In the prior broadcasts we studied the unruly tongue and its wicked manifestations. In this broadcast we will study a good tongue and its various scriptural manifestations. A good tongue is a:
Learned tongue – Is 50:4 – “the Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned.” This is a reference to Jesus Christ and how he learned from his Father. According to the scholars of their day, the disciples were ignorant and unlearned men [Acts 4:13]. However, because they had been with Jesus they were learned in the same way that Jesus learned by having fellowship with his Father every morning. You can learn the same way. You don’t need to be a scholar to be learned [Lk 10:21]. You just need to know God and HIS words. That way you can speak as the oracles of God [1 Pet 4:11]. When Jesus spoke he spoke as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
Righteous tongue – Ps 35:28 – “my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long,” [Ps 71:24; 119:172]. Imagine speaking of God’s righteousness all day. If you would you would always be speaking things that are right and true. The news is rarely right and true. Reporters and media outlets are in such a hurry to tell the new events that they on’t have all the facts. By the time they have enough facts to report, people are already tired of the story and they have moved on. We don’t want to be like that. Let’s say things that bring praise and honor to the Lord. It’s not how the world judges what you say; it’s how God judges what you say that matters.
Praying tongue – Ps 66:17 – “I cried unto him with my mouth, and he was extolled with my tongue.” God loves to hear the prayers of the righteous. We wouldn’t have instructions like Lk 18:1, if God didn’t want us to constantly pray. 1 Thes 5:17, we are to pray without ceasing. You can get more done by praying than you can by saying, because God can do more than you can do.
Singing tongue – Ps 126:2 – “… and our tongue with singing.” Sing songs to the Lord. They will cheer your heart, they will please the Lord and they will teach and admonish others. When we preach at the nursing home, it is amazing that feeble minded people can still remember so many hymns by heart. Hymn writers composed hymns about the majesty and grandeur of the Lord after experiencing his grace and mercy firsthand. They have put into words and melodies songs that we can sign for the rest of our lives.
Conclusion: Use your tongue, when you have learned from the Lord, to speak of the righteousness of the Lord, to pray to the Lord and to sing about him. These are all good things.