On Keeping the Heart

Just as the state of the whole human body depends, in great part, on the soundness and strength of the wonderful organ that we call the heart,so the state of the spiritual life of a person is dependent on the condition of his or her heart, in the sense in which the term is used here in Proverbs 4. "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life." With insights from Puritan authors such as John Flavel, William Gurnall and Thomas Watson, this message considers such questions as: What does the term "heart" mean? What are some specific things from which we should strive to "keep" or "guard" our hearts? (worldliness, materialism, hypocrisy, lukewarmness, pride) Why should we strive to keep our hearts? How is a Christian to go about keeping his heart? When should we be particularly diligent to guard our hearts? (in times of poverty, prosperity, adversity, and when others do us wrong). What is the great prerequisite for keeping the heart? (that the heart is first made right with God)