Loving, Speaking, and Confessing the Truth
Minister: |
Rev. Ronald Van Overloop |
Date: |
11/2/2014 AM
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Text:
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James 3;
Lord's Day 43
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Psalters: |
238, 428, 190, 386 |
- The idea.
- God speaks, i.e., communicates perfectly within Himself and to His creatures, especially His children.
- He created man in His image: able to know and speak the truth and able to communicate thoughts.
- The power of speech is very great (as a rudder to a ship, James 3:4,5). It can comfort or confuse; build up or destroy.
- Truth is not just facts, but also a moral-ethical tone because He who is Truth is also Love.
- Sin ruined communication and the ability to use the tongue for good.
- Grace restores the ability to know and speak the truth in love, but we still have the nature to lie.
- The violations of this command.
- Natural man holds the truth under in unrighteousness, so it is distorted and perverted (Rom. 1:18; 3:13,14).
- The most frequent lie is about ourselves, denying specific sins (I John 1:10) and "forgetting" our sinfulness (James 1:24).
- Sometimes we lie directly, but more often it is a poisonous half-truth (distort the truth) or cowardly silence.
- Gossip is speaking the truth unnecessarily.
- Every violation of this commandment is most serious: (Prov. 12:22; 6:16-19; 19:5,9; 21:28; Psalm 15:-3; Rev. 21:8).
- This command sets before the redeemed the duty to express our gratitude by speaking the truth in love (Eph. 4:15,16).
- The speaking God enables His children to be truth speakers, graciously giving us the Spirit of truth.
- Because a part of God's glory is that He is truth, the glory of believers is that we know the truth, speak and live it.
- We speak the truth about ourselves.
- We speak the truth with and about our neighbor, seeking their spiritual good.