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The great mystery of God—“kept secret since the world began (Romans 16:25);”—“the mystery of godliness (I Timothy 3:16)”—was demonstrated in Christ Jesus, and it is required that all God’s children step in the same light. Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews, came to Jesus by night to enquire of Him. In the first sentence of the Lord’s words to Nicodemus, He revealed to him the mystery of God kept secret since the world began. John 3:3-7:
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
The secret is BORN AGAIN—born a second time; born of the Spirit—this time born as sons and daughters of God. This secret is still a mystery to the unredeemed, but it doesn’t have to be that way. John 3:16 reads:
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.
If you are not born-again you can do something about it today. You can believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ and enter into the secret place of the Most High. You can become His child. Would you like to supernaturally understand and participate in this mystery? Click onto “Further With Jesus” for childlike instructions and immediate entry into the Kingdom of God. NOW FOR TODAY’S SUBJECT.
GOD SAID, Proverbs 4:23:
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
GOD SAID, II Corinthians 3:3:
Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart.
GOD SAID, Psalms 119:11:
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
MAN SAID: The Bible is for the uneducated and easily led. Today’s man is enlightened and has no need of its archaic and irrelevant writings.
Now THE RECORD. This is Part Two of a three-part series on the heart and its pivotal role in eternal life. In Part One, we discovered that science fully confirms the supernatural accuracy of the Biblical principle laid out in Proverbs 17:22:
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.
It is true a heart can be made merry or sad by words and circumstances, and the results are very, very physical.
Until just recently, and still among the unread, man postulates that the Bible’s idea of a thinking heart is laughable. According to this ilk, the heart is just a pump—a muscle, etc. In Part One, we also discovered that science has now concluded that the scriptural account, written thousands of years before modern science has begun to understand why, is simply true. The heart can think. Proverbs 23:7:
For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:…
Jesus said in Matthew 12:34:
…for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
The heart is serious business with a function that is eternally important. If you have not read Part One, stop now and click on. Be assured your time will not be wasted.
Proverbs 4:23:
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
Out of our hearts flow the issues of life, and protecting it is of paramount importance.
How do you keep the heart? When thinking of the soul-man, three distinct physical entities interrelate: the mind, the heart, and the belly. Many eyebrows will raise when this article asserts that the belly plays a very central role in keeping the heart. Jesus said in John 7:38-39:
38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
The Holy Ghost directly interacts with the belly, and the belly has a brain. Sound ludicrous? Thinking of the belly’s role, consider that God breathed up the nostrils of Adam and he became a living soul. Consider that Jesus gave up the ghost at Calvary with a loud voice and the principle of the last breath. Consider gut feelings and knowing something in the belly before the brain knows. Consider scientists who now dub the gut the “little brain,” loaded with neurons. For more information concerning the belly and the spirit, click onto the following:
Jesus speaks again of the Holy Ghost in John 14:26, and again in John 16:12-13:
12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.
The Spirit of God is a supernatural teacher and will lead and guide in all truth.
Let’s see just how the Spirit, dwelling in a believer’s body, participates in the keeping of the heart. First keep in mind that the thinking heart is the seat of your emotions. Emotions are the driving force of life—emotions such as love, hate, bitterness, lust, covetousness, etc. Emotions are not always rational. The old axiom that love is blind has some serious credentials. The Bible speaks of something known as the reins of the heart numerous times. Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language defines reins as “In scripture, the inward parts; the heart, or the seat of the affections and passions. Psalms 26:2:
Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart.
As the reins of the horse in the hands of its rider give the rider mastery over the horse’s path, so our reins, emotions, and desires surrendered into the hands of God assure a glorious, eternal outcome.
The Word of God says, “Keep thy heart with all diligence;” I can and must keep it. Again, consider the three parts of the soul-man’s nomenclature:
1. Your mind—the thinking, rational part.
2. Your heart—the thinking, emotional part.
3. Your belly—the seat of spiritual discernment and direction.
Let’s assume we are dealing with a truly born-again believer, and let’s consider how these three parts function. A thought comes between your ears. First note that you did not create the thought. It has been thought possibly a billion times before. You have no ownership or responsibility for it. This thought has entered the mind—a mind that has been striving to put on the mind of Christ on a daily basis—for consideration. As a believer, the Spirit of God dwelling in the belly will instruct, lead, and guide in all truth. As the brain is considering the thought the Spirit will weigh in on its merits or demerits. If the thought is rejected it will simply jump out the other ear. But when an evil thought is entertained, a “trap door” under the chin opens and the evil thought falls down into the heart. An uncensored heart is a dangerous thing. Jeremiah 17:9-10:
9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
10 I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.
Keeping the heart is serious business—a business we must be about. Next week, God willing: how to feed a victorious heart. Don’t miss it!
GOD SAID, Proverbs 4:23:
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
GOD SAID, II Corinthians 3:3:
Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart.
GOD SAID, Psalms 119:11:
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
MAN SAID: The Bible is for the uneducated and easily led. Today’s man is enlightened and has no need of its archaic and irrelevant writings.
Now you have THE RECORD.
References:
Authorized King James Version
Webster, N., American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828
