May 13, 2009
Sin of the Lips
In all this Job did not sin with his lips. Job 2:10b
It seems lately I have continually run across similar scriptures about not
sinning with our lips, but the message the Lord was telling me went far beyond
cursing. It had to do with not questioning God’s goodness or His justice. I
found three men in scripture that when faced with bad news or circumstances did
not speak against the Lord.
First was Eli. Samuel had been spoken to by the Lord and was told about the
judgment that was going to come upon Eli and his house for not rebuking his
sons. Eli told Samuel to tell him what the Lord had said even though Samuel was
a hesitant. 1 Samuel 3:18 tells us, “Then Samuel
told him everything, and hid nothing from him. And he
(Eli) said, "It is the LORD. Let Him
do what seems good to Him." Eli didn’t make excuses or speak bad about
the Lord. Matter of fact, he recognized it was the Lord’s word, and accepted it
as a sovereign decision—Good because he knew God is good and just.
Then there was Job. Job loses his property and children, but in Job 1:22 we are
told, “In all this Job did not sin nor charge God
with wrong.” Job was well aware that everything he had was given by God.
Now this was not the response Satan was after. He wanted to prove that Job only
worshipped God because he was blessed. God allowed Satan to attack Job’s health.
After doing so, Job’s wife could bear no more. In Job 2:9 we are told,
“… his wife said to him, "Do you still hold fast to
your integrity? Curse God and die!" In Job 2:10 we hear his response,
“But he said to her, "You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we
indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?" In all this Job
did not sin with his lips. Job did not understand, but he did know there
are different seasons in life and that God is in control, that He is good, and
that He is just.
Finally, there was King Hezekiah. He was one of Judah’s most faithful kings. He
worked hard to rid the Kingdom of idols and point the people back to the one
true God. He made the mistake of showing his future enemies all his treasures
and the prophet Isaiah told him through a word from the Lord that they would one
day carry off all that had been accumulated and descendants would one day serve
the king of Babylon. Isaiah 39:8 gives us his response,
“So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, "The word of the LORD which you have spoken is
good!" He didn’t come back and say, BUT I have done so much work and
that’s not fair! He knew God was just and God makes good decisions for our good.
All three of these men are a good example for us to follow when circumstances
are not working in our favor. We must come to a place of knowing that God is
always good and God is always just. He works all things for our good when we
love Him and are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28) Whether things
are good or bad—blessed be the name of the Lord!
Keep in mind all that happened to Jesus, and yet, it was said of Him in 1 Peter
2:2:
"Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth." His words
were: “Not my will but yours” and “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”
Let us trust and believe that we are safe in the Father’s hands. No matter what
our circumstances try to tell us otherwise. Let us be found free of sin on our
lips and holding fast to our integrity. Let it be said of us that we know our
God is good and just and that we would speak nothing to the contrary. As Romans
14:8 puts it, “Therefore, whether we live or die,
we are the Lord's.” Blessed be the name of the Lord!
Do not be rash with your mouth, And let not your heart utter anything hastily
before God. For God is in heaven, and you on earth; Therefore let your words be
few. Ecclesiastes 5:2
Blessings,
Janet Fairbrother
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