Sermon Tone Analysis

Video

Intro Video

We should never underestimate the power of words!

Introduction

Introduction

We should never underestimate the power of words!

“Words are singularly the most powerful force available to humanity.

We can choose to use this force constructively with words of encouragement, or destructively using words of despair.

Words have energy and power with the ability to help, to heal, to hinder, to hurt, to harm, to humiliate and humble.”

(a secular Doctor)

Hitler’s Political Manifesto (Mein Kampf) “My Struggle”

“A formidable power dwells within each of us.

The power to change the course of nations.

It’s capable of starting and ending wars.

And it has made men rich and women famous.

It has the means to commend or corrupt—to bless or to blame.

It is the power of the tongue.”

Tony Evans

Tony Evans

Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address (November 19, 1863) “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”

100 years later on August 28, 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I have a dream” speech which capsulated the Civil Rights movement

Solomon was right when he said:

Consider what James says about the tongue:

This is what we said at the beginning of this series:

Proverbs are highly compressed, carefully chosen words of wisdom that have been skillfully crafted to stick in our minds so that our behavior changes.

Today we’re going to learn how the Wisdom of Proverbs should affect our Words …

1. Words are an Awesome Gift from God That Can Give Life

The images in Proverbs for human speech teach us about this divine gift that we not only sometimes take for granted but also waste and abuse.

Wise words are compared to gold and silver:

Words are also like refreshing water:

Right words are like nourishing, health giving food:

The phrase “tree of life” means “source of life”

prov 16.24

Words have POWER!

Our words can “pierce” or they can bring “healing”

Consider the power of God’s Words:

gen 1.24

Consider how Jesus used His words productively, especially the authority of His words over sickness and disease:

mark 1.41

In Jesus heals a deaf man who had a speech impediment:

Mark 7.

The Christian who recognizes how awesome the gift of speech is will not abuse it but rather dedicate their words to the Glory of God!

“encourage one another” = Build one another up

“Exhort” - to console, encourage, comfort, admonish, beg, instruct.

2. Words Can Be Used for Good, Which Produces Life

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2. Words Can Be Used For Evil, Which Produces Death

We can hurt others by gossiping

Proverbs teaches us that the gossip “eats” and enjoys his secrets like you and I eat and enjoy food:

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We can hurt others with our reckless words:

The imagery here is someone with swords who’s not even paying attention, just swinging the swords around, regardless of who’s around.

We can hurt others with talking too much:

James teaches people who discipline their tongues can control their whole bodies ().

Ecclesiastes (3:7) states that there is “a time to keep silence, and a time to speak”.

Illustration: Mom teaching her child about the power of her words with a tube of toothpaste

3.

Only God Can Help Us To Change Our Tune

All words come from the heart.

So it turns out, when mom washed your mouth out with soap, it didn’t fix the deeper problem.

Only God can help you with that!

The words you speak will all depend on what’s filling your heart.

Critical heart = critical tongue

Self righteous heart = judgmental tongue

Ungrateful heart = grumbling tongue

A loving heart produces a gracious tongue.

A faithful heart produces a truthful tongue.

A peaceful heart produces a reconciling tongue.

A trusting heart produces an encouraging tongue.

Fill your heart by soaking in the Word

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Closing Blessing

From today forward, may your mouth be “a fountain of life” ().

May you be “slow to speak” and “slow to anger” ().

May you encourage more than you critique.

Seek opportunities to speak kind and tenderhearted words, forgiving one another ().

May you speak words of affection to those you love and words of affirmation to strangers.

Seek to only speak words that are “good for building up”, that “give grace to those who hear” ().

And lastly, may you be a person whose mouth is full of life.