HONK IF YOU LOVE JESUS

Read: James 3:1-12
With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. James 3:9-12

In the mid-1970s boycotters of a certain oil company proudly sported bumper stickers conveying their sentiment. As my family traveled through Ohio one day, my mother spotted a car flaunting two incongruous messages: “Honk if you love Jesus” and “To Hell with Shell!” How absurd it seems; yet often our lives convey the same types of conflicting statements.

We bless out of one side of our mouths and curse out of the other. I have stood in church to pray and later that day yelled at my children in anger. I have witnessed of God’s love to a person, then cut him down behind his back. This kind of behavior does nothing but harm our testimony in front of unbelievers and place stumbling blocks in front of young Christians.

What about your life? I’m sure we all can come up with examples. Do people see the bumper sticker for your favorite Christian radio station on your rear bumper—right after you have cut them off in traffic? Do they see a Bible on your desk while you are telling an off-color joke? Do you e-mail inspirational messages to friends, but have a bikini screen-saver or visit inappropriate websites? God wants us to have a consistent testimony, one that brings glory to Him, and draws others to Him. An old hymn states, “What you are speaks so loud that the world can’t hear what you say.” Let’s all encourage each other and pray for one another that we’ll have consistent speech and consistent actions. It’s what God meant for us.