Skip to main content

Daily Devotion: Proverbs 15:1-3

By

Proverbs 15:1-3    "A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.  (2)  The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.  (3)  The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good."

It seems the book of Proverbs has a lot to say much about our taming of the tongue. The book of James, in the New Testament, also says much about our use of words. We are told in that book that all kinds of animals can be tamed, "But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God." (James 3:8-9)  Many fights have been started because of spoken words. Wars between nations have begun because of words which come from a prideful heart. Jesus said, "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts..." (Matthew 15:19)  Solomon wrote, "The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good."   When the Lord sent Samuel to anoint David, we read these words, "the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7) I may seem to be rambling this morning, but it seems to me that "a soft answer" must come from a soft heart. "Grievous words" come from a heart that has been hardened.  I may be able to fool other people, but the Lord looks beyond my words to see what is in my heart. I pray the Lord will bless me so that my words will always "use knowledge" in the right manner to promote peace.

Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Daily Devotion: Psalm 88:1-4

By
Psalm 88:1-4  A Song or Psalm for the sons of Korah, to the chief Musician upon Mahalath Leannoth, Maschil of Heman the Ezrahite. "O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:  (2)  Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;  (3)  For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.  (4)  I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength" I've said this before and I will say it again (and probably more times before we get to the end of the Psalms) - I love the Psalms because I can surely identify with them. Most Psalms start in a low place and as the writer expresses his thoughts, the Lord begins to lift him up out of that dry place.  Though this entire Psalm is a fervent cry unto the Lord, the Psalmist tells us specifically in three verses that he cried daily unto the Lord. Just a few Psalms ago, we were reminded that God always hears our prayers. ...
Read more

Daily Devotion (Video): I Will Fear No Evil - Psalm 23:4

By
Read more

Daily Devotion: Knowing God By Bearing Fruit

By
Some will notice the title is not “Bearing fruit because we know God,” so to avoid getting sidetracked with that, we can start with the fact that we won’t bear any godly fruit unless our heart has been changed and the Holy Spirit dwells within us. Also, to avoid confusion, I’ll be using the terms “bearing fruit,” “good works” and “service” interchangeably.  I took this article’s title from Part 7, of John Piper’s “Look at the Book” session on Colossians 1:9-12. I greatly encourage you to view that short video to get his excellent exposition on this subject.  When I saw the title of the video earlier this year, I got kind of excited because that’s the direction my thinking has gone in the past several years. My thinking was founded Biblically with verses on good works like Matthew 5:16 – “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father, who is in heaven.” But I couldn’t expand it to expla...
Read more