The Right Use of Words

Aim: To be wise about how we hear and speak words.

Doctrine: Words are of ultimate significance in the Kingdom (church) of Christ. God uses words to convey His truth; sinners use words to confuse God's people.

Exegesis: God's word's instruction to His church: do not fall prey to know-it-alls (v. 14); be a good student of the scriptures (v. 15); learn to distinguish between God's truth and Satan's lies (vv. 16-19).

Further application: How to better master the challenge of words: first, be a faith-filled listener to sermons; then, integrate and speak what I know.

Key verse: v. 14 ''Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers.''