Dial In with Jonny Ardavanis - The Tongue pt. 2

Episode Date: May 27, 2022

In this two part series, Jonny Ardavanis is going to discuss the power of the tongue.Ephesians 4:29, “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only that which is good for edification, according to the need of the moment, giving grace to those who hear.” In this episode Jonny Ardavanis finishes this short two-part series on the tongue by presenting four reasons God gave you a tongue: 1. To speak the truth, 2. To pray, 3. To edify others, 4. To Sing.Watch VideosVisit the Website Follow on InstagramFollow on Twitter

Hey guys, my name is Johnny Artavanis and this is Dial In. Thank you guys for continuing to listen and share the show. One thing that would be helpful for us is if you would subscribe, rate, and comment on the show page on either Apple or Spotify or whatever streaming platform you use. This helps more people find the Dial In podcast. Now in this episode, we are in part two of a short series on the tongue. In our previous episode, we discussed some of the illeg a short series on the tongue. In our previous episode, we discussed some of the illegitimate uses of the tongue. So if you haven't already listened to that episode,

you might want to go back and do that now. But for everyone else, let's dial in. Okay, in our previous episode, we looked primarily at the book of James, and we saw that James is primarily writing to promote the lifestyle and convictions of a genuine follower of Christ. Many people profess Christ, but not many people possess Christ. Faith is always proven. I want to explain this for a minute. I worked at a summer camp for a number of years where thousands of students during my time there made a commitment to Christ. But many of them would later on write me and ask me how they can know if the transformation was genuine. They would ask me, Johnny, how do I know if I've really been saved? How can I distinguish whether or not I've been charmed by the gospel or truly changed

by the gospel? Well, thankfully, scripture answers this question with crystal clarity. The way that we can know if we've been genuinely transformed is if the fruit of our life evidences that God has changed our heart. Don't miss this. We are saved through faith alone, by grace alone, but true saving faith is never alone. It is always accompanied by a new behavior because we have received a new life in Christ. And that new behavior, as we will discuss in this episode, is evidenced first and foremost by the new way we employ our tongues. New creatures have a new tongue in which they reveal to the world around them, I'm different. I'm changed. I'm not what or who I used to be. Christians lose their worldly accent. It's as if the world around them can

hear the way they talk and tilt their head and say, you're not from around here. Where are you from? You talk differently. James is saying faith finds itself in action. And what you say, what you don't say, and how you say it is the most revealing thing about you. Your mouth can actually reveal whether or not your heart belongs to Christ. And if you have been changed by God, you assuredly have begun to ask the question, how can I be used by God? Well, the good news is the way to make an impact on the world around you

doesn't start by doing something large, but starts by bridling and controlling something small. Last episode, we covered the illegitimate ways that the tongue is used. It is disproportionately powerful. It's small, yet it wields much destruction. It's like a fire, James says. Now then, in this episode,

I want to cover how we are to use our tongues. There is so much I could say, but I've done my best to condense it. I'm going to break it down by detailing four reasons God gave you a tongue. One thing that I will reinforce at the end that must be understood now is that the bridling of our tongue cannot be done by our own bootstraps. Our tongue is a reflection of the heart, right? So if we want to change our tongue, we don't go to the fruit of the heart. We must go to the root of the heart, right? So if we want to change our tongue, we don't go to the fruit of

the heart. We must go to the root of the heart and plant our minds in the gospel. But I'll come back to that. One thing to note before we jump into the first reason is that there is a pattern in scripture that you have to understand. If you're a new Christian or you've been in the church your entire life, you have to understand this pattern. In God's word, God is never calling for us to merely stop sinning. He is always calling for us to replace our sin with the fruit of righteousness. I want to give you an example before we move on with the tongue. Take for an example, a thief who is constantly stealing and conning others for ill-gotten gain. Biblically speaking, that person is not just

commanded to stop stealing, but watch. I'll let scripture speak for itself. Ephesians 4.28. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. Did you catch that? The person who once stole is now commanded to no longer steal, but then also to get a job so that, purpose clause, so that he can give something away to those who need. As Lewis Johnson says, the spirit of God is the only one who can take a thief and turn him into a philanthropist. With that in mind, let's look at the first reason God gave you a tongue. Number one, God gave you a tongue to speak the truth. We know that God hates lying. Proverbs 6, Proverbs 12, Proverbs 22. God

is not indifferent to lying. He is indignant over lying. And those who practice lying, they don't know God because God is a God, Isaiah 65 says, of truth. Now, remember those patterns I described to you as you listen to the words of Ephesians 4.15. Ephesians 4.15 says, lay aside all falsehood and instead speak the truth to your neighbor. Scripture says, lay aside, throw it away from you like a dirty garment, all falsehood. Eliminate every form of embellishment and exaggeration from your life. Commit to speaking the truth, the whole truth

and nothing but the truth. You and I, think with me, we live in a world of lies. And one of the greatest testimonies to a dying world that you are a new creature is imitating the God who saved you by speaking the truth to your boss, to your coworkers, to your spouse, to your parents, whatever it might be. As one commentator says, a commitment to honesty is the backbone of the Christian's tongue. The Christian makes this commitment. If it is not true, I will not say it. I will not embellish.

I will not exaggerate. I will tell the truth. I will not say I was only joking after I have spoken deceitfully because Proverbs says, and I love this, like a maniac shooting flaming arrows of death is the one who deceives their neighbor and says, I was only joking. The Christian life is so much more than refraining from the sins of the world. The question that scripture wants you to ask yourself is not merely, am I still

telling lies? Then I need to stop telling them. But also, am I proactively and consistently speaking the truth? If so, we will be active to proclaim with our tongues the most important truth the world has ever known, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I don't know if you really think through this, but one of the chief reasons God gave you a tongue is so that you can faithfully and boldly proclaim the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Romans 10, 17 says faith comes by hearing, meaning that people only come to Christ when others faithfully employ their tongues in proclaiming the gospel. Listen to the great words of this hymn. Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer's praise, the glories of my God and King,

the triumphs of his grace. He breaks the power of canceled sin. He sets the prisoner free. His blood can make the phallus clean, his blood availed for me. This wonderful truth that God sets the prisoner free and makes the phallus clean is proclaimed by the faithful stewardship of your tongue. Okay, much more could be said here, but let's move on to number two. God gave you a tongue so that you might pray. Prayer is the most noble, most important thing your tongue will ever do. There is nothing more profound or significant than talking to the creator of the universe. Prayer is power. Prayer is life. In Colossians 3, 5 through 9, Paul is going to follow the similar pattern that I have already described. He details what the old life looks like, sensuality, sexual immorality, greed,

lust, envy, and then he describes the new life starting in verse 10. And one of the first things he is going to start describing is what the Christian does with their mouth. We see this clearly in chapter 4. He says in Colossians 4.2, devote yourself to prayer, be watchful and be thankful and pray for us too. We see this same exhortation elsewhere in scripture. 1 Thessalonians 5 17, pray without ceasing. Or Ephesians 6 18, pray always. Or Acts 6, pray at all times. Maybe you know this, but the question is, do you actually do this? Prayer is the sustenance and power of the believer. To be constantly in prayer doesn't mean that we're just talking out loud to God all day,

but it means that we live our life with a supreme consciousness of God that propels us to pray at all times. When times are bad, we pray that we would trust him. When times are good, we pray that we would trust him. When times are good, we thank him for his provision. When you see a beautiful mountain or the crashing of the waves, you are compelled to offer up thanksgiving to the God that made the mountains and who made the waves. Now, I want to draw your attention to some specific things that we are to pray for. I don't find this to be a detour as we discuss the tongue. I find this to

be explicitly biblical. Yes, we can pray without vocalizing actual words, but Psalm 142 says, I cry aloud with my voice to the Lord and he hears me. Additionally, prayer in your life should be commonly and consistently amongst other believers who you pray with and who you pray for. This is what marked the early church, and this is what should mark your life. They gathered together daily and prayed. So one of the first things that we can pray for is for opportunities to share the gospel. Paul says, pray always in Ephesians 6, 18. And then in verse 19, he says, pray for me that opportunities may be given unto me that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel for which I am an ambassador in bonds. I want you to think about this. Paul is in prison when he's writing

this. And interestingly, he doesn't say, pray for me that I get released from prison. He says, pray for me that I'll open my mouth and I'll find an opportunity for the word of God to go forth. The entire book of Acts testifies to the Lord answering Paul's prayer for opportunities to preach the gospel. Acts 12, Acts 16, Acts 14, after beatings, after hardship, after persecution, the Lord continues to open the door for Paul to open his mouth and preach the gospel. I want to ask you, how fervently have you prayed for opportunities to proclaim Christ? If so, how often do you seize those opportunities that the Lord has opened?

Eternity has never been closer than it is today. It's never been nearer. Don't squander those opportunities. Well, in order to maximize those opportunities, you're not only going to need to pray for those opportunities, but also secondly here to pray for boldness. Paul continues in Ephesians 6, 19 and says that I may speak boldly as they ought to speak. We are to pray for boldness in preaching the gospel. In Acts 4, Peter and John, after being beaten for preaching the gospel, pray, oh Lord, grant to your servants

that with all boldness, we may speak your word. And then in verse 31, it says, when they had finished praying, the place was shaken where they assembled. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and they spoke the word of God with boldness. Third, we are to offer up prayers of intercession. We pray on behalf of others. Fourth, we are to pray prayers of confession. Psalm 32, David says, when I kept silent about my sin, my bones wasted away through my groanings

all day long. Then in verse five, he says, then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord and you forgave me the guilt of my sin. Fifth, we are to offer up prayers of thanksgiving. Colossians 2, six through nine tells us that as you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him, established in the faith as you have been taught. And then it says abounding with thanksgiving. The believer has so many wonderful things to be thankful for, but how often do we express with our tongues to the Lord that He is good? Our God is abounding in loving kindness and goodness.

And the question is, are you abounding in gratitude and thanksgiving? Scripture says we are called to be. One of the main things that I'm thankful for is that when I pray, I have a confidence that God is with me. My prayer is not a tradition or a ritual nor a set of motions that I pass through. It is a real conversation with the triune God. Psalm 75 1 says, unto you, O Lord, I give thanks. Why? Because he says, you are near. Lastly here on prayer, we are to pray for wisdom, self-control, and strengthening in the way that we use our tongues. Psalm 141.3 says, set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth and keep the door of my

lips. Okay, so number one, we are to use our tongues to speak the truth. Number two, we are to use our tongues to pray. And number three, God gave you a tongue to build others up. We looked at the beginning of Ephesians 4.29 last episode, and now we will get to the rest of that verse. It says, let no unwholesome word proceed out of your mouth, but only that which is good for edification, according to the need of the moment, giving grace to those who hear. Okay, I want to talk about this word edification for a second. It means to build up, to support, to strengthen and bolster. To edify is the opposite of speaking hurting words and harming words.

It means that you only speak words that make souls stronger. To build up means at times you speak words of healing. Nothing can be built upon what is broken. So part of strengthening a soul is offering healing words to that person in the form of truth. Words that harm, you know this, sound like, what are you thinking? You always do this.

I should have expected this from you. You're an idiot. How are you my son? Why do you do what you do all the time? Edifying words sound like this. You're so gifted. I love it when you do this. You're so good at that.

One of the ways that I've seen God growing you in your life is when you do this. Words can be difficult. They can be constructive. They can be rebuking and they can be bluntly honest, but they are always meant to build up and never to destroy. Real Christians do not try to injure people with their tongue. They always, always, always try to build. Question, at what point can you speak destructively? Answer, never. Every single word is one for the purpose of edifying. Paul says that we are to speak words that are edifying. Then he says, according to the need of the moment. Do you know what that means? It means that there is a level of thoughtfulness

and intentionality that must accompany every word that you speak. Every time you interact with someone, there is something going on within their own heart that makes them needy for a word that edifies them. Think about this in your own life. In what area are you lacking or discouraged? What word from someone else would minister grace to you if spoken directly to you. Every word that does not build up is worthless. This is especially important. I must consider the people to whom I am speaking. I must make an assessment and determine the best way to communicate to the listener in a fashion that builds them up. They are souls. They are eternal. And the scripture tells us we are to minister grace to them. Some of them may be unconverted. So we are to call attention to the truth. Some of them may know

Christ. So we are to build them up, strengthen them, point them towards the truth and the love of Christ. Then Paul says that we are to give edifying words according to the need of the moment. And then he says, giving grace to those who hear. To edify means that you speak words of grace. Grace is strengthening. I love what my friend Harry says in this regard. He says, make a resolution. I will only speak words that make souls stronger. When we listen to Paul describe the gracious manner in which we are to speak, he will then transition right after that in Ephesians 4 to Ephesians 5.1 and say, be an imitator of Jesus Christ. Truly, to speak graciously is to imitate our Savior Jesus Christ.

Listen to Luke 4.22. After Jesus spoke, the people wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. Jesus was gentle and he was gracious. And for this reason, God will tell us through his word in Colossians 4, 6, let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how to answer every man. Paul's just talking about general conversation here. Whether it's with your family, your wife, your teachers, your children, your neighbor, whether you're teaching a Bible study, let your speech be gracious. To have your speech be gracious, and then it says be seasoned with salt, means that your speech is loving. It's never bitter. It's never vindictive. It's not arrogant, but it also means that your speech has an effect

on those to whom you speak. Salt preserves, it heals, it prevents corruption and decay. To speak in a manner that edifies means that we also speak with kindness. Paul says in Ephesians 4.29, nothing in wholesome, only words that edify, give grace, seasoned words with salt. And then in verse 32, he says, be kind to one another and tender hearted. If a heart is tender, it's sensitive, not in an overly sensitive way, but tender hearts feel. They know that words have power. Those with tender hearts know that the tongue can so easily destroy. But not only that, the tongue also has the power to construct, to build, to buttress

in such a way where people are energized by the words that you speak to them. Ask yourself this question. Do I edify those around me? Do people feel torn down by my words? Maybe you say no, but then ask yourself this question. Do my words build? Do my words strengthen the souls of those that I interact with in a life-giving way? So let me recap where we've covered so far. Number one, God gave us a tongue to proclaim the truth. Number two, to pray. Number three, to build one another up.

And fourth, finally and briefly here, God gave us a tongue so that we could sing. I want at some point to do a whole episode, if not a series on the topic of worship and singing, but let's let scripture speak for itself here. God gave you a tongue because singing with your tongue glorifies God and encourages those around you. In Psalm 63, verse three and four, the psalmist says, because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. Colossians 3, 16, let the message of Christ, the word of Christ, richly dwell within you to teach you and admonishing you with all wisdom, with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with gratitude in your hearts to God. Singing glorifies

God and it strengthens, encourages, and edifies fellow believers. But I want you to watch this. It also functions as a testimony to the unsaved world. Listen to Acts 16, 25, which says, about midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. The other prisoners listened to them sing the truth about their savior, Jesus Christ. There is much more I could say about the tongue, but what so quickly comes to mind after studying and teaching through Ecclesiastes on this podcast and at church is that God also gave us his tongue so that we could employ it with joy, to laugh, to communicate, to honor him. But maybe you're asking, how can I grow in the use of my tongue? Well, a couple

things here. Number one, speak slowly. I don't mean the pace in which you talk. James 1.19 says, you know this, my beloved brethren, everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger. One of the things I was contemplating as I was studying for this episode is how many people must have come and dumped their lives on Jesus Christ. They knew he would be quick to listen. The most helpful thing that we can do is we must learn to speak slowly,

to absorb other people's burdens, to listen to them. The hallmark of believers is that they are quick to listen and slow to speak. Secondly, we must have our minds renewed in the truth if we are to have our tongues renewed. The tongue can only be transformed by the heart hearing the word of God. The most important aid in enabling you to employ your tongue in a Christ-like manner is having a heart that has heard the words of God so you learn your tongue in a Christ-like manner is having a heart that has heard the words of God so you learn to speak with a Christ-like accent. And as our minds are renewed in the truth, we will not only be kind and tenderhearted towards one another, but we will

grow in our ever-deepening understanding of the kindness, love, and tenderhearted compassion that Christ has extended towards us. Paul says at the end of Ephesians 4.32, after detailing how we are to use our tongues, that we are to forgive one another, he says, and then he says, just as Christ has forgiven you, we have been forgiven from a crushing debt. And this reminder causes us to hold still, shut our mouths, and then open them once again only after considering the precious love, costly sacrifice, and high calling of the tongue that our Savior gives us. No man can master the tongue, but God's word can go deep into our hearts and begin to remove all the poison that is there in order that we speak not poison, not unwholesome, unedifying talk, but rather loving,

kind, and gracious truth. And third here, in order to have our tongues renewed, and we already have covered this, there must be an understanding that we cannot do this by our own bootstraps. We must desperately seek God's help. Psalm 1914 says, Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. And Psalm 141.3 again, Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth. Keep watch over the door of my lips. May that be all of our prayers,

that we would use our tongue for God's glory, the edification of others, and the proclamation of the gospel. Stay dialed in.