Crosswords Of Murmuring Series

CROSSWORDS OF MURMURING

EPH 4:25-31

Ephes. 4:25-31

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26"In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27and do not give the devil a foothold. 28He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.

29Do 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. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.

INTRODUCTION: In all of Scripture the most prevalent negative use of the tongue is found in the books of the Law – Genesis through Deutoronomy. To the casual reader, it seems as though you cannot turn a page in this book without finding something said concerning the murmuring or complaining of Israel.

In our time this morning, I would like to look at the reason why we murmur, , The problems of murmuring, and the solution for murmur.

I THE REASONS WE MURMUR

To murmur means to complain with a spirit that is critical and negative. It is a verbal negative attitude focused either at something, or someone.

A Guilt

1 Guilt is a powerful motivator – but not necessarily a good one

2 Words become a defense mechanism to keep people from the truth

B Impatience

1 When I am in a hurry, I get frustrated and it shows in my speech

2 Applicable when things are too slow OR too fast

C Insecurity

1 A Defense mechanism to keep people away

2 To provide a buffer zone between me and the situation that makes me insecure

D Disappointment

1 We feel pain when we are disappointed, and what we say is the verbal expression of our pain.

E Stress

1 Stress occurs when our lives go on overload.

2 When I cannot handle the additional load, my speech is the evidence that I have gone too far!

F Irritation

1 Each of us has a personal order to our lives

2 What may be orderly to you is not orderly to me

3 When someone messes up OUR order, invading our “world”, we respond

G Anger

1 Probably the most common trigger for crosswords and murmur.

2 Feel we have been cheated or shortchanged.

3 Someone has hurt us, so we in turn are looking to hurt

WHEN WE BRING THIS TYPE OF SPEECH INTO OUR LIVES, ANYONE IN RANGE IS AT DANGER.

WHEN WE BRING THIS TYPE OF SPEECH INTO OUR LIVES IT IS A CLEAR AND DIRECT REFLECTION OF THE VALUE WE PLACE ON THE PEOPLE OR THINGS THAT ARE THE OBJECT OF OUR MURMURING.

WHEN WE BRING THIS TYPE OF SPEECH INTO THE CHURCH OR INTO OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER BELIEVERS, IT IS TREMENDOUSLY DESTRUCTIVE.

God, responds strongly to this type of speech …..

Numbers 13:30-14:24

Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, "We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it."

31But the men who had gone up with him said, "We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are." 32And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, "The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. 33We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them."

14:1That night all the people of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. 2All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this desert! 3Why is the LORD bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?" 4And they said to each other, "We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt."

5Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown in front of the whole Israelite assembly gathered there. 6Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes 7and said to the entire Israelite assembly, "The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. 8If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. 9Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them."