Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Colossians 4:5-6
All Christians are commanded to make disciples (Matthew 28:16-20). Being a disciple-maker requires speaking to folks who are not disciples of Jesus. For many reasons, many Christians (probably most) are intimidated to talk with others about Jesus. The gospel is the story of what Jesus has done for us; therefore, words are required. We have to talk to them.
Myriads of gospel tools can be used, from the old Romans Road to the Four Spiritual Laws and Evangelism Explosion. More recent tools include Three Circles and 2 Kingdoms. I’m not writing about what tools one might use. I am writing about our speech twenty-four hours a day with everyone, especially those who don’t know Jesus.
Paul’s admonition is to “Let your speech always be gracious…” Two key words in this phrase are always and gracious. That means our speech is to be gracious at all times, in all places, with all people; always gracious. Gracious speech is to be our habit.
Focusing on gracious speech will not only help us communicate the gospel with unbelievers, but it will also help significantly in our sanctification. There is a direct connection between our speech and our heart. Jesus told us that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. When we focus on gracious speech, we will see when our hearts signal something other than grace. With our disciplined will, we can hold back the ungracious speech, but it makes us aware of the need for the cleansing of our hearts and our sanctification.
“If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man…” James says. (James 3:2) A perfect man is a sanctified man. I recognize that we will not arrive at absolute perfection or absolute sanctification in this life, but we can and should grow substantially in our sanctification in this life. James puts a strong emphasis on speech as a measure of our sanctification.
With it (our tongue) we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.
James 3:9-12
If I am to influence non-believers to Christ, my whole life needs to demonstrate grace. A great starting place is our speech. Suppose we follow Paul’s admonition to speak with grace to all people, in all places, at all times. In that case, we will be more readily heard by non-believers and believers and find ourselves coming to Jesus for assistance in our sanctification. Our unbridled speech reveals what is in our hearts. So does our bridled heart if we pay attention to where we desire to run wild and not be bridled.
Focus on gracious speech, and you will exert greater influence on non-believers and believers.
Christ first came into my life at the age of 5 during a series of evangelistic meetings in our tiny country Quaker church house in Gate, Oklahoma. Since then it has been a process of “Stumbling forward by grace, through faith in Christ.” I experienced a significant personal revival at the age of 19 and have been much in love with the Lord ever since…five decades-plus.
My passion is to enjoy the Lord by encouraging others to make progress in their lives…living life successfully. I do that primarily through my disciple-making efforts and through my writing.
I spent about 20 years in public ministry and at the age of 40 decided that I had allowed my passion for ministry to impede my prior duty to my family, so I stepped aside. I found a new career as a financial advisor and now make my living serving my financial planning clients.
I now consider myself to be a bi-vocational minister of the gospel.
