JESUS' TEACHING ON IDLE WORDS
"BUT I SAY UNTO YOU, THAT EVERY IDLE WORD THAT MEN SHALL SPEAK, THEY SHALL GIVE ACCOUNT OF IN THE DAY OF JUDGMENT. FOR BY YOUR WORDS YOU SHALL BE JUSTIFIED, AND BY YOUR WORDS YOU SHALL BE CONDEMNED."
Jesus spoke those words in Matthew 12:36-37.
Now some you have a wrong idea of "judgment day" have this scenario:
On judgment day all people will stand before God. A huge screen comes out; a voice says, "All your idle words will now be shown you."
Then for however long certain words in sentences you spoke while in a flesh and bone body on earth, start to come up. It goes on and on till all the idle words you ever spoke are brought up and declared to you.
It is after this that the decision is made if you are saved or lost; or after this you are given your reward according to how many idle words you spoke.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS?
THERE IS MUCH WRONG!
First: can you imagine the time it would take for BILLIONS of people to go through this kind of "idle word progress."
Second: to have this as a away of salvation would be against everything else the New Testament teaches. It would be a not knowing until then if you are saved or not. It would be a saved by works salvation.....how many bad works of idle words against "good" words did you do in your lifetime.
You are saved by GRACE not good words and bad words. A Christian has to be forgiven sins, and when forgiven, they are gone. A Christian has a mind-set that wants to serve and do the will of God; they miss the mark at times, they sin; they are in a repentant attitude of mind, asking forgiveness. Jesus is now our High-priest, on the Father's right hand, interceding for us. All of this means we are under the grace of God, continually. We do not have to wait and have all or sins, and idle words brought up on judgment day, and see if we have more "good" works and words, over the number of bad works and words, to determine if we are saved or not.
SO WHAT DOES JESUS MEAN BY TALKING ABOUT IDLE WORDS?
PAUL GIVES IS A CLUE:
"But what says it? The word is nigh you, even in your mouth, and in your heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; that if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God raised Him up from the dead, you shall be saved. For with the heart man believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" (Rom. 10: 8-10).
Notice, the two here - mouth and heart go together. And that should be logical sense; for the words out of your mouth give what your heart [true emotions we use the "heart" example]. It is a way of speaking, for your heart has no brain to think, it is the mind that thinks and from the mind comes the words out of our mouth. But the Bible and our English language uses descriptive ways to get across certain ideas. We often use the "heart" message this way, i.e. "He just didn't have the heart to do it" - "He lost heart and so did not continue...." - "She had such a big heart she would help anyone in difficulty." BUT IT IS THE MIND doing the thinking.
The word of faith Paul and others were preaching, went into the mind-heart of listeners. People are to confess with their mouth what is already in their heart-mind.....believing Jesus is Lord; believing God raised Him from the dead. This true heart-mouth confession is salvation, for, note it, verse 10, "For with the heart man believes unto righteousness [righteousness is Psalm 119: 172], and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."
When you become a Christian, you accept Jesus as personal Savior, you accept He is alive in heaven today. You have your heart and mouth together; it must be together. You believe in your heart and you so confess with your mouth. There is an INNER mind-belief that accepts what I've just mentioned, and an inner-mind that moves to righteousness - righteousness being the commandments of God. Your inner heart-mind knows that to have salvation means you are willing to serve and obey God. Your inner mind-heart is willing to do what Jesus taught, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God (Mat. 4:4).
THEN from this inner heart-mind you SPEAK with your mouth. Not only your actions in the way you live is from God, your words show and tell [sometimes you may have to deliberately tell someone you do not do this, or you do this, because you are a Christian] you are a Christian.
Jesus put it all another way when talking about WORDS.
"NOT every one that says unto me, 'Lord, Lord," [words indeed coming from the mouth] shall enter the Kingdom of heaven; BUT he that DOES the WILL of my Father which is in heaven" (Mat. 7:21).
Ah..... words from the mouth, but they are idle words, for the heart-mind is NOT in unity with the words.
Jesus went on to say, "Many will say to me in that day [a day when they have to stand before Christ], 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name? And in your name have cast out devils? And in your name, done wonderful works?' PEOPLE will have used their mouth alright to say they were Christians and doing these things in Jesus' name, but the words do NOT fit the heart-mind..... they are idle words, FOR Jesus continued: "And then will I profess unto them, I NEVER KNEW YOU, DEPART FROM ME YOU THAT WORK LAWLESSNESS [as the Greek reads]" (verse 22, 23).
The IDLE WORDS that will keep you OUT of the Kingdom of God, are words that say to others you are a Christian; will even say to Jesus on that day, "Lord, we did this and that in your name; we told people we were doing it in your name." BUT THEIR WORDS WERE IDLE WORDS.....they were words of speech that came from a physical mouth, BUT THEY WERE EMPTY WORDS, IDLE WORDS, for their mind-heart actions of LIVING did not match up to the words from their mouth.
IDLE words are not words of taking about the latest score in some sports game; what you plan to have for supper; what new car you would like to have; what hobby you are into; where you plan going on the summer holiday; what's your favorite desert; and all general talk in your life as you work in your profession, or do your hobbies. As you move and have your being with other individuals [of course within God's law] there are MANY things you'll talk about, that are NOT idle words.
God is not busy recording all you speak from your mouth, as you live among human beings, and to have you stand before Him, and for Him to then bring up on some screen all the "idle words" in conversations you had with people during your life on earth. Then decide if you are "justified" and can enter His Kingdom.
THE IDLE WORDS THAT WILL CONDEMN YOU, ARE WORDS THAT YOU SPEAK TO OTHERS AND SPEAK TO CHRIST, SAYING YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN; YOU'VE DONE THIS OR THAT IN HIS NAME, BUT HAVE NOT OBEYED HIM OR THE FATHER IN THE WAY YOU HAVE LIVED.
IDLE WORDS ARE WORDS OF HOLLOWNESS, WORDS THAT MEAN NOTHING WHEN THE RUBBER HITS THE ROAD.
WE HAVE A SAYING THAT SAYS, "WORDS ARE CHEAP" - ANYONE CAN SAY WORDS. WORDS THAT HAVE MEANING ARE WORDS FOLLOWED BY ACTIONS. THE WORDS THAT WILL JUSTIFY YOU OR CONDEMN YOU, ARE WORDS HERE AND NOW....... WORDS THAT ARE MEANINGLESS AS FAR AS BEING A TRUE CHILD OF THE FATHER, OR WORDS THAT ARE BACKED UP WITH CORRECT ACTIONS AS A CHILD OF GOD.
THE CONTEXT OF MATTHEW 12: 36, 37, IS RIGHT THERE IN THE VERSES BEFORE. AND ALSO THE TRUTH OF VERSES 36, 37, HAVE BEEN GIVEN BEFORE BY JESUS IN MATTHEW 7:21-27.
ON THE BIG DAY TO COME, IF YOUR THERE IN GLORY FORM BEFORE AND WITH JESUS, YOU'LL ALREADY KNOW YOUR WORDS WERE NOT IDLE. YOU WILL KNOW SOME WORDS SAID IN A STATE OF DISTRESS, ANGER, FRUSTRATION, WORDS THAT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN SAID, HAVE UPON YOUR REPENTANT ATTITUDE, BEEN FORGIVEN THROUGH THE BLOOD OF JESUS AND HIS INTERCEDING WORK AS OUR HIGH PRIEST.
..........
Keith Hunt
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