WORDS WORDS WORDS

Exodus 20:16 says, ""You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor." (NKJV)

Throughout the ages the use of words has greatly effected man's life and destiny. They have changed man's hearts. Softening some and hardening others. They have changed man's minds. Offering alternative points of view. They have changed man's eternity, winning some to life in Christ.

A few examples of their power would have to include Abraham Lincoln. His Gettysburg Address is recognized as perhaps one of the greatest speeches ever made. The Declarations of Independence contains only 300 words, but set the world's greatest, most powerful nation free. Their are negative examples as well. Adolf Hitler's words lead to the Holocaust and the murder of more than six million people. he also convinced a nation it was the right thing to do. Think of the moving orators in our life-time. Names like John Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Billy Graham, Ronald Reagan, and of course Barak Obama would make the list.

Matthew 5:33 to 37 talks of the use of oaths and pledges. They say, "Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, `You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your `Yes' be `Yes,' and your `No,' `No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one."(NKJV). Jesus is confronting a popular misinterpretation of the Law. The people wanted a way to impress one another. they chose to do so by swearing by increasingly greater stuff. The greater, more valuable or significant the item, the greater authority their words would supposedly have. Vows and oaths were allowed. a True oath had God's backing, and to swear by anything else meant the oath did not have to be completely truthful. Jesus was calling for the people to quit lying by uttering false oaths. his alternative was plain and simple, let your Yes mean Yes, and your No mean No. Nothing impressive or flowery.

James 3 addresses words in another fashion. James 3:3 to 12 reads, " Indeed, we put bits in horses' mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires. Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. But 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, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring can yield both salt water and fresh."(NKJV)

James 3: 3 to 5 give three practical examples of the power of the tongue. The horse is powerful and deadly if left uncontrolled. the ship would drift aimlessly if it weren't for the rudder. A spark can easily turn into a roaring inferno. The tongue is equally powerful and dangerous, man alone cannot contain it. The most dangerous problem with the tongue is that it can't be trusted, it's is two-faced. What do you think of people who may shower you with praise and flattery, and then spews all sorts of gossip and slander against other people. How do you think they talk about you to other people?? Matthew 7 is pretty straight forward when it says blessing and cursing cannot co-exist. Verse 15 to 20 read, ""Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them."(NKJV)

WHAT KIND OF FRUIT ARE YOU PRODUCING??

Dr. O