Pastoral
Letter 06 Sep 2020
My dear readers,
Mind Your Answer Proverbs 15:28: “The heart of the righteous studieth to answer: but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things.” Joshua and Caleb begged the people of Israel to not listen to the faithless report of the ten spies who returned with them after inspecting the Land of Promise for forty days. The moment they answered, their fate was sealed almost instantly. This was what happened. Numbers 14:6-10: “And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.” When the LORD appeared, the punishment was irreversible. All those men twenty years and upwards who said to stone Caleb and Joshua were sentenced to die in the wilderness by wandering in the wilderness for the next forty years. We all have experienced consequences by our hasty answers. We have read from the news of people who mournfully regretted their hasty answers after they lost their jobs or loved ones or best friends. As children of God living and serving the LORD in a sin-filled world, our answers to issues on earth have temporal as well as eternal consequences. Sinners may end up in heaven or hell due in part or wholly because of what believers say. Study before answering – The word “study” means “ponder” or “meditate.” The ones who can and ought to do this are the righteous ones. The only righteous ones on earth are believers who have accepted Christ as their Lord and Saviour. They have been imputed with the righteousness of Christ upon salvation. Their sinful nature was removed and replaced with a new nature in Christ. This new nature is the righteousness of Christ imputed to all believers. Their answers are from the heart. The heart is where the answer is meditated upon or mulled over before it is given. What are some of the considerations in his meditation?
The above considerations are not exhaustive. They are the basic considerations before any word is spoken. Once the words flow out, it is impossible to rein them back in. Don’t let the mouth pour – Thus the Bible warns God’s children not to be careless with words, spoken or written or posted in picture forms on the internet. “…the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things” warns the LORD. The verb “poureth out” means “gush forth.” The words of the wicked are the words of the god of this world. They promote his agenda which is always against Christ. They either promote carnality that appeals to the flesh and self-righteousness or works of evil. The words of evil people will not be regarded as evil in the eyes of evil men. They sincerely believe that the words are right. This is what being blinded in the mind by the devil will do to the person’s words. These words flow out copiously through millions of pages of books and the internet without end. It is like a tsunami wave crashing and sweeping aside everything at an unstoppable speed. This is the world of the internet which can never stop gushing out words, resulting in more and more evil. Children born into this tide of evil are swept into its flow through the education system and the ever-present internet world that the young and old cannot do without. The internet world with the gushing words of the devil have become like man’s third leg and arm. Without this third arm and leg, he cannot walk out of his house or rise from his bed because the first thing that he looks at when he opens his eyes is his handphone. By this incessant tidal gush of words, evil things are being learned every day. Sinful hearts of wicked men have been programmed since birth to open their hearts and minds to drink them all in and enough is never enough! This is the end of man’s society which the Lord says this world is reserved for. It is a world of sin and evil that the fire from heaven will burn away. 2 Peter 3:7: “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.” Let us mind our words! Food for Thought -- Proverbs 10:19: “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.” Yours faithfully in the Saviour’s Service, Rev Dr Quek Suan Yew Advisory Pastor |