SHIBBOLETH

WHO ARE YOU?

Gilead then cut Ephraim off from the fords of the Jordan, and whenever Ephraimite fugitives said, 'Let me cross,' the men of Gilead would ask, 'Are you an Ephraimite?' If he said, 'No,' they then said, 'Very well, say Shibboleth.' If anyone said, 'Sibboleth', because he could not pronounce it, then they would seize him and kill him by the fords of the Jordan. Forty-two thousand Ephraimites fell on this occasion.Judges 12:5-6

According to Wikipedia,Shibboleth (pronounced /ˈʃɪbəlɛθ/[1] or /ˈʃɪbələθ/[2]) is any distinguishing practice which is indicative of one's social or regional origin.

As we read from the above scripture, the Ephraimites were unable to pronounce 'sh', they would rather pronounce it as 's'.This inability betrayed their origin, and even led to their death. The first time I read about this story, I laughed my head off, as it reminded me about a tribe in my country of origin whose members can rarely pronounce 'r'. They almost always pronounced it as 'l'. For instance, they would say 'blother' instead of 'brother.'

As Christians we are born of the Spirit and not of the flesh. Spirit born people are citizens of Heaven.As citizens of Heaven, certain types of conversation should not be heard amongst us. We must not be vulgar, envious, spiteful, malicious nor pessimistic. This is but a few of the attributes that are anti- heaven!

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.Colossians 4:6. Jesus warns us in Matthew 12:36 -But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.

What comes out of our mouths depicts our religious origin - whether we belong to the Kingdom of darkness or that of light. Most often than not many people, Christians alike, are careless with their speech. They swear profanities, say things they do not mean , and talk negatively about situations though they expect the contrary to happen.

Words carry power, we can either call forth life or death with our words. No word spoken is void of creative power so be extremely careful of the words you speak, and let them tally with the Word and will of God. As a Christian, allow the seed of God in you - your spiritual genetic make up, to reflect in your speech just as shown in Judges 12 :5-6 about the Ephraimites . What is in you must reflect what comes out of you. And what comes out of you is a silent declaration of what is in you. James 3:11-12 clarifies this truth - 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.

Kindly pull off all disguises and pretenses in order to bear good fruits from the seed of God in you. Your words make a statement about your origin and inner content, so set a guard over your mouth. James admonished us in James 1:19 , permit me to reiterate his words: My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.