Drippings from the Honeycomb
More to be desired are [the rules of the Lord] than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. (Psalm 19:10)
What is the difference between these two sins?
A variety of Greek words are rendered in English translations as gossip or slander. Two examples can both be conveniently found in one location: 2 Cor 12:20: “For I fear that perhaps when I come I may find you not as I wish, and that you may find me not as you wish—that perhaps there may be quarrelling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder.” Slander: to speak down to in a hostile way, to speak evil, defaming talk (here); or abusive language, slow in calling good good, litt. blasphemy (here). To make a false or damaging statement about someone. If from the pulpit I spoke militantly and poorly of someone then that is slander. Gossip: secret whisperings (like a snake charmer) (here); or sometimes foolish talk (literally bubbling talk (here). Sharing casual or unconstrained reports about someone, without their consent, which may or may not be confirmed as true. If in my visitation I shared titbits about someone that was private knowledge that would be gossip. Both may be true or false, however, slander tends to be more open/public whereas gossip tends to be private/covert. Hence why they are easily confused. Each sin flows from our heart, or our nature (Mt 15:19); and speech sin is no small matter for through it our world is set ablaze (Ja 3:6). If we persist in our sinfulness then speech sin is included in the list of sins that will prevent us from entering heaven (1 Cor 6:10, revilers, litt. verbal abusers). This is not because of the sin itself but because persistent sin shows that the Holy Spirit does not indwell us and that means we’ve never repented of our sin and received forgiveness and the gift of eternal life. Oh may we repent of slander and gossip and so receive forgiveness to walk in freedom and the Spirit to help us to do so. “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.” —Ephesians 5:4
*As a disclaimer, I believe humour is a gift of God and even that God has revealed He has a sense of humour in Scripture. Nevertheless, Christian humour is to be clean and godly and filled with true joy. We’re not called to be prudes. I recently heard the following on a Christian podcast interview about education, “Who knows if there would have been a homicide if I had actually homeschooled my kids, the world will never know. [Laughter]” The individual demeaned her children and trivialized murder. She might rather have said, “I don’t think I was cut out to attempt homeschooling,” or “Because I’m naturally irritable it was by God’s grace that another option was presented to my family, etc.” Anything would have been better than this crude joke. This is certainly an area for growth I have been seeking to address in recent years (and facetiousness or sarcasm) and it is likewise one that I’ve picked up on in Christian circles. Christians have room to grow when it comes to joking. What is a Crude Joke? A joke is something that is funny, that makes one laugh. Something that is crude is offensive or coarse. A crude joke essentially makes light of something God condemns. (Hence the saying a clean joke). The Greek (eutrapelia) is a compound of good or easy and to turn, hence easily turning, witty, in the negative sense. Examples of Crude Joking A good clean joke that will make you laugh your pants off. Jesting in marriage: “I might have to upgrade to a newer model.” Jesting with children: “You must act that way because you’re adopted.” Jesting in the worklife: “If you don’t get this right you might have to find another job.” These of course are milder versions. Solutions to Crude Joking Crude jokes spring from our hearts. When we passionately come to love what God loves we’ll hate what is evil. Loving God and yielding to the Spirit’s work produces godliness, truthfulness, discernment and self-control; all necessary to combat crude jokes. Possible Responses to Crude Joking You don’t need to necessarily disapprove but we shouldn’t show approval (e.g. don’t laugh even if you see the twisted logic that could be seen as humorous). Ignore, walk away or limit time in their company. Respectfully express your concern for what was said (and why), counter with a better turn of phrase or smoothly suggest having better taste. Let our speech, including our jokes, always be seasoned with salt. For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. (James 3:2) Ah James! He has so many challenging words to share about our speech and how it flows from our hearts. While it would be worthwhile to consider major subjects such as gossip or slander from the wisdom of James, today I want to contemplate a minor subject in our speech, ‘white-blasphemies’ (and blasphemy, the 3rd of the 10 Commandments, which is not simply limited to reducing God’s name to a swearword, but more about not reverencing His character). I bring up the subject of what I’m calling white-blasphemies because I was asked to do so. Some may think this goes too far or is not worth the effort, but I’ve long been convicted of the importance of wholesomeness of speech and purity of heart in these—admittedly—minor areas. Consider a whole host of common phrases we use in ordinary [even Christian] English and what they are actually short hand for (hence white-blasphemies):
The list could go on…
When one pauses to consider what the white-blasphemy is actually veiling, it is disconcerting to see what we’re indirectly saying, even if when we use them there is no mal-intent. Good intent doesn’t mean something we say is right. This also raises the question why we even speak white-blasphemies in the first place. Consider a common swear word, B***h. This is not a bad word in itself, it is the name for a female dog that breeders and farmers with sheep, etc, use all of the time. This word became a swear word when used in anger and frustration at one’s dog and then applied to women and beyond. When we use language inappropriately or negatively we reveal something much more serious than the words themselves, the inward disposition of our hearts. Jesus said, “21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander [literally blasphemy], pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” (Mk 7:21–23). When we, in our hearts, are angry, frustrated, and anxious or, more positively, surprised or over-joyed we can say things to underscore or express our emotions. This can lead us to utter white-blasphemies. I think Christians could certainly find more appropriate words/phrases, and the subject, while minor, raises the deeper call to evaluate and guard our hearts (Pr 4:23). What is going on in our hearts when we feel compelled to make positive or negative uses of these white-blasphemies? Scripture tells us that watching our speech is a sign that we’re controlling our hearts, and control over our hearts is a sign that the Holy Spirit is producing fruit in our lives. The presence of the Holy Spirit shows that we are saved and know Jesus. May the Lord continue to sanctify our hearts and make our speech savoury—even in white-blasphemies—and may our wholesome speech bring glory to Him. Check out a whole number of Bible verses on the subject of speech here. |
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