The heart of the wise makes his speech judicious and adds persuasiveness to his lips.
~Proverbs 16.23
Everyone is trying to sell you something, promising you a taste of the good life or, at the least, the avoidance of the worst life. Advertisers spare no expense to peddle their wares. In 2020 advertisers spent $225.8 billion, and that number is expected to rise to $322.11 billion by 2024. From soap to app subscriptions, people are trying to persuade you that what they’re selling will give you a taste of glory.
Merchandise is not the only thing being hawked. Politicians, constantly in campaign mode with a 24/7/365 news cycle, are trying to sell you on their vision for the future. Political ads use ominous music and black-and-white visuals to frame their opponents and their positions, and then switch to lighter music and color visuals to frame themselves. They lay out their plans for the economy, justice, climate change, the sexual issues du jour, and a plethora of emotional topics to have you buy into their agenda.
The truth is, I’m trying to sell you something too. I make no bones about it. My aim is to persuade you to buy into the biblical way to understand God, yourself, the world around you, and how you are to relate to all of them in the way you live your life. Persuasion is a tool of dominion, and I am not ashamed to use it.
In Proverbs 16.20-24, Solomon brings up persuasion twice (vv. 21, 23). I believe “persuasiveness” captures Solomon’s intention. The root of the word means “to learn.” Persuasion, therefore, is teaching. But teaching is never merely about information. We are not machines who only exchange data. Teaching is about formation; formation of the intellect, affections, emotions, and will. Persuasion is going on all around us all the time. Personal forces are constantly trying to form us as individuals and societies. You are being taught. Solomon calls his son to recognize this power and take it up and use it properly, discerning where people are trying to persuade him to sin (see Pr 7.21) as well as using persuasion to accomplish ordering the world under the lordship of God’s son.
What makes speech persuasive? Entire books have been written on the art of persuasion. I can’t answer that question exhaustively in a short article. But there are four basic principles of persuasion from Proverbs 16.20-24 that are necessary for persuasion. You can tease them out as you meditate on them.
Credibility. To be persuasive, you must have authority in the eyes of the people to whom you are speaking. People assume and ascribe authority in legitimate and illegitimate ways. Movie stars and athletes are somehow recognized as authorities on politics because they are cultural icons. They have no more qualifications than the average man on the street, but people see them as credible. Rational people see through this. Nevertheless, the absurdity proves the point. To be persuasive, people must believe you. Ultimately our credibility as Christians is rooted in God’s authority. However, to be a credible witness, his wisdom must shape our lives. The eternal Word is a Person, not marks on a page, mere verbal shapes, or non-tangible ideas. God’s words are credible because they are the revelation of his Person. If we are to be persuasive, we must have the credibility that comes through consistency between the message we proclaim and the lives we live.
Contrast. Our words are to be judicious (Pr 16.23), cutting through the clutter, discerning between what is good and evil, and showing people the difference between the two. Fear can be used to be persuasive. A healthy fear of Harlot Follies and hell are legitimate fears. There are dangers to be avoided. But fear of danger must always be set in contrast to the beauty of a well-ordered life. Beauty and its inherent promise draw us forward into the future, giving us hope and direction, and encouraging us to persevere through hardships. Persuasion draws the contrast between the joy of beauty and the fear of ugliness.
Congeniality. Persuasive words are “sweet” (Pr 16.20) and “gracious” (Pr 16.24). The speaker and his words should be likable. If you are pugnacious all the time and your words are always abrasive and harsh no matter the situation, you will repel people. It may be the message, or it may be that you are a jerk. Winsomeness has been abused by prominent pastors who refuse to take stands for righteousness on the pressing issues of the day such as homosexuality, abortion, and wicked rulers and their policies. We are not to compromise the truth in the name of winsomeness. Wise winsomeness brings out the putridness of sins by contrasting them with the beauty of a gospel-shaped life. Being congenial and winsome doesn’t mean never saying anything negative. Sometimes sweetness can only be tasted when contrasted with bitterness.
Clarity. Scott Adams in his book Win Bigly says that people prefer certainty over uncertainty, even when the certainty is wrong. Dynamic speakers who exhibit confidence and promise certainty with a clear vision of who people are and what they are to do are persuasive. People don’t like walking around in an earthquake mentally or physically. That is why in a world where everything is rocking back and forth, people will resort to all sorts of extreme fundamentalisms. They want solidity and clarity. God’s wisdom cuts through all the fog and gives clarity and the certainty that comes with it.
God has called us to sharpen our tongues and keep them honed with persuasiveness. We are to teach with the aim of forming all of their affections, intellects, and wills to be submissive to the Lord Jesus. Use wise words.
