Pastor's Corner

In the movie Bambi, Thumper the rabbit teases Bambi by saying, “He doesn’t walk very good, does he?”

Then, his mother says, “Thumper!”

Thumper:“Yes, mama?”

Mama: “What did your father tell you this morning?”

Thumper: “If you can’t say something nice don’t say nothing at all.”

The Bible says a lot about a person’s speech. It does because of the importance and power of our tongue. There is an old saying that proclaims, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” However, words can hurt and cause harm. In fact, one verse in Proverbs declares that, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof” (18:21).

You may question, “Is what we say really that significant?” Words are simply sounds caused by air passing through our larynx right? Well, think about this. Adolph Hitler was able to influence individuals to kill millions of people with his words. On the other hand, Peter on the Day of Pentecost used his tongue to proclaim the gospel to the Jews at Jerusalem and because of this about 3,000 people were saved (Acts 2:41).

We must understand the impact of what we say. Our words can have great influence. What we say can even be a matter of life or death. Let us look at a few verses of Scriptures concerning our speech. The Bible teaches us that:

1. It is better to keep silent rather than to say the wrong thing. Doing so will keep you from trouble.

“Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles” (Proverbs 21:23).

“He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit” (Proverbs 17:27).

2. You ought to be slow to speak. You must think before you speak.

“Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? there is more hope of a fool than of him” (Proverbs 29:20).

“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” (James 1:19).

3. When someone is angry, if you speak to them softly and with kindness this can often diffuse their rage.

“A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger” (Proverbs 15:1).

4. Our words reflect the condition of our hearts. We talk about what is upon our hearts.

“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh” (Luke 6:45).

5. In order to see good days we must keep our tongues from speaking evil and guile.

“For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile” (1 Peter 3:10).

6. In James 3:1-12, we see the subject of our tongue (also mentioned in 1:19, 26; 2:12; 4:11; 5:12). James likens the tongue to 6 different things: a bit, a rudder, fire, a poisonous animal, a fountain, and a fig tree to show how imperative it is for us to learn to tame our tongue. May we have the same desire as David: “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer” (Psalms 19:14).

Pastor Tim Wall,

Macedonia Baptist Church,

Colfax