TODAY’S
WORD FOR THURSDAY AUGUST 15, 2013
TONGUE
DEFINITION:
A
moveable organ in the mouth; the principle organ of taste; speech or talk; a
language or dialect.
SCRIPTURE:
No
man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil full of deadly poison. With it we
bless our God and Father and with it we curse men. James 3:8-9.
A
wholesome tongue is a tree of life. Proverbs 15:4.
Keep
your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Psalm 34:13.
KNOWLEDGE
AND EXPERIENCE:
We
both can remember as children that when we said something "bad" our
parents would remark strongly to us that if we repeated that comment or word
that they would wash out our mouth with soap.
Now
if you have ever had your mouth washed out with soap you will think twice about
using your "tongue" that way again. The point that our parents made
to us and the point we made to our children in the same situation is that we
always need to be careful about choosing the words we use in our conversations.
We need to think before we talk. We need to be sensitive to the feelings of
those we talk to at all times.
The
tongue is a very small part of our body, but a most important one, as without
it we could neither be able to taste or be able to speak. While the tongue is
small it is mighty. James tells us that no man can tame the tongue and that it
is a restless, evil, full of deadly poison.
The
tongue has the power to do great damage. Once words come out of the mouth they
cannot be taken back. In James 3:6 we are told that the damage the tongue can
do is compared to a raging fire. Like a fire you cannot control the damage
words can do nor can you reverse the damage. In a matter of minutes a few words
spoken in anger or with the intent to be hurtful can destroy the strongest of
relationships. Satan uses our tongues to put people against one another and to
stir up hatred and fighting.
In
order to control our tongue we must think before we speak and consider whether
our words have merit and are pleasing to God or whether the words we use are hurtful
and destructive to the person we are speaking to.
Our
society has changed so much, even over the last few years, that the words we
hear today in the work place, on the street, in the movies, on the television
and sadly even from the mouths of teenagers and children are appalling. Words
that we hear today were rarely used in public even ten years ago.
We
ask the question: "Why do we see this happening?" Think about the
changes we have seen in our society here in America alone. Such things as the
forbidding of prayers being said in our schools, not allowing the posting of
the Ten Commandments in our schools and in our public buildings, and the
proliferation of pornography under the guise of free speech. We have taken God
out of our society. The media also has shown no restraints in the language used
in movies and television. Unfortunately the same is happening in every country
of the world no matter what the culture or beliefs are.
James
tells us what comes out of our mouth shows what motivates us and our words
reveal what and who we are. Without God's help it is impossible to control the
tongue. If we claim to be Christians and have faith in Jesus we must submit our
tongue to His control.
When
we allow God to have control of our life and we let the Holy Spirit fill our
hearts with God's love then our tongue can be used for God's glory. As James
says in James 3:8-9, it is with the tongue that we praise and bless God.
Standards
may have changed but God's standards have not changed. What the Bible teaches
about the tongue is still applicable today. James tells us that no man can
contain the tongue. We cannot control our tongue in our own strength. We must
seek God's help and through His Holy Spirit working in us, we will be able to
keep our tongue from evil and our lips from speaking deceit.
LEARNING:
Our
memory verse for this week is found in Romans 8:38-39.
For
I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities,
nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor
any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God,
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
PRAYER:
Help
me today to control my tongue. May my words today honor You in all that I do.
