This broadcaster has 536 podcast archives available on-demand.
Keep up-to-date with this broadcaster on social media and their website.
November 4, 2021 8:00 am
Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ that said something you still remember she along that line.
You know it only takes 10 seconds to crush someone spirit or stab with the end 10 years later it's right there. 10 years later the aftermath of it is still there.
That's the power of the tongue. That's how corruptible to be and that's how powerful it can be in the things that we end up saying joining us today on this additional Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana Pastor Bill Gebhardt now again he shows us how God's word meets our work.
God judges are words words reveal a majority are tongue wants to control us any sin are also are tongue corrupts us.
He says in verse five he said, so also the tongue is small a small part of the body. And yet it boasts great things that that's kind of amazing. Always think it is someone bragging all the time is that little tongue is what's doing it. It's just bragging away and bragging a way. Of course it's revealing a heart. Then he says he says see how great a forest fire.
Set aflame by a small fire. Let's see how is it you do, behold, very strong, emphatic word he said to get that's what the tongues like in amazing. This time of year California West Coast anywhere and weren't really dry somebody with one cigarette butt one little and all of a sudden I'll tell you 250,000 acres are ablaze is just a little tiny thing that's for your tongue.
That's what word can that's what you can do to people. She can settle whole life. A place I mean if you're a parent and use your tongue a way to the detriment of your children. I can tell you they pay for that. The rest of their lives because of the way you spoke to for what you said they never forgot she might seem like a little thing to you but it's a big thing to them. It sets everything ablaze its corrupt. He then says this and the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity because Moss he said the way we speak is the revelation of the cost Moss the diabolic us the whole idea of the way the world works.
We end up speaking just the way the world is and then he says this.
The tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body and then and sets on fire the course of our life and is set on fire by hell not only corrupts us but the enemy uses are tongue at idea of hell. That's Gehenna. We translated help in the New Testament James who is the Lord's brother and Jesus are the only two that use the word Gehenna was the Valley of Hingham outside of Jerusalem, and there was a time when they were worshiping Molech Canaanite God and Molech required baby sacrifices and so Israel or Judah specifically even got involved in baby sacrifices and that's where they made the sacrifice and so what happened when Josiah was a righteous man became king, he turned that into the dump, he turned that place into the dumper. The babies were sacrificed and that became the city dump and they can always burn their garbage and so was always burning. Always thinking that's Gehenna. That's the source of the bases of hell. James understands the bigger ramifications of hell because here he's using it in a metaphor in the sense because he says that and is set on fire by hell he means the enemy himself. He uses your tongue in my tongue.
One of the worst things we can fall temptation to and it's so easy to because we've done it for so often this idea just to spark the way we use our tongue. I find this illustration I thought it was really good and the misuse of our tongue in a particular way. The main road is named Morgan Blake he got was a sportswriter for the Alanna Journal and he he wrote this little satire about the way we speak. He said I am more deadly than the screaming shell from a howitzer I went without killing I turned on homes.
I break hearts I wrecked lives.
I traveled on the wings of the wind.
No innocence is strong enough to intimidate me know purity pure enough to.me. I have no regard for truth, no respect for justice, no mercy for the defenseless. My victims are as numerous as the sands of the sea, and often is innocent. I never forget, and I seldom forgive my name is gossip.
While talking about other folks amazing thing you know when it interesting for us that no matter how often you try to think about this when it comes to gossip and I know Christian sanctify gossip and we because they were just sharing prayer request with each other, which in itself is a lie. By the way, which is another way not to talk, but the whole idea of it as we think of gossip is almost like we think of the Wi-Fi is just part of our call. You just talk about people, but in every listing. The New Testament, when God wants to make a list of the things he hates the sins he really really hates gossips and everyone in every single one of them and some of the things that you are sure right at the top. They're not there. You see, we had to be so careful.
It's one of those deals. It is a corrupting thing. The tongue can really and truly corrupt us tongue with me to Proverbs before going to Proverbs chapter 12 verse six. Someone writes this he says the words of the wicked lie in wait for blood. When a metaphor he says, but the mouth of the upright will deliver them. Verse 18, there is one who speaks rashly like the thrust of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings about healing not turn the page of meeting the chapter 15 of Proverbs in verse four in verse four he says as soothing tongue is a tree of life, but perversion you said, but perversion and it crushes the spirit you think of that like a sword like someone stabbing you know when I was young and growing up this the time I grew up and where I grew up and you know we were outside guys because there is no reason to be inside nothing electronic and therefore it and so we were just outside always know one of the things that happen when start growing up and playing ball with your friends.
Not all the time all the things you do as boys is that from time to time that be disagreements and so we get into it and on the just lot of fighting. Lotta rolling arrived in Nuno Hadlock's all those kind of things and while fighting the irony of that as I look back on it is. I knew that that occurred a lot.
I don't remember any of particularly in any sense. I just know we did, but when I was in first and second are just first or second grade.
I remember I a a guy who I didn't know very well lived in another part of the town, but I remember something he said to me as a little first and second grade and how much it hurt me and how much I didn't like and I remembered today that you think about it for moment, has someone ever sending to you in your past sets on the you and you still remember, you see along the last you know it only takes 10 seconds to crush someone spirit or stabbing with the sword of tongue and 10 years later it's right there. 10 years later the aftermath of it is still there. That's the power of the tongue. That's how that's how corruptible could be. And that's how powerful it can be in the things that we end up saying now back to James. God judges are words words reveal our maturity are tongue. Once the control was and certainly corrupt us and then James says look.
Let me tell you how big it is. He said our tongue is virtually untamable. He says for every species of beasts and birds of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race.
No man can tame the tongue is a restless evil and full of deadly poison in that amazing. He's already talking about how we can tame animals and you know I've seen things like I've seen elephants play soccer and owners. Donkey basketball you have something like that. There are dogs and can bark jingle bells you here at Christmas time. There are chimps to communicate with sign languages and birds that can talk. There are dolphins they can shoot baskets better than I can.
I mean it's astounding when you think what we can do with animals. That's James's point is that you don't do much with your tongue. The implication is simply we need help with our tongue. UCR default mechanism.
The tongue is connected to our heart. Jeremiah says the heart of a man is desperately wicked. It's deceitful above all things.
So when you have a desperately wicked heart. This deceitful above all things.
Your default is to go from your heart to your tongue is a user tongue in a corrupt and evil way to hurdle off a lot of people turn off a lot of people that would never hit somebody physically but already mugged them so many times, verbally, is the way we use our tongue and James said look it's untamable. We have to be so careful when it comes to our tongue one more thing he says about. He says that our our words are often hypocritical. We compromise with our tongue, he said with it we bless our Lord and father, and with it we curse men were made in the likeness of God, and that amazing capacity that you and I have a good stand up in here and with all your heart, mean it and saying know how you love Jesus and then somebody cut you off down the corner as you're leaving here what you do see what happens from your heart dear tongue, it's astounding how fast we can do that. You see, the implication is that that's amazing just how fast we can do that he says them with it we bless our Lord father and with it we curse men, mesas, and from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. Here's his appeal, my brother, these things are not the can be clear that ought not only place in the New Testament who created all the time and choose the New Testament really strong negative strong as he can say it should never be for us. You see, that should not be who you are. That should not be who I am. There's no place in the Christian life for duplicitous speech, or talk James illustrates know he talks about this from nature. He says, is a fountain send out from its opening fresh and bitter water. Says he can a fig tree, my brother and produce all of or a vine produce figs consultant want to become fresh. What's the answer no, it can't, which is implication how can you born again Christian child of God, a new creature in Christ follower of Jesus, how can you talk you see his point is we should talk differently. Surely she should that be the case.
Should the food that we produce out of our lives be a basis reveal who we are. I just wonder so often we don't really come to grips with this somehow in this area of our lives. We are very loose. Not very dedicated.
There are so many things we do. You see, in weeks ahead were not to be completers were not the complaint were not to be groundless when not to be arrogant and prideful were not to use hyperbole were not to be sarcastic or not to be critical were not judge people always kind of knew any of this see, but we do somehow we give herself a pass on this kind of thing justification on the way we talk. And James says you can do that he says your tongue is revealing your heart the way you speak reveals the way you really are one last passage I want to look at is Proverbs again. Chapter 18 Proverbs 18 verse 21 death and life are in the power of the tongue. That's amazing. You need J the great philosopher said, give me a piece of paper and an instrument the right I can change the world with words.
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
Dr. Charles Riley in his footnote on this says a man's tongue can yield satisfaction, life or death. Those who are prone to use the tongue must take the consequences of their words of power we have of the tongue. What we can do. The power of life. The power of death. James is are six reasons six reasons why we have to control our speech, our tongue, our words he said look, God's going to judge what we say our words reveal our maturity are tongue. Once the controllers it will corrupt us are tongue is untamable on our own and with it were hypocritical compromising. We need to get control of our tongue.
I went and this mornings it's exactly the way I started with that article from Susan Hawkins and I love what you writes here.
She says I remember a few months ago on the 2020 show that there was a story about a little girl from Afghanistan that was in a bombing. She was dreadfully burned. Literally, it looked like her neck and skin had just melted on her head. The plastic surgeon from California very wealthy man and his wife decided to adopt or not legally but to be her guardians rather rather and bring her to California for treatment. She was to have extensive surgeries that could help her have some semblance of a normal life and restored to some degree of normalcy.
It was a beautiful story of this couple and how they felt so in love with this little girl. She was so burned and marred and scarred, but she always had this little twinkle in her eye and I remember that they showed her after one of her most extensive surgeries.
Her whole face and neck was bandaged. Obviously, her face was swollen. Her tongue was swollen and as they were taken off the bandages. They were waiting for her to say something so they asked her. The nurses asked her, could you please say anything to us and she looked at them without little sparkle in her little black eyes and she said who let the dogs out. You see she was watching TV the whole time she was watching TV and she looked up and she said who let the dogs out. She writes they all collapsed in laughter and and distress, but her little spirit was strong. The point was this. Those words said that her spirit was alive and well.
See that's what made that so special. Her words revealed her spirit was alive.
Isn't that what your words of my words are supposed to do is in our words supposed to reveal the spirit of God is alive and well in us. That's what people see. Never underestimate the power of your words. The spring father. I believe this is the type of message from your word that every single one of us can feel some sense of conviction.
Father, we are so careless with the way in which we speak.
There are so many different things that you have said are not good for your children to speak and yet our lives are laced with those things. Father I pray that we get some sense of conviction about the words come out of our mouth. I pretty father.
We understand that through the control of your spirit.
We have to get control of our speech, because see you use our speech, our speech has a tremendous capacity for life. We can encourage people and and and we can help heal relationships. We can teach people your truth. We can demonstrate our love for people.
Through our words the father. We also have such a destructive possibility when it comes to the way in which we talk. I pray father that we understand that and we are convicted of the very language in which we speak that we speak. Often a language it's not of you, but it's a language of our heart. A language of our flesh, the language of the culture and it doesn't come out for your glory.
It doesn't come up for others again and it certainly doesn't come out for our good.
It is what it is what you call sin. Father I pray that we have the courage to confess and in our own lives that we acknowledge and thank you for the forgiveness we have in Christ, and we dedicate ourselves to be people who speak the reality that they feel that they have in their heart that their words of their lips reveal the spirit of God within each and every one of us.
This is so important to you has to become a pray this in Christ bathroom never the radio ministry of fellowship in the world.
If you ever miss one of our broadcast or maybe you just like listen to the message one more time. Remember the little great website called one place.com that's one place.com and you can listen the fellowship and the word online that website you will find on with today's broadcast but also many of her previous audio programs is no Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make his broadcast possible with all of our listeners to prayerfully consider how you might help his radio ministry continuous broadcast on this radio station by supporting a monthly with just the 100th support for ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word.
4600 Clearview Pkwy., Metairie, LA 7006 if you would be interested in hearing today's message in its original format that is is a sermon, the pastor will deliver during a Sunday morning service of fellowship monitored visit our website SBC Nola.org that SBC and LA..org website you will find hundreds of pastor Bill sermon you can browse through a sermon archives defined sensors are looking you can search by title. Once you find the method you're looking for. You can listen online or if you prefer, you can download the sermon on listening room. And remember, you can do all this absolutely free of charge.
Once again our website is SBC Nola.org for pastor Bill Gebhardt and Jason Gebhardt. Thank you for listening to fellowship in order