August 8, 2011

Changing the Way We Speak By Examining the Heart

Sharon Jaynes

Todays Truth
Jesus said, What goes into a mans mouth does not make him unclean, but what comes out of
his mouth, that is what makes him uncleanBut things that come out of the mouth come from
the heart, and these make a man unclean (Matthew 15:11,18 NIV).

Friend To Friend
While it is the Holy Spirit that gives us the power to change the words we speak, the desire to
change begins in the heart. The Bible says:

Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad,
for a tree is recognized by its fruitFor out of the overflow of the heart the mouth
speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil
man brings evil out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give
account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your
words you will be acquitted and by your words you will condemned (Matthew 12:33-
37).

The word heart that is used in this passage is the Greek word kardia. It is not referring to the
blood pumping muscle in the chest cavity, but to our thoughts, motives, feelings, our will, and
our character. The kardia is the seat of our emotions and represents the inner person. The words
that escape our lips reveal the condition of the inner man.

Remember the childrens song:

Im a little teapot short and stout,

Here is my handle, here is my spout.
When I get all steamed up hear me shout,
Just tip me over and pour me out.

Well I dont know about you, but when I get all steamed up, what comes out of my mouth isnt
always a cup of tea! It is in those unguarded moments of frustration, anger, or pain that our
mouths tend to spew out what is really inside. Jesus said, What goes into a mans mouth does
not make him unclean, but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him uncleanBut
things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man unclean
(Matthew 15:11,18). Jesus continually pointed out the condition of the Pharisees hearts. They
clung to outward religious practices. But God desired their hearts, which were hardened and
cold.

The book of Proverbs has much to say about how the condition of our heart affects what we say.

Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. (Proverbs 4:23)
The wise in heart accept commands, but a chattering fool comes to ruin. (Proverbs 10:8)
 A prudent man keeps his knowledge to himself, but theheart of fools blurts out folly.
Proverbs 12:23)

An anxious heart weights a man down, but a kind word cheers him up. (Proverbs 12:25)

The discerningheart seeks knowledge, but the mouth of a fool feeds on folly. (Proverbs
15:14)

The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.
(Proverbs 15:28 TNIV)

A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones.
(Proverbs 15:30)

The wise in heart are called discerning, and pleasant words promote instruction.
(Proverbs 16:21)

The hearts of the wise make their mouths prudent, and their lips promote instruction.
(Proverbs 16:23 TNIV)

One who loves a pure heart and who speaks with grace will have the king for a friend.
(Proverbs 22:11 TNIV)

Like a coating of glaze over earthenware are ferventlips with an evil heart. (Proverbs
26:23)

Enemies disguise themselves with their lips, but in their hearts they harbor deceit.
Though their speech is charming, do not believe them, for seven abominations fill their
hearts. (Proverbs 26:24, 25 TNIV)

As the water reflects a face, so oneslife reflects the heart. (Often that reflection is
through spoken words) (Proverbs 27:18 TNIV)

So, hows your heart? The heart of the matter is a matter of the heart.

Lets Pray
Dear LORD, Examine my heart today and reveal to me any areas of my life that I need to
change. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and restore a right spirit within me.
In Jesus Name,
Amen

Redemption

"My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to YouI, whom You have redeemed." ~ Psalm
71:23
What comes to mind for many Christians when we hear the word "redeemed" is being saved
from the pit of hell by Jesus Christ, Our Savior.

But what may not come to mind as often is having abundant life on earth.

The dictionary defines redemption as saving or improving something that has declined into a
poor state. Ones career, marriage, finances or physical health can be examples.

The root word, redeem, is from the Latin word, redimere, which means to buy back. To redeem
can mean to keep a promise, fulfill a pledge, pay off an outstanding portion of debt, atone for
human sins, restore someone to favor or to make acceptable despite negative qualities.

Indeed, Jesus Christ is Our Redeemer.

The Bible says that we are redeemed from the grave (Ps. 49:15), from death (Hos. 13:14), from
the law (Gal. 4:5), from all wickedness (Tit. 2:14), from the curse (Gal. 3:13), from sin (Col.
1:14) and from the pit (Ps. 103:4).

The Apostle Paul may have said it best as he beseeches us to "live a life worthy of the Lord," to
"please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,
being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you may have great
endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share
in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For He has rescued us from the dominion
of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves..."

God's word is true. It is purposed for us. Let us keep our eyes on Him so that we may have
abundant faith, love, hope, prosperity, health, joy and relationships.

What do you have need of? Do you feel special, or are you just getting by? Have you called on
your Redeemer? He awaits you.

Loved by a Faithful God

"I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ...
Philippians 3:8

Peer through the small window in the wall of the Roman jail. See the man in chains? The aging
fellow with the stooped shoulders and hawkish nose? Thats Paul, the imprisoned apostle. His
chains never come off. The guards never leave. And hes probably wondering if hell ever get
out. . . .

By the time we find Paul in his cell, he has been beaten, lied about, storm tossed, rejected, and
neglected.

Ah, but at least he has the church. At least he can take comfort in the thought of the unified
Roman congregation he helped strengthen, right? Hardly. The Roman church is in trouble. . . .
Power-hungry preachers occupy the parsonage. You expect such antics out of nonbelievers, but
Christians preaching for personal gain? Paul is facing Prozac-level problems. . . .

And who knows what Emperor Nero will do? He feeds disciples to the Colosseum lions for
lunch. Does Paul have any guarantee the same wont happen to him? . . . Paul is not naive. He
knows the only thing between him and death is a nod from moody Nero.

Paul has every reason to be stressed out. . . .

But he isnt. Rather than count the bricks of his prison, he plants a garden within it. He itemizes,
not the mistreatments of people, but the faithfulness of God.

I want you to know, brethren (Phil. 1:12) that what has happened to me has really served to
advance the gospel (1:12 NIV). He may appear to be bumped off track, but he is actually right
on target. Why? One reason. Christ is preached. The mission is being accomplished.

Every Day Deserves a Chance

Father, earthly stress and struggles remind us of your faithfulness. Help us, Lord, to serve you
without grumbling. May we, like the apostle Paul, choose to plant a garden in the bricks of
our prison. Help plant our thoughts firmly on your faithfulness. All hope comes from you,
amen.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7

Let your heart therefore be loyal to the Lord our God, to walk in His statutes and keep His
commandments, as at this day.
1 Kings 8:61

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to
you.
Matthew 6:33

Does what we say really affect our life?

Listen to a message from my pastors on this very subject titled Sticks and Stones Part 1 (4/19/09). Sticks
and Stones Part 2 (4/26/09)

Does what we say really affect our life?

Another new truth that I have been hearing is that what you speak affects your life in a prophetic sort of
way. We should speak things that arent as if they were. Or people will say something and then say they
rebuke that because they dont want it in their life. Some people wont even discuss an ailment in their
body because they say if they do, they will be claiming it. Others just dont want to hear anything
negative, which I have also discovered that negative is defined differently by each person. It could be
something such as saying, Its supposed to rain on Sunday, I hope the church picnic doesnt get rained
out. And their reply would be, I rebuke that, it is going to be beautiful on Sunday!

I think this is going to be a difficult one and I may not be able to come up with a clarifying truth that
applies to every situation. But, lets take a look and see what turns up. I started by looking up the words
speak, talk, words, mind, think, and prophesy in the Bible. Just as I thought, this isnt going to be an
easy one.

Throughout the Bible, God speaks about truth. In Zecharia, 8:16 These are the things that ye do: Speak
ye truth each with his neighbour, Truth and peaceful judgment judge in your gates. Eph 4:25 Wherefore,
putting away the lying, speak truth each with his neighbour, because we are members one of another;

So we come back to what is truth? Truth exists regardless of view point or relative opinion; Truth is reality
based on actual facts proven by the presentation of evidence. So if truth is reality based, then can we
speak about negative things if they truly exist? If we are failing classes, do we ignore that truth and
choose to only speak of getting better grades? If we are having health problems, do we only speak of
healing and ignore the problems that we have? I can say that a forecast of weather is just that, a forecast,
so it isnt actually a truth. But, if there is a forecast of rain, do we ignore that forecast and make no
alternate plans, speaking and believing for beautiful weather?

Mat 12:33-37 `Either make the tree good, and its fruit good, or make the tree bad, and its fruit bad, for
from the fruit is the tree known. `Brood of vipers! how are ye able to speak good thingsbeing evil? for out
of the abundance of the heart doth the mouth speak. The good man out of the good treasure of the heart
doth put forth the good things, and the evil man out of the evil treasure doth put forth evil things. `And I
say to you, that every idle word that men may speak, they shall give for it a reckoning in a day of
judgment; for from thy words thou shalt be declared righteous, and from thy words thou shalt be declared
unrighteous.

This is a very powerful statement made by Jesus. He tells us that bad fruit doesnt come from good trees,
so if we are producing bad fruit, we cant be a good tree. Hmmmm. So we can speak out anything we
want, the bottom line is what is in our hearts. What the reality is. So even if we only speak positive, and
yet in our hearts, and probably minds, there are negative feelings and thoughts, the positive speak isnt
accomplishing anything. This leads me to believe that you cant say something and then speak out a
rebuke against your own words, the only true way to rebuke it is to change what you feel and think, then
what you say will change. But can you rebuke something someone else says? I guess you can because
in this very scripture, Jesus is in essence rebuking what the Pharisees were saying.

Another heavy truth in this passage is that we will give account for every idle word spoken! Our words will
declare us righteous or unrighteous. So if we are always speaking negative, ho-hum, doomsday things,
what does that declare us? Wait, I almost missed it. We wont really be declared righteous or unrighteous
by our words, ultimately, it is by our heart. The Pharisees appeared to be speaking so called good things
and yet their hearts were not good. So they wouldnt actually be judged on words but the heart. But I think
we have a chance to recognize what is in our hearts and change it before it spills out of our mouths. So
we dont really need to change what we speak, we need to change our hearts. We will be forgiven for
these evil things we speak IF we are right with Christ. Mark 3:28-29 `Verily I say to you, that all the sins
shall be forgiven to the sons of men, and evil speakings with which they might speak evil, but whoever
may speak evil in regard to the Holy Spirit hath not forgivenessto the age, but is in danger of age-during
judgment; But honestly, Id rather not have to be forgiven for them, Id rather work on changing my heart
and producing good fruit.

In Tit 1:12-14, A certain one of them, a prophet of their own, said, Cretans [are] always liars, evil
beasts, [and] lazy bellies [fig., gluttons]! [i.e. a quote from Epimendes, c. 600 B.C.] This testimony is
true; for which cause rebuke them sharply, so that they shall be sound in the faith, not paying attention to
Jewish myths and commandments of people, turning themselves away from the truth. The person saying
that the Cretans were liars, etc isnt the one to be rebuked, the Cretans were to be rebuked. Paul says
that this testimony was true, so he didnt have a problem with it being said, even in such a negative way.

Eph 4:29-32 (ALT) Stop letting any rotten [fig., harmful] word come out of your* mouth, _but_ if anything
[fig., what] [is] useful for building up [fig., edifying] of the need [fig., as needed], so that it shall give grace
to the ones hearing. Let all bitterness and rage and anger and clamor [or, angry shouts of
dissatisfaction] and slander be removed from you*, [along] with all malice.

(YLT) Let no corrupt word out of your mouth go forth, but what is good unto the needful building up, that
it may give grace to the hearers; and make not sorrowful the Holy Spirit of God, in which ye were sealed
to a day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil-speaking, be put
away from you, with all malice, and become one to another kind, tender-hearted, forgiving one another,
according as also God in Christ did forgive you.

What is corrupt word? The original Greek word is: sapros (sap-ros) Strongs states that it is rotten, that
is, worthless (literally or morally): bad, corrupt. The website studylight.org gives the definition as: rotten,
putrefied; corrupted by one and no longer fit for use, worn out; of poor quality, bad, unfit for use,
worthless. It is the same word that is translated as bad in Matthew 12:33 above.

Most translations use the word edifying. What does that mean? The Greek word is oikodome (oy-kod-
om-ay) studylight.org shows the meaning as: (the act of) building, building up; metaph. edifying,
edification: the act of one who promotes anothers growth in Christian wisdom, piety, happiness, holiness;
a building (i.e. the thing built, edifice)

So based on this scripture, when we speak, we need to decide first, is it the truth or a lie? If it is truth, we
would then need to decide is it something that is rotten, not fit for use, worthless or something that will
help build up, promote growth in Christian wisdom? Paul says that Scripture can be used for that in Ti
3:16-17, Every scripture inspired of God is also profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction which is in righteousness. That the man of God may be complete, furnished completely unto
every good work.

1Th 2:3-4 For our exhortation [was] not by deception, nor from an impure [motive], nor in treachery [or,
deceit]. _But_ just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the Gospel, so we speak, not
as pleasing people, _but_ God, the One examining our hearts [fig., inner selves].

To get the real feel for this scripture, it would be best to read through Chapter 2, but Im just pulling these
two verses out for now. In reading this, I feel I have found the next question we would ask ourselves
before speaking, Is it from a impure or pure motive? Would it be pleasing to people or God? The true
test of whether it is pure in motive and pleasing to God would by the feeling that the Holy Spirit inside of
you give you. However, if you still find yourself unsure, test it against scripture.
One Bible verse I have heard repeated over and over in regards to this new truth is:

Mar 11:23-24 For positively, I say to you*, whoever says to this mountain, Be taken up and be cast into
the sea and does not doubt in his heart, _but_ believes [or, has faith] that what he says is going to
happen, it will be [granted] to him whatever he says. For this reason I say to you*, all [things], as many as
while praying you* shall be asking [for], be believing [or, be having faith] that you* are receiving, and it will
be [granted] to you*.

I believe what Jesus says here, but Im not sure I could apply it to what I am trying to prove as true. For
example, I have heard, if your marriage is suffering, start speaking life into your marriage. Speak as if it
were so. So if you have trouble communicating, you wouldnt speak about that, you would say, We are
good communicators and our marriage is growing. Name it and claim it. This could be something just
said, or something you would speak in a prayer. Another one is finances, if you are lacking in finances
you speak that you are wealthy. Im not sure I could apply this scripture to those circumstances. He
doesnt say to speak as thought the mountain were not there, he says tell it to move! So, shouldnt we say
or pray, Remove this lack of communication from my marriage, show me and my spouse how to be a
better communicators. Or, Lord, send me the job that you want me to have. Or, Increase my finances
so that I can bless others.

I also think it is important to keep in mind this scripture when using the scripture in Mark:

1Jn 5:14-15 And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that if we are asking anything
according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we
have the requests which we have requested from Him.

It is important that what you are speaking is in Gods will. The Bible tells me in several places that God
has great plans for me, so why wouldnt a good marriage and finances be in his will?

I just feel that this is taken to the max. And that some are very touchy about this negative positive
speech. What would be said to Jesus when he said in Mat 26:38, Then Jesus says to them, My soul is
deeply grieved to the point of death; stay here and keep watching with Me.? Should he have said, My
soul will rejoice in the plans my father has for me? Or what about when Jesus tells the diciples in Luk
17:10, In the same way _you*_ also, whenever you* do all the [things] having been instructed to you*,
say, We are worthless slaves, because we have [only] done what we are obligated to do. I realize the
context here, but my reason for pointing it out is that Jesus told them to say they were worthless slaves.
How much more negative comment could you make to yourself. If they worked diligently for Jesus,
consider how many times they would have remembered this statement. Shouldnt they have eventually
spoken themselves into being worthless slaves? Even though it was negative, it was a reminder of who
they really were, it was truth.

The other verse used to support this truth is Rom 4:17, (just as it has been written, I have appointed you
[as] a father of many nations) in the presence of God, whom he believed, the One giving life to the dead
[ones] and calling the [things] not existing as existing.

The thing I find interesting about the use of this scripture is that Abraham did not call this into existing.
God did. Abraham just believed what God said. How do we go from God calling things not existing as
existing into us doing it? I looked for another scripture, honestly, I thought there was one, but I couldnt
find it. So if you know what it is, let me know, Ill gladly add it here and take a look at it in context with
everything.

I cant really explain what new truth I have experienced over the last few years. Like I said, I wasnt sure I
would be able to come to one solid conclusion that would apply to all circumstances while exploring this
truth and placing it up against scripture.

I do believe that Scripture is powerful. Jesus used it to resist Satans temptations. That is why it is
important to meditate on scriptures. If we meditate on scriptures such as Php 4:13 I am capable of
[doing] all [things] through Christ, the [One] strengthening me. It can help to change our heart. It will help
us believe what God can do for us so that when we do face adversity, we can stand on what we know in
our heart is the power of God. So instead of saying, My marriage sucks! We can say, Even though my
marriage is not good right now and that we are lacking communication skills, I know that I can do all
things through Christ who strengthens me and that we can work together to have a better marriage and
better communication skills. Or, I am facing the fact that I may have cancer, but no matter what the
results, I know that God will strengthen me. Or we can pray Gods promises back to him, God, the
communication in our marriage is horrible but Your word tells me that you strengthen me and that you can
heal this marriage.

So as for ringing out the false and ringing in the new? Does what we speak make a difference in our life?
Based on the scriptures that I studied, I would have to conclude that our words do matter, but I think it is
our heart that matters most. I believe that if we are right with God and following his guiding through the
Spirit, we will speak and believe the right things. When we dont the Spirit will let us know. The Spirit
would never lead us to tell ourselves such things like we are no good, or incapable of being better, or that
we can never by loved by anyone. All those would go against so many scriptures.

I think that one of the main issues that remains is what is negative? It just like temperature, cold isnt the
same to everyone. Negative isnt the same to everyone. So maybe that will be another truth to seek.
Wonder what God in the Bible says is negative? With that in mind, I would also say that just because
something is negative doesnt mean that it can not be said, because Jesus said some negative things.

I also think that if you are on the receiving end of a truth, which can tend to feel negative, but that truth
aligns with scripture or is a truth that could strengthen your walk and relationship with God, it is what you
do with that truth in order to make a change in your heart that affects your life, not the actual words that
were spoken. If it doesnt line up with scripture, you can forget it, because it has no power because it isnt
in Gods will and if he doesnt back it, it is meaningless! Jer 26:13 (ESV) Now therefore mend your ways
and your deeds, and obey the voice of the LORD your God, and the LORD will relent of the disaster that
he has pronounced against you. If God would repent (relent/ease/reconsider) what HE has spoken, he
would most assuredly do the same with any words spoken by man.

Truth to ring in: Over all, what we say can affect our lives because the words that come from our mouths
really are a reflection of our heart. We do need to be careful of the words we speak because our words
prove us righteous or unrighteous. We should only speak the truth. You can train yourself to only speak
positive things, but if you are speaking something you dont believe, it is a lie, because it is not what is in
your heart.

I believe that we are to use scripture to admonish brothers and sisters in Christ, but that we must first
consider a few things: Is it the truth or a falsehood? Is it something that is rotten, not fit for use, worthless
or something that will help build up, promote growth in Christian wisdom or knowledge? Is it from an
impure or pure motive? Would it be pleasing to people or God? And is it our will or Gods will?

Ring out the old, Ring in the new

Ring out the false, Ring in the true
Ring out sorrow, pain and care
Ring in happiness everywhere.