Words Paint Pictures

Restoration Specialist
Father Knows Best

This morning I was listening to the radio as I was driving to work and the news came on.  I wasn't totally focused on what the news person was saying but I caught one phrase, "restoration specialist."  I believe he was saying that some company called "restoration specialists" was funding the program on the air.  But when I heard the phrase, "restoration specialist" I immediately thought of Father G-d.  He is in the business of restoration.  He restores us to a right relationship with Himself through His Son, Yeshua.  He also restores relationships.  He is the only One who can through His infinite love, grace and unbounding mercy. 

After I arrived in my office and checked my email I began reading a daily devotion I receive in my email.  The person writing the devotion began by alluding to the old TV show, "Father Knows Best."  Again, I made the connection between this TV show title to our heavenly Father.  He does know best.  Always.....

Words are something aren't they?  G-d used them to create our universe and He later said that no one can control the tongue.  Words can be used for for evil.  Scripture also tells us that the heart is deceitful above all things and Yeshua said, that what is in the heart will proceed out of the mouth.  Jeremiah 17:9 and Matthew 12:34

Jeremiah sums it up this way in chapter 9, verse 8:  Their tongue is a deadly arrow; it speaks deceitfully.  With their mouths they all speak cordially to their neighbors, but in their hearts they set traps for them.

What is the remedy, therefore, for our tongue?  How can we tame it and put it in submission that only wholesome and praiseworthy words are spoken?

Those are good questions and some that we should come back to frequently.  A good tool to use is something like BibleGateway where you can search for passages of scripture even with just one word.  Try doing a keyword search with the word "mouth" and you will be astounded about how much is in scripture concerning "mouth" and "words."  This is a good place to start in healing your speech.

Psalm 37 is one of my favorites.  There is so much in this Psalm.  Concerning what we are thinking about this morning, look at verses 27 to 34: 

 

Depart from evil and do good, so you will abide forever.  For the L-rd loves justice and does not forsake His godly ones;  they are preserved forever, but the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.  The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever.  The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.  The law of his G-d is in his heart; his steps do not slip.  The wicked spies upon the righteous and seeks to kill him.  The L-rd will not leave him in his hand or let him be condemned when he is judged.  Wait for the L-rd and keep His way, and He will exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

This passage answers the question of how can we tame the tongue?  Verse 31 describes the righteous who controls his tongue like this:  Let the law of G-d be in your heart.  How do we do this do you say?  First of all, study and read the law over and over.  This is something we do on Shabbat.  There is a Torah reading for every Shabbat of the year and we repeat this cycle over and over.  It is necessary to give health to our bones and strength to our souls.  Psalm 119 is the longest Psalm and the entire missive is given to the subject of the law.

Another way to let the law of G-d get in and stay in our heart is to DO the law.  If you reading the Torah every Shabbat you will be reading the laws and commandments.  You will know what G-d thinks about tatoos, eating, holidays, deaths, prayers, dress, relationships, and all other life lessons.  In Exodus 19, Moses spoke the L-rd commanded words to the people and all the people answered, "All that the L-rd has spoken we will do!"  In Hebrew this read, Na'ase V'nishma!.  We will say and we will do.

John 14:15 says that of we love G-d we will obey His commands.  And Psalm 37:31 says that the righteous man's tongue speaks justice and the righteous man is one who has the law of his G-d in his heart.  Need I say more? 

Psalm 119:1 - Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the L-rd......