The Heart of the Problem

Scripture Reading: Proverbs 11:9

With his mouth the godless man would destroy his neighbor…

What is the root of the constant efforts at destroying one another so prevalent in our present culture? While social media is often pointed to as the problem, I would suggest that social media is the symptom and not the disease. Social media only makes it easier to carry out the wickedness that already existed in our hearts. The mouth (the spoken words and language) of the godless is the tool that is used to destroy, but it is not the problem. You could sow a man’s lips shut so he can’t speak, but that hasn’t solved the problem. The problem is he is a “godless man.” The remedy is to remove the “godless” part of the equation. That’s where the gospel comes to help. Christ gives us a new heart. He changes us from the inside out. If the heart is cleansed and sanctified, the mouth will reflect that.