Solomon wrote much of the book of Proverbs. For much of his life, he was the wisest man on earth. The book is full of that wisdom. But sometimes he says things that everybody with average intelligence already knows.

Proverbs 12:25a is an example. Solomon says, “Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression…” You don’t have to be Einstein to understand the truth of that statement. Every adult has seen the devastating effects that being anxious can have on a person.

The word for anxiety carries with it the idea of fear. The word for depression means it can cause a person “to bow down.” A person who is fearful of the future can literally walk around bowed down. It can impact his sleep and health.

We recently had a national presidential election. We have all seen videos of people who were fearful that the wrong person would win. They feared that our country would never recover if that happened. People lost sleep. They went on medication. They went on social networks screaming that their lives were over. Many cut off relationships with lifelong friends and even family members because of differing political views. After the election, some have even moved to other countries. You can see these people walking around “bowed down.” They are depressed.

Medical doctors and mental health professionals––even those who are unbelievers––understand the problem. Anxiety can destroy a person’s life if left untreated. It can literally kill a person.

Both the Lord and Paul certainly understood the danger of anxiety. Jesus told His disciples not to worry about what the future holds, such as what they would eat, drink, or wear. Paul tells the believers at Philippi to “be anxious for nothing.” The solution is to go to the Lord in prayer and to trust in His care and Word (Matt 6:25; Phil 4:6).

Solomon gives his solution to anxiety. He says that a “good word makes it [the heart] glad” (Prov 12:25b). In the book of Proverbs, that “good word” is based upon the Scriptures (Prov 1:7). As we apply it to the NT, the “good word” would be what the Lord and Paul said.

Believers are not immune to the problem of anxiety. Solomon, Paul, and the Lord all recognized it. When we encounter anxiety, we should consider the good word of the Scriptures.

One of the most obvious areas in which we see the destruction that anxiety can cause is the assurance of eternal life. Evangelical churches are full of people who don’t know if they are spiritually saved or not. Some of these people have never believed in the gospel of eternal life by faith in Christ alone and are not saved. Others believed the message at some time in the past but have lost that assurance. They have eternal life but are worried that they don’t.

The source of this anxiety is false teaching. Lordship Salvation teachers tell them they have to continue doing good works until they die in order to prove they might be saved. Arminian teachers tell them that if they don’t do enough good works, they will lose eternal life. In both systems, nobody knows whether they will be good enough to make it into the kingdom. Many buy into these kinds of heretical teachings. If they do, they live with the realization that there is a good chance they will spend eternity in the lake of fire. Who would not have anxiety or fear at such a prospect?

Almost everybody who reads this blog knows people like that. We see them on YouTube videos. They are in our churches. They are in our families. They are our friends. We have had conversations with them in which they make known their fear. Solomon was not exaggerating when he said they are bowed down in their depression. It is understandable.

How can we help them? Give them a “good word.” How about what the Lord said in John 5:24: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” The Lord said He will give eternal life to anybody who believes in Him for it. The believer will never be judged to determine whether he goes to hell. He has eternal life forever.

We will meet people who are in fear of hell. Give them the good word of eternal life as a gift that can never be lost. If there is ever a good word to make someone “glad,” it is that.