March 30
A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. Luke 6:45
In this verse Jesus makes the point that speech and behavior are not accidental or isolated incidents. They are the natural overflow of what someone has in their heart. Behaviors and speech come from what is stored in the heart. The Greek word thesauros is used here for “stored.” It implies a repository where things are collected and stored over time. Over time, we collect things in our heart. Every day we are storing things in our heart through what we watch, read, hear, conversations we have, our thoughts, etc. There is always data entering our heart, and it is capable of storing many different things. Eventually, what we gather and store in our heart will come out. Inevitably there will be an overflow of what is in our heart. The question is will the overflow be good things or evil things.
This verse suggests that it is impossible to produce “good fruit” in our lives if the “soil” of our heart is untillable. Ground has to be prepared before seeds can be planted and eventually grow. With the ground properly prepared, maintained, and watered, the seed can begin growing eventually bearing (much) fruit. So it is with our heart. The “soil” needs to be prepared (softened) to allow God’s Word (the seed) to begin taking root. Once it takes root and is tended to daily, the seed will grow eventually producing an abundance of fruit that overflows from our heat. However, we can not produce things like kindness and joy if our heart allows evil things to take up residency. A heart that is not properly cared for will not produce good things. Rather, it “brings out evil things” that are stored there.
Jesus says, “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” What is your heart full of? What is my heart full of? It is full of whatever is allowed to enter it and be given space to settle and grow. It is full of the things that make their way in through what is seen, read, or heard. What am I allowing to enter my heart? What am I giving permission to stay there? Am I storing good, or am I storing evil in my heart? The things I allow to be in my heart will eventually come out through my words no matter how hard I may try to not to do that. My mouth will speak what my heart is full of. It is a matter of input vs output. What I fill my heart with matters immensely. Daily filling my heart with God’s Word is a good place to start.
Father - Here’s my heart. Search me and know my heart. Examine the “storehouse” of my heart today. Help me clear out any evil things (bitterness, pride, judgment, envy, etc) that have taken root there. Give me the courage and Your grace to fill my heart with good things. I know that what I take into my heart matters. May my heart be so full of Your grace and love that this is what overflows when I speak. As I interact with others today (and everyday), let the words I speak be an overflow of the gratitude and joy I have in You. May the words of my mouth be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and My Redeemer. In Your name we pray. Amen