YOUR OWN HEART

YOUR OWN HEART

Numbers 15:1-39 (KJV)

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land of your habitations, which I give unto you,

And will make an offering by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, or a sacrifice in performing a vow, or in a freewill offering, or in your solemn feasts, to make a sweet savour unto the LORD, of the herd, or of the flock:

Then shall he that offereth his offering unto the LORD bring a meat offering of a tenth deal of flour mingled with the fourth part of an hin of oil.

And the fourth part of an hin of wine for a drink offering shalt thou prepare with the burnt offering or sacrifice, for one lamb.

Or for a ram, thou shalt prepare for a meat offering two tenth deals of flour mingled with the third part of an hin of oil.

And for a drink offering thou shalt offer the third part of an hin of wine, for a sweet savour unto the LORD.

And when thou preparest a bullock for a burnt offering, or for a sacrifice in performing a vow, or peace offerings unto the LORD:

Then shall he bring with a bullock a meat offering of three tenth deals of flour mingled with half an hin of oil.

And thou shalt bring for a drink offering half an hin of wine, for an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

Thus shall it be done for one bullock, or for one ram, or for a lamb, or a kid.

According to the number that ye shall prepare, so shall ye do to every one according to their number.

All that are born of the country shall do these things after this manner, in offering an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

And if a stranger sojourn with you, or whosoever be among you in your generations, and will offer an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD; as ye do, so he shall do.

One ordinance shall be both for you of the congregation, and also for the stranger that sojourneth with you, an ordinance for ever in your generations: as ye are, so shall the stranger be before the LORD.

One law and one manner shall be for you, and for the stranger that sojourneth with you.

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land whither I bring you,

Then it shall be, that, when ye eat of the bread of the land, ye shall offer up an heave offering unto the LORD.

Ye shall offer up a cake of the first of your dough for an heave offering: as ye do the heave offering of the threshingfloor, so shall ye heave it.

Of the first of your dough ye shall give unto the LORD an heave offering in your generations.

And if ye have erred, and not observed all these commandments, which the LORD hath spoken unto Moses,

Even all that the LORD hath commanded you by the hand of Moses, from the day that the LORD commanded Moses, and henceforward among your generations;

Then it shall be, if ought be committed by ignorance without the knowledge of the congregation, that all the congregation shall offer one young bullock for a burnt offering, for a sweet savour unto the LORD, with his meat offering, and his drink offering, according to the manner, and one kid of the goats for a sin offering.

And the priest shall make an atonement for all the congregation of the children of Israel, and it shall be forgiven them; for it is ignorance: and they shall bring their offering, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD, and their sin offering before the LORD, for their ignorance:

And it shall be forgiven all the congregation of the children of Israel, and the stranger that sojourneth among them; seeing all the people were in ignorance.

And if any soul sin through ignorance, then he shall bring a she goat of the first year for a sin offering.

And the priest shall make an atonement for the soul that sinneth ignorantly, when he sinneth by ignorance before the LORD, to make an atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him.

Ye shall have one law for him that sinneth through ignorance, both for him that is born among the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them.

But the soul that doeth ought presumptuously, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, the same reproacheth the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.

Because he hath despised the word of the LORD, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall be upon him.

And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day.

And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congregation.

And they put him in ward, because it was not declared what should be done to him.

And the LORD said unto Moses, The man shall be surely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp.

And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as the LORD commanded Moses.

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue:

And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:

In my studies of the Word of God concerning our heart and answering the question, “Where Is Your Heart” I found an interesting and convicting phrase.

I find in the Bible the phrase “your own heart”[1] twenty-two times.

The first of them is in Numbers 15:39 (KJV)

And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:

I just did a “rough survey” of those twenty-two passages and found that it is in reference sometimes,

·   To your heart and mine, and other times

·   To the heart of God

And from that survey I have three things I wish to give you by way of preaching

I. IN CONTEXT TO OUR HEART, THE BIBLE IS NEGATIVE

Consider these examples:

Numbers 15:39 (KJV)

And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:

A. This world tells people to “follow their heart.” 

It is in direct violation of God’s Word which tells us to “seek not after your own heart.”

1 Kings 8:38 (KJV)

What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house:

“The plague of his own heart” that’s powerful, isn’t it?

Proverbs 28:26 (KJV)

He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.

The Bible says, Matthew 5:22 (KJV)

But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

It is a serious thing to call someone a fool.

But God says, “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool…”

In the context of the heart of man the phrase, own heart is consistently negative.

I can’t imagine that is a surprise to anyone listening to this message.

B. Think about what the Bible says about our heart:

Jeremiah 17:9 (KJV)

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

The Bible says in James 1:22 (KJV)

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

The heart of man is such a good liar that it very often deceives the one who possesses it.

Several years ago now, I asked Bro. Harper to go look at a piece of property with me. I won’t soon forget what he told me before we got to the place.

He said that he considered it to be one of his jobs to keep me from falling in love with the property too soon.

Have you ever had that happen? When you see something, and you just have to have it.

If you are not careful your heart will trick you into thinking you have to have it, no matter what it costs you.

Psalms 53:1 (KJV)

The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.

No wonder he who trusts in his own heart is a fool.

Ecclesiastes 9:3 (KJV)

This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.

The Bible says 

·   The heart is full of evil

·   That madness is in their heart while they live

And then they just die.

We would typically assign this to an unsaved person, but our own heart, left to itself, is no better.

Matthew 15:18-20 (KJV)

But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.

For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:

These are the things which defile a man…

·   Have you ever had an evil thought?

·   Have you ever wanted something that wasn’t yours?

·   Have you ever said somethings about someone that wasn’t true?

That’s what’s in our heart!

On the other hand

II. IN CONTEXT TO GOD’S HEART THE BIBLE IS VERY POSITIVE

1 Samuel 13:14 (KJV)

But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.

2 Samuel 7:20-22 (KJV)

And what can David say more unto thee? for thou, Lord GOD, knowest thy servant.

For thy word's sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all these great things, to make thy servant know them.

Wherefore thou art great, O LORD God: for there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.

·   The first passage has to do with God’s choosing David to be king.

·   The second passage has to do with God’s promising that one from his family would sit on the throne forever.

A. You know what is in God’s heart?

·   The salvation of people just like you and me

·   The forgiveness of our sins through the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world.

·   The perfection of His children through good and godly leadership

·   The fellowship of His people with Him in His Kingdom

B. God’s own heart is filled with love for you and me.

John 3:16 (KJV)

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Romans 5:5-8 (KJV)

And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

1 John 4:10 (KJV)

Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Everything the Bible says about God’s own heart is positive and almost everything the Bible says about our own hearts is negative.

But I did find 

III. AN ANSWER FOR OUR OWN HEART

Psalms 4:4 (KJV)

Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.

Psalms 77:6 (KJV)

I call to remembrance my song in the night: I commune with mine own heart: and my spirit made diligent search.

It is never wise to listen to your heart.

But you can make your heart listen.

A. I can tell my heart the truth about itself

B. I can tell my heart the truth about God

C. I can tell my heart what it may and may not love

I should not follow my heart, but I can give my heart one to follow.

John 10:14-15 (KJV)

I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.

As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.

John 10:27-28 (KJV)

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

I don’t ever want to let what’s in my heart come out.

But I do want to fill my heart the Word of God.

Colossians 3:16 (KJV)

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

I don’t ever want to follow my heart.

But look at this, Psalms 138:1 (KJV)

I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.

I can direct my heart to praise God.

Conclusion

Where is your heart?

Is it on the throne of your life, leading and directing you wherever it wants?

Is it on the tip of your tongue, spewing out all sorts of evil and wicked things?

Where is your heart?

Is it foolishly leading you to reject Christ as your own Saviour?

Or have you mastered your heart?

·   By telling it the truth from God’s Word

·   By guarding it from influences that would turn your from God

·   By leading your heart to praise the Lord

Has your heart been won by the love of God so that you have followed the Lord to the cross and confessed your sin and been saved?

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[1] The complete phrase, “your own heart” is only found two times. The phrase, “own heart” is found twenty-two times.