Words of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 14 Oct 2008

Words of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 14 Oct 2008

The 6 things the Lord hates, 7 that are detestable to Him #4 A heart that devises wicked schemes Proverbs 6:16-19 There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19 a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers. As we focus on the fourth thing that God hates, we must make an effort to check our hearts. A heart that devises wicked schemes accounts for those that actually took time and effort to plan, to work out, to set up an evil scheme. God is after our hearts, and if our heart is devising evil schemes it is still evil. We may not kill, we may not steal, we may not commit adultery; however, if our hearts are devising then we must be accountable to God. The story of Amnon and Tamar is the best example of a heart that devises wicked schemes (2 Samuel 13). We often remember the name Amnon, but do we remember the guy that Amnon spoke to? Jonadab was the one who devised and planned the evil scheme which Amnon carried out. 2 Samuel 13:5 Go to bed and pretend to be ill, Jonadab said. When your father comes to see you, say to him, I would like my sister Tamar to come and give me something to eat. Let her prepare the food in my sight so I may watch her and then eat it from her hand. Self check: We may never hurt anyone, kill anyone, but our hearts may be filled with ill intent. We cannot hide from God! Don’t run from the issue. It is time we took God seriously, why? Because, God hates it when we devise wicked schemes. © 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com