It has been said, what has been said cannot be unsaid. Words are eternal, once you speak them they cannot be retracted. That alone will put the fear of the Lord in you, to guard your mouth and be slow to speak. But that is not the reason for this blog this morning. Today I was reading Proverbs 21 and it says, “A false witness will perish, But the man who listens to the truth will speak forever.” All words do not carry the same weight, even though all words are eternal. Some words, false words, lies, exaggerations, fabrications, the Bible says will perish, they will fade away, they will be heard no more.

Have you ever noticed that lies tend to be the first narrative we are told? This is because truth is weighty and it does not rise as fast as the fireworks of lies, but truth also does not fizzle out as quickly as it shoots up. Truth is solid, unshakable, undeniable, it is weighty and it will prevail while lies will perish. Is it any wonder, we are told by James 1:19-20 “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.” Lies make us angry, it is our first response when we hear them, and honestly that is the goal of the one speaking the lie, to get a quick reaction out of you. But what if you slowed down and listened to all sides, all evidence, before you reacted?

As believers we have the authority to bind and loose (Matthew 16), which means what we speak is established and what we don’t is forbidden to rule on earth. What if we quit echoing the lies we are hearing and starting waiting for the truth to come out and then shouted that? You know what would happen, we would forbid the narrative of lies and loose the narrative of truth that sets people free. Your words are powerful, your echo is powerful, your reaction is powerful, that is why we are called wise if we keep our mouth shut until we know the truth about any given situation. Speak truth, it will establish a narrative in our nation that can’t be denied.