Careless Words...

Dear brother and sisters in Christ,

I hope and pray that you are having a great day in the Lord. I have prayed for our church family today and hope that your strength and faith be increased by God.

Our devotional text for today is Matthew 12:22-37. Jesus was accused of casting out demons in the name of Beelzebub (i.e. the devil) while he declared that indeed it was through the power of the Holy Spirit that these demons were expelled. Jesus went on to warn against attributing the things of God to the devil, a warning that carried with it a severe consequence. Then Jesus used a tree to describe how a good tree would inevitably produce good fruit while a bad tree would yield bad fruit. And much of becomes evident in the things we declare and stand for. I want to believe that when Jesus said, "For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks" he not only meant the literal words we speak but also the "statements of faith" that we stand for. In other words, with our words and statements of faith, we tell a lot of our relationship with God.

Having said that, Jesus at the end gave this admonition: "But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned." What caught my attention was "every careless word." Careless. Carelessness. Careless words. The Greek word for "careless" can also have the following implications - ineffective, useless, without thought, or indifferent. Furthermore, "careless" in the Greek "pertains to not giving careful consideration to." Every day we use words to communicate our ideas, thoughts, desires, emotions, etc. When we speak, are we "careful" not to be "careless" in our words? What if we were to interject some of the other implications of careless; are our words ever ineffective, thoughtless or indifferent? Can our "careless" words harm or damage someone else or some other situation? They most surely can. Have we used careless words with our family, church family, co-workers, friends, neighbors, needy people from the church community, "active" children, etc.? Jesus' words of caution were these: "The words you say now reflect your fate then; either you will be justified by them or you will be condemned" (Matthew 12:37 NLT).

Does the way we speak and the words we use edify, encourage, are thoughful, effective, productive, and a blessing to God and others? Our witness may stand or fall based on our words as Christian disciples. Let us be "careful" not to be "careless" with our words at all times.

Prayer: Lord, You created us in your image. You gave us the unique ability in all of creation to speak. Give us a greater awareness of our words so that they may truly be a blessing to others and praise to You. Help us not be careless with our words, but rather to be careful in our speech. In your loving Name we pray. Amen.

By grace alone,

Pastor David