Verbal Account

UV 652/10,000 Verbal Accounts But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. Matthew 12 v 36 Just as men regard the Word of God, God regards the words of men. It is written in scripture that where words multiply, sin abounds. One does not know how God keeps a record of zillions of words spoken by billions of people through history and in all languages and nations and circumstances but this uni-verse clearly states that we will have to give account for every careless word spoken. It does not mean that we have to get so serious that we cannot even crack jokes or indulge in light hearted banter. A careless word is something that has no effect or has harmful effect on the hearers. Hence, words spoken to generate mirth or humour is useful for recreation. God also enjoys a good joke. By our words we will be acquitted and by our words we will be condemned. The words that we use to slander others,to curse others, to condemn others, to put down others, to castigate or blame others, to demean others will condemn us. We will be measured by the same yardstick on the day of judgment. The words that we use to bless others, to lift up their downcast spirits, to give them hope in hopeless situations, to explain the truth as we know it, to share the gospel, to encourage others, to admonish others in brotherly love, to inspire others, to empower others will give us an honourable acquittal. Words are not mere words, they are the stuff of which life is made up of. Words are actions as our minds move, our vocal cords, facial muscles and lips move. They produce a deep and visceral reaction in the listener. When the Word of God influences our speech patterns, it moves closer to perfection. Our words will gain maximum power and will impact people in every generation. It will produce life and hope in the listeners. The Word says, “ Be slow to speak, be quick to listen, be slow to anger.” Being slow to speak does not mean we slow down the pace of our speech. It implies that we need to invest time in careful thought before we open our mouths and speak. We must chose our words and tone carefully. We must chose the moment when we should speak. We should speak to edify and encourage. We must run the words we are about to speak through some filters and allow only distilled wisdom to flow. If we do not have such distilled wisdom to share, we should choose to be silent. Our silence too should not seem hostile or unfriendly or proud but it should arise out of the meekness and discipline of our spirits and minds. We have all erred most in the words we have spoken that have hurt others, insulted others and made them feel small and humiliated. I am indeed the worst of sinners in this regard having had a razor sharp tongue from my early days. But, we can go to the River of God, the Holy Spirit and seek forgiveness and grace to speak. Prateep V Philip