Gentle Answer Revisited

My blog yesterday on transformation vs more information came home to roost over the last few days when I realized I needed to revisit my blog on giving a gentle answer. God has great ways to keep us on track in pursuing Christlikeness. Hopefully you realize I am a fellow traveler on this journey of spiritual transformation. I reviewed some details on the word ‘gentle’ in Proverbs 15:1. I can’t commend to you enough the e-Sword program by Rick Myers (www.e-sword.net) I recommend making a donation and getting the e-sword CD. It will make installation a lot easier.

The Hebrew word for ‘gentle’ is rak and has several meanings in context: BDB [Brown Driver Briggs] - tender, soft, delicate; Strong #7390; see also TWOT (Theological Wordbook of the OT - “rak is also applied to the speech in the sense of ‘soft words’; see Job 41:3. Think of a soft stuffed animal vs a rock being tossed at someone when you speak. In the Greek translation of this passage (LXX), the word is phroneo (Strong #5426): wise (Mt 7:24); shrewd (Mt 10:16); sensible (Mt 24:45); prudent (Mt 25:2).

What am I thinking when I justify throwing rocks vs soft stuffed animals in my speech; especially to those close to me? I am usually tired, impatient, irritated and justify my responses with rationalizations and habit patterns. I’ll cover these in more detail when we cover 2 Corinthians 10:2. Examine your thought life and see what you come up with.

Why should I work on ‘soft words’? I came up with five reasons:
1. Because I am a new man in Christ. Who I am in the very essence of my new life, wants what God wants. (Romans 8:1-17)
2. I want to please Him (2 Corintians 5:9)
3. Because I fear Him; in the sense that I know He is God andI am not. I will some day appear before Him and I only want gold to be refined in my life (2 Corintians 5:10; 1 Peter 1:7)
4. I love those close to me. If there is no greater love when one lays down their life for another, then managing thoughts and words should be easier love.
5. I do not want to hinder God’s work of grace in those close to me so that they can become all the God desires them to be (Ephesians 4:29).

Why do I toss out bricks instead of ‘gentle words’?
1. I listen to thoughts of the flesh (my old nature) instead of thoughts of the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-26).
2. I have not been practicing the presence of God.
3. I forget who I am; a new person in Christ with all of His divine enablement (2 Peter 1;3-11)
4. I have not been engaging in the rigor of working out the saving grace that God has worked into me (Ephesians 2:12-13)
5. I have not stayed alert to monitoring my thought life (Romans 12:2).

This is enough information and maybe more than you bargained for. Now engage in transformation. Ask God to keep you alert to your thoughts which lead to emotions, shich fuel attitudes and then lead to either harsh words or soft words. You decide when you will engage in the wonderful journey of allowing God transform you and set you free to speak with ‘soft’ words. I recommend today!

(Ephesians 4:29 NIV) Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.