THEME: GUARD YOUR HEART.
MEMORISE:
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Psalm 51:10
READ: Psalm 24:3-6
3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? I
4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah.
MESSAGE
When it comes to having a pure heart, many people need serious prayers. A lot of people, while not committing sin physically, do so in their hearts. As far as God is concerned, what happens in their heart is of greater consequence than anything else because the heart is meant to be His throne.
“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” Proverbs 4:23
Be careful what goes in and out of your heart. Jesus said that it is not what goes into the mouth that corrupts but what goes out of it (Matthew 15:11). Since we also know that it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks (Mathew 12:34), then it means that there are certain channels through which things go into the heart to corrupt it. One of such ways is through the ears. 1 Corinthians 15:33 says evil communication corrupts good manners. No matter how good you are, if you keep staying in the company of people who talk dirty, soon your heart will be full of dirt. No matter how holy you are, if you are a regular at places where worldly music is the order of the day, your holiness is only a façade, and the heart will have been polluted. You must be careful what goes into your heart through your ear gates.
Your eyes can get you into trouble also, if you don’t control them. Jesus said if you look at a woman with lust, you have already committed adultery (Matthew 5:28). What kind of movies do you watch? If someone is indecently dressed around you, just look away because your heart must remain pure. You can’t view nude pictures and claim that you are so spiritually strong that they will not move you. If you are really spiritually strong, the Holy Spirit will make those pictures repulsive to you. The internet is another means through which the devil feeds the eyes with corrupt images and ideas these days. Which websites do you visit? Who do you follow on social media? If you want a pure heart, you must keep evil away from your eyes and ears. Feed on the word of God instead.
PRAYER POINT:
Lord, please help me to guard my heart with all diligence.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deuteronomy 1-2
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 16: LET US WITH A GLADSOME HEART.
1. Let us with a gladsome mind
praise the Lord, so good and kind,
for God’s mercies shall endure,
ever faithful, ever sure.
2. Let us blaze God’s name abroad;
of all gods the Lord is God,
for God’s mercies shall endure,
ever faithful, ever sure.
3. God with all commanding might
filled the newmade world with light,
for God’s mercies shall endure,
ever faithful, ever sure.
4. All things living God doth feed;
with full hand supplies their need,
for God’s mercies shall endure,
ever faithful, ever sure.
5. Let us then with gladsome mind
praise the Lord, so good and kind,
for God’s mercies shall en dure,
ever faithful, ever sure.