Scripture
They refused to obey the Spirit of God. So Moses spoke without thinking.
~Psalm 106:33, NIrV
Quote
Not only are we accountable for what we say; we are accountable for how we say it.
~Ya’akov
If you think I have someone in mind, someone who is guilty of speaking before they think–you are right, I do and the person I have in mind is me. What Moses did once, I seem to do over and over. When Jeff was talking about PRIDE Sunday morning, I was sitting there giving a hardy amen to every thing he said because I knew there was truth in his words. I’m sure you have noticed the core or center of the words pride and sin is the unbent stiff necked I [ego, self]. Pride lurks in the shadows of our flesh, it is never far away. It can quickly raise its ugly head and influence our speech. In the flick of an eye, we say something thoughtless or unkind. There is a thin line between sharing a concern and gossip, between confession and boasting, between pleasing God and pleasing ourselves.
It is interesting to note the verse prior to today’s text: By the waters of Meribah the LORD’s people made him angry. Moses got in trouble because of them. Moses was prompted, antagonized by the unbelieving and rebellious Israelites but that was no excuse, not with God. He help Moses accountable for this slip of the tongue; this outburst of anger. As a result, Moses is forbidden to enter the Promise Land. Do you think Moses felt stupid? Do you think he regretted speaking without thinking? Do you think he grieves over his misspoken words? Do you think he kicked himself daily for his lack of wisdom? He was human like you and I and yes, I feel confident that he deeply regretted his ill-chosen words. To make matters worse, we are not only accountable for our words but how we speak them. What Moses said was true but he said it in anger… “Listen, you rebels! Must we bring you water from this rock?” The Israelites were indeed rebels but so was Moses, he was disobeying God at that very moment. It was the LORD who was providing the water and He should have received the glory. Pay close attention to what Moses said, “Must we bring water from this Rock.” The LORD was not pleased with Moses: [1] He spoke in anger, [2] He spoke with pride and [3] He did not give God the glory.
Preaching and teaching is fun so long as we are obeying the Holy Spirit but once the flesh takes over we are in trouble and we will reap a harvest of regret.
THINK {Jack} before you speak:
-
T…Is it True
-
H…Is it Helpful
-
I….Is it Inspiring
-
N…Is it Necessary
-
K…Is it Kind?
March did not come in like a Lion, not in the wee hours. June and I got in from Athens about 10:00 pm and it was 68*. It is almost 1:00 am and all is quiet on Ironman Road. We may have some rough weather later today but March came in like a lamb this morning.
Another good night in Athens. I have enjoyed the bible study. LORD willing we finish up tonight. It is hard to believe that it is March. I pray that you have a good day.