The Tongue Speaks Forth Death or Life

Psalm 34:11-13

"Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days. keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies."

The inspired Word of God offers to teach us the fear of the Lord, something of infinite value and worth. There is nothing in all Scripture to which is attached greater blessing, fruitfulness, and assurance. The psalmist says in Psalm 34:11-13 that life and many good days go with fear of the Lord. In Scripture, life in its fullness and the fear of the Lord are always linked together. The measure in which we have the fear of the Lord is the measure in which we enjoy true life.

Where does the fear of the Lord begin? The psalmist says, "Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies." In other words, the first area of life in which the fear of the Lord will be demonstrated is in our speech. If we can keep our tongue from evil and our lips from speaking lies, we can move on into the fullness of the fear of the Lord. Then out of the fear of the Lord comes life and many good days. The fear of the Lord, life, good days, and the proper use and control of our tongue are all bound together. We cannot really have a good life if we do not control our tongue.


From: Derek Prince, Does Your Tongue Need Healing & OMF Literature Inc.

If I SIN, Will I Lose my Salvation?

Once we are adopted into the family of God through faith in Jesus Christ, we belong there for all eternity. A sinful act cannot take away our heavenly inheritance from us.

When we sin against God, He gently rebukes us and lovingly calls us back to Himself. When we stubbornly refuse to listen to Him, He disciplines us. We lose the joy of His fellowship. If we go on ignoring Him, we may even lose the assurance of our salvation because our hardened hearts would have lost touch with God's Spirit in us.

When we are adopted into God's family, we do our best to live worthy of His family's good name. Grace might have saved us, but it does not give us the license to continue sinning. Out of thankfulness to God, we must live our lives in a way that pleases Him. Membership in God's family, however, does not guarantee us sinless lives. Our transformation into Christ's nature is not instantaneous; it is progressive. That is why we still find ourselves falling into sin.

God understands our nature, and He has given us a remedy in 1 John -- "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." As God's children, we are secure. Jesus did not only die to save us; He also rose to see us through eternity.

CBN International Ministries & OMF Literature

When You Need Strength

Ephesians 3:16, 17

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith."

Prayer of the Day: Blessing for the Home

Peace be to this house
And to all who dwell in it.
Peace be to them that enter
And to them that depart.
In Jesus Name we pray, Amen!

Clean Hands; a Pure Heart

Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart.

P S A L M 24: 3 - 4

God has rigid requirements for those who want to enjoy intimate fellowship with Him. There is no easy access to God for those with unclean hands or an impure heart. It is an affront to holy God to assume that we can indulge in our sin and blatantly disobey His word, then brazenly enter the holy of holies. In the Old Testament times, one's hands represented one's activities. Clean hands symbolized pure activities. Priests washed their hands before serving in the temple to symbolize that only those who were cleansed could worship holy God.

There are levels of intimacy with God. The moment you become a Christian you begin a relationship with the Lord. However, if you persist in your sin, sin will separate you from God and keep you from enjoying close fellowship with Him. If you follow only God's basic commandments but resist every time God gives you specific, personal directions, you never fully experience the depths of God's Person. If, however, you are like the psalmist and understand the holiness of God, you will adjust your life to His standards and respond to His prompting so that you may have deeper fellowship with Him.

The closer you get to holy God, the more obvious even your smallest sins become. The more you know of God's character, the more you will realize the need to wash your hands and purify your heart before you can get close to Him.

Are you willing for almighty God to make you absolutely pure before Him so that you can enjoy the maximum possible relationship with Him?

From: Experiencing God Day-By-Day
By: Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby
Devotional -- Church Strengthening Ministry