NOT SINNING WITH OUR LIPS
“Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.” Job 2:9, 10
In so many ways, Job serves as a great example for us. We learn from his testing and experience that good people, even godly people, will have difficulty and hardships in their lives. Whenever we think our trials are intense, we need to remember what Job had to face. Most of our trials pale in comparison to the heartache and loss that came to God’s servant, Job. If the thought ever crosses our minds that our tests are too much for us to handle, we can recall what Job was able to endure.
We are also greatly benefited as we see how Job behaved when his world came crashing in. After a tidal wave of tragedy overtook Job and his wife suggested that he “curse God, and die,” Job did not “sin with his lips.” In the great trial of his life, Job did not sin with his words. We may not always think of how serious it is when we sin with our lips, but in reality, this is one of the most common areas of transgression. Our words and conversations can be as wicked as our actions.
How is it that we sin with our lips? Of course, we would readily admit that profanity and vulgarity would be considered sinful words, but there are other, more common ways that we sin with our lips. One of the familiar ways that we sin with our lips is complaining. Numbers 11:1 says, “… when the people complained, it displeased the LORD.” We all have been guilty of complaining. We may also sin with our lips when we accuse God concerning the circumstances of our lives. Job’s wife urged her husband to “curse God.” We may not understand all the ways of our perfect and holy Father, but we know that His way is perfect and that He is in control. God is good, regardless of what comes our way. Another way we sin with our lips is failing to praise or thank God for the blessings He sends. Job was faithful, even in his heartache, to give God praise and thanks.
We must learn to carefully and consistently judge the words of our mouths. Rather than being guilty of uttering things that are displeasing to God, we need to use our words to glorify the Lord and edify others.