Sticks and Stones....Watch Your Mouth

Ahhh, the mouth.  Such a small part of our body, but oh the damage it can do when we let it get out of control.

As the old saying goes:  Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me. That is SO far from the truth.  Anybody who has been attacked by words will tell you differently.  Even those who try to be careful of what is said may occasionally suffer from word vomit.  Word vomit is when what you think comes out of your mouth so fast, there is no stopping it and if anybody is in your way, they better move!

One of the bad things about words is that they can't be taken back.  Once you've said something, it's out there, probably gets repeated to others and then all that's left is damage control and hopefully asking for forgiveness.

It only takes a few seconds if our guard is down.  I think I usually keep my words to others pretty positive.  However, a few days ago I was stopped at a red light.  I could turn left if it was clear.  I was busy talking to our daughter and didn't turn when I possibly had a chance too.  The person behind me honked once and maybe even twice.  I am embarrassed to admit this, but I flew a bird and dropped a bomb quicker than I thought possible.  I apologized to my daughter, but I couldn't take back what I did and said.

I used an example in youth group one time with blocks.  It took awhile to build a good sized tower.  I gave the kids other blocks and told them to let some mean words fly when they threw their block at the tower.  The tower was quickly destroyed.  We talked about how much longer it takes to build it up then tear it down.

The same is true with people.  When we don't pay close attention to what we say to others, we can tear them down.  This can cause negative thoughts to flow through their mind and they may get stuck in a loop of repeating it to themselves.  This can cause them to say hurtful things to someone else....and it ripples outward from there.

Words may not cause visible bruises, but they can easily cause as much, if not more pain than a physical blow.  Physical blows (sticks and stones) heal, emotional verbal blows take longer to recover from.

Try and remember the power of words.  Sometimes silence really is golden.

Matthew 12:33-35 (The Message) 

³³"If you grow a healthy tree, you'll pick healthy fruit. If you grow a diseased tree, you'll pick worm-eaten fruit. The fruit tells you about the tree.

 ^34-37"You have minds like a snake pit! How do you suppose what you say is worth anything when you are so foul-minded? It's your heart, not the dictionary, that gives meaning to your words. A good person produces good deeds and words season after season. An evil person is a blight on the orchard. Let me tell you something: Every one of these careless words is going to come back to haunt you. There will be a time of Reckoning. Words are powerful; take them seriously. Words can be your salvation. Words can also be your damnation."

What about those 3 days?

Tonight, my mind is wandering about what happened those three days Jesus was dead and in the grave. It seems at Easter time we go from Friday and his death to Easter Sunday and his resurrection. I'm thinking we're overlooking a major reason Jesus was here. He came to beat sin AND death. His blood covered the sin of the world. His resurrection beat death, but how unless Jesus was still fighting for us those 3 days?

I know in the Apostles Creed it states: "He descended into hell" I have done some searching to find biblical references to this.

Matthew 12:40 (NIV) For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

So is the "heart of the earth" just the tomb? Or is it where all of us deserve to go because of our sin...where Jesus went to battle for our right to eternal life with God in Heaven?

1 Peter 3:18-22 (NIV) 18 For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit, 19 through whom also he went and preached to the spirits in prison 20 who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, 21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.

Ephesians 6 speaks of our spiritual armor and that our fight is against the devil's schemes and our struggle is with the spiritual forces of evil. Jesus fought against those powers and won!

Hebrews 2:14-18 (NIV) 14 Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— 15 and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. 16 For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants. 17 For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. 18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

When I have read about Gethsemane, I kind of assumed that Jesus asked for "the cup" to be taken away if possible because of the cross and the physical pain of being crucified. Maybe it was more because of the spiritual battle that would ensue after his physical death. He knew he would have to fight this battle while feeling forsaken by God, but on that 3rd day? He knew he was not forsaken.

Some really good info here: http://www.reformed.org/documents/index.html?mainframe=http://www.reformed.org/documents/apostles_creed.html and http://www.apostle.org/lectures/inthegrv.htm

For now, I'm going to think on these things with the anticipation of realizing that Jesus has suffered more and took on more than I have ever imagined. And He did it for me, for us.......