When I was young, I used to hear that old poem (proverb?).
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.
Unfortunately, that is not true, is it? I get the point, though. Words can be ignored and shrugged off more easily than a physical altercation. However, words can cause significant injury.
I am grateful for Eddie’s message on Sunday reminding us of the power of words. Jesus wants us to use your words to build His church.
It caused me to reflect on my own words. I desire to speak in a way that will bring healing, hope, and help. Too often, though, my speech is careless, rude, angry, proud, or inappropriate for the moment.
When we look at the Proverbs in Scripture, there is often both a warning and an encouragement when it comes to our words. Consider:
- 10:31 The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom, but the perverted tongue will be cut out
- 12:18 Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing
- 13:3 The one who guards his mouth preserves his life; The one who opens wide his lips comes to ruin
That is just a sampling. There are nearly 150 verses in the Proverbs on our speech (out of 916 total). A whopping 16+% of Proverbs is instruction about how we use our words.
Here is a summary of Proverbs’ teaching: Words are powerful—the wise person uses them to build up; the fool uses them to tear down.
Proverbs even offers the perfect solution for those who do not yet have control of their tongue:
- 17:27-28 He who restrains his words has knowledge, And he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is considered wise; When he closes his lips, he is considered prudent.
That reminds me of another proverb. Silence is golden. Given that Scripture calls believers to use our words to build His church, that seems incomplete. How about this instead:
Silence is golden…sometimes.