“The good person out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.“
Luke 6:45
“from abundance of the heart the mouth speaks”
It can be easy to write off harsh words I say to a loved one. I can easily jump to, “I didn’t mean to hurt them“, or “I was only venting“, but this verse really made me think. If our words flow from the emotions in our hearts, how can I honestly justify a harsh word? At some level, deep down, even if it’s for a brief moment, I felt it. I revealed the sin in my heart using my words.
The command is clear:
“Keep your tongue from evil
And your lips from speaking deceit.Turn from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it.“
Psalm 34:13
And the promise sure:
“The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous,
Psalm 34:15-18
And His ears are toward their cry for help.
The face of the Lord is against evildoers,
To eliminate the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears
And rescues them from all their troubles.
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
And saves those who are crushed in spirit.“
In fact, if we read to the end of the Psalm, we get a fully picture of the problem and the solution. I may be having a bad day, but God has endured worse for me. I may be feeling justified in harsh words spoken, but those who hung Jesus on a cross also felt justified in their sentiments too.
Was my goal in speaking to seek peace and to pursue it? Was it to turn from evil and do good?
What are your words revealing about your heart?
“The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous And His ears are open to their cry.”
Psalm 34:15
May we allow the weight of our evil tongues to crush us?
“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
Psalm 34:18
And saves those who are crushed in spirit.“
The Lord redeems the soul of His servants, And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned. We must be as the psalmist and take our woes and grievances to the Lord.
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