A Good Man

“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” Luke‬ ‭6:45‬ ‭KJV‬‬

“But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.” Matthew‬ ‭12:36-37‬ ‭KJV‬‬

The words we speak are the words we hear in our head - just before they leave our tongues! So who we listen to, is of great importance. Do we listen to the "Still Small Voice" or the "accuser of the brethren"?  It's obvious to others who we hear! It's obvious to others who we follow! But deceived people do not know they are deceived. Knowing we will "give an account" for even "idle words" should make us all pause before we speak!

The "accuser of the brethren" never stops accusing. He has always been and will be until he is cast down. 

“And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” Revelation‬ ‭12:10‬ ‭KJV‬‬

He accused Jesus and Jesus gave us our example on how to respond! 

"And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭27:12‬ ‭KJV‬‬

“Then he questioned with him in many words; but he answered him nothing. And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused him.”  Luke‬ ‭23:9-10‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Arguing scripture is what the accuser does best. He knows it and twists it because he has done it since the beginning, in the garden. 

“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.” Matthew‬ ‭5:10-12‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Persecution can be subtle or violent. It can be verbal or physical. It can come from strangers or brothers. Any way it comes, we are encouraged by Jesus to rejoice. They did it to Him and they will do it to us, as long as we are in the world. But He has overcome and we will too, if we are obedient to His Word! Acting like the world, is not obeyIng His Word. 

Right now the world is watching us; more than ever before. We must be vigilant! We must not get sucked into quarrels, arguments or discussions that draw us away from our purpose, i.e. Being Jesus to a lost and dying world! How are we suppose to behave? 

“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” Galatians‬ ‭5:19-25‬ ‭KJV

Notice the words "hatred" and "dissensions" as opposed to "kindness" and "love"!  The world doesn't see much kindness and love but hatred is in abundance! "Long suffering", "gentleness", "self-control" attributes of a close walk with The LORD, because those were His attributes!  And our words reflect these attributes if we do indeed walk in the Spirit.

May I encourage all believers, especially, during this time of turmoil in our country, to watch our words, walk in love, walk in forgiveness, and walk in repentance when we fail! 

Even so - MARANATHA!

From 11/10/16