“Endeavouring (working hard) to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Ephesians 4:3

Can we be honest for a moment?

Have you ever wanted God to just rip your tongue out?

CAN YOU RELATE to this? …… As Christ’s followers and therefore members of His one body, we all have sinned and have and perhaps still say things we shouldn’t which wound others.

“The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.” Proverbs 18:8

Words can seriously wound.

Word are containers of something or the other and when those capsules are filled with hatred, they wound the object they are directed towards.

Sticks and stones will break my bones but words could never hurt me? Wrong!

Evil words spoken against us create “wounds” in us. They “go down into the innermost parts of the belly.” In other words they are deeply embedded and hurt us and can be the source of a “root of bitterness.”  So, they must be dealt with.

“Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.” Hebrews 12:15

When there is unresolved strife/conflict between members of Christ’s body, there is a “schism” which means to cause a split or gap, or divide.

“That there should be no schism (divide, division) in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.” 1 Corinthians 12:25

Grudges and strife also cause an un-readiness for Christ’s soon return:

“Be patient therefore (endure), brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth (remnant body of Christ), and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. 9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.” James 5:7-9

So, when we say something we shouldn’t have and it has wounded another, it’s our responsibility to go to that person and make things right in order to bring healing in that person’s heart/life.

Is such healing not a privilege to display our own gratitude for how God so loved us that He brought healing and wholeness to our relationship with Him by sending His only begotten Son. Is the healing we can help facilitate in the lives of His saints not a blessing?

“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” Psalms 19:14

So, may the LORD bless us to humble ourselves and esteem others above ourselves just as Christ esteemed us above Himself by coming from eternal glory as God to redeem us (Philippians 2:3-5).

Is this part of what Jesus was addressing when He said:

“Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.” Matthew 5:23-24

First, Christ teaches us here that we should not bother to pray to the Father in His name if we have an outstanding offense with another member of His family. You know, having to go to the person(s) we have wounded is hard isn’t it? And perhaps that pain becomes a motivating factor in leading us to lay down our lives and see God tame this most “unruly” member of our bodies (James 3:8). “Unruly” in the Greek means unrestrained and this is exactly why our lives must be submitted from our hearts to our LORD perpetually.

Helping the Healing

God just wants us to clear an offenses we have committed up by admitting and making amends (James 3:2).

“Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! 2 It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.” Luke 17:1-2

Clearing up the wounds – “offences” – we have created in others by our own offense of them is our personal responsibility.

We must not leave a trail of broken hearts beloved. Jesus came to heal hearts and not to wound them.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.” Luke 4:18

“He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.” Psalms 147:3

The Hebrew word for “heart” is leb and means the center (source), the middle. The heart of man is the reservoir from which our words flow. Those words we speak – gracious and otherwise – are coming out of our hearts and so we must keep our hearts before our LORD so that He can keep them pure. That is, He who said “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8)

The Psalmist knew well the temptations of the tongue and therefore prayed this following prayer we would do so well to offer to the LORD every day:

“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” Psalms 19:14

It is also highly recommended that you memorize this following verse:

“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying (building), that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” Ephesians 4:29

“If we can’t say something good, perhaps we shouldn’t say anything at all” is not a bad saying.

The Bible speaks about those who have nothing good to say about anyone or anything:

“He that hath a froward heart findeth no good: and he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief.” Proverbs 17:20

Clearing Things Up

Making messes is something we’ve all done. If we don’t clear things up that we have caused in the lives of others, that wound remains in them. We must love our neighbor as ourselves, right? Yes, and even our enemies! (Matthew 5:44) Would we like others to do to us what we have done to them? The Golden Rule Life.

Otherwise, if we don’t clear things us, that wound we have caused remains in the hearts of those things we have spoken off the mark things to, will fester, and someday in the future explode. Things will get real ugly at that point.

In light of this, it is critical to obey the LORD and to make amends for the wounds we have created in the hearts and lives of others. Great healing in each person involved will result in our simply doing what is right.

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” Psalms 133:1

The things we have done or said to hurt others cannot and must not be swept under the rug or they will be a time bomb. I know this by personal experience because I have wounded people with my words and actions and then tried to ignore what I had done. Yet, ultimately it came back to haunt because God wanted me to deal with it and so I had to apologize to that person and help bring healing to their heart.

The LORD have mercy on us and may He “Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.” (Psalms 141:3)

The moral of the story is that we cannot imagine that the wounds we have created in the lives of others are not going to come back at some point to haunt us. That is, if we don’t make amends for what we have done. Isn’t that what our King was teaching us in Matthew 5:23-24.

God is not going to bless our lives unless we are willing to sincerely admit our sins, repent and confess them, and make amends (restitution) with anyone we’ve harmed (Proverbs 28:13). In the divine economy, there’s no such thing as being right with God when you’ve done another person wrong, haven’t repented, and haven’t made amends for what you’ve done. Such a person will be outside of the will and blessings of God until he makes things right with God and man (Matthew 5:23-24; 7:12; 22:37-39).

The LORD requires that His people “examine” and “judge” themselves.

“Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?   2 Corinthians 13:5

Examine and honestly judge yourself and amend your ways or God will judge you.

“For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.” 1 Corinthians 11:31-32

When we attempt to cover/hide our sins, all of His spiritual progress, momentum and divine favor ceases in our lives. Here’s a very important memory verse which teaches just this:

“He that covereth (tries to hide) his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” Proverbs 28:13

Again, I know this by personally trying to hide my sins from Him. Such is a futile, impossible undertaking and will always come back to haunt. Praise God for 1 John 1:9, amen?

At that, let’s read James 3:

“My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation.
2 For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.
3 Behold, we put bits in the horses’ mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body.
4 Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth.
5 Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.
7 For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind:
8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.
9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.
10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.
11 Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter?
12 Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.
13 Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.
14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.
15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.
17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.

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