PROVERBS 17:27-28 – “Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.”
THEME OF THE DAY: SOMETIMES SILENCE REALLY IS GOLDEN. For some people, it is rather easy. For others, not so much. And even for others it is a huge challenge. The “it” is what King Solomon is instructing us toward in today’s scripture – restraint in our speech, control of our emotions that often leads to unrestraint in our speech, and the ability to be silent when silence is best.
All of us know of the proverb “silence is golden” meaning it is often better to remain silent than to speak, emphasizing that silence can be more valuable than words in specific situations. It implies that silence avoids unnecessary conflict, prevents misunderstandings, or displays wisdom when words might be inappropriate or hurtful. Now we should qualify the saying by stating there is a time and place for talking, for giving advice, for correction, and in those times, silence is not golden. However, it has been said, “God gave us two ears and one tongue to remind us to be quicker in our listening than our speaking.”
In today’s scripture, King Solomon identifies four great character traits in the person who does know when silence is golden and practices such restraint. He writes that this person has knowledge, understanding, wisdom, and is deemed intelligent. We may look at the opposite as well.
The person who has no control over speech develops a reputation of lacking knowledge (that is where assumptions come from and assumptions are never good); lacks understanding with the evidence being an easily angered, frustrated, and irritable spirit; develops a reputation of being a fool because of the amount of words spoken, the domineering manner of hijacking conversations, and rudely interrupting others which indicates a lack of sensitivity and wisdom; and is deemed not very smart (lacking intelligent). Those are certainly characteristics and a reputation Christians want to avoid at all costs. It does great damage to our testimony for Christ that reveals a selfish, not a selfless person.
Our tongues are an accurate barometer of our spiritual condition. God’s Word has so much to say about the quality of our speech, the quantity of our speech, the appropriateness of our speech, and the accountability the Lord places upon our speech . . .
“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matthew 12:33-37).
J.C. Ryle once said, “Our words are the evidence of the state of our hearts as surely as the taste of the water is evidence of the state of the spring.” Coupled with the words of our Master, worthy to ponder.
PRAYER: Father, I need help in controlling the quality and quantity of my speech. Thank You for promised help.
REFLECTION: Dominate a conversation, always feel a need to talk, and we damage our testimony for Christ.