“The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth.” (Proverbs 10:20)
Every tree is known by its fruit. Every heart is known by the tongue attached to it. Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. The purging of Isaiah’s lips went only so far. The coal from the altar of Christ goes much deeper, touching and cleansing our hearts. In the new and better covenant our hearts are purified by faith. (Acts 15:9) The radical promise of God gets to the root of man’s problem. “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. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” (Ezek. 36:26,27)
The heart of the regenerated believer is no longer of “little worth.” God has answered the cry of the old covenant saint and created in His new covenant people a clean heart. (Ps. 51:10) The truth that God desired is now continually available to our inward parts, and in our hidden part He makes us to know wisdom. (Ps. 51:6) And yet, there is no guarantee that because we live in the Spirit, we will walk in the Spirit of truth and wisdom. So Paul enjoins us: “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (Gal. 5:25)
God’s saints, who have His Spirit living within them, whose hearts and ears have been circumcised, have the privilege of hearing from heaven and speaking God’s precious truth to all they encounter. If our tongue is to be choice silver we must listen to the Holy Spirit who lives within us. Our heart became His home when we were born again. Take heed to His promptings and His checks. Let the words of your mouth and the meditation of your heart be acceptable in His sight.