Proverbs 26:20–21: Where there is no wood, the fire goes out; And where there is no talebearer, strife ceases. As charcoal is to burning coals, and wood to fire, so is a contentious man to kindle strife.
Insight
Bitterness is repeatedly stirred up in certain groups because there are certain ones in there who keep putting a little wood on the fire. If no one were fueling it, the fire would go out; the strife would cease. There are certain folks who cause strife as soon as they start attending a church or join a church. You will find them in the Lord’s work today. They seem to stir things up all the time. They are never really interested in the Word of God, although they may pretend to be. 1
Application
Do not ignore your personal responsibility to extinguish every small fire. Why do you keep adding wood, only to create an uncontrollable bonfire? You could have just spread out the coals, thrown water on it, and everything would have been all over. But your “get-even spirit” has created an out of control situation, when there should have been a burn ban. Please think before you strike your next match.
James 3:6:
And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.
Motivation
A perverse man sows strife, and a whisperer separates the best of friends. Proverbs 16:28
Striving starts wars, and that battle will never have any winners. – TWEET IT
Prayer
Father, please forgive me for lighting a match that ended up burning a friend.
1. McGee, J. V. (1991). Thru the Bible commentary: Poetry (Proverbs) (electronic ed., Vol. 20). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
