For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
— Mark 7:21-23
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.
— Genesis 6:5
A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
— Ezekiel 36:26
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
— Proverbs 4:23
Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
— Romans 6:6
For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
— Romans 8:13
The Smallest Viper in the Nest of Your Heart, by Charles Haddon Spurgeon. The following contains an excerpt from his sermon, “The Old Man Crucified.”
Depend upon it, if ever your sins are to die, it must be with the power of Christ. You will find that you cannot kill the smallest viper in the nest of your heart, if you get away from the cross. There is no death for sin, except in the death of Christ. Stand and look up to His dear wounds, trust in the merit of His blood. If you love Jesus with a perfect heart, then sin killing will not be difficult.
The killing of your sin is not in your power, but if Jesus goes with you, it will be done. I have known some people struggle against a horrible temper, and they never quite overcame it until they grew into closer communion with Christ. The mightiest gun to blow down the strongholds of sin within me, is to flee to the cross of Christ. I am persuaded that nothing but the blood of Jesus will kill sin. You must get to Christ, nearer to Christ—and you will overcome sin. Fight with your sins. Hack them in pieces, as Samuel did Agag. Let not one of them escape. Take them as Elijah took the prophets of Baal, and hew them in pieces before the Lord. Think more of Jesus’ cross, spend more time in contemplation of His blessed person, drink in more of His life, and live more upon Him. If I had but one sentence that I might utter to you believers, I think I should make it this: live nearer to Christ. If you get away from your Master, you will be undone.
All virtues flourish, in the atmosphere of the cross.
All vices die, beneath the shade of the cross.
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
— Galatians 2:20
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