What Kind of Seed is that in Your Hand?
Final Message on Seven Sins to Avoid
Prov 6:16-18
A man working in the produce department was asked by a lady if she could buy half a head of lettuce. He replied, "Half a head? Are you serious? God grows these in whole heads and that’s how we sell them!"
"You mean," she persisted, "that after all the years I’ve shopped here, you won’t sell me half-a-head of lettuce?"
"Look," he said, "If you like I’ll ask the manager."
She indicated that would be appreciated, so the young man marched to the front of the store. "You won’t believe this, but there’s a lame-braided idiot of a lady back there who wants to know if she can buy half-a-head of lettuce."
He noticed the manager gesturing, and turned around to see the lady standing behind him, obviously having followed him to the front of the store. "And this nice lady was wondering if she could buy the other half" he concluded.
Later in the day the manager cornered the young man and said, "That was the finest example of thinking on your feet I’ve ever seen! Where did you learn that?" "I grew up in Grand Rapids, and if you know anything about Grand Rapids, you know that it’s known for its great hockey teams and its ugly women."
The manager’s face flushed, and he interrupted, "My wife is from Grand Rapids!" "And which hockey team did she play for?"
Oh, my what trouble we get ourselves into when we fail to control our tongue. We have focused on the lying tongue so tonight we will focus on the gossiping or contentious tongue.
I. IT IS A TOUGH JOB. JAMES 3:1-12
A) It is easier to tame a snake than to tame our tongue. The idea of taming is that once it is done, it is done, no more to worry about.
1) Where the tongue is concerned we must be on guard every day.
2) Only a regenerate tongue in a redeemed body, a tongue that God has tamed, can be used for Him.
3) Romans 10:9; Matt 12:34
4) In other words, we are to sing a duet, the tongue and the heart are to be in tune.
B) We are to rule emotions, not allow our emotions to rule us.
1) If we speak in anger and emotion we are likely to say something that we will wish we could take back.
2) Proverbs 18:21 Will we use it for good or evil?
II. IT IS A SOURCE SOLUTION. JAMES 3:13-18
A) One with wisdom will speak with wisdom---That means more than sounding educated. That means speaking in line with God and His Word.
B) It is easy to spot communication that comes from an evil source. 14-15
C) It is easy to spot communication that comes from a heavenly source.17-18
III. IT IS A SERIOUS DISRUPTION. I COR 10:13
A) I Cor 3:3-4 Carnality in the church is a very disruptive thing.
1) It takes the focus off of the important issues.
2) It stifles the growth of the church.
3) It disrupts the witness of the church. Wed night fights
4) It divides the body of Christ---Only Scriptural grounds for division is what?
B) One of the seven things that God listed as being particularly dangerous, nauseating to Him, was someone who sows discord among the brethren.
1) Let’s close with a couple of positive thoughts.
a) Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Matt 5:9
b) Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Phil 2:2-3
