I'm going to give you a piece of my mind on this week's edition
of Liberty at Home. Welcome back, Pastor Adam Rivero
here with another episode of Liberty at Home brought to you
by the church that pastor, the Liberty Baptist Church here in
Easton. Today, as always, we're
broadcasting from Easton Community Access Television, the
only news organization covering Easton news.
And you really ought to watch the weekly Easton news
broadcast. They do a great job.
But that being said, let's get to this program today, which
we're on the 29th chapter of Proverbs.
So we'll be reading both the 11th and the 22nd verses which
say this, A fool uttereth all his mind, but a wise man keepeth
it in till afterwards. And then verse 22, an angry man
stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in
transgression. Doesn't it feel good to give
someone a piece of your mind? That aggravating neighbor that
uses their leaf blower before 7:00 in the morning?
That customer service Rep on the phone that tells you how
important your business is, all while ignoring your concerns?
Or that guy in the car in front of you going 15 miles an hour
under the speed limit? Look, they'll have it coming,
right? And let's be honest, there's
something instantly gratifying about giving someone a piece of
your mind. Like a hit, a dopamine that
rewards you for running your mouth.
In fact, I'd argue that there are times that it feels like
it's the only course of action to give someone a piece of your
mind. It was Mark Twain who famously
said when you're mad, it's better to give a piece of your
mind than a piece of your fist. So really, chewing someone out
isn't a bad thing. It actually is the most
reasonable course of action, right?
Well, no, it's absolutely wrong. Today's text tells us that when
we think the opportunity arises for us to choose someone out,
we'd be much better off holding our tongue.
The first verse we read together said that a fool utters all his
mind, but a wise man keeps it in until afterwards.
While it might feel good letting someone have it, King Solomon
gives us a clear warning that this type of behavior is
counterproductive. As the old saying goes, it's
better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool than to
open it and remove all doubt. Now listen.
This doesn't mean that the truth should be silenced and that a
Christian should just roll over and play dead when dealing with
a difficult situation. Quite the contrary.
What it does mean, however, is that the wisest course of action
is to make sure your mind and your ears are fully engaged
before your mouth is. To respond to a situation with
irritability or irrationality is the opposite of what we're told
in the Beatitudes. Blessed are the peacemakers, for
they shall be called the children of God.
Now understand this, there are some people who just don't want
peace and that's why Paul said in Romans chapter 12 verse 18,
if it'd be possible as much as life in you live peaceably with
all men. That phrase as much as lieth in
you is important because it may not be possible to make peace
with everyone. In fact, verse 22 that we just
read makes reference to these types of angry and furious
people. Yet the Bible commands that we,
on the other hand, can be peaceable people, even if we
have to speak hard or difficult truths that other people don't
want to hear. Is it difficult?
Yes. Can we succeed with God's help?
Absolutely. So the next time you deal with
the doctor's office and it's the fourth time you've talked to
them and they say they've sent the referral to the specialist,
but you know they haven't. You're tired of dealing with
them, and you're pretty sure someone should get fired anyway.
As I was saying, let's listen more than we speak and be more
willing to share a part of our heart with someone than giving
them a piece of our mind. Well, another episode of Liberty
at Home is in the books. But before we go, I want to give
you a weekly reminder that we'd love to have you visit Liberty
Baptist Church this week. We have services on Sundays and
Wednesdays, so there's always a good time for you to visit.
We meet at 800 Washington Street, right across from Easton
Pool and Spa on Route 138. You can also find all of our
digital platforms through our website, mylibertybaptist.org.
Well, this is Pastor Ron Rivera signing off with a reminder that
where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
See you next week for another dose of biblical truth on
liberty at home.