Lesson 4: Personal Transformation: Christian Speech

[!NOTE]

Lesson Overview

Daily Reading Schedule:

• Thursday: James 3:1-12
• Friday: Ephesians 5:1-7
• Saturday: Ephesians 4:29-32
• Sunday: Proverbs 8:5-9
• Monday: Proverbs 10:18-21
• Tuesday: Colossians 4:5-6

James 3:8-11: But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mo uth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? The greatest challenge to transformation is cont rolling the tongue. The Christian must be careful how he speaks. He must guard his tongue from sp eaking wicked and perverse things. He must also be willing to bless and comf ort others with his wo rds. He must be rea dy to speak the truth. We must control our tongues. Consider James’ description of the tongue: A little member Although the tongue is small, because it forms every word that we speak, it reveals our heart and trul y reveals what is within.

Fire

Like a small flame carelessly left burning, can start a great forest fire, the tongue can with a few words cause great problems and dissension. World of iniquity This little member can commit so many sins. It can lead to sins that will involve the whole body. Unruly evil It is evil and cannot be restrained. Full of deadly poison We can destroy ourselves and others with the poison that is in the tongue. There is always a ready supply of poison that can damage others.

Filthy Language

Christians must put away sinful speech th at characterizes the world. A distinguishing characteristic that may identify us as Christians is pure speech. Th e Bible condemns bad language that is not fitting for saints in Ephesians 5:4. Filthiness: Vine’s describes it as obscenity, opposed to purity. Str ong’s defines it as that which is shameful and dirty. Foolish talking: Literally, silly talking. Vine’s defines it as dull, foolish and stupid talking. Trench describes it as the “tal k of fools.” McKnight describe s it as language in which one’s neighbor is rendered ridiculous and contemptible, buffoonery. Filthy language (KVJ -coarse jesting): Obscene or dirty jokes and filthy innuendo. It is language that is twisted to mean filthy things. Paul wrote that filthy language is not proper for Ch ristians. Some make the life of Christ appear foolish by their humor and their speech. Imagine one who uses filthy langua ge most days then invites someone to a gospel meeting or condemns some false practice using the scriptures. Filthy language so pollutes the reputation of a person so that even his good speech is tainted. Peter provides us with a clear example of the worldly example of filthy language. During Jesus’ trial, Peter was in a courtyard with the crowd that arrested Jesus. Several people recognized Peter and knew that he had been with Jesus. Peter denied the charge vehe mently. After further accusations, he began to curse and swear to prove that he had not been with Jesus, Matthew 26:73-74. If we curse and swear, what does it say about our relationship to Jesus?

Wrathful Language

We must watch our language when we are angry. James wrote, “the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” Many people have damaged or destroyed their reputation because they would restrain their tempers. Anger acts like an intoxicant that can cause one to lose control and do or say things he typically would not. Christians must have their tempers under our control, to “be angry and sin not.” Paul condemned the following types of wrathful language in Colossians 3:8: Anger: An excitement of the mind a nd violent passion. Vine’s suggests that this is a settled or abiding condition of the mind that often has a view towards revenge. Wrath: The outburst resulting from anger inside. Malice: “A disposition or intent to injure others for gratification of anger” (Lipscomb). Blasphemy (KJV – railing): Scornful and derisive language directed at man or God. “To blame with bitterness” (Lipscomb). Add to this list gossiping and backbiting that 2 Corinthian s 12:20 condemns. Gossip pushes another person down to exalt the speaker. No one speaks wrathful language in love, and it de stroys. It tears at a person, as a wild animal would devour his helpless prey. When we talk w ith our spouses, parents, children, and friends, we must be especially careful not to allow our familiarity to be a license for such shameful speech. Consider Proverbs 15:1-2: “ A soft answer turns away wrat h, but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise uses knowledg e rightly, but the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness.” The prudent man controls his anger, Proverbs 12:16.

Blasphemous Language

When Jesus taught His disciples to pray in Matt hew 6:9, He taught them to hallow the name of God—to consider the name of God sacred and holy. God has never allowed a casual use of His name. In the Ten Commandments, God decreed, “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold hi m guiltless who takes His name in vain.” Many people, even some Christians, will say, “Oh, my God,” “Oh, my gosh,” or “Jesus Christ” as an expletive. This abuse does not “hallow” the na me of God but treats it as a common thing. Some scribes who copied the Bible te xts would wash their hands (a nd sometimes their whole bodies) and take a new pen that had never been used, to write the name of Go d. They would not even mumble the name of God to themselves as they wrote, lest they speak His name in vain. We must always reverence the name of our God.

Euphemisms

Euphemisms are an improper use of the tongue. A euphemism is a word used in the place of another. Some will use the word “gosh” instead of “God” in expletives. Some will say “darn,”

“dang,” “heck,” “freaking,” and other words instead of their more obscen e counterparts. It is noble to be conscientious to avoid saying profane words, but it is better for Christians to avoid such words and phrases altogether. Our language must be pure with no hint of evil.

Lying

Lying is a sin that must never characterize the li fe of a Christian. God is truth, the devil is the father of lies. We show our allegiance to G od by putting away all lying and speaking only the truth, Ephesians 4:25. We must not speak outright lie s nor are we to deceive others by leaving a false conclusion. Deceit literally means “bait” a nd “decoy.” When we deceive others we give them a decoy, a false assumption to pursue and do not correct them. In the family, business, and the church there must only be truth and right eousness on our lips. We mu st speak the truth no matter what the consequences are and live responsibly, so we are not tempted to lie.

Godly Language

The Christian’s language must be godly and reflect a heart consecrated for God. Paul commanded the Ephesians to let no corrupt communication proceed from their mouths but rather words of edification and grace, Ephesians 4:29. He wrote the Colossians to walk wisely around worldly people and to speak gracefully and thoughtfully, Colossians 4: 6. He told Titus to encourage the young men to have sound speech that could not be condemned, Titus 2:8. Our words must encourage and edify all men, especially our brethren. Our speech must be graceful, or beautiful. We must speak words of kindness. When we must speak tough words, such as words of rebuke, we must still speak with grace and love, Ephesians 4:15. Our words can comfort the downhearted, 1 The ssalonians 5:14. Too many brethren suffer without a word of exhortation from loving brethren. We pray for these individuals, but we should also call or send a card to show our concern. Si nce we have been comforted by God, we should comfort others, 2 Corinthians 1:4. Christians must always be ready always to give a defense of our faith, with a meek and fearful spirit, 1 Peter 3:15. Proverbs 15:28: “The heart of the righteous studies how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.” Christians must study the word to prepare a scriptural defense of his belief. A foolish person, on the other hand, will answer “my church believes…,” or “my preacher says…,” or “I think…” We cannot answer the world in its folly. We must know why we believe what we believe and be able to defend it with scripture. When we do this, we will take our tongue, that unruly evil, and use it for good.

Questions for Discussion & Study

1. Why is it so difficult to control the tongue?

2. We know that coarse jesting is inappropriate for Christians. Is it ok to listen to it? Why or why not?

3. How can we avoid using wrathful language?

4. How is blasphemous language insulting to God?

5. Describe the language that must characterize the Christian.

6. Think about some of the words that you use when you are angry or other interjections. Look them up in the dictionary to make sure that you are not using a euphemism that could send a wrong message to the hearer. I heard a preacher use a common slang word from the pulpit to describe a stupid person. I asked him later if he knew what that really meant. I then showed him in the dictionary that it was a slang word for something lewd. We must make sure that we do not pick up words from the world or even other brethren and use them without knowing what they really mean.