We often struggle with the Sovereignty of God because we do not appreciate the circumstances that come into our lives that we deem as evil or at least not in our best interest. In the book of Ruth, Naomi struggles with God’s sovereignty. On one hand she says in chapter 1verse 6 that, “The LORD has visited His people by giving them bread” but on the other hand, she says to her daughters-in-law to return to their mother’s houses with the prayer that “The LORD deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me.” (1:8). She goes on to pray in chapter 1 verse 9 “The LORD grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.” As we read those statements carefully, and begin to connect the dots that lead to a bitter heart, we see that there is a significant difference in speaking about God in a limited, skewed fashion and speaking about him in a robust, complete way. In Naomi’s heart, the LORD had let her down, and her daughters-in-law were just as well off worshipping a god of Moab as the god of Israel. The challenging reality here … READ MORE

Today social media is being used for many different purposes, some good and some evil. We need to be careful of the words that we post, that we consider their impact. The old adage “sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me” is seriously flawed. James completes his admonition against bitter, sinful speech by explaining that the net effect of such words are “confusion and every evil thing are there. (James 3:16). Bitter words will ruin every relationship or organization they are brought upon. We can praise God for an alternative. God stands ready to help us tame our bitter tongue, whether that is in spoken or written words. The process is hard, but the fruit is more than worth it. Just as bitter words and their ruinous effects destroy and tear down. Godly words can build up relationships and organizations. That is what the Savior of the world desires because He loves righteousness that is sown in peace by those who make peace. As we prepare to open our mouth, whether that is in pen or process, may we realize that the words that we are about to make public will affect people around … READ MORE

As a follower of Christ, our adversary, the devil, is the father of lies and is delighted when we speak words that are false, proud, jealous, and motivated by selfish ambition. In that sense, our bitter words glorify Satan instead of glorifying Jesus. No wonder James tells us in James 3:6 “the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.” This demonic source plays out in three different types of bitter speech. First, it can involve our evaluation of a past event. Bitterness invariable skews our circumstances, and we must be aware of falsehoods that are often spawned in our own bitter heart. For example, the children of Israel remembered their slavery in Egypt as having pots full of meat and plenty of bread (Exodus 16:3). Second, the fires of hell can produce false evaluations of our present difficulties. In Exodus 16:3 Israel said to Moses, we wish we “had died by the LORD”s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we … READ MORE