AUG 4 - Things We Say
2 A fool does not care whether he understands a thing or not; all he wants to do is show how smart he is.
3 Sin and shame go together. Lose your honor, and you will get scorn in its place.
Proverbs 18:2-3 GNT
7 A fool's mouth is his ruin,
and his lips are a snare to his soul.
8 The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
they go down into the inner parts of the body.Proverbs 18:7-8 ESV
15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Matthew 16:15 NIV
Throughout the day we say lots of things, but the bible is specific about how intentional we need to be with our words. The things we say can help us or ruin us, and it describes gossip as going down into our soul.
Proverbs 18:21
21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
and those who love it will eat its fruits.
If our tongue has the power of life and death, we have to wonder what death it’s referring to. Nobody dies when we say it once, but it could be a reference to killing our souls, hurting our spiritual lives, ruining the relationships of the people around us.
What other examples of life and death can there be?
This generation is one of the most outspoken, ever. With social media and the internet, we read a lot and say even more. Even introverts are extroverts behind a keyboard.
Jesus challenges his disciples about what they think about him, only to discover that only one of them was being intentional with his words. Maybe the other disciples were shy, sure, but they had been walking with Jesus, healing with him, participating in establishing his ministry. But now they’re shy? I don’t buy it.
he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
He’s asking, “what are they gossiping? What do they think?” All of them were thinking it, but only one of them answered. They had participated in these conversations, but only one of them confessed.
Why ask what people think first? To see if their hearts were still with him. We can participate in going to church, going to group, meeting people in church. But if Jesus asked you today:
“Who do you say I am?”
What would you say?