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Topic: Stop Talebearing
[DCLM Daily Manna 31 July 2020 Daily Devotional by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi]
Text: Leviticus 19:14-22 (KJV)
14 Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD.
15 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honour the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour.
16 Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbour: I am the LORD.
17 Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.
18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.
19 Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and woollen come upon thee.
20 And whosoever lieth carnally with a woman, that is a bondmaid, betrothed to an husband, and not at all redeemed, nor freedom given her; she shall be scourged; they shall not be put to death, because she was not free.
21 And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, even a ram for a trespass offering.
22 And the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the LORD for his sin which he hath done: and the sin which he hath done shall be forgiven him.
Key Verse: “Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbour: I am the LORD.” – (Leviticus 19:16)
MESSAGE:
In a play titled “Subtle ways to go to hell”, some young Christians dramatised how “common sins” can lead many to eternal damnation. Some of those sins include talebearing, anger, malice, envy, faultfinding, murmuring, love for fashion and so on. They were able to show that unlike noticeable sins like adultery, stealing, fighting, fornication, idol worship, etc., these seemingly unnoticeable sins have done much more harm to the church than obvious ones. Some Christians easily commit them without being conscious of the inherent danger therein.
God instructed Israel not to curse the deaf who could not hear nor put a stumbling block in the way of the blind who could not see. There must be no unrighteousness in judgment, no talebearing, no hatred for a neighbour, no grudges but to love one another.
Gossips and talebearing tear families and churches apart because “a whisperer separateth chief friends”. Unsanctified hearts are often Satan’s vessels of spreading rumours, gossips and talebearing among the brethren. Many so-called believers spend hours discussing people, families and the challenges facing them. Ironically, such people cannot spend good time to pray or study the word of God or to preach to others. The collateral damage caused by talebearing is unquantifiable. Families have been separated and many have left the fellowship of God’s people due to this evil which causes misery, distrust and discord.
The Scripture warns of the danger of the misuse of the tongue, calling it “a fire, a world of iniquity… an unruly evil, full of deadly poison” (James 3:6,8). It follows therefore, that a talebearer or a gossipmonger is not a real child of God. Let us use our tongues rather for edification and to comfort others.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Keep your tongue, keep your life.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Timothy 1-4
