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Well, please turn with me in 
your Bibles to Proverbs chapter 4. Proverbs chapter 4. I'll begin reading in verse 20 
to the end of the chapter. Proverbs 420, my son, give attention 
to my words, incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them 
depart from your eyes, keep them in the midst of your heart. For 
they are life to those who find them and health to all their 
flesh. Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring 
the issues of life. Put away from you a deceitful 
mouth and put perverse lips far from you. Let your eyes look 
straight ahead and your eyelids look right before you. Ponder 
the path of your feet and let all your ways be established. 
Do not turn to the right or the left. Remove your foot from evil. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
we thank You for Your written Word. We thank You for the Proverbs 
of Solomon and for the wisdom that He conveys to us. And we 
pray that by the Spirit we would receive these things, and by 
the Spirit we would put these things into practice. Again, 
forgive us for our sins and our transgressions. Forgive us for 
not seeking wisdom, for not taking seriously James' admonishment, 
that if any of us lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives 
to all liberally and without reproach. Give us grace, Lord 
God, to be a wise people, those who have the Word of God in their 
hearts, those who walk with God, those who seek to be faithful 
to their God. And we pray this through Jesus 
Christ, our Lord. Amen. Well, our focus tonight 
is going to be on verses 23 to 27. John Flavel, that great Puritan, 
said, the greatest difficulty in conversion is to win the heart 
to God. And the greatest difficulty after 
conversion is to keep the heart with God. And that's the emphasis 
of verse 23. Keep your heart with all diligence, 
for out of it spring the issues of life. So we'll look first 
of all at the importance of keeping the heart in verse 23, and then 
secondly, the importance of watchfulness over the various outlets by which 
we sin. In other words, we're not only 
supposed to keep watch over the source, but we're also to keep 
watch over those various outlets described here as mouth, eyes, 
and feet. There is a close connection. 
involved in verses 23 to 27. But notice, first of all, with 
reference to the importance of keeping the heart, there is a 
command. It's not a suggestion. It's not 
a recommendation. It's not for a few of those in 
the context of the church. Rather, it is for all of us. Keep your heart. And I want us 
to notice that the emphasis is on our heart. Your heart, my 
heart, our job is not to keep the hearts of others. We are 
certainly called to be an encouragement. We are certainly called to help 
others. We are certainly called to exhort 
one another daily while it is called today, lest we be hardened 
through the deceitfulness of sin. But the primary responsibility 
for God's people is not to police the hearts of others. We're not 
supposed to be like the Pharisees who simply wandered around from 
place to place and looked at other men and looked at their 
conduct. Men like that Pharisee in Luke 
18 who thanked God that he was not like other men. I would imagine 
he was fun at parties. He was the kind of guy that would 
look at other people's hearts. He was the kind of guy that would 
police others. We are called to look after our 
own hearts. I think this is what Jesus emphasizes 
in that section in Matthew chapter seven, where he prohibits us 
from being judgmental. A passage no doubt misunderstood, 
but a passage nevertheless, very relevant to this particular topic. In Matthew 7.1, he says, judge 
not that you be not judged. Again, we've studied this in 
detail on many occasions, and we see that it's not a universal 
prohibition against ever exercising judgment. In fact, notice in 
the context of verse six, do not give what is holy to the 
dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them 
under their feet. I suggest verse six demands judgment. We're supposed to be able to 
identify who a swine is or who a dog is so that we don't cast 
our holy pearls before that. The prohibition is not universal. Later on in Matthew chapter 18, 
Jesus is going to tell the church to exercise church discipline. 
Well, we certainly cannot do that without a degree of judgment. 
We have to make those calls as to what is sin and what isn't 
sin. We also know that it's not a 
universal condemnation in terms of judgment with reference to 
the civil government. Romans 13 tells us that the magistrate 
is armed with the sword as an avenger of God's wrath. What 
Jesus has in view in Matthew 7, verse 1, is an attitude of 
judgmentalism. It is a pharisaism. It is that 
wandering around, walking about, and looking at and exposing everybody 
else's issues and everybody else's struggles, and exacerbating them, 
and spotlighting them, and highlighting them. Jesus continues in verse 
two, for with what judgment you judge, you will be judged. And 
with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 
And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do 
not consider the plank in your own eye? In other words, keep 
your heart with all diligence. Don't look at your brother's 
heart, again, unless you're trying to help him, unless you're trying 
to encourage him, unless you're bearing his burdens alongside 
of him. What Jesus condemns here is not that. Jesus condemns that 
condemnatory attitude, that petty attitude, that pharisaic attitude. Jesus is clear. Why do you look 
at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the 
plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 
let me remove the speck from your eye. And look, a plank is 
in your own eye. Hypocrite. First, remove the 
blank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to 
remove the speck from your brother's eye." So in other words, we are 
to keep our own heart with all diligence. The meaning of the 
heart in this particular passage, it's the source. It's what a 
man is. all that is true of him. And 
we ought to acknowledge that if the source is defiled, then 
everything else will be defiled. If the source is rotten, then 
the mouth, and then the eyes, and then the feet will be rotten 
as well. Matthew Poole defines it this 
way. He says, thy heart, thy mind and thoughts, and especially 
the will and affections, which are the more immediate and effectual 
cause of all men's actions. Flavel, in a sermon on this particular 
passage, describes the meaning of heart here as for the whole 
soul or inner man. So we see the emphasis is upon 
our own heart, we see what the meaning of heart is in this particular 
passage, and we ought to recognize as well, in terms of the command, 
the importance of the heart. If you don't keep your own heart, 
it will affect everything. If you don't watch over your 
own heart, it will affect mouth, eyes, and feet. Now, these are 
representative organs. It'll certainly affect your hands. 
It'll affect your emotions. It'll affect everything that 
you are if you don't guard the source. If you don't keep the 
water pure at the source, when it gets piped out into the various 
places, it will be poison, and we simply cannot have that. Bridges 
says, if the heart be seized, the whole man, the affections, 
desires, motives, pursuits, All will be yielded up. The heart 
is the vital part of the body. A wound here is instant death." 
So it's a most important command. Keep your heart with all diligence. So notice that. He not only gives 
us the command, but he prescribes for us the manner in which we 
are to do it. We're to keep our hearts, but 
it's supposed to be with all diligence. I think there's an 
echo here of Deuteronomy 4.9, only take heed to yourself and 
diligently keep yourself lest you forget the things your eyes 
have seen and lest they depart from your heart all the days 
of your life and teach them to your children and your grandchildren. You see there's this Corporate 
familial emphasis in the book of Deuteronomy remember in Deuteronomy 
chapter 6 here Oh Israel the Lord our God the Lord is one 
you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart soul 
mind and strength and then he goes on and tells us that the 
Word of God is there in Deuteronomy 6 has application for the individual, 
has application for the family, and has application for society 
as a whole. And one of the aspects in terms 
of family is that we're to diligently instruct our children with reference 
to keeping their own heart with all diligence. And we need to 
understand, diligence is necessary because of the importance of 
the subject. In other words, this isn't a 
task or a job or a duty within Christianity that's far down 
on the priority scale. This is one of the top tier things. 
Keep your heart with all diligence. Solomon isn't playing games. 
Solomon isn't suggesting, he isn't recommending, but he is 
demanding that his sons, his hearers, those who enroll in 
the school of Solomon, keep their heart with all diligence because 
of how important it is. As well, diligence is necessary 
because of the sinful tendency of the heart. Turn to Proverbs 
chapter 20. Proverbs chapter 20. Notice in 
Proverbs 20 at verse 9, who can say, I have made my heart clean, 
I am pure from my sin? Who can say that? You know the 
answer, right? The answer is no one. The answer 
is none of us. The answer is there is not a 
one under God's heaven that can actually say, I have made my 
heart clean, I am pure from my sin. So diligence is absolutely 
crucial in this matter of keeping the heart because of the natural 
or native tendency of the heart. This is very similar to what 
we read in the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 17 9. The heart is 
deceitful above all things. Now, this isn't the kind of stuff 
that you hear on the evening news when they try and explain 
how mad the world has become. This isn't the kind of stuff 
that you'll hear when persons talk about how messed up life 
is in the 21st century, when we see gangs, and we see drug 
abuse, and we see all the sorts of things that are paraded around 
us on a daily basis. The answer is simple. It's not 
an easy thing to consider. But in terms of why do people 
do what they do, because they're in Adam. Because they're sinners. 
Because total depravity is true. Because the doctrine taught here 
by the prophet Jeremiah is absolutely, positively, 100% accurate. The heart is deceitful above 
all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it? I, the Lord, 
search the heart. I test the mind, even to give 
every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his 
doings. So diligence is necessary because of the importance of 
the heart. Diligence is necessary because of the sinful tendency 
of the heart. And diligence is necessary because 
of the effect on the rest of man. You have to appreciate the 
connection between verses 23 and 24 to 27. If the heart is 
polluted, If the heart is not kept, it 
will affect the mouth, it will affect the eyes, and it will 
affect the feet. Bridges again says, guard the 
fountain, lest the waters be poisoned. Now note the reason 
for this particular command. We see the command stated, we 
see the manner specified, and now we see the reason for the 
command at the end of verse 23. Keep your heart with all diligence, 
for out of it spring the issues of life. That's the argument. That's the reason. That's the 
rationale. If you were to ever ask the question, 
why am I supposed to keep my own heart with all diligence? 
Because it's everything. If you are not keeping your heart, 
you're going to be in big trouble. How do we resist sin and temptation? 
How do we deal day to day? How do we seek to live, to glorify 
God Most High, without following this particular command? How 
in the world do we get out of bed in the morning without thinking 
about keeping our heart with all diligence? Have you ever 
pondered the fruits of the Holy Spirit in Galatians chapter 5? 
You know what one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is? Self-control. Think about that for just a moment. 
A gift of the Holy Spirit is self-control. Sometimes people 
get on this higher plane of Christian living. They go into this higher 
life mentality. They let go and they let God. 
God never tells you to let go and let God. God tells you to 
control yourself. by the Holy Spirit, the Spirit 
who dwells in you to be sure, and the Spirit who gifted this 
to you in order to be able to execute it. We have to exercise 
self-control. That's what Solomon is emphasizing 
here. Keep your heart with all diligence, 
for out of it spring the issues of life. The reality is, is that 
nothing occurs in the external realm for a man that doesn't 
originate or find its source in the heart. In fact, look at 
Proverbs 27. Proverbs chapter 27, specifically 
at verse 19, as in water, face reflects face, so a man's heart 
reveals the man. And we can't see what's in the 
heart, we can't see the source, we can't see that sort of fountainhead, 
but we see or judge or know it based on those external actions. Go back to Proverbs 7 for just 
an illustration of this. Proverbs chapter 7, for out of 
it spring the issues of life. One of the issues of life that 
Solomon treats at length is sexual fidelity. And he does so in Proverbs 
chapter 7. Notice specifically. He is speaking 
of a young man devoid of understanding. At 7'6", he says, at the window 
of my house, I looked through my lattice and saw among the 
simple, I perceived among the youths, a young man devoid of 
understanding. You're already alerted to the 
fact that this probably isn't going to end well. He's already 
told you the sort of ethical trajectory that this young man 
is on. He's already told you that he 
is devoid of understanding. He's simple, not that he can't 
add two plus two, but ethically, he is not seeking to honor God 
Most High. Now notice, when this woman entices 
him, when this woman, according to verse 21, does so with her 
speech, It's always intrigued me in verse 21, with her enticing 
speech, she caused him to yield. It wasn't necessarily her physical 
appearance. It wasn't necessarily the fact 
that she had the attire of a harlot, as Solomon says previously in 
chapter 7. But it's her speech, it's her 
flattery, it's whatever it is she's saying in order to get 
this young man. to come into her bed. With her 
flattering lips, she seduced him. Now note verse 22, immediately 
he went after her as an ox goes to the slaughter or as a fool 
to the correction of the stocks. Till an arrow struck his liver 
as a bird hastens to the snare. He did not know it would cost 
his life. You see, brethren, he was not 
mindful of the fact to keep his own heart with all diligence, 
for out of it, including sexual fidelity, spring the issues of 
life. Note the lesson Solomon draws 
in verse 24. Now, therefore, listen to me, 
my children, pay attention to the words of my mouth. Do not 
let, get this, your heart turn aside to her ways. do not stray 
into her paths, for she has cast down many wounded, and all who 
were slain by her were strong men. Prior to him actually occupying 
her bed, his heart had already gone astray. Prior to him actually 
engaging in this act of immorality, his heart had already departed, 
because he didn't keep it with all diligence. He didn't recognize 
that out of it spring the issues of life. Notice in Proverbs 14, 
by way of a positive illustration or a positive example, soundness 
of one's heart promotes life to the body. Proverbs 14, 30, 
a sound heart is life to the body, but envy is rottenness 
to the bone. You see that sort of instance 
of it is the origin of the source. If the heart is good, the body 
is good. If the heart is clean, the body is clean. If the heart 
is healthy, then the body is healthy. Certainly the analogy 
with reference to the physical realm also. I mean, you may be 
healthy externally, but if your heart's bad, it's going to have 
an effect on the external man. And then as well, notice in Proverbs 
23, another positive illustration, for out of it spring the issues 
of life. Proverbs 23, beginning in verse 
15, my son, if your heart is wise, my heart will rejoice, 
indeed I myself. You know, it's a great motivation 
for kids to do what they're supposed to do because it makes their 
parents happy. That is a perfectly legit motivation. You know, sometimes 
you say, well, your only motivation is the glory of God. No, that's 
a primary motivation. But we ought not to remove the 
secondary motivation. We ought not to say that it isn't 
a good thing for a child to do what his parents want him to 
do because it makes them happy. You ever think about that? Is 
our purpose on life to make each other miserable? I really hope 
not. You know, if you say to your 
kid, do this and it'll make me happy. I hope the kid doesn't 
say, I'm going to absolutely positively not do it because 
I don't want you to be happy. That's terrible. That's bad. 
That'd be wretched. That's not a good way to live. 
It is a perfectly legitimate motivator to make your father 
or mother happy. You see that repetitively throughout 
the book of Proverbs. But here specifically, my son, 
if your heart is wise, my heart will rejoice indeed I myself. 
Yes, my inmost being will rejoice when your lips speak right things. 
Do not let your heart envy sinners, but be zealous for the fear of 
the Lord all the day. For surely there is a hereafter 
and your hope will not be cut off. Hear, my son, and be wise, 
and guard your heart in the way." Again, a positive illustration 
that out of it spring the issues of life. Do not mix with winebibbers 
or with gluttonous eaters of meat, for the drunkard and the 
glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe a 
man with rags. In other words, recognize that 
the company you keep, the sorts of things you ingest, whether 
too much food or too much drink, has an effect upon you. So you 
need to keep your heart. You need to do so with all diligence, 
understanding that from it flows, or rather, all the issues of 
life come. and we need to appreciate the 
importance of the heart. The source or origin must be 
kept diligently. And now notice, secondly, the 
outlets that follow the mouth, the eyes, and the feet. Going 
back to Proverbs 4, verse 23, keep your heart with all diligence, 
for out of it spring the issues of life. Notice, put away from 
you a deceitful mouth and put perverse lips far from you. Now, 
there's an intimate connection between the heart and the mouth, 
the heart and the eyes, the heart and the feet. But the mouth leads 
the path. How do we know what's in the 
heart of a man? We know based on what comes out of his mouth. 
This is precisely what our Lord Jesus Christ taught us in Matthew 
12, 34. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. In other words, when a man praises 
God, when a man glorifies God, when a man recites catechism, 
or when he recites scripture verses, or when he sings psalms, 
or he sings hymns, or he praises, we can reasonably, rationally 
conclude that things are pretty good in his heart. But if a man 
blasphemes, if a man speaks perversity, if a man engages in the sorts 
of things that the Bible everywhere forbids, we must conclude that 
the source is faulty. The source is poison. There's 
something wrong with the heart if that's the kind of stuff that's 
coming out of the mouth. There is this close connection, 
an intimate connection, between the heart and mouth, for out 
of the abundance of the heart The mouth speaks. Notice, with 
reference to Solomon's prohibition in verse 24, put away from you 
a deceitful mouth and put perverse lips far from you. Now, one of 
the things I did many years ago, and I'm not saying this because 
I'm a champ. Somebody must have said it or I must have picked 
it up somewhere along the line. I don't typically have innovative 
thoughts that are this brilliant. But I picked it up somewhere 
along the line. I take a pencil, and when I read through the Proverbs, 
if it's a mouth, tongue, or speech text, I put an M next to it. 
If it's a self-control text, I put an SC next to it. Self-control. If it's a diligence text, I put 
a D next to it. If it's a fear of the Lord text, 
I put an F next to it. Now, I'm not going to examine 
your Bibles next week to see that you all took this beautiful 
advice, but it's a helpful way so that when you scan through 
the Proverbs, your eyes alight to the particulars that are grouped 
together thematically. And mouth slash tongue slash 
speech Proverbs are abundant in the book of Proverbs. Waltke 
makes this observation. He says, Let me find it. He says, let me get back here. Oh, the Proverbs of Solomon are 
full of straight talk about talking straight. The Proverbs of Solomon 
are full of straight talk about talking straight. And I think 
that is absolutely true with reference to the Book of Proverbs. 
I just want to look at a few sample passages in terms of this 
deceitful mouth or perverse lips. In other words, the mouth's potential 
for evil in the Book of Proverbs. Notice in Proverbs 11. Proverbs 
11 at verse 9. It says, the hypocrite with his 
mouth destroys his neighbor. The hypocrite with his mouth 
destroys his neighbor. When you were kids, maybe they 
don't do it anymore. When I was a kid, they said, 
sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt 
me. That's absolutely positively not true. Sticks and stones break 
bones that ultimately heal. If you destroy somebody's reputation, 
you destroy somebody's good name, it's hard to get that back. It's hard to unring that bell. It's hard to ever gain ground 
that has been destroyed by somebody else when it's come to reputation. And if you note the Proverbs 
of Solomon, he doesn't subscribe to that school that names will 
never hurt me. No, he sees the power in words. He sees the power of the tongue. 
He sees the power of the mouth, similarly to what we find in 
the book of James. Remember, James says, if anyone 
thinks he is religious, but he does not bridle his own tongue, 
this man's religion is Useless. It is vain. It is empty. It is 
void. Remember what James says in James 
chapter 3. Men can tame any type of beast. We've talked about that before. 
You can teach, if you're so inclined, a bear to dance. You can teach 
a lion to open its mouth and put your head in it. You can 
teach a crocodile or an alligator. I don't know which of the two 
species, but they open their mouths and people actually put 
their heads in there. James's point in James 3 is, 
no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil. So James toes the same line that 
Solomon does. And as we studied the book of 
James, we saw how much of proverbial wisdom lay behind James's epistle. When we speak ill of others, 
we have the power to destroy them. Notice, the hypocrite with 
his mouth destroys his neighbor. Look at chapter 12 in the book 
of Proverbs, in verse 17. Proverbs 12, 17, he who speaks 
truth declares righteousness, but a false witness deceit. There 
is one who speaks like the piercings of a sword. That's just terrible. There is one who speaks like 
the piercings of a sword. That's not the way we're supposed 
to use our mouths. It's not the way we're supposed 
to use our speech. We're supposed to keep our hearts 
with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. 
And if we do that, then God willing, we'll be able to attain to the 
degree that the Spirit aids us that unruly evil that's between 
our lips. Verse 19, the truthful lips shall 
be established forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment. Deceit 
is in the heart of those who devise evil, but counselors of 
peace have joy. No grave trouble will overtake 
the righteous, but the wicked shall be filled with evil. Lying 
lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who deal truthfully 
are his delight. You see, we need to keep our 
hearts with all diligence so that we can guard the outlet 
called our mouths. Turn back to Proverbs chapter 
6 for just a moment. I've always thought Proverbs 
6 is the most important section to memorize, the most important 
section to understand, specifically verses 16 to 19. We ought to 
know what God loves. We ought to know what God delights 
in. We ought to know what pleases 
God, but we also ought to know what displeases Him, what He 
doesn't love, what He abominates, what He hates. It's a good tactic 
for marriage as well. We not only need to know what 
our spouses delight in, but we also should want to know what 
they can't stand, what they despise, so that we don't parade that 
sort of thing in front of them. Why would we want to make them 
miserable? That's simply not a good thing 
for a believer. But notice in Proverbs 6.16, 
these six things Yahweh hates, yea, seven are an abomination 
to him. A proud look, a lying tongue, 
hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, 
feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who 
speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren. Now, 
within this particular list of the things that Yahweh abominates, 
we certainly would focus on the end of verse 17, hands that shed 
innocent blood. It's a particularly wonderful 
text in terms of abortion. God abominates abortion. God abominates the murder of 
the unborn or the preborn. God abominates clinics set up 
with sterilized instruments, subsidized federally to murder 
preborn babies in the place where they ought to be the most safe. 
But he also abominates these other things. A proud look. Brethren, 
we ought to oppose abortion, but we really ought to oppose 
pride in our own lives as well. But it is intriguing, there are 
two sins here, or two things Yahweh abominates that has to 
do with speech. Verse 17b, a lying tongue. Verse 19a, a false witness who 
speaks lies. So there's two things that made 
this list of things that Yahweh abominates that have to do with 
our mouths, that have to do with our speech. Turn over to Proverbs 
15, verses 1 and 2. Again, looking at how to shore 
up that particular outlet, which is the mouth. Fix the source, 
guard the source, keep the source, and then put men on the perimeter. 
so that the mouth does not engage in wickedness against God. Proverbs 
15, 1 and 2, a soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word 
stirs up anger. Isn't that just so true? Isn't 
that something you just resonate with? Yeah, if I would have just 
answered a little bit more kindly, we wouldn't be in this mess. 
Why is it that our default mechanism is just to fight back? Why can't 
we just defer? Why can't we at times fall on 
our swords? Why can't we at times be wrong? Why can't we at times just say, 
please forgive me? What is it about us? What is 
it about us in terms of our Adamic nature or our remaining corruption? 
that we typically default to part B of verse 1. A harsh word 
stirs up anger. Notice in verse 2, the tongue 
of the wise uses knowledge rightly, but the mouth of fools pours 
forth foolishness. Proverbs 17. Proverbs 17. I'm 
sorry, Proverbs 18. Just sampling of the text here. 
Proverbs 18, 21, death and life are in the power of the tongue, 
and those who love it will eat its fruit. Again, brethren, we 
ought to oppose the sins committed against the sixth commandment, 
vis-a-vis murder of the unborn, euthanasia of the elderly and 
the infirm. We ought to oppose violations of the seventh word 
in terms of adultery or sexual immorality. We ought to oppose 
when the federal government steals money vis-a-vis the Eighth Commandment. We ought to oppose the Tenth 
Word and covetousness and certainly the first table of law, idolatry 
and blasphemy and Sabbath-breaking. We ought to oppose insubordination 
to parental authority or government authority. We ought to oppose 
with equal vehemence this prohibition against lying. The ninth commandment, 
we're not supposed to engage in abusive language with our 
tongues. Proverbs 25, verse 18, a man 
who bears false witness against his neighbor is like a club, 
a sword, and a sharp arrow. Doesn't sound like sticks and 
stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me. It's 
just the opposite. Solomon equates this false witness 
to clubs, swords, and sharp arrows. This is serious business, and 
we need to keep this particular outlet under control. Proverbs 26, 28, a lying tongue 
hates those who are crushed by it, and a flattering mouth works 
ruin. Those are some powerful passages 
with reference to the power of the tongue. This is why Solomon 
tells us in Proverbs chapter four, keep our own hearts with 
all diligent for out of it spring the issues of life. One of those 
issues of life has to do with your mouth, with your tongue. 
We ought to learn the lesson of Proverbs 17 verses 27 and 
28. Proverbs 17 verses 27 and 28. He who has knowledge spares his 
words. It's so contrary to today, isn't 
it? We think the guy who has knowledge 
is the one who's speaking the most. Solomon says, no, the guy 
who's speaking the most isn't necessarily the brightest bulb 
in the room. It's the man who spares his words. It's the man who says what is 
needful and necessary. It's the man who has the ability 
to penetrate and get to the point and speak his mind. He who has 
knowledge spares his words, and a man of understanding is of 
a calm spirit. Now, verse 28 ought to be committed 
to memory by each and every one of God's people. Even a fool 
is counted wise when he holds his peace. When he shuts his 
lips, he is considered perceptive. You want to be thought wise in 
a crowded gathering? Just be quiet. People will say, 
boy, that guy, he's quiet. He must be smart. He's sharp. You may be thinking about the 
dodo bird and whatever happened to it. You may be thinking about 
what you're going to have for breakfast tomorrow. You may be 
thinking about nothing. Women, when you ask your husbands, 
what are you thinking about, and they say nothing, that's 
honest. There are times when men are 
actually thinking about nothing. Now, men, when you ask women 
and they say nothing, you're in big trouble. Be careful. Tread lightly. Be very cautious 
when you hear that feminine response, nothing. There's usually something 
attached to that. But when you see what Solomon 
says here, it is better to close your mouth at many, many times 
during the day. Bridges says, silence is often 
the best proof of wisdom. Bridges elsewhere in his commentary 
on Proverbs says, we ought to think twice before we speak once. I think that's good sound advice. Going back to Proverbs chapter 
four, looked at keeping the heart, we're looking at the outlets. 
We've seen the mouth, notice the eyes. In verse 25, let your 
eyes look straight ahead and your eyelids look right before 
you. Again, there is a close connection 
between the heart and between the eyes. Notice in Proverbs 
17. Proverbs 17, specifically at verse 24. Wisdom is in the 
sight of him who has understanding, but the eyes of a fool are on 
the ends of the earth. Proverbs 27 and verse 20. Proverbs 27 and verse 20. Hell 
and destruction are never full, so the eyes of man are never 
satisfied. So back in Proverbs chapter four 
at verse 25, he says, let your eyes look straight ahead and 
your eyelids look right before you. What's the obvious import 
of the statement? Put your eyes where they're supposed 
to be. Look in the direction God has 
authorized. Now, this doesn't mean if you 
need to take a left, you can't look left. The idea has to do 
with ethics. The idea has to do with morality. The idea has to do with put your 
eyes where they're supposed to be. The psalmist prayed, set 
no worthless things before my eyes. Solomon is reiterating 
that particular point here in verse 25. Let your eyes look 
straight ahead, your eyelids look right before you. There are several examples in 
the biblical record where persons didn't do this and it cost them 
a great deal. Remember the woman in the garden. 
She had that sort of rational sort of mind break where, you 
know, the food or the fruit, rather, that the devil enticed 
her with was good for food, which she didn't need. She had a lush 
garden filled with an abundance of trees that yielded fruit that 
God said, you may freely eat. But when the devil comes to tempt 
her, all of a sudden, this tree that she had walked by on several 
occasions before, now was good for food. The third reason why 
she took that particular fruit was because it was desirable 
to make one wise. The philosophical insights, the 
godlike status, the knowledge of good and evil that the devil 
held out to her was just too much. But that second reason, 
what was it? It was very simple. It was pleasant 
to the eyes. She shouldn't have done it. She 
shouldn't have taken it. There was other fruit, there 
were other trees, and they were pleasant to the eyes, but they 
weren't under God's prohibition. This particular one was. What 
caused Israel failure in the battle against Ai? It was Achan. In fact, you can turn to Joshua 
chapter seven to see this very specifically, how it was the 
eye gate by which the temptation grabbed him. In Joshua 7, verse 
20, and Achan answered Joshua and said, indeed, I have sinned 
against the Lord God of Israel. And this is what I have done. 
When I saw among the spoils a beautiful Babylonian garment, 200 shekels 
of silver and a wedge of gold weighing 50 shekels, I coveted 
them and took them. And there they are hidden in 
the earth in the midst of my tent with the silver under it. 
Notice the first words in verse 21. When I saw, when I saw, when 
I looked at it, It had an allure, it had an appeal, it was pleasant 
to the eyes. It was something that I desired. And then on the heels of that, 
I coveted and then I took them. The anatomy of sin, it's spelled 
out by James in James chapter 1. Bruce Waltke again says, as 
long as people have their gaze fixed on heavenly truth, Satan 
has no advantage over them. That's the emphasis with reference 
to the eyes. He says, let your eyes look straight 
ahead and your eyelids look right before you. In other words, think 
God's thoughts after him. Your word I have hidden in my 
heart that I might not sin against you. Be fully embracing the word 
and truth of God. All keys right on. As long as 
people have their gaze fixed on heavenly truth, Satan has 
no advantage over them. And then he says, Eve fell only 
after she looked at the forbidden fruit. And then finally, note 
the feet. The feet in verses 26 and 27, 
the final outlet. The heart is connected to the 
mouth. Don't want to sing that old song. The heart is connected 
to the eyes, and the heart is connected to the feet. Keep your 
heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of 
life. Vis-a-vis those things affecting your mouth, vis-a-vis 
those things affecting your eyes, and vis-a-vis those things affecting 
your feet. Now note, Solomon gives two verses 
to the feet. Not because there are two feet, 
but because of the importance of it. Dedicating two verses 
to the foot highlights the importance of what? It highlights the importance 
of doing. In other words, the feet take 
us where we want to go. The feet are the vehicle by which 
we get from place to place to place. And so there is this close 
connection between the heart and the feet, because out of 
it spring the issues of life. Once we hatch a particular plan, 
it is the feet that brings us into that particular place. Notice. 
the need to ponder the path and establish one's ways. Proverbs 
22, 3. Proverbs 22, 3. It and 27, 12 
are the same and ones that bear memorization. Proverbs 22, 3. 
A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself, but the simple 
pass on and are punished. Now, the word feet is not present, 
but the idea or concept is. The prudent man foresees evil 
and he does what? He doesn't rush headlong into 
it. Rather, he hides himself, but the simple pass on and are 
punished. In other words, the heart has 
not been disciplined, the heart has not been guarded, the heart 
has not been kept, and it gives vent to the feet, and they pass 
right into this evil, precarious situation. Notice back in Proverbs 
chapter 4, verses 26 and 27. Ponder the path of your feet. 
Let all your ways be established. Do not turn to the right or the 
left. Remove your foot from evil." Now, this statement, do not turn 
to the right or to the left, is biblical convention, something 
that's utilized not only in the book of Deuteronomy, but it's 
also used in the book of Joshua, and it's used in 1 Kings chapter 
22. It's an idiom. It's a phrase. It's a sort of 
a saying. And simply what it means is don't 
deviate from the path. I think many of our problems 
would be avoided if we rendered or we remembered that. Don't 
deviate from the path. We have clearly defined paths 
each and every day. Don't deviate from it. I'm not 
suggesting you have to be OCD and everything has to be right 
where it's supposed to be all the time, though I think that's a great 
way to live. Don't deviate from the path. If you're a man, you're 
a man. You're a husband. You're a father. You're a worker. 
Do what you're supposed to do. Don't deviate from the path. 
If you're a woman, same sort of thing. You're a woman. You're 
a wife. You're a mother. You're a worker. You're whatever. You 
don't deviate from the path. It's when we deviate from the 
path that we end up in trouble, isn't it? It's when we don't 
do what we're supposed to do that we do the things we're not 
supposed to do. It's a pretty common situation with reference 
to this idea of not turning to the right or the left. Again, 
Deuteronomy, Joshua, I'm sorry, 2 Kings. Waltke says it's a common 
figure for moral deviation of any sort. a common figure for 
moral deviation of any sort. Matthew Poole says it this way, 
and I think he's beautiful. He says, fly all extremes and 
neither add to God's commands nor take from them. In other words, don't deviate 
from the plan. Don't deviate from the path. 
If you're supposed to be at a certain place, be at the certain place. 
That's not to say you can't stop and look at the ducks at the 
park. But brethren, understand that when you deviate from the 
things that God calls you to do, more often than not, good 
things don't typically happen. It's just a practical observation 
that, one, we need to be aware of. Notice the real practical 
illustration in Proverbs 5.8. Proverbs 5, 8, remove your way 
far from her and do not go near the door of her house. Again, 
the prohibition against sexual immorality. Remove your way far 
from her. Do not go near the door of her 
house. Let that sink into you. Do not go near the door of her 
house. He doesn't say don't go near her bed. Don't go near her 
kitchen. Don't go near her bathroom. Don't 
go near her door. Because you're simple and you're 
devoid of understanding. You're a weak-willed young man. 
This is what Solomon is saying. Remove your way far from her 
and don't go near her door. Because chances are, if you go 
near her door, you're gonna go through her door and you're gonna 
go into a place where you ought not to be. Remove your way far 
from her. Do not deviate from the plan. And this whole emphasis on feet 
or walking, we see it in the New Testament, Ephesians 5, 15 
and 16. See then that you walk circumspectly, 
not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are 
evil. Colossians 4, 5, walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, 
redeeming the time. Well, that's our exposition. 
I want to close with just a few concluding thoughts. The emphasis 
is keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues 
of life. Seek to guard the source and then deal with or shore up 
or send guards to those perimeter places. to make sure that you 
are not compromising your witness as a Christian. But I do want 
to show an analogy or rather a comparison or a similarity 
between what we see here in Solomon and what we see in Jesus. Turn 
to Matthew 15. Remember, Jesus described himself 
as a greater than Solomon. Solomon was the wisest man that 
ever lived, but Jesus says he was a greater than Solomon. Paul 
tells us in Colossians 2.3 that all the treasures of wisdom and 
knowledge are hid in Jesus Christ. Notice Christ in Matthew 15 at 
verse 10, when he called the multitude to himself, he said 
to them, hear and understand. Now, just to give you quickly 
the background, the Pharisees, the religious leaders come to 
him and say, Lord, teacher, why do disciples eat with unwashed 
hands? Why is it that they're going ahead with their meal without 
having washed their hands first? They're not talking about biology. 
They're not talking about germ theory. They're not talking about 
it's a good custom or a good habit, and one that we should 
practice, washing our hands before we eat a meal. This had to do 
with ritual cleanliness. This had to do with ceremonial 
law. This had to do with what the Pharisees paraded themselves 
on, was their fastidious attention to the details of the ceremonial 
law. And so Jesus says, you need to think about what it is you're 
saying. Now notice, he comes to explain 
this in verse 10. He says, when he had called the 
multitude to himself, he said to them, hear and understand, 
not what goes into the mouth defiles a man, but what comes 
out of the man. This defiles a man. The problem 
isn't what we put in. The problem is what comes out. 
The problem with men isn't unwashed hands. The problem with men is 
unwashed hearts. The problem isn't that we may 
contract some symptoms or some sort of a physical ailment. The 
problem is that we have ethical ailments that only God can rectify 
or only God can remedy. Now notice in verse 12, then 
his disciples came and said to him, do you know that the Pharisees 
were offended when they heard this saying? This is 21st century, 
isn't it? This is what we hear today. Don't 
you know that offends them? You can't say that because it 
will offend them. I don't want to indict our dear 
brother disciples here, but this is really a 21st century thing. 
Lord, they need safe space. They're snowflakes. They can't 
deal with this. Lord, don't you know that the 
Pharisees are offended when they hear this saying? This is what 
Jesus' response is. I'm sorry. I'll publish a retraction. I will apologize. I will never 
say anything that may ever again be perceived to offend one of 
those dear Pharisees. He says, every plant which my 
heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone. Leave them alone. What's the 
reasoning? They are blind leaders of the 
blind, and if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into 
a ditch. Then Peter answered and said 
to him, Explain this parable to us. So Jesus said, Are you 
still or also still without understanding? Do you not yet understand that 
whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? 
But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the 
heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed 
evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, 
blasphemies. These are the things which defile 
a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man. 
Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues 
of life. Ryle commenting on this particular 
text says, let it be a settled resolution with us to keep our 
hearts with all diligence all the days of our lives. Even after 
renewal, they are weak. Listen to this brother, he's 
absolutely spot on. Even after renewal, they are 
weak. Remember the quote from Flabel 
at the very beginning? The greatest difficulty in conversion 
is to win the heart to God. The greatest difficulty after 
conversion is to keep the heart with God. Ryle affirms this. Ryle highlights this. Ryle says 
the same thing. Even after renewal, they are 
weak. Even after putting on the new man, they are deceitful. 
Let us never forget that our chief danger is from within. Yes, we have outward enemies. Yes, there's the world and there's 
the devil, but the flesh is an enemy as well. And it's the flesh 
that we will have with us until the very end. The devil may actually 
leave us alone for a time. The devil is not omniscient. 
He's not omnipotent. He's not omnipresent. He is creature. There's only one creator and 
that is God. The devil may actually be occupied 
with somebody else and leave you alone for a time. you may 
find yourself on an island somewhere where there isn't social media, 
where there isn't entertainment, where there isn't an encroaching 
world that is thrusting their temptations upon you. But you're 
still going to have your heart, you're still going to have that 
enemy within, you're still going to have that challenge. He goes 
on to say, let us never forget that our chief danger is from 
within. The world and the devil combined cannot do us as much 
harm as our own hearts will if we do not watch and pray. Happy 
is he who remembers daily the words of Solomon. One who trusts 
in himself is a fool. Proverbs 28, 26. So I think that 
the comparison here with reference to Solomon's wisdom and Jesus 
is absolutely airtight. They say the same thing. Keep 
your own heart. with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues 
of life." This ought to make us conclude that we need to guard 
our hearts. We need to guard our hearts through 
faith in the Lord. Remember Proverbs 3, 5, and 6. Trust in the Lord 
with all your heart. We cannot do this in our own 
strength. We cannot do this in our own ability. We must trust 
in God and the resources that He provides vis-a-vis the Word 
and the Spirit. As well, Solomon joins upon us 
to acquire wisdom. We need to fill our hearts with 
wisdom. So read the Proverbs, study the Word of God, get it 
in your heart, get it in your mind, do what that psalmist says, 
hide the Word of God in your heart that you might not sin 
against Him. We need as well to regulate the conduct. Yes, 
Deal with the heart, but also deal with the mouth, deal with 
the eyes, deal with the feet. Those are representative. There 
are certainly other members of our bodies that we need to control 
as well. Never forget that the fruit of 
the Spirit is self-control, and we need, by the grace of God, 
to strive to put that into practice. And then the need for constant 
dependence upon the Lord. When we are told to keep your 
own heart with all diligence, that ought to throw us into the 
lap of divine power, because we can't. We are inept. We are, apart from Jesus, according 
to Jesus in John 15, able to do nothing. And so when we're 
given this kind of a command, this kind of an epic command 
to keep our own hearts with all diligence, if that doesn't send 
us to the throne of grace seeking aid and assistance, I don't know 
what will. This is something that only God 
can grant us the help in. Bridges again, he says, assaulted 
as we are at every point, every inlet of sin must be strongly 
guarded. The heart, the mouth, the eye, 
the feet. Can I keep my heart? Certainly not. But though it 
be God's work, it is man's agency. Our efforts are his instrumentality. Watch unto prayer. Cherish and 
humble dependent spirit. Live in the atmosphere of the 
word of God. Resist the admittance of an evil 
world, even in its most plausible forms. May God help us and may 
God grant us grace. And may God enable us, by the 
power of the Holy Spirit, to keep our own hearts with all 
diligence, knowing from it spring the issues of life. Well, let 
us pray. Our Father, we thank You for 
Your Word, and we thank You for its clarity here in the book 
of Proverbs. We thank you for this sage, practical wisdom given 
to us by you through your man Solomon. We thank you that Jesus 
is the one in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 
We thank you for the entirety of your word and give us grace 
and a zeal and a desire to hide it in our hearts that we might 
not sin against you. Go with us now, Lord God. Cause 
your face to shine upon us in this coming week. May we know 
your nearness as our chief good, and may you keep us and protect 
us and preserve us. And we ask this through Jesus 
Christ, our Lord. Amen.