Be Careful!
The Book of Proverbs
Proverbs Chapter 18
Scripture=Proverbs chapter 18:6, 7, 8, 13, 20 (The Message)
6 The words of a fool start fights; do him a favor and gag him. 7 Fools are undone by their big mouths; their souls are crushed by their words.
8 Listening to gossip is like eating cheap candy; do you really want junk like that in your belly?
13 Answering before listening is both stupid and rude.
20 Words satisfy the mind as much as fruit does the stomach; good talk is as gratifying as a good harvest. 21 Words kill, words give life; they're either poison or fruit—you choose.
Observation=In these verses Solomon is telling us that our words bear consequences and can hurt others. He is also telling us that we can hurt others by what we choose to listen to as gossip.
Solomon is also advising us that not only what we say and what we listen to can hurt others but those two things will hurt us as the talker and the listener as well! We will hurt ourselves when we talk about others. We will lose others trust and confidence. And when we listen to gossip it hurts us as well. It will effect the way you see people whether what you heard was true or not.
I am sure that you have heard the phrase that, “the pen is mightier than the sword,” words can bring down great empires. We also grew up hearing, “that sticks and stones may break our bones but words will never hurt us,” that is far from the truth because we have all been wounded by words than by anything else on this earth.
Application=I remember as a little child singing a song in Sunday School that I believe was entitled, ‘Be Careful’. The words were, “Oh be careful little mouth what you say, oh be careful little mouth what you say, for the Father up above, he is looking down in love, so be careful little mouth what you say.” The other verses were: Be careful little ears what you hear, little eyes what you see, little hands what you do, and little feet where you go. Even though this song was rather on the line of ‘big brother is watching’ it made a point of accountability. It could be “you better watch out God is going to get you,” or it could be that we are accountable with how we treat each other.
I believe that the Grace of God covers all our sin but don’t we have the responsibility of trusting that Grace (God’s ability in us) gives us the knowledge of what we should do and the power to do it? We should be careful what we say and what we hear! Grace never gives us the license to be a jerk. We are never in the right when hurt others by what we say and can never be justified when we listen to hurtful things about others. For the Father up above is looking down in love so we need to be careful.
Prayer=
Lord Jesus, help me form my words today.
I don’t want to hurt with the things I say.
When I hear words that make my friends look bad.
Help me to turn away before my heart gets sad.
Proverbs Chapter 18
Scripture=Proverbs chapter 18:6, 7, 8, 13, 20 (The Message)
6 The words of a fool start fights; do him a favor and gag him. 7 Fools are undone by their big mouths; their souls are crushed by their words.
8 Listening to gossip is like eating cheap candy; do you really want junk like that in your belly?
13 Answering before listening is both stupid and rude.
20 Words satisfy the mind as much as fruit does the stomach; good talk is as gratifying as a good harvest. 21 Words kill, words give life; they're either poison or fruit—you choose.
Observation=In these verses Solomon is telling us that our words bear consequences and can hurt others. He is also telling us that we can hurt others by what we choose to listen to as gossip.
Solomon is also advising us that not only what we say and what we listen to can hurt others but those two things will hurt us as the talker and the listener as well! We will hurt ourselves when we talk about others. We will lose others trust and confidence. And when we listen to gossip it hurts us as well. It will effect the way you see people whether what you heard was true or not.
I am sure that you have heard the phrase that, “the pen is mightier than the sword,” words can bring down great empires. We also grew up hearing, “that sticks and stones may break our bones but words will never hurt us,” that is far from the truth because we have all been wounded by words than by anything else on this earth.
Application=I remember as a little child singing a song in Sunday School that I believe was entitled, ‘Be Careful’. The words were, “Oh be careful little mouth what you say, oh be careful little mouth what you say, for the Father up above, he is looking down in love, so be careful little mouth what you say.” The other verses were: Be careful little ears what you hear, little eyes what you see, little hands what you do, and little feet where you go. Even though this song was rather on the line of ‘big brother is watching’ it made a point of accountability. It could be “you better watch out God is going to get you,” or it could be that we are accountable with how we treat each other.
I believe that the Grace of God covers all our sin but don’t we have the responsibility of trusting that Grace (God’s ability in us) gives us the knowledge of what we should do and the power to do it? We should be careful what we say and what we hear! Grace never gives us the license to be a jerk. We are never in the right when hurt others by what we say and can never be justified when we listen to hurtful things about others. For the Father up above is looking down in love so we need to be careful.
Prayer=
Lord Jesus, help me form my words today.
I don’t want to hurt with the things I say.
When I hear words that make my friends look bad.
Help me to turn away before my heart gets sad.
