WATCH YOUR MOUTH!

WATCH YOUR MOUTH!

I am aware that today’s devotional subject might sound a bit brash, perhaps even crude.  Nevertheless, so many fail to recognize the immense power and impact of spoken words.  The prolific author, Og Mandino, poses a pivotal question: “Why is it then that so many of us go out of our own way to offend others with criticism and offensive judgments that so often come back to haunt us?  Why do we allow our big mouths to dig ruts in our path so deep that our forward progress is finally nil?”  OUCH!

One of my favorite books, read early in life, is “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie.  “Criticism is futile,” Carnegie contends, “because it puts a man on the defensive, and usually makes him strive to justify himself.  Criticism is dangerous, because it wounds a man’s precious pride, hurts his sense of importance, and arouses resentment.”  He adds an astute observation: “When dealing with people, let us remember we are not dealing with creatures of logic.  We are dealing with creatures of emotion, creatures bristling with prejudices and motivated by pride and vanity.  Criticism is a spark – a spark that is liable to cause an explosion in the powder magazine of pride.”  Hmm…something to deeply consider!

An ancient Greek scholar, Pythagoras, wrote “A wound from a tongue is worse than a wound from a sword, for the latter affects only the body, the former affects the spirit.”  I would put it more simply: “Watch your mouth!” 

The Apostle James, the brother of Jesus, had a special assignment to highlight the impact of believers’ speech.  His teachings on the subject are of vital importance; they are reprinted (in part) below.

James 3:2-10 (NIV)

² We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.

³ When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal.

⁴ Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go.

⁵ Likewise, 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.

⁶ The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

⁷ All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, ⁸ But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

⁹ With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness.

¹⁰ Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.

James’ doctrine-of-speech may be summarized as follows: “If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.” (James 1:26, NIV)

Words have significant spiritual capability.  They can give or take life, to and from yourself, but also to and from others.  This makes logical sense in light of the nature of The One who “created all things.” (Ephesians 3:9 – Colossians 1:16 – Revelation 4:11).  The very essence of Christ, the way we may most accurately describe His power, dominion and authority is simply this: Jesus Christ is THE LIVING WORD.  It stands to reason that our words are of special significance and import to THE LIVING WORD…The Holy One who “upholds all things by the word of his power.” (Hebrews 1:3)  Think carefully about that.

We must always employ wisdom in every avenue of communication.  Why is this important?  Because our words are “salt.”  As such, they have sufficient capacity to season [influence] ourselves, our families, our friends, and even our enemies.  Therefore, the scriptures mandate that our “speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that [we] may know how [we] ought to answer every man.” (Colossians 4:6)

At the risk of sounding somewhat rude, I must repeat: “Watch your mouth!”  Sisters and brothers, as we activate the governing thermostat of the Holy Spirit, who constantly modifies our attitudes, our actions and our speech, we will be continually blessed!