Seven Things God Hates - Part 5

Proverbs 6:16. These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: a proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that are swift in running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

This passage lists seven things that God hates and right in the middle, number four, is a heart that devises wicked imaginations. At the heart of this list is the heart. Because God knows what we need to learn: the heart of every problem is the problem in the heart. You see what you and I think about the heart of man determines our response to the grace of God. There are those who say, "Well, man’s heart is basically good. Oh yes, occasionally man does some things he shouldn’t do, but basically man’s heart is a good heart and all you have to do is cultivate it and be kind and life will be different." On the other hand, there are those who believe the Bible, and we believe that man’s heart is basically evil. You see, if you believe that man’s heart is basically good, then you believe in salvation by character, salvation by religion, salvation by good works. All it means is to cultivate the goodness that's down inside. 

But alas, when we look at our hearts and look at history and look at the hearts of others as much as we can see, we have to confess that man’s heart is evil. And when you believe that man’s heart is basically evil, then you have to believe in salvation by grace, salvation through faith, salvation through another. The Word of God makes it so clear that man’s heart is desperately sick. In fact, Jeremiah 17:9 puts it very bluntly: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Better mark that verse in your Bible. Jeremiah 17:9: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? 

Sometimes we say, "Well, if I know my own heart," and God says you don't know your own heart. In fact, verse 10 of Jeremiah 17:10 says, I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins—the thoughts—even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. God doesn’t look on the outward appearance; man looks on the outward appearance; God looks on the heart. And God says the heart is desperately sick and desperately wicked. So God declares that our hearts are sinful. A heart that devises wicked imaginations. Here is a heart that spends time scheming and plotting and planning and trying to accomplish in this world all that it wants to accomplish for itself. 

Now, let’s consider the fact of the sinfulness of the human heart; let’s consider this fact from several different aspects. First of all, the reality of it. Let’s consider the reality of the fact that the human heart is wicked. Now, I know some people don't like to accept that. But let’s look at the Word of God. To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. The prophet Isaiah said that and he was right. Just turn in your Bible to Genesis 6:5. Genesis 6:5: And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth—not the goodness of man, the wickedness of man—and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 

In other words, the whole imagination, with the purposes and the desires of the heart, all of this was nothing but evil—not occasionally, continually. I want to read that verse again. It's early in the Bible. Human history is not too old. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And so what did God do? God sent a flood and wiped the earth clean and started over again with Noah and his family. 

Now, Genesis 6:5 is not good news for proud people. It's not good news for people who are convinced that they really have a good and a holy heart. God says that man in general is wicked. This wickedness is great. The only thing great that the Bible says about man is that his wickedness is great. Doesn’t talk about his great piety or his great faith or his great achievement in holiness; talks about great sin. Every imagination—not just some—every imagination was only evil—there was no good mixed with it—and this is continually, every day, day after day, moment by moment. 

Now, that's God’s indictment. He says a similar thing in Genesis 8:21. After the flood, Noah built an altar and offered a sacrifice to God. And the Lord smelled a sweet savor; and the Lord said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground anymore for man’s sake. You find this in Genesis 8:21. Now listen: for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth. God says not only is it evil continually and only evil and great evil, but it starts very early. In fact, we are born sinners. 

Face the reality of it: the heart of man is wicked. We've read Jeremiah 17:9; let’s look at it again. The heart is deceitful above all things. In other words, it's the most deceitful thing you're going to find. And desperately wicked: who can know it? Now, the word deceitful is the word Jacob. The heart is Jacob. Jacob was the deceiver. And your heart is deceitful. It deceives you about yourself; it deceives us about God, about our feelings, about what the Lord wants to do with us. And the little phrase in Jeremiah 17:9 "desperately wicked" means incurably sick. It's a sickness of sin that has so poisoned mankind that all we can do is sin continually. 

You say, "Well, Jesus didn't believe that." Well, yes He did. In fact, in Matthew 15:15, He was accused of breaking the tradition by not going through the ceremonial washings and the various dietary laws, the traditions that the Pharisees had. Matthew 15:15: Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable. And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding? Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the stomach, and is cast out into the draught? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. 

Here’s what Jesus has to say about your heart and my heart: For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. That's the human heart. These are the things, says Jesus, which defile a man. Now, Paul gives a long list of the wicked things that proceed out of the heart of man, things for which God will judge man. In Galatians 5:19, the Apostle Paul lists the works of the flesh. That ugly list of the works of the flesh: Galatians 5:19: Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like. And he could go on and on, but he stops at that point. Now, this is the human heart. Let’s face the reality of it: the human heart is sinful. 

Let’s consider secondly the tragedy of it. What is the tragedy that's involved in the wickedness of the human heart? Well, number one, because of the wickedness of the human heart, we abuse the gifts that God has given to us. Notice Proverbs 6:18: a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, wicked plans, schemes. You see, the heart of man can perform good if we have the help of God. Let’s talk about this matter of imagination. God said that the imagination of man’s heart was just evil continually. 

Imagination is a gift of God. The radio you are listening to was at one time a picture in the imagination of some engineer. The books that I have in my library were at some time the image in the imagination of some writer. The house that you live in, the office that you are in, the automobile you drive, all of these things were at one stage only imagination.

Now, God has given to us this marvelous creative gift of imagination. We can paint pictures and write poetry and we can make sculptures and design beautiful furniture; we can figure out ways of healing the body. The imagination is a marvelous gift of God. Just think of God’s imagination. How rich His imagination is: the flowers, the stars, the snowflakes, the beautiful grandeur of the mountains. All of that at one time was in God’s imagination. 

Now, what do we do with this marvelous gift of imagination? We pollute it, we prostitute it, we pervert it and use it for evil. A heart that deviseth wicked imaginations. You read the newspaper about some criminal who invented a way to do something and you say, "My, that’s marvelous. What a brain he must have. Why doesn’t he use that brain for the creation of things that are good and holy and helpful?" You see, the heart of man has abused God’s gifts, the gift of creativity. 

More than that, the heart of man thrives on pride and unbelief. Notice what it says: a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations. They're scheming against God. They're going to pit themselves against God. They will not believe what God wants them to do; they'll do their own thing. A friend of mine likes to say that faith means living without scheming, and that's true. When you start scheming, you're not living by faith. When you start scheming, you are proudly pitting yourself against the will of God. 

Listen to Psalm 36:1. Psalm 36:1: The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, that there is no fear of God before his eyes. For he flattereth himself in his own eyes, until his iniquity be found to be hateful. The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit: he hath left off to be wise, and to do good. He deviseth mischief upon his bed; he setteth himself in a way that is not good; he abhorreth not evil. He's describing here the wicked man who flatters himself and says, "I can plan my own life. I’m going to devise some plans that will trap other people. I don't care what God says. I have no fear of God before my eyes." Oh, the tragedy of it: the pride and the unbelief defying God’s plans. 

There's an interesting statement in Proverbs 19:21. Perhaps you can turn over there. Proverbs 19:21: There are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand. People try to outthink God and second-guess God. And God says no, there are many devices in your heart; your wicked imagination can plot many things, but I’m going to win in the end. There are so many illustrations of that in the Bible. Joseph’s brothers plotted against him, and God overruled all of that for good. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself, how His enemies plotted against Him, and God overruled that for good. 

The tragedy of it: we are not only abusing God’s gifts and rebelling against God in pride and unbelief, but we are ruining our own character. When you start plotting and scheming, you stop living by faith. You stop obeying God and your character starts to erode. Ananias and Sapphira found that out in Acts 5:1. They plotted and schemed; they ended up being killed, judged by God. Yes, it invites the judgment of God. When God sees somebody plotting and scheming, God says, "All right, you are going to be caught in your own trap." 

God does not look just on the outward appearance; God looks on the heart and God sees and God knows. Listen again to Jeremiah 17:9. Jeremiah 17:9: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Well, God can know it. Jeremiah 17:10: I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. We are going to reap what we have sown. Those that sow to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption. Oh, that we might use the imagination of our heart to create beauty and blessing, to figure out new ways to witness to people, to get into the Word of God and to share the Word of God with others. 

Yes, the heart of man is sinful. We've looked at the reality of it and the tragedy of it. Let’s look finally at the remedy of it. How do you remedy the wickedness of the human heart? Well, you've got to start with a brand new heart; that's the first thing. God has to give to you a brand new heart. And He does that. Jeremiah 31:33, He tells us in Jeremiah 31:33 that He is going to give believers a new heart. Listen to verse 33 of Jeremiah 31:33: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. 

Now, you'll find this very idea quoted over in 2 Corinthians 3:1 and Hebrews 10:1. When you give your heart to Jesus Christ, He washes you clean. He gives to you a new life within. Oh yes, there's still an old nature there that can rebel against God and give you trouble, but God will give to you that new life within. That's where it starts. The heart is deceitful above all things, but if you trust Jesus Christ as your Savior, there is cleansing, there is a new creation. He writes His law on your heart. 

Secondly, we must guard our hearts. Proverbs 4:23 says, Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. The word keep means to guard carefully. Guard your heart. Be careful what gets into your heart. You say, "Well, how do things get into my heart?" Through your eyes, through your ears, and through your imagination. You can plant seeds of blessing in your heart or you can plant weeds of corruption and judgment in your heart. We must have a new heart through faith in Christ. A guarded heart, being careful what we read, what we listen to, what we watch, what we ponder. 

Thirdly, we must have a believing heart. The Christian who believes God and trusts Romans 8:28 does not have to scheme or plot. Faith is living without scheming. And when you believe God’s promises, you don't have to scheme and plot. 

Fourth, a meditating heart. A heart that meditates on the things of the Lord. Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14. Meditating on the things of the Lord, thinking about the beauty and the wonder of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Finally, a confessing heart. David prayed, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: see if there be any wicked way in me." You see, we need to come to the Lord with a confessing heart and believe 1 John 1:9. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

When you and I face problems or difficulties in life, our first tendency is to start plotting and scheming. And that’s the worst thing we can do. If you are trying to scheme your way into something or out of something, watch out. God hates a heart that devises wicked imaginations. Let’s ask God to cleanse our imagination. Let’s ask God to cleanse our heart. Let’s ask God to give to us that kind of creativity that uses our gifts for His glory and for the good of others. Yes, the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked: who can know it? God knows it, and God can change it. And God is able to give to us a clean heart that will glorify Him.