The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. – Proverbs 12:18

Today’s Scripture Reading (August 26, 2016): Proverbs 12

A War of Words. In our media-driven society, we hear a lot of them. Politicians are involved. So are our cultural heroes. Sometimes the wars come from honest disagreements on the way things should be done. Sometimes the wars are based on exaggerated claims. Sometimes they are based on outright lies. It is probably this last category that bothers me the most. Now, with social media and news stories that no longer have to be vetted and properly sourced, it is easier to get the lies out. Often the lies are more sensational and, therefore, gain traction faster. And our reactions to the sensitive issues of the day begin to be built around things that aren’t even true.

But they are, after all, just words.I wish we were exempt from this problem as Christians, but I often think that it is the reverse that is our reality. No group seems to be as susceptible to the lie as the Christians. We also go well beyond the lie; we give the lie a moral understanding. And this intensifies the War of Words.

If we are truly a people that believe in the power of the Bible as Word of God that guides our behavior, we need to pay a little closer attention to these words from Proverbs. Proverbs insists that it is the words of the reckless that pierce, but the words of the wise bring healing. Our calling has never been to pierce like a sword, but rather to heal. The question on our minds should not be what tantalizing piece of sensational news can we tell, but rather how can we bring healing to this world. 

I am tired of watching Christians standing on a picket line picketing whatever it is that is that week’s flavor of evil. If the world must see us taking a stand against evil, it should not be our sharply chosen words that it sees. It should be our tears.  It isn’t another war of words that is needed; it is a church that takes the nails that are driven into it and cries genuine tears for the pain of this world. Then, maybe, we can be involved in the healing process of the world.

And the war of words can be finally left in the domain of the politicians.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Proverbs 13