March 12

Mar 12 - Today from Proverbs 12 we look at verse 18
"Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

Did you ever think about the incredible ability God has given man to communicate? God created man in His image and then gave man a great responsibility on this earth. Man was to subdue the earth and rule over the rest of creation (Genesis 1:28). Man needed a more precise way to communicate than mere behavior, and God in His wisdom gave man the gift of intelligent speech. Once sin entered into the world, speech became perverted and the tongue became a powerful agent for sin. The book of James is considered by many to be the 'Proverbs of the New Testament'. In it James writes, "The tongue is also a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell." (3:6). Wow! Strong words.
A sword is not a surgical instrument. It is an instrument of violence and wounding. When one stops and considers the consequences of being wounded by a sword thrust, today’s verse becomes a very sober picture. Even if it's not a mortal wound, a sword thrust leaves an open wound, which endangers the victim. The victim can suffer blood loss, which can leave one weakened for a long period. An open wound is an invitation to infections, which can cause misery and torment to the victim long after the wound was made. The wound can put the victim out of productive commission for a long period of time. The wound can cripple the victim for life. When we picture the reality of a sword wound, we shudder. God wants us to picture the same possibilities in the potential of a reckless tongue. Your tongue!
We can slash a person with a good tongue-lashing in the wink of an eye and walk away feeling clever - even justified. What we can't see is what God sees - a bleeding victim with an open wound that can complicate the life of that victim for a long time. We may feel justified in having lashed out, but in God's economy there is no justification. Love was not practiced. Instead of putting out a small flare-up with a word of grace, one sets the course of life on fire with the tongue.
The tongue of the wise brings healing. God's Word works. Regardless of insensitive or unjust thrusts made toward us, our responsibility is to be gracious.
I remember years ago when I was still an early disciple of Jesus, I was working in a retail business. While waiting on a customer, another customer interrupted and asked me to help him find an item. I pointed him in the proper direction and said I would join him as soon as I finished with the customer I was waiting on. I didn't know it at the time, but evidently someone had given this man a recent 'sword-thrust'. When I eventually got over to him he gave me a rather severe tongue-lashing. He said he had never been treated so brashly and that he would be talking to my boss to have me fired. I had the sense to quickly offer a silent prayer and ask for grace. Before I met Jesus, I had a very clever tongue and I could deliver a very stinging come-back. God gave me grace and I apologized and told him how sorry I was to treat him that way (what way, I still don't know). That kind of caught him off guard. He glowered and stormed out of the store. I said a silent prayer for him as the door closed behind him.
The next day he came in looking for me. Not knowing what to expect, I came up front and was surprised to be facing a very different personality. He apologized for his behavior the day before. He informed me that he had a bad experience before coming into our store and he was probably mad at the world right then. He said he was sorry that he gave me such a bad experience. He said that I was a better man than he was and that my reaction had shamed him. He said it was on his mind all day. I thanked him for making the effort to come back and share these things. I told him that as he was chewing me out, I asked the Lord to give me grace - and that's the only reason I behaved as I did. He parted as a friend that day. As you can well imagine, that incident is burned in my memory.
Not every encounter ends that way. But we need to at least do our part before God to be humble and offer words of wisdom and healing rather than wounding thrusts. God won't hold us responsible for the reaction of the other.