“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.” Matthew 12:33, NKJV

“You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:34-37, ESV

We are who we say we are! Church of Christ at Medina November 23 rd, 2014

Pure Speech “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.” (Ephesians 5:1-4 ESV) To keep our speech pure and holy, we must avoid all types of evil speaking. –Colossians 3:8 –Titus 3:1-2 –James 1:26 –Ephesians 4:31 –1 Peter 2:1

Pure Speech With whom should we use pure speech? –Those who we work with –Those who we worship with James 4:11 – “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.” (Ephesians 5:1-4 ESV) –Those who we live with

Pure Speech Our speech must be pure…consistently. “For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.” James 3:2-12, ESV

Seasoned Speech (Kind) Colossians 4:5-6 – “Conduct yourselves wisely toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” Our tongues must be used to spread kind words. –“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” (Proverbs 15:1) –“…she opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.” (Proverbs 31:26)

Sound Speech (True) “But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.” (Titus 2:1) Our speech must be pure and it must be kind, but not at the expense of truthfulness. “Follow the pattern of sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.” (2 Timothy 1:13- 14)

Conclusion Our speech should be pure and holy. Our speech should be seasoned, gracious and kind. Our speech should be sound in doctrine and faith. Hebrews 13:15 – “Through Him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge His name.”