A man’s stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth; from the produce of his lips he shall be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit (Proverbs 18:20-21).
Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a small rudder wherever the pilot desires. Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindled! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature, and it is set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so (James 3:3-10).
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never harm me.” This saying is so untrue. Words not only hurt the one being talked about and the one listening- they hurt the speaker as well.
Words are an absolute reflection of our character. After all our words come from our hearts. In Luke 6:45, Jesus said, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”
Words have power to give life and to destroy life. We need to choose words wisely. Sometimes we need to simply say nothing. Proverbs 10:19 teaches this lesson quite well:
In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his lips is wise.
Malicious words, words of rebellion and words of gossip are instruments used to kill the character and influence of people. All the way back in the time of the apostles, John recorded his dealings with maliciousness:
I wrote to the church, but Diotrophes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, does not receive us. Therefore, if I come, I will call to mind his deeds which he does, prating against us with malicious words. And not content with that, he himself does not receive the brethren, and forbids those who wish to, putting them out of the church (III John 9-11).
In II Samuel 15, Absalom’s takeover of David’s kingdom, started with rebellious words. Absalom consistently pointed out to people his perception of King David’s failures. He backed that up by explaining what he would do differently. Eventually, this led to the death of many soldiers. Absalom himself died as a result of a rebellion that started with words.
Words of gossip are often misunderstood and even justified by people. I have heard people say, “Well if what I say is true, it is not gossip.” Actually- true or false- gossip destroys marriages, families, churches- any kind of relationship. The way to stop this destruction is clearly described in Proverbs 26:20: “Where there is no wood, the fire goes out; And where there is no talebearer, strife ceases.” As believers, we stop gossip in its tracks by refusing to listen to it and refusing to be wood that others can use to spread it.
While some people choose to use words to tear down, we should choose words that will build up those around us. It is up to us! Do we want our words to be bitter, or do we want them to be sweet? Proverbs 16:24 says, “Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.” Ephesians 4:29 says, “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.”
Our words do matter to others. They also matter to us. For one thing, we will eat our own words. Attend closely to Proverbs 18:21:
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it WILL EAT ITS FRUIT.
It is possible for us to be trapped by our own words. This is especially true when we have to tell a lie in order to try to cover up a previous lie. Proverbs 6:2 says, “You are snared by the words of your mouth; You are taken by the words of your mouth.”
Finally- by our own words- we are either justified or condemned. Jesus said, “But I say to you that for every idle word men speak, they will give an account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned.”
Many years ago, a line of a children’s song said, “Be careful little mouth what you say.” That line may have been in a children’s song, but it is applicable to adults as well.
Words do matter!
Dave Snyder is an Ordained Bishop with the Church of God – Cleveland, Tennessee. Before entering the ministry on a full-time basis, he was a school teacher. He also coached middle school basketball for eight years.
Dave and his wife, Sara, have two children — Craig and Karen. They also have one ten year old granddaughter — Breanna.
Dave and Sara pastored in West Virginia for thirty-six years. Sara is now retired from the banking industry, and Dave is retired from pastoring. However, Dave currently serves as prison Chaplain for the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Writing essays, articles, and devotionals is a real passion for Dave. He also enjoys playing musical instruments and singing.
by leaps and bounds 