September 14, 1999
Exercise buffs may try to change it, but so far the strongest muscle in the human body is the tongue. Perhaps God created us that way for a reason, but could it be our tongues are the strongest because they get the most exercise?
While not fanatical about exercise, I have been using light hand-held weights for the past few years. Constant repetition is sufficient to firm up some of my flab and improve my endurance. Exercise might do the same for my tongue, but is that a good thing?
Talking too much is generally not my problem yet I can put my foot in my mouth as easily as anyone. Sometimes my conscience nags me for interrupting people, speaking out of turn, or not letting someone say what is on their mind. I’m not surprised that the Bible is filled with warnings about over-exercising this muscle.
Proverbs 10:19 is a good place to start: “When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.” The implication is plain: those who hesitate before speaking are less apt to say the wrong thing and thus sin with their mouth. Who can argue with that!
Still in Proverbs we find: “The mouth of the fool gushes folly” and “Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.”
My dad used to say something similar: “Better to be quiet and have people think you are a fool than open your mouth and remove all doubt.” When we think of wisdom, the picture that comes to mind seldom includes lots of noise.
Other biblical warnings abound. One says: “He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.” Who hasn’t got in trouble because they spoke too soon? Or been annoyed by someone who finishes their sentences?
Another warning from the New Testament says, “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness . . . this should not be.”
When people get angry and curse others, they have not considered this truth from Proverbs 18:21: “The tongue has the power of life and death.” While it may not be a lethal weapon physically, words can kill a person’s spirit and rob us of emotional vitality.
A New Testament writer says, “the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.”
Those are strong words. That is why James also says, “no man can tame the tongue.” We need God’s help. He promises better control of this muscle to anyone who wants to change the way they think and therefore the way they talk.
(Of course not all talking is bad. Proverbs 15:2 starts with “The tongue of the wise commends knowledge” and verse four continues with: “The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life.” Our speech can praise God and bless others, just as the Bible says. We are encouraged not to use corrupt words but talk so that others are built up and receive grace.)
One thing about exercise at home or in the gym; if your form is not correct, you can injure yourself. It is a little like that with the tongue; if we do not use the right words or have the right attitude as we speak, we can hurt not only ourselves but others.
Flabby muscles firm up and become more alert with exercise but just using our tongue does not necessarily improve anything. As 1 Timothy 4:8 says, “Physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things.”
In this case, an old truism matches Scripture: if we cannot say anything nice, we are better to let our tongue muscle become atrophied.
Showing posts with label power of words. Show all posts
Showing posts with label power of words. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 11, 2017
Friday, September 1, 2017
Sticks and Stones .......... Parables 635
(date uncertain)
“You are an odd person, Ronny,” said the teacher. On reflection, Ron says her remark now seems neither negative or positive, but it did stay with him forty years. He often asks himself, “What should an odd person do in this situation?”
Benign or otherwise, name-calling brings our children come home from school crying. Without thinking, we tell them that “sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt you” but it is not true. Words can hurt.
Someone makes a thoughtless joke. A peer says something in anger. A teacher makes an offhand comment. Those words devastate us. We cannot forget them. No doubt about it, words do have power, not only to inflict pain but also to change the way we think and act.
The book of Proverbs has much to say about words. For instance, they are “deep waters” and “a word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”
Words can be negative: “When words are many, sin is not absent” or “Mere talk leads to poverty” or “Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than him. . .”
Words can also be positive. “The words of the pure are pleasant” and “A gentle answer turns away wrath” and “An anxious heart weighs a man down but a kind word cheers him up.”
The Bible clearly says that words have power and that “life and death are in the power of the tongue.” Could that be why God inspired New Testament writers to give a special name to His Son, Jesus Christ? John says, “In the beginning was the Word . . . and the Word was made flesh and lived among us.”
In our mind, a word is a symbol. In contrast, during the time the New Testament was written, their Greek-dominated world thought that “word” (or “logos”) meant much more. For them “word” was the rational order of the world, the god that was behind everything. “Word” was also the means by which their god communicated to them.
The Bible writers picked up this term “logos” or “word” and applied it to Jesus. But they were not thinking of a vague god like Hermes nor dreaming up some way to link human beings to the various Greek deities. Instead, logos (or word) described the link between the Creator and the world He made. The logos was God, stepping into human flesh and revealing Himself to us.
This Word is ultimate power — demonstrated as Jesus spoke peace into troubled water and troubled hearts. By a word, He healed the sick, raised the dead, rid tortured souls of demonic influence, changed water to wine, and multiplied a lunch into a banquet. Whatever He said, it happened.
Further, by this Word God communicates His very nature and heart. In the compassion of Jesus, He shows us that He loves us. In Jesus’ rebukes and stern warnings to the Pharisees, God shows us that He hates sin and religious hypocrisy. As we observe Jesus going willingly to the cross and dying for our sin, God communicates His plan of redemption and that He did not abandon us to our failure. When Jesus rose from the dead, God shows His power over that great and final enemy.
This Word from God is strong yet vulnerable, righteous and holy yet willing to redeem. All that God is became wrapped up in this God-man so God could reveal Himself to us.
Our words are not like the Living or written Word of God, yet there is a lesson for us in that power. When we speak, we also communicate our hearts to other people. An unkind word indicates our lack of compassion. A thoughtless word shows that we do not care enough about our listeners to think before we open our mouths. A gracious word shows that grace has touched our lives.
Sticks and stones do break bones, but just as God’s Word brought eternal life, our words can have a great impact on someone’s daily life. We need to choose them carefully.
“You are an odd person, Ronny,” said the teacher. On reflection, Ron says her remark now seems neither negative or positive, but it did stay with him forty years. He often asks himself, “What should an odd person do in this situation?”
Benign or otherwise, name-calling brings our children come home from school crying. Without thinking, we tell them that “sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt you” but it is not true. Words can hurt.
Someone makes a thoughtless joke. A peer says something in anger. A teacher makes an offhand comment. Those words devastate us. We cannot forget them. No doubt about it, words do have power, not only to inflict pain but also to change the way we think and act.
The book of Proverbs has much to say about words. For instance, they are “deep waters” and “a word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”
Words can be negative: “When words are many, sin is not absent” or “Mere talk leads to poverty” or “Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than him. . .”
Words can also be positive. “The words of the pure are pleasant” and “A gentle answer turns away wrath” and “An anxious heart weighs a man down but a kind word cheers him up.”
The Bible clearly says that words have power and that “life and death are in the power of the tongue.” Could that be why God inspired New Testament writers to give a special name to His Son, Jesus Christ? John says, “In the beginning was the Word . . . and the Word was made flesh and lived among us.”
In our mind, a word is a symbol. In contrast, during the time the New Testament was written, their Greek-dominated world thought that “word” (or “logos”) meant much more. For them “word” was the rational order of the world, the god that was behind everything. “Word” was also the means by which their god communicated to them.
The Bible writers picked up this term “logos” or “word” and applied it to Jesus. But they were not thinking of a vague god like Hermes nor dreaming up some way to link human beings to the various Greek deities. Instead, logos (or word) described the link between the Creator and the world He made. The logos was God, stepping into human flesh and revealing Himself to us.
This Word is ultimate power — demonstrated as Jesus spoke peace into troubled water and troubled hearts. By a word, He healed the sick, raised the dead, rid tortured souls of demonic influence, changed water to wine, and multiplied a lunch into a banquet. Whatever He said, it happened.
Further, by this Word God communicates His very nature and heart. In the compassion of Jesus, He shows us that He loves us. In Jesus’ rebukes and stern warnings to the Pharisees, God shows us that He hates sin and religious hypocrisy. As we observe Jesus going willingly to the cross and dying for our sin, God communicates His plan of redemption and that He did not abandon us to our failure. When Jesus rose from the dead, God shows His power over that great and final enemy.
This Word from God is strong yet vulnerable, righteous and holy yet willing to redeem. All that God is became wrapped up in this God-man so God could reveal Himself to us.
Our words are not like the Living or written Word of God, yet there is a lesson for us in that power. When we speak, we also communicate our hearts to other people. An unkind word indicates our lack of compassion. A thoughtless word shows that we do not care enough about our listeners to think before we open our mouths. A gracious word shows that grace has touched our lives.
Sticks and stones do break bones, but just as God’s Word brought eternal life, our words can have a great impact on someone’s daily life. We need to choose them carefully.
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