You Sound Like Who You Belong To

"Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." (Ephesians 4:29-30)

That word "corrupt" comes from the same root we use for rotten fruit, rotten vegetables, spoiled food. A corrupt word pollutes. This warning can be applied to off-color jokes, profanity, dirty stories, vulgarity, coarse jesting, lying, slandering, and gossiping. Do you think of those things as sin? Do you think of them as having no place in the heart and vocabulary of a child of God?

Profanity should not be in our vocabulary. When someone starts to tell you an off-color joke and says it's not too dirty, God's people ought to find a polite way out of that conversation. People should recognize, "I can't talk the way I normally do because so-and-so is here." That's not being "holier-than-thou". That's just being different, which is exactly what Paul has been calling us to.

When we use corrupt words and let our untamed tongue call the shots, we grieve the Holy Spirit. He is not a force. He is a Person. You can't grieve a force. You grieve someone you know intimately. Don't grieve Him.

Proverbs 18:21 says, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they that love it will eat its fruit." You can plant hope in someone's heart with a few words. Or discourage them just as fast. Do you have words a parent or coach spoke to you as a child that still echo in your mind? "You'll never make it." "You'll never measure up." If those words caused harm, don't repeat them to someone else. Let it stop with you.

William Temple once said, "The most influential of all educational factors is the conversation in a child's home." Think about the difference between a home where a child hears, "Can't you do anything right? What's wrong with you?" versus one where they hear, "I'm really proud of you. Good thinking."

I read about a man who worked hard all day on his lawn because his dad had asked him to. When his dad came home, he looked around and said, "Good job." That made his whole day. Just two words. If two words can do that much for someone, surely we can choose a gracious word over a critical one.

The Greek word for "slander" is diabolos. Some of you will recognize that because it's the same word for the devil. When we slander, when we accuse, when we tear people down, we are behaving like the devil himself, the accuser of the brethren. When we allow our tongue to go there, we are giving the enemy an access point in our lives. When we build up, encourage, and use words that heal, we sound like Jesus! Our words reveal what's inside of us. Christians should speak differently because of the changed life within us.

Reflection Question: Who in your life right now needs a genuine word of encouragement from you?

Dear Heavenly Father, set a guard over my mouth today. Help me speak words that build up and not tear down. Where I have used my tongue to hurt, gossip, or slander, forgive me. I want to reflect You to others in my life. In Jesus' Name, amen.

Adapted from: Enemy Access Denied (Ephesians 4:25-32): https://www.joshfranklin.org/media/3vjtypj/17-enemy-access-denied-eph-4-25-32