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The book of Proverbs can be difficult to preach since it seems like a collection of unrelated sayings. That’s where a resource like Wiersbe’s Expository Outlinescan be a great aid. Instead of a detailed exposition of the entire book, Wiersbe groups some of the proverbs under a similar topic. Let’s look at how he arranges proverbs related to speech or the tongue to learn how we could do something similar in our preaching or teaching.

Preaching the Good and Evil of the Tongue

There are many references to the tongue in Proverbs. We have suggested reading chapters 12 and 18 because they mention the tongue frequently, but you will want to follow the cross-references and examine other verses as well. We so often take the wonderful gift of speech for granted and abuse an ability that ought to be guarded and used to the glory of God.

Before we consider some of the sins of the tongue, we ought to note the blessings of a godly tongue. (This demands a godly heart, because the tongue only speaks what the heart treasures.) When used for good, the tongue is like valuable silver (10:20); a beautiful and fruitful tree of life (15:4; see 12:14 and 18:20); a refreshing well of water (18:4; 10:11); and a healthy dose of medicine (12:18). The tongue should be used for right purposes: bringing peace (15:1, 26); giving wise reproof to the erring (25:12; 28:23); delivering lost souls from death (11:9; 14:3–5, 25; 12:6); teaching people the things of the Lord (15:7; 16:21, 23; 20:15); and carrying the good news of the Gospel (25:25).

But Satan and the flesh want to control the tongue, and the results are sad. Perhaps more damage is done to lives, homes, and churches by the tongue than by any other means. It is sobering to realize that the tongue can be used to damage reputations and cause trouble, when it ought to be used to praise God, pray, and witness to others about Christ. The tongue is a “little member” of the body (James 3:5), but it is one member that must be yielded to God as a tool of righteousness (Rom. 6:12–13). Perhaps if we consider some of the sins of the tongue, it might encourage us to use our gift of speech more carefully.

The Evils of the Tongue

I. Lying (12:17–22)

“Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who deal truthfully are His delight.” – Proverbs 12:22

God hates a lying tongue (6:16–17). Sometimes a lying tongue is only covering up sin in the heart (10:18), such as we see in Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5) and Judas (John 12:1–8). In 12:18, Solomon suggests that lies are like cutting swords, but the truth is like a healing medicine. The truth is eternal, but lies will one day be revealed and the liars judged (v. 19). Verse 20 explains that it is deceit in the heart that makes a statement a lie. After all, the lips can utter true words, but if the intent of the heart is evil, the statement is false. Likewise, if we ignorantly speak an untrue statement, the statement may be a lie, but the speaker cannot be condemned as a liar.

The Bible tests and reveals the intents of the heart (Heb. 4:12), so the best way to be sure of telling the truth is to allow the Word and the Spirit to control the tongue. The truth will deliver souls (14:25), but lies only lead to bondage and shame. Proverbs 17:4 indicates that liars enjoy listening to liars. People who enjoy listening to gossip will turn around and gossip themselves. The heart controls the ear as well as the lips. But all liars will be punished (19:5, 9); and when they “eat their own words,” it will be like gravel (20:17). Hell is waiting for the one who “loves and practices a lie” (Rev. 22:15).

II. Talebearing (18:8)

“The words of a talebearer are like tasty trifles, and they go down into the inmost body.” – Proverbs 18:8

Moses warned about this sin in Lev. 19:16. A “talebearer” is one who runs from person to person telling matters that ought to be concealed, whether they are true or false. “Love covers all sins,” says 10:12. When we love others, we seek to help them privately, and we try to win them back to the right way (Matt. 18:15–18). Think how many people have been wounded by the talebearer. Words can be as deadly as weapons; in 25:18 Solomon compares deceitful words to three different weapons: a maul (battle-ax) that crushes at close range; a sword that cuts; and an arrow that pierces and can be shot from a distance. Stay away from the talebearer (20:19). He or she is a kindler of fires (26:20) and a destroyer of friendships (17:9).

III. Talking Too Much (12:13; 18:6–7)

“A fool’s lips enter into contention, and his mouth calls for blows. A fool’s mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul.” – Proverbs 18:6–7

The idea behind these verses is that the fool talks too much and talks his way right into trouble. His mouth becomes a trap, and he himself is snared by it. Read 6:1–5 to see how this sin gets people into trouble. “In the multitude of words sin is not lacking,” warns 10:19. A controlled tongue means a safe life (13:3); a loose tongue means poverty (14:23 – many people would rather talk than work) and foolishness (15:2). The person of few words is a person of knowledge (17:27–28). Unfortunately, there is sometimes a “multitude of words” even in God’s house, and Eccl. 5:1–7 has some good counsel about this.

IV. Talking Too Soon (18:13, 17)

“The first one to plead his cause seems right, until his neighbor comes and examines him.” – Proverbs 18:17

“Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak,”commands James 1:19. Too often we are slow to hear – we never really listen to the whole matter patiently – and swift to speak; and this gets us into trouble. It is wise to “restrain the lips” until you really have something to say (10:19). A godly person will study to answer, but a fool will open his mouth and pour out foolishness (15:28). Potiphar did not listen to Joseph’s side of the story and committed a great crime because of it. Jesus and the Apostles were not permitted to tell their whole story; the verdicts were passed by their enemies before the cases were honestly tried. God wants us to search out each matter carefully (25:2) and then give fair judgment.

Proverbs 18:17 warns us not to agree with the “first cause” that we hear but to seek to understand both sides of a matter. Even where dedicated Christians are involved, there are two sides to a story. This is not because people necessarily lie, but simply because no two people see and hear the same matter in the same way. All of us need to pray, “Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips” (Ps. 141:3).

V. Flattering (26:28)

“A lying tongue hates those who are crushed by it, and a flattering mouth works ruin.” – Proverbs 26:28

Flattery, of course, is a form of lying, but it is so dangerous that it deserves separate attention. “A flattering mouth works ruin,” warns 26:28; and 29:5 compares flattery to a dangerous net spread before an innocent man’s feet. For an X-ray of the flatterer’s mouth read Ps. 5:9. Flattery is insincere praise given by one who has selfish motives. “Flatter” and “flutter”belong to the same family of words, and you can just see the flatterer as he “flutters” around his victim, trying to impress him.

Satan used a form of flattery to tempt Eve: “You will be like God.” The evil woman uses flattery to tempt the young man (5:3; 7:5, 21). “The rich has many friends” mainly because they want to flatter him and get something out of him (14:20; 19:4–6). We are warned not to meddle with people given to flattery (20:19). Sad to say, sometimes the righteous will flatter the wicked in order to get advantages (25:26); and this will pollute a home, a church, or a nation like a poisoned spring. Honest rebuke is better than flattery (28:23). “Faithful are the wounds of a friend,”says 27:6, “but the kisses of an enemy (like Judas) are deceitful.”

Of course, there is a place for honest praise in the Christian life; see 1 Thes. 5:12–13. Honest praise is like a furnace (Prov. 27:21); it brings to the top either the pure gold or the dross. Some Christians are so carnal they cannot take praise; it goes to their heads. Worse still, they cannot stand to see another person praised. When the Jews praised David for his victories, this praise made David humble, but it revealed the envy and pride in Saul’s heart (1 Sam 18).

VI. Quarreling (12:16, 18)

“There is one who speaks like the piercings of a sword, but the tongue of the wise promotes health.” – Proverbs 12:18

There is a righteous anger (Eph. 4:26), but too often it becomes unrighteous anger and leads to arguing and displays of temper. An angry person keeps adding fuel to the fire only to make the matter worse (26:21), and angry words are the fuel. The best way to stop an argument is with soft words (15:1–2); this is the best way to “break the bones” (25:15). Being able to control one’s temper is the same as ruling an army or an empire (16:32).

More Expository Help!

This post gave you a small taste of what you can expect from Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines.

This is so amazing! I cannot believe this happened before 2024 came. Thank you all! I am so excited. Have a blessed week.

God is good!

www.bible.com/en/reading-plans/42410

This is a five day Bible study I am starting. If you would like to do those Bible study, click on the link above. God bless you. Have a beautiful day in Jesus Christ.

A Truly Silent Night 

The Germans started it… 

The Great War, the War to End all Wars (now known to us as World War I), had been raging for five months in late 1914. On one side were Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and others. On the other was France, England, Russia, and later, the United States and others. Neither side had made much headway in defeating the other. A 500-mile stretch of territory that ran through Flanders (Belgium, France, and the Netherlands) was called the Western Front. 

Early in December of that year, Pope Benedict XV made a public plea to both factions in the war. He asked, “that the guns may fall silent at least upon the night the angels sang.” However, commanding officers on both sides ignored the Pope’s request and were determined to fight on – Christmas or not. 

Nevertheless, on Christmas Eve, 1914, German soldiers in the trenches caught the holiday spirit. They lit candles and hung them from evergreen trees. They hoisted banners that read, “We not shoot, you not shoot.” Not knowing what to think, the British soldiers held their positions. Finally, a German soldier dared venture into “no man’s land,” the field that separated the two battle trenches. A single voice began to sing: 

Stille Nacht. Heilige Nacht. 

Alles Schlaft, einsam wacht 

(Silent Night, Holy Night 

All is calm, all is bright.) 

British soldiers answered with antiphonal greetings. Before too long, more soldiers on either side left their trenches and began presenting small gifts to each other and exchanging handshakes. One British soldier wrote: “I wouldn’t have missed that unique and weird Christmas Day for anything… I spotted a German officer, some sort of lieutenant I should think, and being a bit of a collector, I intimated to him that I had taken a fancy to some of his buttons… I brought out my wire clippers and, with a few deft snips, removed a couple of his buttons and put them in my pocket. I then gave him two of mine in exchange….” 

News spread down the lines. From Christmas Day until well into the New Year, regiments along the battle lines joined in with similar gestures of goodwill, much to the chagrin of their commanders. (One notable dissenter was a young corporal named Adolf Hitler.) 

Referring to that short unofficial ceasefire, another soldier reported, “I remember the silence, the eerie sound of silence. Only the guards were on duty. We all went outside the farm buildings and just stood listening. And, of course, thinking of people back home. All I’d heard for two months in the trenches was the hissing, cracking, and whining of bullets in flight, machinegun fire, and distant German voices. But there was a dead silence that morning, right across the land as far as you could see. We shouted ‘Merry Christmas’, even though nobody felt merry. The silence ended early in the afternoon and the killing started again. It was a short peace in a terrible war.” 

This Christmas war story brings heartwarming and inspiring sentiments. One coming from a passion for freedom; another coming from a yearning for peace. But the Prince of Peace, Jesus, had already come to wage His own war against sin and the despair that has been around since Eden. The peace He gives, however, is not the absence of conflict but the serenity of spirit that the Apostle Paul describes as “the peace that passes human understanding.” 

Today our world is full of conflict and oppression without any external sign or hope of relief. This makes knowing the Prince of Peace even more beautiful. 

Jesus spoke of freedom in John 8: 31-32:

‘Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’”

Regarding peace, Jesus told His disciples, 

“Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27).

Scene Changers 

I found Baby Jesus in my Christmas stocking one morning… 

Not the real One, of course, but the one that had been missing for a couple of days from my tabletop Fontanini nativity scene. I’m pretty sure the one who put it there was my then 4 ½- year-old granddaughter. I had been letting the grandchildren play with the characters all they wanted since the pieces were unbreakable and too big to swallow, and the kids seemed to enjoy it. That does mean, however, that the scene looked different every time I walked by it. I found the Holy Family abiding in the field with the shepherds. Once I found the angel lying in the manger with a rooster. A few times the Wise Men have been in a far off country – like under the couch or in a basket near the fireplace. Once Baby Jesus was actually in the manger but wrapped in a string of tiny stick-on valentines. 

It was an adventure. 

But certainly no more of one than the real Mary and Joseph happen upon right before their wedding. She’s pregnant but not by her betrothed. An angel visits them both telling them not to worry – that this is all God’s doing. And the Caesar forces them to travel 80+ miles to pay a tax right around her due date. And Mary goes into labor while she and Joseph are in temporary housing, which happens to be a stable. And then…well, you know the rest, but here’s the point: 

God has a plan for each of us, and it’s probably different from what we would have chosen for ourselves. He can move the pieces of the scene around however He wants. It’s His call, His work, His way. We can choose to accept it and follow it…or not. And it’s like with the nativity scene characters; we may have to search for each part of God’s plan for us one piece at a time until it all fits, until it makes sense. 

One of my favorite Christmas carols is, “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.” 

Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the new-born king,
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies,
With angelic host proclaim,
“Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the new-born king!” 

The fourth line of the lyric…God and sinners reconciled…speaks of this event, the birth of Christ, but more about His purpose for coming to earth—to change everything. 

Galatians 4: 4-5 (NASB) says, “… when the fullness of the time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons and daughters.”