Daily Thoughts: cursing

Monday, October 15, 2012

If You Can’t Say Something Nice

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“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain” – Exodus 20:7

As the words left his lips, the room quieted considerably. The boy, no more than 4 years old, had uttered such profane words that the adults and others in the room stopped what they were doing and turned to him. His eyes got really big, and the laughing smile he had on his face was suddenly replaced with a look of embarrassment and fear. In his little mind he knew that he had just done something that was unacceptable and the guilt began to set in. Quietly, his mother knelt down next to the young boy and wrapped her arm around him, pulling him close. “Sweetie, why would you way something like that?” With his big brown eyes, he looked back at his loving mother, “Mommy, I watched Daddy hit his thumb with a hammer the other day and those are the words he said. When I stubbed my toe on the stool over there, I thought that was what I was supposed to stay.”

This is nothing new. We are all intimately familiar with the loose tongue and carelessness of the words we choose to use as we carry on with the stress of daily life. We are all familiar with the scripture verse that says we should not use the Lord’s name in vain, yet many of us continue to allow this vile and disrespectful language to exude from our thoughts and heart. The problem really comes down to reverence and respect for the most Holy of all names, and secondly whether we truly embrace the 10 Commandments as God’s word or as a suggestion.

Can you stand here today and truly say that God Almighty is the most sovereign and highest authority ever to exist? God acknowledges this fact in Genesis 22:16, as He enters into covenant with Abraham, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord…” A covenant is entered into when 2 individuals agree to their responsibilities with the acknowledgement of one who is greater than either of the parties in the covenant. In this particular case, there is no other greater than God and therefore He swears by Himself, to be held accountable to this covenant with Abraham. Again, in Exodus 3:14, God tells Moses; “I AM that I AM. . . “ when He entered into covenant with Moses. This represents that there is nothing greater to describe His presence, He is all things, He is eternal, He is unchanging. In John 3:16 we once again hear of God’s omnipotence as He tells of His plan of salvation for all mankind. “For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.” This is the ultimate sacrifice the highest form of love known to man, to give his only son.

We know what is written, yet the evil an impurity that is within our heart seeps out through our tongue. It is discarded as mere words or fodder, and not held to the level of accountability that God demands in His 10 Commandments. If we truly embraced, with reverence and holiness, the name of God, we would never utter such filth from our lips. God’s name is to be praised, worshipped and held on high. It is wrong to use His name in a derogatory, demeaning or unrighteous manner. We often are careless and reckless with our language in the heat of a verbal exchange, but this does not constitute acceptable behavior. We can justify it all we want, “slip of the tongue” “didn’t mean it” “He knows I love Him” “others say much worse things”; but it is still taking the Lord’s name in vain. It is sin, period. Like every other sin, we must bring this to the Lord, confess it, repent of it and allow the Holy Spirit to help us overcome it.

There is no greater authority than God Almighty and in knowing this we need to hold, in reverence, everything that He has instructed us to do. The 10 Commandments are not suggestions, they are instructions and yes, they should be taken literally. Perhaps the next time you feel the urge to let loose with a few expletives, you might be cautioned to bite your tongue, or praise God instead. One of my favorite life lessons from the Disney movie Bambi, “… Thumper what did your Father tell you this morning? If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all.” Perhaps we should choose the Thumper rule more frequently when our angered has reached the level of cursing, or using the Lord’s name in vain.

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
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Thursday, May 3, 2012

Bible Study – James (day 9)

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“Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world” – James 1:26-27

Self control and humility. Two words that are often times foreign in the 21^st century vocabulary. As we discussed a few days back, the words that come from our lips cannot return thereafter and must be carefully chosen before speaking. Rash, crude or abusive language is demeaning to other individuals regardless of it’s intent. It demonstrates to the other individual that they are less worthy of intelligent conversation. Often times it expresses an anger or aggression that might be otherwise kept inside. Let’s be honest, when is the last time someone used foul language with you and your immediate reaction was “Wow, that person is very articulate and well spoken.” Generally, it is just the opposite reaction.

But it happens. We lose our temper and words have come from our mouth before we are capable of stopping them. What if you heard your Pastor, Priest or Minister using curse words from the pulpit? Would you consider them educated, full of the Holy Spirit and the love of God? Your impression of them would certainly be diminished based on their choice of words of this nature. We can’t demonstrate God’s love, mercy and kindness and then turn around and carelessly lose control of our words and actions. We have created an image of hypocrisy and reduced the image of God in the eyes of the beholder.

We must be able to exercise self control in this walk with God. The eyes of the world are upon you at all times when they realize that you are a follower of Jesus Christ. There is a natural tendency in all mankind to evaluate and judge the authenticity of your claim to Christianity. Jesus Christ set a very high bar for what Christianity looks like. Completely unachievable in this lifetime, but a goal none the less. His actions represented God the Father in everything He did, and so should ours. But it’s so much more than actions, it must come from the heart, mind and soul.

The more you are learning and strengthening your walk with Christ, the more you are naturally inclined to emulate and present His love, purity and humility to others. There is an old saying, “Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery.” (Charles Caleb Colton), and it holds so very true in today’s world. We need to imitating Christ and let others imitate us in our actions, words, motives and love towards others. Take control of our words and actions so others can see the Holy Spirit that lives within you, not so that you can look pious, holy and religious to those observing your actions. This little shift in your thinking will do incredible things for God’s Kingdom, because people will take notice and want to know what makes you different. Then you have the perfect opportunity to tell them.

ACTION: Church services are on Sunday, Wednesday and sometimes on Saturday night. It is expected that you put on your best behavior during those times. The real question is who are you when you aren’t in the comfort zone of the church sanctuary, or around your fellow Christians. Focus this week on living and demonstrating the “Christ-likeness” throughout the entire week through your language, actions, serving others and humbleness. See what a difference this new you will make in those around you.