Topic: Between Heart And Tongue [Wednesday March 15, 2017]
Text: Proverbs 17:15-20
Key Verse: “He that hath a froward heart findeth no good: and he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief” (Proverbs 17:20).
There is a close connection between the heart and the tongue. While the condition of our heart is often hidden to our fellow men, it is the tongue that gives the true picture of what goes on there: “…for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34).
The hearth is thus likened to a reservoir of evil or good, and the tongue being the bucket that brings out what is in it. It therefore means that the heart of all the problems of the tongue, is the problem of the heart. Our text reveals that someone with a froward heart cannot see good and one with a perverse tongue will always fall into mischief. One with a froward heart is unregenerate and habitually disposed to disobedience. He is crooked, distorted and opposed to authority or to the law. He is wilful and not easily controlled. Though man was created in God’s image, when he fell into sin of disobedience at the Garden of Eden, Satan took advantage to gain dominion over him.
Man’s heart came under the influence of sin and Satan. This depraved nature affected the tongue and made it perverse. True wisdom can be measured by the depth of a person’s character. It is the manner in which one’s tongue is often employed that reveals his disposition towards God, towards people and towards life in general. A careful, winsome speech and wise loving words are the result of a heart made new. Anyone who repents from sin and yields to God is cleansed from inside out. Issues that determine the course of life come from the heart and not from the head. Since this is the case, the heart must be well taken care of. God purges the heart and tongue of the redeemed. And as the believer diligently studies and meditates on the word of God with prayers, the heart is increasingly renewed and prepared for edifying, life-giving speech in every situation.
It is what the heart harbours in abundance that it releases through the tongue in times of tension, desperation or provocation. There is great gain in having a cleansed heart through faith in the atoning blood of Jesus which produces a blessed tongue. You can sincerely covet it today and pray for it.
Thought for the day: The tongue reveals one’s spiritual state.
Bible Reading in one Year: 2 Samuel 4-6
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
