Exodus 4:10-14
Moses said to the Lord , “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord ? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.” But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.” Then the Lord ’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you.
INSIGHT
-Speak of God in Hebrew is written as melal and means to utter or talk. Several scriptures have outlined the word speak, including: – If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies (1 Pet 3:10; Psalm 34:13), the Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them ‘I am the Lord your God” ( Lev 18:1-2), the mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom and his tongue talks of justice (Ps 37:30; Ps 49:3), the idols of the nations are silver and gold made by human hands; they have mouths but cannot speak; eyes; but cannot see (Ps 135:15-18), the Spirit of your Father speaks in us when preaching the gospel (Mat 10:19-20), out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks (Mat 12:33-37), anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to people but to God (1 Cor 14:2) etc.
-Moses was slow in speech and tongue and took this as a personal limitation even when God encouraged him. God revealed His Deity as our Creator with the ultimate ability to change any adverse situation that seems like a stumbling block in our lives. God in His mercy called Aaron to support Moses in his mission to deliver the Israelites from Egypt and lead them in the wilderness. Sometimes such personal limitations hinder us from walking in our purposes and getting to the place that God desires us to be. Fear posses as a major limitation in our calling, business opportunities, work, ministry, family, leadership, progress, innovations etc. Often times God tells us to fear not, for He is always with us. We are called to have total faith in God for we can do all things through Christ Who strengthens us (Phil 4:13).
PRAYER
Lord Almighty Father; we thank You for the gift of life; gift of families; gift of peace in our nation and most of all, the gift of salvation in our hearts. We humbly ask You Lord to increase our faith in You and strengthen us when we are weak. Deliver us from fear Holy Spirit and heal us from all areas that seem like slowness in speech and tongue; according to Your merciful love. Have mercy on all those who are sick and suffering and heal them Jesus; for by Your stripes we are healed. Be with all those who have lost their loved ones and comfort them by Your peace. Guide us in all opportunities that You present to us Father and give us the courage to pursue them according to Your will. Bless us indeed Lord and expand our territories, deliver us from all evil and anything that may cause us pain. You are the Alpha and Omega; the Beginning and the End; the First and the Last; the only One true God, we give You all the praise and adoration Jesus, now and forever. Amen
1 Peter 3:10-12
For “He who would love life and see good days, Let him refrain his tongue from evil, And his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good; Let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their prayers; But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
INSIGHT
-Everybody likes to live the good life though there are a lot of misconceptions in the society today. Many believe that having everything that money can buy is the answer to all our problems. Contrary to this believe, often times do we see that the most miserable people in the world are the rich and famous. According to the scriptures; the good life stems from submitting to Gods’ will through our words and deeds. To seek peace and pursue it; for the peacemakers are blessed; for they are children of God. To speak the truth all the time, and hold fast honesty and integrity in our dealings and interactions. To choose kind words all the time; even when we are provoked by cunning utterances and evil deeds. To return evil with good and not evil with evil. To speak words of love that edify one another. To confess our trespasses to one another and pray for one another; that we may be healed, for the effective; fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much (James 5:16). To be reconciled with one another and forgive those who offend us; so that we too may be forgiven by our Father. To turn away from evil and do good always; for God is holy and requires us to live holy lives. To pursue holiness as we are chained with Christ and co-heirs with Him, that we may obtain His promises. If then we are children of God, we receive His blessings for His love and grace for us is everlasting.
PRAYER
We thank You Jesus and bless Your holy name for Your everlasting love and mercy upon our lives, families, societies and nation. You have always protected us, provided for us, directed us and sustained us by Your merciful love. We thank You Jesus and bless Your holy name. Help us Father to be reconciled with our neighbours and to always seek peace. Journey with us Lord in all things and strengthen our relationship with You and our neighbours through love. Bless us indeed Father and expand our territories. Our Father Who at in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptations but deliver us from all evil. For thine is the kingdom the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen
Psalm 145:5-7
They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty and I will meditate on your wonderful works. They tell of the power of your awesome works and I will proclaim your great deeds. They celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness.
INSIGHT
-King David was a man after Gods’ own heart and often gave praise to Him. In this psalm, he sings of Gods’ majesty and proclaims His holy name. David encouraged his people to worship God alone unlike the neighbouring nations who worshiped idols; as it is today. They trust in idols made by human hands, which have mouths but cannot speak, eyes but cannot see, ears but cannot hear. The Lord proclaims that; those who make them and trust in them; will resemble them (Ps 135:15-18). We are called to give thanks to the Lord always for He is our Creator and our only true God. To give praises to Him and tell of the glorious splendor of His majesty. To celebrate His abundant goodness and sing of His righteous works. To meditate of His wonderful works and unending love for us. Further, when we fill our hearts with thoughts of God; our mouths speak of His glory, for out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks (Mat 12:34).
PRAYER
We sing of Your glorious splendor and Your wonderful works Father, for You are good and Your mercies endures forever. There is none like You Jesus, neither is there any other God beside You. You are the only one true God; the Creator of the universe. Your love is eternal Lord and Your grace is everlasting on all the earth. Thank You God for this far that You brought us and the far that You are taking us. We sing of Your glorious works every day Lord. Help us to meditate on Your wonderful works and renew our minds that we may always focus on the things above. Deliver us; and the whole world from any form of idolatry and cleanse us by Your precious blood Jesus. Bless us merciful Lord and keep us. May Your face shine upon us and be gracious to us. May You lift up Your countenance upon us and grant us peace. Amen
Matthew 12:33-37
“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
INSIGHT
-Jesus healed a man with a withered hand during Sabbath and the Pharisees complained saying it was unlawful. Jesus then called them ‘brood of vipers’ symbolizing their coldness towards the gospel and hardness of their hearts to come to faith in Him. External religiosity exposed their deep rooted beliefs and insensitivity in their words and deeds towards humanity. The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27). They rejected Jesus; our Sabbath rest. Our mouths act like spiritual barometers used to measure the humidity of the heart. As humidity is a function of water vapour, the word of God is symbolic to water that quenches our spiritual thirst and cools our souls. From the heart stems out all evil things; but we are called to follow Christ that we may be washed by the water of His word and be renewed in our words and deeds; daily. We are like trees; and our fruitfulness is known through our speech, actions and general progression in life. Jesus is the Vine and we are the branches. We are reminded to remain in Him so that we may bear much fruit. We are also called to measure our words so that we may not come to judgement out of ignorance. Further, to look to Christ our Sabbath rest, so that we may come to faith and find rest in Him.
PRAYER
Almighty Father we thank You for this beautiful day that You have given unto us. We have seen Your hand in all things, thank You for loving us. We pray that You may purify our hearts by Your precious blood and cleanse our tongues from any idle word that may bring us to judgement. May Your wisdom always dwell in our hearts that we may fear You and love You as You have called each one of us. Help us also to love our neighbours as ourselves and to answer each one according to Your grace. We look to You only; our Sabbath rest, deliver us Jesus from the heavy burdens that we bear. Be with all those who lack basic needs merciful Father and hear the cry of all those who are unemployed. Deliver all our leaders Lord from greed of money and power, and raise for us leaders who will do Your divine will. Help us Lord to bear much fruit according to Your grace. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ; and the love of God; and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us now; and forever more. Amen
Matthew 10:19-20
But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.
INSIGHT
-Jesus commissioned the twelve disciples to go out into the world to preach the gospel. He encouraged them with caution that persecution would come but they should remain rooted in faith. Also, to be bold and courageous for the Holy Spirit would help them in their quest for discipleship. Jesus gave us the same command that we may also proclaim His good news as He has called each one of us. It is our duty as Christians to demonstrate our faith in God through our words, character and deeds, that others may believe in Jesus and come to faith. As Christians; we are witnesses of Christ and should hold fast our faith in Him; and in our calling the Holy Spirit will tell us what to say for He speaks in us.
SUMMARY
God created us in His image and likeness; and has given us the ability to speak even when we are in fear. Moses doubted his ability to speak when we was called to deliver the Israelite’s from captivity. But God encouraged him and gave him a helper Aaron to support him in his mission. In the same manner; when we feel insufficient and fearful when called upon to speak, the Holy Spirit our Helper speaks in us; so that we may say exactly what He desires. Some among us have been given the gift of speaking in tongues through which they speak to God and not men (1 Cor 14:2), and other interpret according to His will. Although some speak evil things which demonstrate what is in their hearts; for out of the abundance of the heart; the mouth speaks. Some speak favorably which is a reflection of godliness. We are reminded to always think of the things above; for through this, we speak peaceably to all men. God has also called us to be righteous in our words and deeds; and demonstrate wisdom as we glorify Him and edify one another through love. To refrain from condemning and judging others so that we may not be judged. To proclaim a blessing upon our own lives, families, friends, nation etcetera; for death and life are in the power of the tongue and we shall eat its fruit (Prov 18:21). We are therefore reminded to speak life to all people and situations which comes in form of prayer, and when we believe; it shall come to pass. God desires that we enjoy life and see many happy days as we speak the truth; for the truth shall set us free.
PRAYER
Lord our Father and our God we come before You this morning with thanksgiving in our hearts. We humbly come at Your feet asking for forgiveness and mercy for we have sinned and fallen short of Your glory Lord. Cleanse our hearts by Your precious blood and make us righteous in our words and deeds. Remember us all when are weak and weary that You may strengthen us Holy Spirit; and speak in us when we do not know what to say. Guide us in all things Jesus that we may witness You in truth. Remember also all those who are preparing and those who currently undertaking exam; that Your may give all of them good success. Bless us, our families, friends, leaders, churches and entire nation and expand our territories Father. Deliver us from all evil that we may seek You always and do Your will. Increase our faith in You Jesus and grant us the gift of wisdom in all that we do. All glory, honor, power, blessing and salvation belong to You Jesus; now and forever. Amen