Do you have control of your tongue? Sometimes I do and sometimes I do not. Do you speak harshly or gently to people you love? I know I have. Do you speak harshly or kindly to people you disagree with? Again, I have. Have you ever noticed a difference when you speak harshly or gently to those you love? I have. When you spoke harshly or kindly to those you disagree with, how was the response to you different? It has differed greatly with me. Did your words destroy or bring hope? Let us consider what I have learned about the power of the tongue to either destroy or bring hope.
I must admit when I listen to the rhetoric and the tone of what is being said in the world today, I cringe. So much of what I hear today is hateful and harsh. I have found in most cases there is absolutely no difference between how either side of an argument speaks. Unfortunately, both are speaking harshly. I have also seen what happens to someone I have spoken harshly to, they become hurt, saddened, and lose hope. Yet, when I have spoken gently and kindly, I have seen them become hopeful.
This should not be a surprise. James speaks about the tongue in several places but the most complete description I think is James 3:5-10 which says. “So also, the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.” James 3:5-10 (ESV) It is clear to me that James thinks that my tongue should be different than the world’s tongue. My tongue should not pour out cursing but blessings. The problem being, I am not able to tame my own tongue.
I believe however that with the help of the Holy Spirit I can tame my tongue. It is only His power that enables me to tame my tongue and follow the direction of the following passages. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.” Proverbs 18:21(ESV) “There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” Proverbs 12:18 (ESV) “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”Ecclesiastes 4:29 (ESV) “A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.”Proverbs 15:4 (ESV)
It is clear to me that the Holy Spirit can help me guide my tongue so that rather than speaking harshly, which destroys hope. I can speak gently or kindly which brings hope. I also know that I can do it with those that I love and with those I disagree. I believe that in doing so not only do I bring hope to those I love but also to those with whom I do not agree. It is very clear to me that I am commanded to speak kindly and gently to those with whom I am at odds. “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.” 2 Timothy 2:22-26 (ESV)
Join me in allowing the Holy Spirit to control our tongues. All we need to do allow that to happen is to first accept Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord then you need to ask the Holy Spirit to tame our tongue. This will allow us to bring hope as opposed to destroying hope. At the same time understanding that you will live eternally knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ and this what brings the greatest hope all because of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross satisfying the penalty for sins. His payment satisfies all my sins from the past, in the present and in the future. My penalty and yours was satisfied on the cross by the death of Jesus, God’s greatest act of love and wrath, who became sin for me and you. It was also God’s greatest act of faithfulness because “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (ESV) Because holiness shows us, we need to believe in Jesus. I hope that you join me in helping others to choose Jesus.
If you have not read my previous blogs, you can find them here.
You can find my book, Hope Amid Hopelessness: Our Abba Father Provides a Way Through Mental Illness here.
eBook or Audiobook versions can be found at Westbow Press or Christianbook.com at Amazon or Google.
