BBD 04.16.21 Guard Your Heart (Classic)
Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>
Classic from 2002
Burning Bush Devotional
16 April 2021
Guard Your Heart
You shall
not murder. - Exodus 20:13.
The
wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his
thoughts. He sits in the lurking places of the villages; in the secret places
he murders the innocent; his eyes are secretly fixed on the helpless. - Psalm
10:4,8.
You are
of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was
a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there
is no truth in him. - John 8:43-44.
This
morning in the United States, we are again shocked at an apparent random
shooting of a 13-year-old boy just dropped off at school. The shooting occurred
in Prince George County, Maryland. Last week, five people were apparently shot
randomly to death in neighboring Montgomery County, Maryland. On Thursday, a
sixth victim was killed in Washington, D.C., and Friday a woman was shot and
wounded in Virginia. It is a horrible development, but in the United States
there is someone murdered in some way every minute.
The
fearful thing about the current rash of murders, is that there seems to be no
logical reason for the murders. It appears random, and now the killer is even
striking at children, which demonstrates the callousness of the heart of this
murderer. We must pray that this murderer is caught before another innocent
person becomes his victim.
The
heart is really the issue here, for it is out of the heart that murders, and
all manner of evil comes. Jesus says, “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts,
adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit,
lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things
come from within and defile a man (Mark 7:21-23).” Jesus allows us to see that before the action is taken, there is the
thought, the attitude of the heart that proceeds the evil. Those evil thoughts
and attitudes, come straight from the pit of hell (John 8:43-44).
The
murderer does not think of God, he does not consider what God thinks of his
actions (Psalm 10:4). In fact, the murderer elevates himself in his mind to the position
of God, because it is God who gives and takes life. The murderer sees himself
as deciding life and death for those around him. His heart has grown so cold
and callous, that his victims include the helpless and the innocent (Psalm 10:8).
Since
murder comes from the heart, it is clear that the admonition of Proverbs 4:23 is vital to our spiritual well being.
We are told in Proverbs 4:23, “Keep (or guard) your heart with all diligence, for out of it
spring the issues of life.” Jesus
says in Matthew 5:22, “But I say to you that whoever is
angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.” Do you have hate in your heart for someone? In 1 John 3:14-15 we are told, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the
brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. Whoever hates his
brother is a murderer....”
What is
the attitude of your heart? What is coming out of your heart? Good things, or
evil? Hateful thoughts, or thoughts of love?
Guard
your heart!
Copyright © 2002 - 2021. Ed
Wrather. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On
June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent.
Ed Wrather began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of
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to prison facilities throughout the United States and Canada.
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