The Christian's Speech - Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Ephesians Series)

Ephesians four verse 29. We'll be dealing with this verse this morning. Ephesians four twenty nine. Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up as fits the occasion that I may give grace to those who hear. Let's pray.

Father, we thank you for this house. We thank you for one another. We thank you that you are with us. And, Lord, as we explore this verse, would you help us, obey it, and would you grace us with the power, Lord, to fulfill it? Because we wanna glorify you in every detail of our lives, and we need your help to do that.

And, Lord, we pray that we would do this out of delight in you and out of the the knowledge that we are already approved because of Jesus. But because of this grace, we know that it teaches us to live like him. So help us, Lord, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. You may be seated.

Some time ago, we were holding some meetings out of state for youth and young adults, and this was a place where you could stay on-site overnight. And so after the first day, everybody did what you usually do at a conference, hopefully, unless you stay up all night, going back to our rooms to get ready for the next day. And we found ourselves, with our own rooms, our own bathrooms, and different things like that. And just going through the routine of my own day to day, night to night, I found myself getting ready. And as I approached the bathroom and I turned on the sink to just get ready for bed, something began to permeate the room instantly, and it brought total nauseation to me right away.

And I thought to myself, where is that smell coming from? And so I turned off the tap and I began to explore a little bit, and I realized that the smell had left. And so I just resumed in my routine to get ready to go to bed, and as I turned that tap water on again, that smell returned. And so I made the connection, and I leaned into the sink, and I quickly realized that that nauseating smell was coming from the water itself. And I realized that it was not just the sink water, but every water source in that room was contaminated to the point where you could smell it.

It was polluted. It was spoiled. And if you were like me, normal and wanting to just do what you need to do to clean up and to just refresh yourself or whatever, I was disappointed because I was forced to now find a different source of water. I was expecting that out of this source that there would be something pure and clean and refreshing, but in fact, it was rotten. And here in this verse, we have something very similar to do with our lives because as believers, there's an expectation on us that when people come to us, what should come out of us is something that is pure and refreshing and life giving.

But it is possible for us to offer something else, And what we can do, unfortunately, is repel people, and even disappoint them, and even push them to a place where they are looking for a different source, when in fact we carry the source that should be giving them life. This is what Paul is talking about here in verse 29 of Ephesians four. He's saying, let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths. And now if you if you haven't been following with us with us here as we're going through Ephesians four, we've been taking a slow pace through these scriptures because we are getting into the practical part of Ephesians. And we we talked about so many deep things weeks ago, months ago, about the depths of the gospel and theology.

But Paul is arguing, again, just for the sake of reminder, that this changes you. This this changes every fragment of your being. And so it comes to the point, as we learned last week, to to to the way we speak and to the way we respond, and now it comes to even our speech. And this may seem very practical, but it is very important to God. Why?

Pay attention to this. Have you noticed in your reading of the scripture that God is a God of detail? He's a God of great detail, and all you have to do is explore the book of Exodus to figure that out. That God himself, when he gives instruction to the people about the tabernacle, he doesn't give general instruction. He gives very fine tuned details to the measurements and to the material and to the color.

He wants every corner, every compartment to be in line with his will. So what does that have to do with us? Well, we're his tabernacle now. It's not about a building anymore. It's about your life, and the principle still applies.

At the same way, he wanted every single room and every single door frame and every single place in that building to be in line with his specific will, to reflect his beauty and his glory, and to host his presence is the same way that you and I are called to have every fine detail of our life be aligned to his instruction so that we can radiate his glory like that tabernacle did. And so we can't come to a verse like this and say, well that's that's that's true for yeah. It's a general statement. No. We have to explore this in detail.

What does this say about God? What does this say about me? I'm his tabernacle, and we have to look at our lives like that. We can't just look at our lives generally in bulk. Here I'm a Christian.

I go to church on Sunday, and I come to prayer on Wednesday. That's great, but God wants the detail of your life. Everything about us should be consecrated unto him. Every compartment of your being should be set apart for him, even to every word that bounces off of your tongue. So he says, let no corrupting talk come out of your mouth.

And that's why this message and maybe a few more may be a little bit different than a usual sermon because it's gonna be a lot slower in pace. We're gonna take our time to know what this means. The delivery might be a little bit different, but it's important to take our time the same way when you're reading the tabernacle instructions. You don't rush through that. You take your time to know what God wants and what he's requiring of us.

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths. That word corrupt is so much more descriptive in its original language. The root word is decay, to rot. It talks about something that is polluted. Anything that you can think of that has a awful stench, you have the right to associate it with this word.

It's something that is repelling. It's something that's offensive. It's something that's displeasing. And this says something about the believer that it's possible for a Christian to speak in such a manner that brings this kind of odor. It's possible for a Christian to speak in such a way that it brings division.

It's possible for a Christian to speak in such a way that it brings down and breaks down the confidence of another. It's possible for a Christian to speak in a way that actually destroys somebody's life. And so this is why this is important because if we understand this and obey this and and we we really hold on to the weight of this command, we will do two things. We will protect ourselves, and we will build others. Because when somebody speaks in a corrupt manner, whether they realize it or not, they corrupt themselves.

They corrupt their reputation, and the worse of the worse, they bring reproach to the name of Christ. So this one little verse can have a magnitude of consequences or blessings. It just depends what side of the command you are falling on. And this is true in Proverbs 18 verse seven. A fool's mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.

I've come to realize in my short life that many people have tarnished and destroyed their own reputation with their very own mouth much more than the actions that they perform. That their mouths have done more damage to themselves than anything else. So we have to understand that this is serious. This is so serious, and and the Bible says, no corrupt talk. So what identifies corrupt speech?

What would fall into that category? Because our hearts can deceive us, can it not? Our hearts can deceive us. We can fall into the deception of trying to justify a way of speech because it's just my personality, brother. This is just the way I I this is just the way I joke around.

This is it's just funny. It's just humor, man. Lighten up. No. No.

No. No. This is how I vent. I need to do it like this. If I don't if I don't do it like this, then it's gonna be pent up inside of me, and that's dangerous for my health.

So this is just how I express myself in anger. Or we can justify ourselves because everybody around us seems to be speaking in a manner, everybody else seems to joke in a certain way, everybody else seems to express themselves in a specific way, and so because everybody else is doing it, we just parrot them, and we copy them, and we compromise our convictions. And so regardless of culture and what they find to be funny, and regardless of people who identify themselves as Christians, your standard Christian is Christ. And what does it say about Christ? That in his mouth there was found no deceit.

That's our standard. Jesus Christ. What falls into corrupt speech? What what should not come out of my mouth when somebody approaches me and turns on the top of my life and expects life and expects purity and cleanliness? Well, there shouldn't be no pollution of number one, gossip.

Number one, gossip. What is gossip? We've been down this road before. It is a spreading of rumors or facts about others with malicious intent. Gossip is when somebody has privileged information about somebody else and decides to share it with someone who has no right or need of knowing it.

It is taking somebody, especially in a negative light, and presents those truths or rumors to someone else with the purpose of shaming them and belittling them, and with a secondary purpose of exalting yourself as a result. You know, people can talk about others, and the real reason why they're doing it is so that others can see how holy you are in retrospect and and in comparison. And so we have to understand here that gossip is significant, though it may seem innocent because so many people are doing it. I'm just gonna give you bullet points of what this this does. Gossip separates close friends, Proverbs sixteen twenty eight.

Gossip pushes, listen to this one, pushes the godly away from your life because they've been instructed not to associate with a babbler. That's Proverbs twenty nineteen. Gossip, foolish speech taints your reputation long term. Proverbs twenty five nine to 10. And I can give you multiple proverbs where it says that gossip and foolish speech and wicked lips invites many troubles into your life.

For the believer, understand this, the taste of gossip should be foreign to your lips. The taste of gossip should be foreign to your lips. And I myself personally, out of the good heart of others, have been approached by many to say, how do I know if I'm gossiping or not? How do I know if I'm doing this? Because sometimes I'm just talking and names come up, and I don't know if I've been falling into this trap where I'm gossiping.

How do I know? So let me give you a couple of rules or maybe instruction. This is why this this message may be a little different. We're gonna be really practical this morning. We're we're gonna we're gonna take the measuring line, and we're gonna measure the tabernacle of our lives.

Here's one question you can ask yourself. Does the listener does the listener have the right or the need to know the information I'm sharing about another person? So the person I'm sharing this information with, do they have the right or do they need to know the information that I know about someone else? If I find myself desiring to share something with someone about someone else, and the purpose behind that is because I don't see that they need to know because they are not a part of the solution of the problem. Because usually when we share something, it's not in positive light.

If you're going around telling people about how great other people you're in the you're good. But if you're going around feeling the temptation and feeling the need to to spill out some juicy data about somebody else's life, and that person is not a part of the solution of whatever problem the other person is going through, if that person is not a part of the problem, meaning if they're not a part of the situation in which you are wanting to express, you have no right. So narrow it down to this. If my motive in sharing this information comes down to just me wanting to inform someone else just for the sake of getting a reaction, you've entered into gossip. They don't need to know.

They don't need to know. They're not part of the solution, nor are they part of the problem, and so why do they need to know? Why would I expose somebody else to this specific person when there's no relationship involved in it? Here's a tricky one. Gossip and your participation in it does not require you to say anything.

You can be gossiping and all you're doing is listening. Right? So, oh, I'm not gossiping, but you love to be in that room when other people are talking about other people. This is Bible. I'm not coming up with this.

This is Proverbs seventeen four. An evildoer listens to wicked lips. An evildoer listens to wicked lips, and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue. If a conversation within a group setting is steering towards people speaking ill of another person, or speak people speaking about somebody else's situation, and you find yourself comfortable and you find yourself justifying it, because you're just listening, The scriptures tells us that an evildoer loves to listen to wicked lips, and gossip is wicked. And so I can be participating in it if I'm just there.

Evil people are attracted to a certain type of conversation. That's what it's telling us. The wicked are magnetized to a certain way of speech. And what is that certain way of speech? Gossip.

That's one of them at least. And so we have no participation in that. We have no right to join with those even in listening. And so let me give you again some practical advice if you're ever faced with a situation. Because sometimes you're involuntarily in that kind of context.

Somebody begins to speak about somebody else, and you're like, man, I don't want to be a part of this. I don't want to be a part of this. I know that I am not called to be a part of this. So what do you do? What do you do when all for a sudden you hear, oh, did you hear about so and so?

Oh, never mind. I shouldn't be talking like that. You know that that kind of talk when people do that? It's like the prep up for justifying their gossip. Oh, have you heard about so and so?

Oh, no. No. I shouldn't be saying that. What does that do in that moment though? What does it do to the listener immediately?

Because our hearts are so wicked. We want to investigate. We want to know more. We're interested. And in that moment, that is temptation, and we gotta fight that temptation.

How do you fight that temptation? Here are some basic rules that help. And listen, it might sound funny, but it's important. It's important. Protocol.

If anybody says anything, you can stop that person and say, have you talked to this person about what you're saying? Or you can stop that person, usually with somebody that you know. Oftentimes when the name comes up, I'll just say stop. Is what you're about to tell me gonna edify and gonna build up, or is gonna make me look at that person in a different way? Especially if you don't know what you're saying is true.

You say, well, that's awkward. It gets even more awkward. Because if this person you don't know, and they're trying to bring up another person, what you can do is left turn immediately, just change the conversation. So they bring somebody up and they start talking, it's like, how's your bible reading been? Good?

How's your prayer life been? What did you eat this morning? And you're saying, well, that's awkward. Guess what? The more awkward, the better.

I love it. The more awkward it is, the better it is. Because if they have any sense, they'll realize that we're not supposed to be doing what we're about to do. So bring on the awkwardness. Oh, did you see the yeah.

You know, I just had a burrito last week. It was awesome. You should try it out. You wanna go out for lunch? Maybe we can talk over some scripture.

Or if it's really, really, really deep in it and it's a group setting, you can just excuse yourself completely. Gossip is pollution to the mouth of the believer. But not just that, turn over to Ephesians five four. Let there be no filthiness, nor foolish talk, nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. Filthiness is obvious, I hope.

I hope we don't have to go down that road. But what's foolish talk? What does he mean there by foolish talk? Well, what is foolishness? A person who's a fool is a person who lacks sense.

And so when we relate this, we have to understand that foolish talk is senseless talk. Foolish talk is senseless. It's a it's a conversation that has no meaning. It's speech that lacks understanding and wisdom. It's purposeless chatter that carries no value.

You can take foolish talk and categorize it under immature language and aimless conversation. Here's a proverb. Proverbs has a lot to say about the tongue. Proverbs eighteen six, a fool's lips walk into a fight. A fool's lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a beating.

I've seen a couple people growing up in high school who have gotten beatings just because of the way they talked in public settings. And so a foolish person when he speaks brings agitation to others, brings frustration to others. There's nothing of any value of what they're saying. It's immature, senseless noise really. And I look at that and I go, why is that important?

Why is foolish talk to be avoided for the believer? Listen believer, you are an ambassador of Jesus Christ. You wear his uniform, and you carry his badge wherever you go. You are a representative of a kingdom and a king. We are to be a people of class.

We are to be a people who know what to say at the right time. And foolish talk, there is no place for this in a believer's life. You know, I'm finding this more and more true in our generation that it is very rare to even have a long conversation that's serious anymore. It's so hard to be able to just talk to somebody about serious matter without it turning into a joke somehow, without it steering into a certain direction, which is lighthearted? Isn't that not true today that everything seems to be a joke or turns into a joke?

All you have to do is slap a fact. Last week, it was a horror story. In two months, it becomes a meme. Our politics are a joke. All these situations, we try to make it just funny.

And listen, I'm not against humor. We're gonna get into that in a moment. But we need to be a people who understand that at some times, we just need to be sober and serious, talking about serious matters. And here's the worst part, it's beginning to trickle into the things concerning the word of God. And so we we make lighthearted things concerning sacred things.

I'm not against lighthearted references to the scripture. I'm not. But I'm talking about taking what is sacred and making it silly. And so then when the preacher comes up and wants to preach on sin, we've been joking about it. We've been seeing so much about it online as being just nothing that it's doesn't penetrate anymore.

And Proverbs one twenty two says that the fool hates knowledge. The fool hates knowledge. You wanna talk about something that has value? You wanna talk about something that's that that matters in this life and in eternity? He avoids it.

He just gets agitated. He wants to he wants to be drawn to something that's just nonsense. And the Holy Spirit says, no foolish talk in your life. You are an ambassador of Jesus Christ. You represent his kingdom.

Not just that, it continues on and it says, crude joking in Ephesians five. Is God against jokes? Is God against humor? No. But a specific type of it.

There is no way, no way that any Christian can justify sexual suggestive suggestive jokes. There is no way that any Christian could try to justify racist terminology. There is no way that a Christian can justify any insult that is wrapped up in the form of a joke, or is finished off with, I'm just joking, when really it was sharp. There's just no room for that. And again, just like the first filthiness, I hope we don't have to talk about this too much.

That's pretty pretty obvious, is it not? I hope. But that foolish talk, that that's that's the thing that can that can become so part of us because it's so part of our culture. And it's not just for one another. Remember, he's talking in the context of believers affecting other believers, but this is true for non believers.

And I can testify to this, that before I was saved, long before I was saved, when I was in high school, I was invited to a Christian conference. And then it was the same idea. It was it was back in Canada, and we were invited to go, and and it was more younger people. And I could tell you this with the people that I went. Before I was saved, One of the things that we left with because we went with a specific group was we could not wait to get out of there because of the immaturity that was permeating in that place.

We were going to a conference about God apparently, and none of the conversation had to do anything with God. Everything was a joke, and it wasn't even funny. Like, it it was just silly. And listen, that made an impression. Reading this verse and preparing, I remember that my mind went back there.

It left an impression. They did not make Christ attractive to me. With what? Their actions? Just their speech.

Just their speech. Nothing was serious. Nothing was holy. Empty vein. And that water coming out was polluted.

Is it no wonder that Psalms one forty one, you don't have to turn there, verse three. The psalmist says, set a guard. Set a guard, oh lord, over my mouth, and keep watch over the door of my lips. This thing is so easily loosened. Is it not?

We need a greater power to be able to control and tame this tongue. We need his ability to be able to be a people that pour out something that is holy. I can tell you in contrast that there are other people who have taken this verse so seriously in their lives, and whether it's because of this verse or because they just understand the the principle of the Christian walk. I could tell you of a man, he's an older man, very quiet man, very quiet man. And I can tell when usually people are quiet, they're very observant.

He doesn't talk much, and I don't see him often, but whenever I do see him, I realize the same pattern, that he does not just give himself over to anything, but when he speaks, gold comes out of his mouth, and when that those words, those words of wisdom, those scriptures, those revelations come out, it demands attention in the room. And this is a type of person that when he speaks, you dare not speak. You just want to listen. I mean that's what we should aspire to. There should be no accusation of you being inappropriate.

There should be no accusation of us being flippant and careless. None of that. Serious people. Yes, joyful people. I believe Christians should have the greatest smiles in the world.

I believe Christians should be the most joyful people in the world. And God is able to enable us to do that in a holy manner. That's why we have to pray and ask God to help us. Set a guard over my mouth, oh Lord. Help me because I know this tongue can bring ruin into my life.

But listen, we're not called to be a mute people. We're not called to be just mute and just staple our mouth shut. No. If death and corruption is a possibility out of my own mouth, then so is life and grace. That's an option.

That is an option. That's an option that we should strive for, and that's why this command does not just end with a negative, don't do this. It ends with a positive. What does he say right after he says, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion that it may give grace to those who hear. The first thing that you and I have to realize about the second part of this verse is this, our speech is not about ourselves.

It's not. It's not about you. It's not about my personality, and this is the way I do things. I'm going back to that point. It's about the way I speak.

This is how I was my whole life. People just need to adjust to it. No. Listen. Your personality gets nailed to the cross when you get saved.

Your personality is possessed by the personality of the Holy Spirit when you get saved. No excuses. Even the way you speak, guess what? Your mouth is consecrated onto the lordship of Jesus Christ. You take your personality, you nail it to the cross, and you allow Christ to possess your personality.

That's what we strive for. We don't make excuses. And here our speech is not about you, it's not about me. Our words, our words are dedicated onto him and for the building up of others. And so when we consider the way we speak, what's our number one priority?

Glorifying God and understanding is this building other people up. And so it's replaced with something that gives grace. And so I wanna talk about three things that should come out of the mouth of a believer. Three things that should come out of the mouth of a believer. And turn your bibles with me to first Samuel to first Samuel chapter 23, beginning in verse 15.

Let's read together before we break it down. David saw that Saul had come out to seek his life. David was in the wilderness of Ziph at Horesh, And Jonathan, Saul's son, rose and went to David at Horesh. Now look at this. And strengthened his hand in God.

And he said to him, do not fear, for the hand of Saul my father shall not find you. You shall be king over Israel, and I shall be next to you. Saul my father also knows this. Number one thing, amongst many others, not in particular order. The thing that should come out of the mouth of a believer is encouragement.

We are called to be an encouraging people. What does it say here? David is going through a particular situation. He's going through a trial. He's going through something that's not necessarily in line with what he was promised, and and maybe he didn't know that was part of the package.

And what's happening here? He is running from Saul, and Jonathan comes to strengthen him, it says. But how does he strengthen him? How does he strengthen his hand in God? Look at verse 17.

He said to him. He said to him. It was his words. It was his speech. It was his encouragement that strengthened David.

And and there are so many principles here here. Encouragement, believers, is fuel for perseverance. Encouragement is fuel for perseverance. When you give words of support, when you give words of confidence, when you give words of hope, it propels a person to move forward in their faith. It helps them persevere.

And like David, listen, you might be somebody who has a calling from God. You might be somebody who has a specific assignment to fulfill for the kingdom of God. But even men and women after God's own heart need encouragement from time to time. As spiritual as they might be, as great as their abilities might be, as great as their calling might be, this shows us something that even such men and women need that boost that comes from another believer. So David is strengthened, and there's a wealth of truth of how he is encouraged here.

Notice this, that Jonathan sought after David. You know what that means? That encouragement is an intentional act. Encouragement is not necessarily accidental. You can encourage somebody, yes, in a way in which you just live your life and people watch your life.

But more than anything, encouragement is an intentional act. He saw David. He analyzed his life. He realized the circumstance he was in. And what did he do?

He got up, and he went towards him with the purpose of encouraging him. You and I, if we want to be effective encouragement to other people, we have to be able to analyze and look and see where people and what they're going through with the intention of encouraging them if they need it. Have you ever noticed somebody in this specific church that works so tirelessly, that does not need to be asked even twice to do something? They do it. That does not need people to look at them.

They'll do it even if nobody else. Have you ever found it within yourself to say, maybe like David, who served God, they need a boost of encouragement. Maybe I should just go up there and give a few words to propel them to moving forward. Or maybe like in David's case, there's somebody who hasn't been showing up. They're going through a trial.

You've heard it in their conversation. You've heard it in their prayer request during the Wednesday prayer meeting. You see that they're going through something. Have you ever made a mental note? I'm gonna call them or text them sometimes this week, and I'm going to intentionally encourage them.

Jonathan did that. Jonathan was fully aware, and he goes forward to him, and he gives them the right words. And now let's examine what he said. The elements of his encouragements. He says, do not fear.

Do not fear. Why do not fear? For the hand of Saul, my father, shall not find you. We see here that he reminds him of God's promises. He reminds him of God's protection in specific.

He says, listen, man. There's no reason to fear. What does that say about encouragement? Encouragement is not general. Encouragement is specific.

And it says, he strengthen them in God. It involves the truths of God in a particular situation in a specific person's life. It takes effort to encourage somebody specifically and effectively. You know the truths of God, and you see that person's specific situation, you know that person's walk, you know that person's passions, and you mingle both of those things, and you provide a recipe for strength. He says, don't fear.

Saul Saul isn't gonna touch you. I'm here to remind you of God's protection. He doesn't just stop there though. He reminds him of God's promise. Says what?

You shall be king over Israel. You're gonna be king. What God has called you to, God will bring you there. I know it doesn't look like it now, David. I know that it looks like it's probably the opposite, but I want to tell you something.

God is faithful. God is faithful. God has called you. Remember how he's called you. Remember how he spoke to you in prayer.

Remember how he's revealed that to you in that time where you were fasting and seeking his will. I'm here to remind you that God has called you and God is gonna be with you and bring this to pass. Not only that, he assures David that he is with him. What does he say here? And he said to him what?

I shall be next to you. David through thick or thin, David through trials or victory, I want to let you know I'm with you. I'm standing by you. You might be going through a trial, but I'm praying for you, man. I haven't seen you in a while sister, but I'm telling you, I'm interceding for you.

I want to let you know that I'm bringing your name before the throne of grace every day. Encouragement. It tells us, it doesn't tell us to guess, it tells us that David was strengthened by this. Encouragement is not just nice words. Romans 12 tells us that encouragement isn't actually a ministry.

It is a gift. Read Romans twelve six and eight. You'll see that exhortation, another word for encouragement to some degree, is a gift given and to be exercised. It's a ministry to be fulfilled, and that's a ministry for all of us. Someone might have that ability to a greater degree, but we are all called to do this.

You guys know Barnabas? Remember Barnabas, book of Acts? His name is not really Barnabas. Acts four at the end of it tells us his name is Joseph. That's his real name, but it says that the apostles called him Barnabas, which means what?

Son of encouragement. They had realized something about Barnabas, that when Barnabas speaks into the lives of believers, their spirits are lifted up. So much so that they said, he will be called son of encouragement. That's somebody you want in ministry. That's somebody you want in your church.

And Barnabas went around, and you see it through Acts with Paul. So you might not even be a David. You might not have that platform in life. That might not be your calling, but you can be a Jonathan. You might not be the apostle Paul.

You might not have that ministry where you were a missionary and going forth and seeing all these crazy things done for the glory of God, but you can be a Barnabas. You can be that fuel to these people. You could be that voice to encourage them, because even Paul's and even David's need it sometimes. Is that a ministry that attracts you? It should attract us.

Why? Because it's a great ministry of the Holy Spirit. He is what? The comforter. He is what?

The helper. He's the one who what? Encourages to seek this ministries to be in line with the character and the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Encouragement is vital. What encouragement to the soul is what wind is to assail.

It pushes people forward. It's amazing, and probably you can testify to this, that all it took was one text message. All it took was one phone call. All it took was, hey, can I just talk to you for a second? I want to let you know something.

And all for a sudden, there's a jump start in your spirit, and there's this desire to remain faithful, and a desire to persevere, and a desire to keep moving. This is a vital ministry to be pursued by all of us. Encouragement is something out of the mouth of a believer. Not just that. Turn your Bibles to Psalms 40.

Psalms 40 verse 10. Look what the psalmist says. I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart. I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation. I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great congregation.

Encouragement should come out of our mouths, but here's the second thing, testimonies. Testimonies. We are to be a people who know how to testify of the goodness of God in our lives. And here's what's important, when a man exalts the goodness, when a man exalts the faithfulness, when a man exalts the power of Jesus Christ in their lives, he will as a result stir the souls of his people. When you choose to come to a place where you know how in wisdom and in humility testify of God's good works.

It does great good to his people. If you don't believe me, I'm just gonna read these, and I want you to hear a common theme as I'm reading them in the book of Acts. Pay attention to this. Just listen. This is Paul's testimony when he got saved.

Galatians one twenty three to 24. They, being other believers, only were hearing it said, what? He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy. And what does it say? And they glorified God because of me.

They glorified Paul? No. They glorified God because of me. Doesn't end there. That's his testimony.

Now Paul's ministry later on in Acts twenty one nineteen to 20. After greeting them, he related one by one the things that God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. What was the result? Verse 20. And when they heard it, they glorified God.

Doesn't end there. Here's Peter with the situation in Cornelius. What does it say in Acts eleven eighteen after he explains how God, the Holy Spirit came and touched them, and the gospel was given to the Gentiles? What does it say when the the the men in Jerusalem and the council heard it? When they heard these things, they fell silent, and they glorified God.

When you choose to testify what God has done, you give people a reason to worship and a reason to believe God for greater things. You give them a reason to. And oftentimes, I understand where people come from. They hesitate to share what God is doing in their lives, because they don't want to be in the spotlight, and they don't want to seem like they're glorifying self. That's understandable, but understand also in this way that when you withhold something, you might be withholding something from someone to believe and to worship in a greater way.

Because ultimately, here's the here's the the anchor that keeps you low. It's never your testimony. It's never my testimony. We're jars of clay, and the treasure resides within us. And so again, very practical this morning.

How do I exercise that if testimonies are to flow out of my mouth? I wanna build my brothers and sisters up in the Lord. How am I to do it? How can I avoid this tension? How can I how can I be released of that when I want to, but I'm like, I'm scared that they're gonna think something about me?

You can ask yourself some questions, just like with gossip. Number one question you can ask yourself concerning this, do I desire for others to see how I serve God or to see how God graciously used me? There's a big difference there. Do I want other people to see, hey guys, I wanna just let you know how I served God last week, how God needed me to do something for him. Nobody would rightly say that, but it's delivered that way.

Or do I desire for other people to see how I got to just participate and be a witness of God's intervention in and through my life? And when you can settle that in your heart, the way you deliver it will be different. There's gonna be a lot less I's and me's, and a lot more Jesus and God in that testimony. What does he say here in Psalms 40? Your faithfulness, your deliverance, your salvation.

This is you God. I want to put you in the center stage. Secondly, is what I'm going to share, going to benefit those who hear, or was it intended simply for me? See, God can do something in your life and mine that is specifically for you and only you. Nobody else really needs to know, and I am a firm believer that God can do amazing things, and sometimes God just wants you to know it.

Do you know an example of this? Joseph. Joseph. He received something from God. He received a true dream.

It was something about his future. It was something about his position. It was something about where he was to be. But Joseph, whatever his reason was, told the wrong people about what God had revealed to him. And he didn't learn the first time.

They responded in a negative way and he felt for some reason to do it again. And so sometimes there are testimonies that just belong to you. Sometimes there are things that God allows you to see that is just for your eyes. Sometimes God allows you to hear things that are just for your ears, and that's perfectly okay. Welcome to the realm of personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

It's personal. There's some things that should just stay there. But if you believe that this could edify, if you believe that this could stir people up, go for it. Go for it. Whether in a group setting, wherever, after church service, you just want to share something, do it.

I pray you say, I have a testimony of answered prayer. Do not withhold what could bless the people of God. There's something about a testimony. There's something about testifying about God in our day, in our lives that just does something to us. It's so vital.

It's so important to be able to share these things with people. And I know this may seem so practical and so simple, but listen, so many people are reserved in this area. Sometimes I hear something through somebody's life that God has done to them or God has done through them, and I hear about it months later. I go, why did you not tell me earlier? Why didn't you share this earlier?

This is amazing. And so we have to be people who know how to testify the good works of God. It is totally necessary to the great congregation who says, I did not withhold this. I want to tell people. And you filter it out with these motives, you'll be more than okay and the people of God will be edified.

Lastly, if you were guessing this, yes, it's coming. First thing is encouragement. Second thing is testimonies. Lastly, the word of God. The word of God.

And we've been through this verse, but let's go through it again in Colossians three sixteen. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. Teaching and admonishing one another, singing Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. If foolish talk is to be abandoned, it must be replaced with this. If we are called to avoid senseless, empty, futile ways of speaking, this is the replacement right here.

The type of conversation is the word of God. What does that look like? It looks like conversation that's all about discovering, all about unpacking, all about highlighting revelatory truths found in the written scriptures. Do you have friends like that? Do you have friends that just ooze out Bible because they've been spending time with the word?

Do you have friends that delight, like the psalmist says, I delight in your law. I will not withhold the testimonies of your law. Are you like that? Well, it's not possible unless it dwells in you richly. And let me tell you something, when you dwell on this word and it dwells in you richly, you won't even be able to contain it.

You won't. It begins to come out and there is something so invigorating. When you can find a person that bursts forth living water, the sanctifying water of the word of God that washes and you're doing it back and forth, there's such an amazing experience in that moment. If you have a friend like that, treasure that friend. Treasure that person that knows how to delight in the law, that knows how to to just wanting to impact and and discover and and talk about these things, That finds great joy.

You know what the psalmist says? Your word, your word is more precious to me than silver and gold. If you understand the word of God that way, then when somebody speaks the word of God, it's gold that comes out of their mouth. It's silver that comes out of their mouth. It's treasure that comes out of their mouth.

It's more valuable to you than anything. I thank God for such people. The sanctifying word of God must be a part of our conversation. If not, why is it not? Why is it not?

Ask yourself this morning, do I delight in conversing about what God has spoke? Do I read this word and and something jumps out to me that I've never seen before? Am I eager to meet with my brothers and sisters and talk about what God has spoken to me in the secret place? You're saying, this is strange. What are you talking about?

Christianity. Talking about those that take these things seriously and have believed on God for this in their own lives. What is the main theme of your conversation? I mean you'd probably stay up real late with your friends don't you? One, two, three in the morning.

What do you talk about? Is it foolish talk? Or do you find it within yourself that you were so bubbling with truth and your friends are as well that you're having a Rota Emmaus experience every single time you're together? But it's not just brought down to conversation. It doesn't end there.

It doesn't end there. That's not where the verse ends, does it? He says what? Sing. Christians are singing people.

Christians love to sing to God. That is something that is a part of their transformation. And if this type of speech, according to Ephesians four twenty nine, is to build us up, then when we are void of this, what do we do? I think we do the opposite. We don't build people up.

In fact, we could probably tear people down, including singing in a corporate level. I don't know about you, but I can't think of and I can't think of many things, but one of the most devastating things I think, one of the most disheartening and discouraging things is to walk into a church of so called believers and to enter enter into it when the worship is going on and no one is singing. No one finds it within themselves to to to praise the Lord, and so many things go through my mind when I see such a sight. And one of them is this, has God done anything in their lives? Has God done anything you think?

That's very judgmental. No, that's scriptural. Why? Let me read these verses to you. Psalms thirteen six, I will sing to the Lord because he has dealt bountifully with me.

My singing is a result of what God has done in my life. Here's one more. Oh sing to the Lord a new song for he has done marvelous things. So you walk into a youth meeting at a conference and you see everybody on their phones during the worship and you see people chit chatting and talking, and you have every right to think, I wonder if God has done something in their lives. Because when you realize how good he is and you realize where he's brought you from, you can't help but have a melody on your heart.

And when that is lacking, we fail to build one another up. We fail to edify one another because this morning was great. Was it not? Talking about the beauty of the Lord, talking about building our lives on the the foundation of his love and hearing those voices in one accord singing to him, faith arises. And when that's not there, we fail to be edified.

And so I wanna tell you something. Again, despite your personality, despite your upbringing, despite anything else, singing is not a suggestion. It's a command. It's a command. And if you find trouble expressing yourself in that way, ask the Lord to do something in your heart.

Ask the Lord to put a melody on your heart. Ask the Lord to show you that he is worthy of your praise. Ask the Lord for you to prepare because guess what? When we enter into eternity, we're not doing it for just forty five minutes, we're doing it for eternity. If singing bothers you now, I don't think there's a quiet room up there in eternity.

Allow God to work in your heart for you to be able to respond to him. Let me read a quote by John Wesley. Sing lustily. Sing lustily and with good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead or half asleep.

But lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, no more ashamed of it being heard, than when you sang the songs of Satan. Well, before you were saved, you knew how to sing, couldn't you? When it came to the worldly music, when it came to the worldly concerts, you were just fine. You were wild.

When it comes to god's house, when it comes to god's songs, when it comes to righteousness, you can't find it within yourself to lift up your voice to the holy one. John Wesley saying here, listen. If you were radical for the devil in that area, how much more for god? Lift up your voice. He is worthy.

Not in an irreverent manner. Not in a way that's distracting. Not in a way that puts attention on yourself. In a way that glorifies him and edifies your brothers. Sing lustily.

Sing with joy. Love him. Adore him. He's worthy of it. How necessary is it?

How powerful is singing? How was it practiced in the early church? Do we have any example of this in the Bible? People think, well that's Psalms, that's Old Testament. Let's go to New Testament.

And we're concluding here in Acts 16. Acts 16. What happens in Acts 16? Paul. New Testament.

Paul and his friend are in jail for the gospel, and they find themselves beaten. They find themselves in prison. And him and Silas, what would you do at midnight if you were chained and you had lashes on your back? Verse 25 tells us what these men did. About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

Here these men, can you imagine it? Just put yourself in that situation, bound, whipped, bruised, probably tired, but they found it within themselves to pray and sing hymns unto God. Why is that? Because Christ exalting singing enables us to look beyond our circumstance. That's why.

When you sing, especially when you have a brother or sister with you, it has the power to change the atmosphere, and as a result of the atmosphere as well, it has the ability to change your attitude. And And so they saw with themselves, they probably didn't feel like it. But Hebrews thirteen fifteen tells us that it's a sacrifice of praise, not a matter if you feel like it or not. You bring that to him, and you put a melody to those truths in your heart, and he sees it as an aroma. He senses it as a pleasing sacrifice.

And so these men here realize, we're gonna sing to God because he is worthy. And as a byproduct, we're gonna be changed by it, Silas. Come on. Get in tune and let's sing. And here's another byproduct, the prisoners were listening.

It says something to the world when you can sing to the Lord. It says something when you're going through whatever you're going through, that you find it within yourself to come and to worship God. And if the prisoners heard, I'm sure they were pretty loud, don't you think? If it got their attention, perhaps they were singing something very glorious. And so they began to sing.

And what did that do? It glorified God. It edified one another. I'm sure it edified one another, and it was a testimony to the world that he is worthy of our song. Let no corrupting speech come out of your mouth, but let's not end it there.

Let your mouth be filled with testimonies. Let your mouth be filled with encouragement. Let your heart be filled with the word, and as a result, let it ooze out in your conversation, not forcefully, but effortlessly because you know God and he's speaking to you, and you can't wait to share it with your brother who's doing the same thing. And die to yourself with whatever conception you have about singing and conform it to the word of God and ask God to make it a delightful experience for you. And if it's not at first, realize that it's not about you, it's about your brothers and sisters and more importantly God himself.

And watch what will happen to our faith. This is what we are invited to as believers and we're gonna do that in a moment. But before, we're gonna ask God to do what Isaiah did. Lord, I'm a man of unclean lips, and I live amongst the people of unclean lips. Can you imagine that is what Isaiah came to the conclusion when he stepped into the presence of God?

My lips are filthy. My lips loves to speak of crude joking. My lips love gossip. My lips love foolish talk. So what do you and I need?

The same thing that Isaiah needed, a coal from the altar to touch our mouths, and to sanctify our mouths, and to replace it with those things that we just spoke of. And we're gonna sing and fulfill this commandment together, but as the worship team comes up, would you just find it within yourself to say, Lord, touch my lips. I'm your tabernacle. I am not going to make excuses. I want every inch of who I am to be in line with what you desire out of your dwelling place.

Let's do that. Father, we long to be a people that when others come to us, they will not expect pollution. They will not expect decay. They will not sense something that is outside of our character as Christians. But, Lord, may life come, purity, encouragement, refreshment.

May we be a people that others want to hear from us because of what we carry in our hearts. And, Lord, we just ask that by your grace, you would bring a call from heaven. That by the power of your holy spirit, you would sanctify our lips, guard our mouths, teach us to be slow to speak and quick to listen. And Lord, through this practical specific compartment of our faith, this specific room of the tabernacle of our lives. Say, Lord, would you line it up the way you want it to be lined up?

Lord, we even pray that you would help us to be an encouraging people, not a flattering people, but an encouraging people to be so aware and sensitive to others like Jonathan to know what to say at the right time. And so Lord, even bring people to mind if there's anybody that needs encouragement to know that what we can speak into their hearts can actually give them another day of hope. Oh Lord, help us. Help us see your testimonies in our lives so that we can testify to the great congregation. And Lord, would you give us a heart that is so humble that even when we share, nobody would dare think that we're seeking glory, but that Christ would be seen.

Because you are worthy. And, Lord, we long to be filled with your word, not just in conversation, but, Lord, that we may have Christ centered, Christ exalting worship. And, Lord, if there's anybody in here who feels like they're in a prison, if there's anybody in here that is going through a circumstance that makes them feel bound, trapped, Lord, help them understand that all it takes is prayer and sometimes a song along with it to change our attitude and our perspective. And, Lord, help us understand that even through those moments when we sing and we testify how good you are with a tune, what it testifies to other people around us is that this God is worthy to be served. And so, Lord, we join together to obey your word, to lift your name for you have dealt bountifully with us.

In your precious name we pray. Amen.