In Matthew 12:34-35, Jesus said, "Out of the overflow of hte heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him." The point is this: your words reveal the condition of your heart. You judge a person largely by their speech. You listen to their words and then evaluate the attitude wich underlies them. The same is true of God. He judges us by our words, hence Christ's warning concerning our speech: "But I tell you that men will have to give account in the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken" (Matthew 12:36). Your conversation will  now display the change of heart you have experienced. You will talk about good things, godly things, happy things, and eternal things. When your tongue slips, you will sense in your spirit that you have sinned. When this happens, ask God's forgiveness. Don't waste time condemning yourself. If your conversation has hurt another, go immediately and ask forgiveness from that person. Your words are important. Choose them wisely. And keep them clean.

Read James 3:2. How does James describe the perfect person? REad James 3:5-6. Why is the tongue so dangerous? Read James 3:9-12. What hypocrisy is James dealing with in these verses? Read Matthew 5:33-37. What does Jesus teach about your speech in this passage? What does verse 37 say to you about reliability of the Christian's word? Read Colossians 3:8. What does Paul say about your speech? Read Ephesians 4:29, 5:18-20. What does Paul tell the Ephesians about their speech? Read Proverbs 12:22. What does this verse say about your speech?