EPHESIANS 4:32 – Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
THEME OF THE DAY. REMEMBER HOW WE ARE TREATED. People hurt people. Whether it be actions, attitudes, or words, people hurt people. It happens in all relationships. And it will happen as long as human beings are alive. Why? Sin. For unbelievers, they are in bondage to sin and thus, hurtful actions, attitudes, and words are inevitable. When it comes to the hurt of the tongue, remember unbelievers have no ability to restrain the tongue. Sin has made control of the tongue beyond the ability of unregenerate human beings. The Apostle James would remind us of this truth – No human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison (James 3:8). Bringing this closer to home, when unbelievers hurt us, don’t be surprised. They are acting out of their nature. We should expect this will occur at times in our lives. However, not so for believers.
One of the great benefits of salvation and our union in Christ is the power of Christ made available to bridle our tongues; season our speech with grace, and empower us to speak wholesome and edifying words – Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips! (Psalm 141:3); Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear (Ephesians 4:29); and Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person (Colossians 4:6). Yet, the power available does not mean power used. The Christian life is not “let go and let God.” We are responsible to exercise faith in God’s Word to help us control the tongue. And one of those exercises of faith is in today’s scripture. Within this verse, we find the starting point if we want to live a life of wholesome speech and treatment of others. Let’s explore this a little and see the application.
Whenever we are in a “heated situation” with emotions rising, the temptation to say something impulsive and hurtful is high. Very high. We each know this well. And just because we are Christians, doesn’t make us immune to this situation. It might be in a parenting situation, a marriage, on the job, or even in a relationship with another believer. So how do we prevent such damage? Today’s verse. What is Paul teaching us? The “bottom line lesson” is this – remember how God treats us and do likewise to others. When tempted to lash out with an unkind word, stop and remember how God treats us. When tempted to say something that is cutting, remember how God treats us. The more we remember how God treats us – with words of grace, with acts of love, with enduring patience, and always with forgiveness, we cannot help but respond to people with words of grace, acts of love, enduring patience, and always with forgiveness.
So, the next time we feel the temptation to say or do something that is unbecoming a Christian to another person, immediately stop and ponder how God treats us . . . always. Such thinking will stop our tongues and actions from doing something we will surely regret.
PRAYER: “Father, forgive me when I treat people in a hurtful manner all the while forgetting how I am treated by You.”
QUOTE: “Forget how God deals with us and it is inevitable that we will treat people in selfish and hurtful ways by word and deed.”