Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Ephesians 4:29-30

When we think of unwholesome talk we typically think of vulgar expressions, sexual innuendo, coarse talk, and so on. The word in the original language is sapros. Greek scholars say that the word relates to anything causing decay or rot. It can be used to denote the ravaging and disgusting effects of disease on a human body. Leprosy comes to mind. It can also speak of an adverse fate or future. All in all, it connects unwholesome words to expressions that cause decay, weakness, illness or that lead to a negative future.

Instead of unwholesome words, we are to speak words that build up and benefit. The idea of building up is to strengthen or to draw out the potential in someone. The word translated as benefit carries with it the flavor of a gift given out of love or a grace given to someone as God gives to us out of his grace.

An amplified translation of Ephesians 4:29-30 might read, “Let no words come out of your mouth that impart weakness or decay that leads to death. Do not speak words that diminish another or that rob him or her of a full future. Rather speak words over others that build them up, that develop their potential, and that impart strength. Speak out of love. Let your words be life-giving gifts, given out of grace rather than because someone has earned the words or merits your encouragement.”

If you think about it, Paul’s words line up well with Proverbs 18:21, “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” The implication of the Ephesians passage is that words spoken to injure or diminish someone do actually damage the recipient. That loveless action on our part grieves the Holy Spirit. Lovelessness on our part is always sin because it violates the very nature of God, who is love. We sin when we wound by our actions or our words.

We live in a world so saturated with words that we barely pay attention to what we say or even what others say. Yet, God pays attention. One of the most sobering passages in the New Testament comes from Matthew’s gospel. Jesus said, “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned” (Mt.12:36-37).

Words have power. The words of God created a universe out of nothing. We are made in his image. At some level, our words have power to create as well – for good or for evil. We need to measure our words and govern them. I know people who say whatever comes to mind and take pride in their frankness and openness. But in many ways they are like someone firing a gun randomly into a crowd and then denying responsibility for those injured because they “didn’t mean any harm.”

As the people of God, we are to always be sources of life and blessing. The Holy Spirit should flow out of us like living waters into the world around us. We are to be constant sources of blessing – speaking wholesome worlds that build up, encourage, heal, and that draw out the potential for goodness and greatness in people. If our style is to criticize, find fault, or belittle others, we need to repent. God has placed the potential for good in every human being. Our words need to draw that out, reinforce the potential, and create in the other person an identity of goodness and greatness. Our words should always bless and never curse.

The world needs a good word. There is something in nearly every person that responds to encouragement, someone believing in us, and a call to greatness. Our words can either kindle that response or quench it. Choose to be a source of life to everyone you encounter today. See what a difference it makes for them and even for your own heart. Blessings in Him.

In the Book of Revelation, Jesus released seven letters to seven churches in the province of Asia. This revelation was given to John late in life, probably around 96 A.D. By then many churches established by the apostles and other evangelists were several decades old. The first generation of believers was giving way to a second generation. The passion and commitment of the first generation was giving way to a generation that had not seen Jesus in the flesh. Out of the seven churches, two were totally affirmed because of their faithfulness in the midst of persecution while five others were admonished in some way.

Although, these letters were written to churches, the affirmations and admonitions could be given to individuals as well. It is always a good thing to “run a quick diagnostic” on ourselves to see how we are doing in the eyes of the Lord. So, in the next few blogs lets use these letters as a quick-check for our spiritual lives.

Two churches, Smyrna and Philadelphia, were in the midst of persecution. Jesus praised both of them for having patiently endured and for having kept his word. He promised victory to both of them if they would continue to endure a little longer. The flavor of the letters suggests that these were small communities of believers that did not have much wealth or influence, yet they had endured and stayed true to the faith.

Endurance is a spiritual quality that is frequently spoken of in scripture. In America, we have not experienced much direct persecution from government or other religions on the basis of our faith (although we may be on the brink of considerable persecution), but we all have experienced persecution that comes from Satan.

Many believers don’t recognize the persecution of the enemy that works through individuals in our lives (family and co-workers). Satan prompts these individuals to accuse, attack, reject, gossip, and slander us. That persecution is real and affects us spiritually. Think about how it wears you down and wounds you. Think about how it has caused you to doubt God’s promises when you have cried out to him about these relational injustices. Think about how it has caused you to doubt yourself. The persecution is real.

Endurance and a continuing faith in the promises of God is what Jesus is looking for. James declares, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (Ja.1:2-4).

As believers, there will be times when we have to endure injustice, discrimination, and persecution with no quick fix. Endurance perfects our spirits. If our trials were resolved quickly, there would be no need for endurance and patience. I talk to many believers whose faith is fragile because they have been in a relational battle for months or years. They feel as if God is not hearing their prayers because the battle has not gone away. Yet the greatest heroes of the faith had to endure – exile, prison, deserts, persecution, slander, etc.

The message of Revelation is, “Hold on a little longer. Do not waiver. Your victory is in the pipeline.” These victories typically come just when we are on the brink of totally giving up because we have exhausted all of our strategies. It is then that we truly surrender the problem to God and it is then that victory often comes. Sometimes the victory is not a change in our tormentor but is a change in our own hearts that allows us to view the tormentor with different eyes and face the assaults with a different heart.

How are we doing on endurance? Have we allowed the enemy to wear us down and undermine our certainty in the promises of God? Go back a reaffirm the promises of God in your heart. Determine to simply be obedient to God, regardless of what others may do. Wait on the Lord and be known in heaven as one who would not give in.   Wait on the Lord and be known in heaven as one who won the applause of Jesus. Blessings and endurance in every hardship today.

More from Revelation on Wednesday.

Over the years, I have discovered that anyone who begins to press into the power of God will garner his or her share of criticism and suspicion. Most believers like a tame God and a Holy Spirit who always colors inside the lines. We want God to act in predictable ways so that we can order our lives based on past performance and so that God makes no unexpected demands on our faith or obedience.

When you begin to press into the power of God, things can get unpredictable. That makes you unpredictable and a source of discomfort to all those who don’t want God “acting up.” Miracles put a demand on our faith. First of all, the demand is expressed in terms of whether we believe that God is a God of present-day miracles or not. The second demand that miracles make is expressed in terms of whether we have faith to join God in those miracles or not.

Living with an expectation of miracles or, at least a hope for miracles, is both exciting and challenging. It is exciting when we see God move. It brings the Bible to life and our faith is confirmed experientially. If we have seen God move in response to our prayers or declarations, we feel affirmed and are excited by that partnership. The challenge comes when we don’t see God move as we expected. Then the questions flood in. Why was our friend not healed? Why did we see no deliverance when we were certain a demonic presence was infecting the person to whom we ministered? Why is the man we’ve been praying for still unemployed? Why is our son or daughter still addicted when we have done all the right things? When we don’t see the manifestation of God, we can struggle with our own faith, our own sense of “being okay” with God, and our own understanding of how God works.

Believe me, life was easier when I was a cessationist. When I believed that God no longer moved in miracles and that he essentially did whatever he wanted to do regardless of my input, life was easier. Live a decent life, go to church, pray for the children in war-torn Africa, give a little to missions, serve a little, then die and trust Jesus to take you to heaven. I felt little responsibility for God’s purposes on the earth and I never had to struggle with the theological questions surrounding the miracles of God. When I believed that God only spoke through the Bible, I never had to struggle with discerning his voice from my own or the enemy’s voice.

When you start pressing in to the power of God and asking others to do so with you, you get push back. Suddenly God is not so predictable. Suddenly, men and women have to wrestle with questions of faith and their view of God that were never unearthed before. Suddenly, they become responsible for most of what God wants to do on the earth. Suddenly, you are asking them to step into unfamiliar territory. They push back…at least emotionally. Often that push back will come in the form of criticism, suspicion, and even accusation. The enemy will fuel that criticism, trying to discourage your walk into greater realms of the Kingdom.

You will most likely be told you are being deceived; that you are spiritually arrogant; that you are rejecting sound teaching; or that you are causing division in your congregation. Friends may distance themselves from you and leadership may offer you fewer opportunities to serve. All of that may create self-doubt for you personally and cause you to question the direction you are moving. If it helps, remember that Jesus was accused of the same things – even being in league with Beelzebub.

Without exploring everything attached to this, I want you to consider what to do with the criticism. I like what Stephen Mansfield has to say about this and I hope it will be hopeful to you. Let me quote from Stephen’s blog.

One of the maxims that has helped me is from the great missionary/statesman E. Stanley Jones. He said, “My critics are the unpaid guardians of my soul.” Now, these weren’t easy words for me to hear. Jones wanted me to look fully into what my critics and my enemies said about me to see if there was any truth. Then, he wanted me to get busy changing what needed to be changed—based on the hurtful words of people who wanted to hurt me.

 When I heard Jones’ words, I decided to try. I wanted so badly to be an exceptional man. I began listening to what people said to me. Sometimes, they were angry. Sometimes, I heard that veiled criticism we pick up in the humor of friends. There were also the side comments from people I hardly knew. Once in a while there was kind, direct, hard-hitting correction from someone who wanted to help me.

I got in the habit of writing down the core of each bit of criticism I received, and then I would write what today they would call an action statement from it. I don’t want to give you the wrong impression. It wasn’t as though I was constantly criticized. I also hadn’t descended into some type of self-abuse that had me addicted to the pain of harsh words. Instead, I had simply come to accept three possibilities for any harsh words said about me. First, they weren’t true and needed to be discarded. Second, they weren’t true but needed to be addressed. Third, they had some truth in them that could help me be a better man. The benefits of thinking like this changed my life.

Hearing criticism is hard but sometimes God speaks to us even though our enemies. If we are to move in the greater things of the kingdom we must guard our hearts and humble ourselves before the Lord. Consider Stephen’s approach and the wise sayings of Proverbs. “Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you. Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning” (Pr.9:8-9).   If you chafe at criticism, you might also consider Proverbs 3:11-12, 10:17, 12:1, 13:8, 15:12, 15:32; 27:6).

Don’t worry, if you are doing anything noteworthy in the Kingdom of God, criticism will come your way. View it as a tool God will use to deepen your character and guard your heart. Discard what is unjust and receive what the Holy Spirit confirms. Like a ship sailing across vast waters being pushed by winds and currents, our path will need constant correction. Welcome it, even if you don’t enjoy it. It will bear great fruit in your life. Be blessed today.