I knew I would have days during this challenge when I would come across a chapter that is jam-packed with great verses and that I would have difficulty selecting just one verse or one thought.
Today was one of those days.
When I opened my Bible to Proverbs 4 this morning, I noticed it was a very colorful page. I have the several verses highlighted or marked. Verses like:
Verse 5-8: "Get wisdom, get understanding; forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth. Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee; love her and she shall keep thee. Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore, get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Exalt her, and she shall promote thee; she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her."
Verse 13-15: "Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life. Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away."
Great verses!
But I knew I would have to go with verse 23, "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life."
I'm sure I have mentioned this before but on Friday nights, my brother and his wife hold a Bible study in their home and we have spent the past few months doing an in-depth study on the tabernacle. It has been a great study and I have gotten a lot out of it and learned a lot.
One thing I learned through the study was just how very particular God is. He has a certain way He wants things done and there is nothing wrong with that because He is God!
As we were wrapping up the study, we were discussing the mercy seat and the veil and coverings. As we were studying this, my brother made the comment about how we are now currently, the temple of God. Now, I have heard messages on this subject and have read the verses about it but sitting at that table on Friday night, my mind began to click and put things together.
When they constructed the tabernacle, they were given very specific instruction about what supplies to use, how to construct it and what dimensions were to be for each piece. God was so particular about this task because it is a variation of something in Heaven. He actually dwelt in the Holy of Holies, where the mercy seat was and this was a protected area. It was protected by a 15 foot, incredibly dense veil and this room was only approached once a year.
The priest who entered this room annually had to go through a process to reach this point as well. They had to be cleansed and all their sins had to be confessed and taken care of before reaching this Holy place. This task was not taken lightly. It was very serious and very sobering, I'm sure.
With all that in mind, I began to think; since we are now the temple of God and have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside us, we ought to be protecting that just as the Holy of Holies was protected. That's when verse 23 came to mind. If the Holy Spirit is dwelling inside me,let's say in my heart, than what am I doing to protect it?
God obviously thought it was important to protect the room where He and His Glory dwelt when He dwelt among Israel, why should it be any different now that He dwells within our hearts?
I've been contemplating this thought and verse since Friday night and this morning, during the preaching at church, God gave me some answers about how I can improve the protection of my heart. I have already followed through with most of them but let me ask you, reader, if you are saved and have the Holy Spirit dwelling within you, how are you protecting your heart?
Proverbs 4:23 tells us to protect our hearts with all diligence for out of it are the issues of life. How diligent are you?
It is a great privilege and blessing to a born-again Christian, to have the Holy Spirit dwell within us and to have the access to God that we do. But we ought not to take it for granted and ought not to be flippant about it, either, Christian.
Keep your guard up. Keep your heart and be diligent about it. Ask God to examine your heart and show you where you can improve and then, most importantly, be obedient to Him. Don't resist it. Don't argue with Him about it and don't harbor things that He tells you to rid yourself of.
"Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life."
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