Recently, as I have viewed various movies and video clips, and have heard people speaking, one particular biblical passage has come to mind. The passage is from the Book of James, Chapter 3. It goes like this:
“The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell” (James 3:6).
Why does this verse come to mind so often? Because of the coarseness of today’s speech. It is one thing to despair of improper grammar and sloppy sentence construction – which do bother me to some degree (such as using “it’s” as a pronoun rather than as a contraction of “it is” which of course, it is). Or when people say “aks” instead of “ask.” Or when they write “whom” when the correct word is “who.” (or vice versa).
Yes it’s one thing to be a “grammar policeman,” always correcting people’s spelling and grammar, but altogether something else to lament the current state of public discourse in our country. For no matter how much instruction you have had in proper English usage, you have to recognize that our society has become much more vulgar and blasphemous in recent years. It’s (notice the proper use of the contraction) not that people never swore in the past – they did, and some of our swear words today have long and “colorful” histories even back to Anglo-Saxon days, but the use of such words has become ubiquitous, being used everywhere. Previously, rough language was used privately or in certain situations but now it is common throughout the media, especially in millennials’ social media.
Now, I need to address this issue, but I will try to do so without actually writing the offensive words. For one thing, I don’t want you to put those words in your minds like infectious mind viruses. Another analogy would be to call them toxic waste that would pollute your mind.) But the other reason is that offensive words can change; the principle is what matters. No matter what words become “bad words” in the future, there are three types of speech which James would agree we need to control.
These kinds are:
1. Blasphemous words. These are the words which break the Second Commandment. It’s not that words naming or describing the Deity are inherently bad; it’s how we use them that matters. If we name them in prayer, in preaching or teaching, or in witnessing to others, those are holy uses and therefore they honor God and don’t blaspheme him. It is when we use them as expletives in anger, as common expressions of surprise, or combined with vulgar words to show emphasis, that we have used God’s name in vain. This is no small thing with God. His word proclaims many times that his Name is to be praised (e.g., Job 1:21 and Psalm 113:2,3 “Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore”). Beyond that, God warns against blaspheming his Name: when God gave the command against taking his Name in vain, he finished the sentence by saying, “for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.” Let us make sure that we don’t misuse God’s Name, especially around what may be non-believers, thereby cheapening the Name that should be praised. How can we treat the “name that is above every name” (Philippians 2:9) as vulgar?
2. Vulgar words. While discussing bodily functions (or the lack of them!) with your doctor is certainly appropriate, do we really need to sound like junior high boys spouting crude names for excretory and reproductive functions? No one needs to hear me pepper my speech with graphic descriptions of body parts. Sure, as a teenager I thought the Russian “Song of the Volga Boatmen” was about the “vulgar boatmen,” but I grew up. Unfortunately, it seems many adults have not yet made that transition. Their argument is that they want their speech to sound “real.” They say not to hide our thoughts with softened words like “heck” or “rats!” But my parents “kept it real” when talking about all aspects of life and never used any vulgarities in their speech. When people fill their sentences with one vulgarity after another, they are only revealing how limited are their vocabularies.
3. Words used to insult, belittle, or harm others. When explaining the Eighth Commandment, Martin Luther wrote, “We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way.” It is a sign of our love and fear of God that we use language that is beneficial and uplifting to others. There is no room for a Christian to curse others with hateful speech. The Bible commands Christians to watch their language, and not use it against other people. James 3 contrasts the words with which we praise God and those which we use to curse those who are made in God’s image: “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be” (James 3:9-10). Likewise, Paul commands Christians to focus on good speech: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8).
All in all, Christians are called to rise above the common speech of whatever culture in which they live. Neither blasphemies, crude language, nor hateful words are allowed. As James 1:26 says, “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.” A few other relevant passages include:
- Ephesians 5:4 “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.”
- Matthew 5:2 “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.”
- 1 Peter 3:9 “Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.”
- Colossians 3:8 “But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.”
Therefore, I encourage you to guard your speech, making sure that it is holy, uplifting, edifying, and sweet in the ears of all who hear you speak or read what you write. And if you should be tempted to blurt out any words you shouldn’t, then follow James’ advice, and “Hold your tongue!”
Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.
Read: Psalm 30:12; Psalm 47:6; James 3:3-12; Colossians 3:1-17.