August 5, 2024 IT’S NOT THAT DIFFICULT
Ephesians 4:29-32 “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirt of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you along with all malice. And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you, and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.”
We have the power to let; and that is a great power. God did not make us as robots; as creations of God, man is free to choose. The word ‘let’ is used often in the New Testament. In the above passage, let deals with the words we speak. In the book of Revelation there is a section describing Christ, and part of the description pictures Christ as having a sword in His mouth. I recently heard someone say that we have a sworn in our mouth-and its called a tongue. With our sword (our tongue) we can injure others or we can build them up. This passage in Ephesians has a very simple, yet very powerful admonition; ‘Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth,.’ You cannot miss the point. Because the power of the words we speak or so powerful, we must guard our words carefully. We are to speak words that edify-words that build up and encourage. We must not be guilty of simply responding to others the way they respond to us; just because someone speaks unwholesome words to us is no excuse for us to respond likewise-its best to take the high road and respond with grace. Our words can meet the need of the moment and they can show the grace of God. When we speak unwholesome words, we grieve the Holy Spirit. A second let in this passage is about letting certain things go-again, that is a great power. We can actually let dark and damaging things go; such as bitterness, wrath, anger and malice. What a blessing for us and others to lay these things aside. We have the choice of being kind, tender-hearted and forgiving. An amazingly, we can be imitators of God! Wow! You can sum all of this up by the command to walk in love, just as Christ loved us. To live according to this passage cannot be done in our own strength; however, even though God has made this available to us, we must choose to walk in what He has provided.
1 John 2:5-6 “But if anyone obeys His word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in Him: whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.”
1John 5:3 “This is love for God: to obey His commands. And His commands are not burdensome,”
Blessings, Buddy
Ephesians 4:29-32 “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirt of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you along with all malice. And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you, and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.”
We have the power to let; and that is a great power. God did not make us as robots; as creations of God, man is free to choose. The word ‘let’ is used often in the New Testament. In the above passage, let deals with the words we speak. In the book of Revelation there is a section describing Christ, and part of the description pictures Christ as having a sword in His mouth. I recently heard someone say that we have a sworn in our mouth-and its called a tongue. With our sword (our tongue) we can injure others or we can build them up. This passage in Ephesians has a very simple, yet very powerful admonition; ‘Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth,.’ You cannot miss the point. Because the power of the words we speak or so powerful, we must guard our words carefully. We are to speak words that edify-words that build up and encourage. We must not be guilty of simply responding to others the way they respond to us; just because someone speaks unwholesome words to us is no excuse for us to respond likewise-its best to take the high road and respond with grace. Our words can meet the need of the moment and they can show the grace of God. When we speak unwholesome words, we grieve the Holy Spirit. A second let in this passage is about letting certain things go-again, that is a great power. We can actually let dark and damaging things go; such as bitterness, wrath, anger and malice. What a blessing for us and others to lay these things aside. We have the choice of being kind, tender-hearted and forgiving. An amazingly, we can be imitators of God! Wow! You can sum all of this up by the command to walk in love, just as Christ loved us. To live according to this passage cannot be done in our own strength; however, even though God has made this available to us, we must choose to walk in what He has provided.
1 John 2:5-6 “But if anyone obeys His word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in Him: whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.”
1John 5:3 “This is love for God: to obey His commands. And His commands are not burdensome,”
Blessings, Buddy
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