The Daily Grace - Speaking for God

Despite my best efforts to write clearly, sometimes I'm misunderstood. I feel bad about my failure and try to improve my skills. Occasionally, however, readers take words out of context or read into them something that bears no resemblance to the intended meaning. This is frustrating because there's no way to control how people use words once they are published.

This brings to mind a much more serious offense - that of misusing the words of the Lord. The prophets in Jeremiah's day did this. They put their own words into God's mouth by claiming He said things they wanted to be true that God had never said. So the Lord told His people, "Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. . . They speak a vision of their own heart, not from the mouth of the Lord" (Jer. 23:16). Then the Lord warned the people that He would forsake those who pervert His words and cast them from His presence (vv. 36-39).

In contrast, the apostle Paul made a point of saying that he did not handle the Word of God deceitfully (2 Cor. 4:2). He knew the danger of preaching his own ideas rather than God's. All of us need to be careful to use God's Word for His purpose, rather than for our own agenda. We must align ourselves with the Bible and never try to align the Bible to ourselves.