Proverbs 23:7 (KJV)
For as he thinketh in
his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with
thee.
The general theme I have
been following for Sunday nights has been to study the personalities or
character of the book of Proverbs.
I want to press that
theme just a little bit. As I researched and prepared for this message, I
noticed that the subject of the heart comes repeatedly to the surface in the 23rd
chapter of Proverbs.
While not technically a
personality, let me pretend it is, just for this message.
Let’s begin with
I. SOME
GROUNDWORK LAID
Proverbs 23:7 (KJV)
For as he thinketh in
his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with
thee.
There are two things
that are worth mentioning right off the start:
A. First, this passage is intricately woven
into the text just previous and after it.
A lot of time we use
this first phrase
As he thinketh in his
heart so is he and teach that means I can “think and grow rich.”
Or, more practically
“If I think about happy
things I will be a happy person.”
I do not want to
discount that completely, but that is certainly not the primary lesson of the
text.
The context has more to
do with our association with someone from whom we desire to have a need met.
We need to understand
his need before we can expect him to meet our need.
B. Second, the word heart is found twice in
this verse.
It is fascinating to me
that the Hebrew word is not the same for the two references.
Both of them have to do
with pleasure. That’s why I imagine the translators used the word heart in both
cases.
The first word is used just this once in the
chapter
It literally means
“breathing.”
Be implication is refers
to the animal, the flesh, that part of us that connects to the world around us.
In this case it would
mean raw animal pleasure.
All of us have those
sorts of pleasures:
· The enjoyment of a sports game
· The taste of a well prepared meal
· Spinning cookies in a snow covered church parking lot
Those things bring us
pleasure but it is a very shallow and transitory one. We enjoy it, but it
serves no enduring purpose.
The second word is the one used throughout the
rest of the chapter
It means “feelings.”
It is also translated
· Mind
· Emotions
· Intellect
The pleasures this term references
might better be called, affections.
Maybe a way to
illustrate the difference would be like this:
· I love hamburgers cooked on my BBQ vs
· I love Anita, Louise McKenzie
Both of them might be
true, but they are in no way comparable.
With that as our
foundation let’s see,
II. SOME
WARNINGS MADE
Two of our remaining six
verses warn us what not to give our hearts too:
A. To Envy Sinners
Proverbs 23:17 (KJV)
Let not thine heart envy
sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long.
This is a common theme
in the Bible and one that many if not most Christians wrestle with at one time
or another in their life.
If I may put it in
Biblical terms it would sound something like this,
· Why was the rich man rich and
· Lazarus begged for bread?
It is obvious that
Lazarus was a godly person and the rich man wasn’t.
Why did God reward[1]
the rich man and punish Lazarus?
David wrestled with it
in his own days,
Psalms 73:2-16 (KJV)
But as for me, my feet
were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped.
For I was envious at the
foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
For there are no bands
in their death: but their strength is firm.
They are not in trouble
as other men; neither are they plagued like other men.
Therefore pride
compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment.
Their eyes stand out
with fatness: they have more than heart could wish.
They are corrupt, and
speak wickedly concerning oppression: they speak loftily.
They set their mouth
against the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth.
Therefore his people
return hither: and waters of a full cup are wrung out to them.
And they say, How doth
God know? and is there knowledge in the most High?
Behold, these are the
ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches.
Verily I have cleansed
my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency.
For all the day long
have I been plagued, and chastened every morning.
If I say, I will speak
thus; behold, I should offend against the generation of thy children.
When I thought to know
this, it was too painful for me;
The answer, in the words
of the Proverbs, is found in, Proverbs 23:18 (KJV)
For surely there is an
end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
Don’t envy the sinner
today because the end of their story has not been written yet.
In the end, God will
make things right.
And then, don’t give
your heart,
B. To Seek Mixed Wine
Really the context
begins in verse 20, but for sake of time let’s read,
Proverbs 23:29-33 (KJV)
Who hath woe? who hath
sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause?
who hath redness of eyes?
They that tarry long at
the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.
Look not thou upon the
wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth
itself aright.
At the last it biteth
like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.
Thine eyes shall behold
strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.
Alcohol is a pleasure of
the flesh that destroys the heart of true affections.
These days I think we
ought to add other forms of mind-altering drugs as well.
I am not sure I think we
need to legislate or have laws forbidding the use of alcohols or even some
substances like marijuana.
I do believe there ought
to be laws regulating the safe manufacturing and sale of them – that makes
sense to me.
Here is the thing
Just because you can
legally do something does not mean it is good to do it.
· It is not good to smoke or chew tobacco
· It is not good to take drugs, many times not even when they
have been prescribed and
· It is not good to consume alcohol
Not even little bits of
it.
I have already used as
an illustration a Pastor Perry Noble who started and led one of the largest
modern churches in our country.
Noble would have been
considered a leading preacher in the modern movement:
· A staunch Bible preacher
· A conservative theologically and yet
· A liberal socially
Noble’s church disdained
the old Fundamentalist’s abstinence policies concerning alcohol.
Drinking wine and beer
socially, even at church events, was acceptable in their eyes.
But Noble went too far.
Here is the thing about
alcohol, any amount of it at any time; you never know when it will steal your
heart.
So the Bible teaches us
Proverbs 23:31
Look not thou upon the
wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth
itself aright.
Don’t even entertain the
notion of drinking the stuff!
And then there are,
III. SOME
APPLICATIONS BADE
(The word “bade” means
attempted. It is my attempt at making my outline creative.)
There are three verses
grouped together in this heading.
Proverbs 23:12 (KJV)
Apply thine heart unto
instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.
Proverbs 23:19 (KJV)
Hear thou, my son, and
be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.
Proverbs 23:26 (KJV)
My son, give me thine
heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.
Notice that all three
verses have to do with
· Wisdom
· Instruction and
· Understanding
I want to take the three
in reverse order and say to the young men:
A. Set your affections on your fathers and
learn from them
Proverbs 23:26 (KJV)
My son, give me thine
heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.
B. Using your father’s example, guide your
heart
Proverbs 23:19 (KJV)
Hear thou, my son, and
be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.
Notice that you don’t
let your heart be your guide, you guide your heart.
Don’t let your heart
fall in love.
Choose what you heart
will love.
C. Seek instruction and knowledge
Proverbs 23:12 (KJV)
Apply thine heart unto
instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.
While you are guiding
your heart to love the right things, guide it to love instruction and
knowledge.
And finally there is
IV. SOME FRUIT
PAID
Proverbs 23:15 (KJV)
My son, if thine heart
be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine.
The word heart is found
twice again in this verse, both of them speaking of our affections.
A. The heart of the son
If thine heart be wise
I think you can define
that by the three applications above.
B. The heart of the father
My heart shall rejoice
I can’t help but wonder
if our Heavenly Father isn’t speaking through this inspired father….
Do you want to please
the heart of God?
Let your heart be wise…
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