PROVERBS - WORDS, PART 1

July 28, 2019
One of the joys of parenthood, in my opinion, is reading good books to your kids.  I love to wind down a day with a good read-aloud and the kids spread out on the floor at my feet.  
As you read through the Proverbs, we find all kinds of topics addressed.  But one constant throughout the book is the massive amount of attention given to our WORDS.  By my rough count, 184 out of 600ish proverbs deal with words.  Over 30% of the book is devoted to how we talk….  
Philip Brooks—We know metal/coins by their tinkling and men by their talking. Jesus said it is by our words that we are condemned and by our words we are justified; CLEARLY, how we talk matters. Do I have your attention yet?  This is a heavy subject isn’t it?  We would be crushed under the weight of it, if we didn’t have the hope of the Gospel that brings forgiveness/healing.So we’re gonna next take 2 Sundays to see what Proverbs says about the power of our words.  (Today) Words that hurt.  (Next week) Words that help.I’ve grouped these words that hurt into 6 little sub-categories…
Argumentative—Ever been around someone who just LOVES to argue?  Every sentence begins with, “Well actually that’s not exactly right…” OR you find them in the heat of every debate that’s raging on social media?  Argumentative people love to stir up strife and drive home their point until they win!  
It calls lying lips an abomination to God!  What’s that mean? An abomination is anything that God hates because it is offensive to Him and His character.  In the NT, Satan the father of lies; in Revelation 21 specifically says that the portion of all liars will be the lake that burns with sulfur and fire!  Why does God hate lying so badly?Because God is a God of Truth/Righteousness; and His Word is Truth.  And nothing else we do causes us to more closely resemble the Devil than lies/deceit.  If it is the Truth that sets a man free from bondage to sin, then it it is lies/deceit that make him a slave.Also should mention that deceitful speech is much more than just lying!  Deception can be embellishing/exaggerating the truth—telling half-truths—leaving out certain details to shade/slant things a bit—any kind of speech to cover, conceal, or redirect people away from the Truth (think Gen. 3—Serpent
Words have a boomerang effect sometimes, don’t they?  I grew up hearing this little jingle—“be careful of the words you say, make them soft and sweet, for you never know from day to day, which words you’ll have to eat.”  The Bible says that our lips are snares to our own souls.  Look closely—it doesn’t say our lips ensnare our bodies!  That’s an entirely diff. Hebrew word; it says our SOULS are ensnared by how we talk.  How is that possible?
Wiersbe —The key issue in our speech is the condition of our heart.  If there is war/strife/sin in our hearts, our words will be destructive missiles instead of healing medicines.So when your tongue tells the story of what’s going on in your heart, what does it say?
**Heard about a lady who went to her pastor, felt guilty about spreading a malicious rumor around town and feels badly about it.  She goes to him and asks for help.  He says I want you to get a big bag of chicken feathers and go around place them on every doorstep in the community.  So she did.  And she returned and said, I did it.  And he said, I want you to go back down the same pathways and gather up all the feathers and put them back in the bag.  Oh, says the lady, the wind has been blowing since I put them out—they’re everywhere!  That’s right, says the pastor, and so are your words…  You can be forgiven but you can’t get them back. 
    Pray