“Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me!”
When I was kid growing up in the elementary school playgrounds of the late 60’s and early 70’s, the above phrase was the mantra of every school age child.
Why? Because we kids were always brow beating, or picking on one another about something that really didn’t amount to hill of beans.
If you weren’t wearing the latest, or coolest clothes, or the shoes, you got picked on. If your hair was too long, or too short, you got picked on. If you liked to read more than play sports, you got by picked on. If you simply didn’t have a sports centered mentality, or possess any athletic ability, you got picked on.
But I digress.
The gist of the the matter is that our words CAN hurt others. And, sometimes, a verbal attack can be incredibly viscous, open deeper wounds, and leave more permanent scars than a physical altercation.
The Bible says as much.
“People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison.” James 1:7-8
The Prophet Jeremiah once said that the heart was “desperately wicked”. By the words of James, the tongue gives life to the devious intentions of the heart.
Indeed, the tongue can reveal a persons true nature, betraying any facade they may be outwardly projecting.
Socrates once said; “Speak friend, so that I might see you.” What the famous Greek philosopher was saying was both simple and profound.
“Come and talk with me so I can discern who you really are.”
You see, Socrates, who was a pagan, understood this Biblical truth some 450 years before James wrote it down in his Epistle.
No matter how much you might try to suppress it, what is in your heart will eventually, but always, come out of your mouth.
If your heart is full of hate, you will speak words of discourse.
If your heart is full of conceit, you will only speak about the promotion of self.
If your heart is full of greed, you will only speak of what you have, and how much more you might need, or want.
But…
If you heart is full of Jesus, you will speak words of love.
If your heart is full of compassion, you will speak uplifting words of encouragement.
If your heart is full of faith, you will speak out the Truths of God.
And, that last one, my friends, is a very important lesson to remember.
Let’s go back to our friend James to see what he has to say about it.
“Dear brothers and sisters,[a] not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly. Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way.” James 3:1-2
We are all called to be ministers of Christ. ( 1st Peter 1:13-20) What that means for most, is that we are to be great witnesses of our faith, share our faith , to and with others. We are to share the “Good News” of what Jesus had done in, with, and for, our lives.
But I think this particular message was meant for those who choose to teach the Word of God to the masses in the public forum.
IF YOU ARE GOING TO TEACH THE WORD OF GOD, TEACH ONLY THE TRUTH!
Not your interpretation. Not your opinion. Not what you feel the Word should say, or what you want it to say. Teach it as IT IS WRITTEN!
But…it’s not always taught straight forwardly or even completely truthfully.
In just last few weeks, I have heard teachings that imply that there is no chance that a loving God would ever sentence anyone, anyone at all, to an eternal hell. THE BIBLE DOES NOT TEACH THIS !
Worse yet, I have heard that our merciful God will offer sinners a second chance once they are in hell. Likewise, THE BIBLE DOES NOT TEACH ANY SUCH A THING LIKE THIS!
Another teaching that came down the pike wasthat there was not going to be a Rapture, but rather Jesus’s Second Coming was a more personal experience taking place only at the moment when we die. Uhhh, that would be a hard NO!
So, here is a clear cut example of how words can indeed hurt you worse than any damage that a stick or stone could ever inflict.
The words of these “misguided” if not outright false teachers will send your eternal soul to everlasting torment should you believe them.
And, if history had proven anything, it’s that smooth talkers can make us believe just about anything.
“We can make a large horse go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth. And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong. In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire.”James 3:3-5
On February 10th, 1933, Adolf Hitler gave his very first speech to the German people after acquiringthe position of Chancellor. The speech, known as the “Regierungserklaerung”. It was the equivalent of America’s State of the Union address.
Here is the ending of Hitler’s opening address to the German people.
“True to the order of the Field Marshal, we shall begin. May Almighty God look mercifully upon our work, lead our will on the right path, bless our wisdom, and reward us with the confidence of our race.”
Forty days later, Hitler, despite his beseeching of God to look on him mercifully, to guide him, to lead him, to bless him with wisdom and reward him, opened Dachau Concentration Camp. In just six years, Dachau, and other camps like it would began the systematic extermination of the Jewish people resulting in over six million deaths.
This genocide all started with WORDS spoken bya maniacal madman, and carried out by those most loyal to him. The result was the near decimation of the race of God’s chosen people..
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but some words can ,and will actually kill me!”
To be continued…
LG&LG! (2.0)
LG&LG! (2.0) 