
The word evil here according to Strong's means bad, hurtful, unkind, wrong, wicked or grievous. This evil is the result of being spiritually born dead in trespasses and sin.
Now if the word of God is true then even the best person falls into this category at some level. It's no wonder scripture directs us keep or guard our hearts?
Proverbs 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
Even the best of natural men fall into this category. His heart is evil from his youth. This is a spiritual truth, just as Romans 3 contains a similar truth.
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
The word all means all everyone, even the best of natural man fall into this category.
Look at Ephesians chapter 2.
KJV Ephesians 2:1 1And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
That is as good as it gets without God and without Christ. Lust of the flesh, children of wrath, dead in trespasses and sin.
Genesis 8:21b ...for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth;
Jesus understood man's heart. He understood the problem at the root source.
Matthew 15:16-20 16And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding? 17Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught? 18But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. 19For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: 20These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.
You see religion concerns itself with the outward appearance of man and things such as objects, buildings, traditions, rules and regulations. Religion tries to change man's behavior by rules and regulations.
This can only result in tolerable recovery and its job security. The bible instructs us to reckon the old man dead. As long as we try to fix what God said to reckon dead we will work for a lifetime and never obtain our goal.
Why? Because if the old man could be fixed God would of told us to recover him. He didn't say reform, retrain, rehabilitate, reinvent, or recover. He said reckon him dead.
Romans 6:6-7 6Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 7For he that is dead is freed from sin.
You see if the heart is wrong it will contaminate the life and character of man. Therefore, if we are born dead in trespasses and sin and the imagination of our heart is evil from our youth; what is the answer?
Man must receive a new heart, not a physical heart but a spiritual heart a gift from God so man may once again choose to receive God's will for his life and walk accordingly. This new heart will once again enable man to fellowship with the father and give him the ability to choose once again to walk by the spirit.
Ezekiel 36:26-27 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. 27And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
A new heart comes with the spirit of God. This is referring to a different administration; however, the truth is the same.
ESV John 14:16-17 16And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,17even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. ESV John 14:26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
This spirit, the helper or comforter is said to have the ability to teach and remind. In order for any spirit to do this, it must have access and to man's heart or have a "heart" of its own.
Proverbs 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. 1 Peter 3:4a But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible…
Notice here the heart is referred to as the hidden man.
KJV Romans 7:22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
To Be Continued …ÿ
Note: All scripture is from the King James Version unless otherwise noted. NIV indicates The New International Version, NKJV indicates the New King James Version, ASV means the American Standard Version, BBE means the Bible in Basic English, DBY means the Darby translation, NAU means the American Standard Version, 1995 Edition, and NAB means the New American Bible translation. For more information, go to the Works Cited page.
Chapter & Verse Ministry * 1019 S. Park Avenue * Audubon * PA * 19403-2037*Email us at chapterandverse1@aol.com or call us at (610) 574-1727.