Tuesday 8 Aug 2023

August 8: Matthew 15:10-14

Key Verse: Matthew 15:11
What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.

Devotion:
There are times when I read about what is happening in some churches and I see people leaving churches, splitting churches or even closing churches, and these things make me sad. No, I do not have a perfect church to go to and there are problems we have to face each day; if only we were able to curb our outbursts!

If there are things which you face in your local church which you do not agree with, then you should be going to them and talking to them to find out why things are being done the way they are. As a congregation which is part of the Church of England we have to abide by some rather archaic rules and regulations which make many people sad and even confused, but how we react to them could make waves in our congregations.

When Jesus talked about loving our neighbours it really did mean loving people around us. When someone does something wrong or says something wrong, we should approach them and give them time to see what they have done or said wrong; we could be the ones who have made the error in judgement! But if we broadcast the error to everyone we are alienating that person from everyone who hears the broadcast. We are driving a wedge into our congregation!

What we say and do can be used to build up a congregation or break it apart. We need to think about what we are saying to others so we can, hopefully, build up our congregations instead of breaking them down. God has called us to spread the gospel and not spread gossip. God has called us together not apart. He chose us and will look after us just as a loving Father does; but He may well chastise us if we are the cause of arguments between others!

Points to Ponder:
How often do you replicate gossip?

How often do you replicate the gospel?