Flattering Lips

A few weeks ago, I was reading Luke to prepare for our Sunday study when I stumbled across a few verses that have always been a bit troubling to me. Jesus, in a crowd of people, claims that he comes to bring division amongst the people - that he doesn't come to join the kingdom, but to establish one of his own. He continues later to say that anyone who doesn't hate his own parents in comparison to how much they love Him is not fit for his kingdom. Today, we're talking about a little something that David likes to call "flattering lips." Jesus didn't speak to flatter people with words for their "itching ears" (2 Tim 4:3), but rather, he came to speak about reality and truth. Sometimes in life, preaching the gospel message is not very appealing - especially when the ultimatum is "repent, or you'll go to hell" (granted, we preach this with love). As odd as it seems, our job as Christians is not to make people happy, but to show them where to find happiness in the Father. HERE --- Psalm 12

Verses 1-2 Just as in David's time, I believe that the followers of God are disappearing - not in a sense that they are actually gone, but more like they are dressed in disguise. These believers David is talking about have spent so much time in the world, that they live, act, speak, and look just like the rest of the world. I think about the church as a whole today - about how many people walk through the front doors on Sunday morning only to leave an hour later unchanged, unaffected. This is the "double-heart" we see in verse 2. I like to think of it this way: If we were to characterize the way we lived our lives by hats, we should ideally only have to wear one. Unfortunately, as David says, some people like to wear more than one hat. They go to church, and put on the "Jesus" hat, but when they leave and go out into the world, they take the "Jesus" hat off as soon as it is an inconvenience. Instead, they put on the "dirty jokes" hat, the "swearing" hat, the "alcohol" hat, the "drug" hat ... I'm sure you catch my drift. Why would this happen? Why would people want to change their hat so often in life? Well, quite frankly ... people want to be flattering. Sometimes, people are not too fond of the "Jesus" hat. I'll tell you this ... that people wearing the "drug" hats and the "dirty jokes" hats don't like it when people stroll in proudly wearing Jesus. Does that mean we change? Does that mean we should change our live styles based on the occasion? ... I'm sure you can answer that yourself. Sometimes, being the Christian at school is not the most flattering thing to be ... but that's no reason to go in disguise.

Verses 3-5 This kind of gets a little brutal - "the Lord will cut off flattering lips." David brings in this new element of pride ... Some people are too prideful to share Jesus - they feel that they cannot live a life for Christ because the cost of their reputation is simply too much ... If that's you ... I tell you it's not where you want to be. We read shortly after that God even has authority over people who think that no one "can tell them what to do." People are afraid to share Jesus because it makes them vulnerable, but the Lord rises up and says "Don't worry, I'll show you what safety you need." ... If you want to share Jesus, not only will He speak through you (Luke 12:12), but he will protect you as he has promised.

Verses 6-8 This last section is pretty clear. Why do we share the word of God? Why does it even matter? It's simply because the word of God is pure - it doesn't need flattering lips, it doesn't need pride ... it's simply the truth. David even mentions this fact that it has been purified seven times - it's perfected. God's word is true, it's pure, and it is most definitely perfect. David says at the end ... wickedness with prowl about the earth, but the won't stop God from upholding His Word.


God will always uphold his word. He will always stand behind it. In John 1:1 we read, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." God's word, God's good news, is simply Jesus. Are you willing to cut off your own "flattering" lips for the sake of Christ? Are you willing to put on the "Jesus" hat and never take it off? ... Just think about it.

-Chris