Skip to main content

Ephesians 4:29

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
(NIV)
God has given us words and language. This speech that was given to us has been affected by the fall of man. Now our speech can be "unwholesome" which can also be translated as corrupt or bad. As a child of God, who is walking in His way, we are to put that corrupt speech off and put on speech that is edifying, building up.

In an age that is filled with sarcasm and blunt humor, it is almost expected that we are to be thick-skinned. Even amongst those in the house of God, that element of our culture has infiltrated into our brains so much that I have even known people that believed that to be a good Christian, you should be able to take a joke.

This is not God's way.

Maybe in this day and age we need to be thick-skinned, but we should never require someone else to have that need for thick skin when they are around us. Our words should be constantly building others up. Just like those first creative words that brought all things into existence, we should follow after our Father, the Father of words and speech, and let our words build up and be creative, instead of destructive.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Psalm 119:10

With my whole heart I have searched for You; Let me not wander from Your commandments. -Psalm 119:10 (Translation by Jay E. Adams, in his book Counsel from Psalm 119) Can you say with this psalmist, that you have searched for God with your whole heart? Is your prayer, the prayer that he prayed? "O Lord, don't let me wander from Your Word!" In this blog, I hope to post daily (or nearly daily) posting from scripture. I don't plan on adding much of my own commentary, maybe just a statement or two; sometimes more, sometimes less. But if you would like to add some commentary of your own, or if you would like to share what a passage has meant to you, please feel free.

Hebrews 11:24-25

By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. (NIV) Moses had the chance to align himself with the rich and the famous. He had the opportunity to really make it in this world. To be the son of Pharaoh's daughter, the possibilities could have seemed endless. The world wants to paint that picture for us. A place that is endless in possibility. But Moses knew that the pleasures of sin only last a season. He knew that to truly have endless possibility, it would require the alignment with the people of God, so that is exactly what he did. How did he know to do this? How did he know that he couldn't continue on with pharoah? The answer to that is Faith . It was faith that brought sight to this man. It is faith that will allow you to see clearly in your decision making process. Some other thoughts about this pas...

John 1:12

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,  (John 1:12, ESV) There are a few words in this verse that need some explanation. Let's think about the word, "receive" first.  It is a word that is quite often translated "take".  It means to grab ahold of or hold on to.   In other words, all sorts of people who grab ahold of Jesus... What about "believe"?  It is the verb form of "faith".  Sort of like, "they faithed in his name."  Trust is a part of this word, but it also includes perspective.  This is how you see things.  How you view things.  Your core understanding of the universe.  To believe in the name of Jesus is not to simply believe that He existed and that He did the things that He did.  No.  It is to see Jesus for who He is... Lord and Savior of all.  God of very God.  Creator, Sustainer, our only Hope. How about the word, "right"?  Nea...