If there is one thing that sets the church of Christ apart from the world is going to be how we use our speech. When we look at the instructions from God’s word, we see that those who are called by Christ are to have a manner of speech that is intended to build others up, and not tear them down.
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Colossians 4:6 (ESV)
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
Ephesians 4:29 (ESV)
This type of speech isn’t only intended to be used with those whom Christ has saved but is also intended to be utilized with those who are in opposition to the truth of the Gospel.
And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
2 Tim 2:24-26 (ESV)
But many who bear the name of Christ can find themselves not practicing this wholesome and gracious speech but instead using the tongue to destroy. One has to ask why that is?
One conclusion that I have come to is that we have an inadequate understanding of what gossip and slander is. When I ask people to define for me what gossip and slander are and why is it so bad, the most common responses are:
- talking about others behind their back
- speaking ill of someone
- tearing someone down with your words
- murdering someone with your words
Technically speaking all of these would be fitting descriptions in understanding what gossip and slander are. But they are theologically deficient. In order for us to understand why God forbids gossip and slander we must understand the reason behind it. There have been some great articles written on this subject and I commend them to you (here, here, here, and here).
But I want to draw the attention to 3 places in the Scripture where the term for gossip or slander really rings deeply and profoundly dangerous.
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 (ESV)
Depending on your translation of choice you will find that the term in the above text, slanderous, is translated as malicious gossips (NASB), false accusers (KJV), and slanderers (CSB). But what is striking is not the choice of term translated but the Greek term behind the translation.
We see the same term translated here:
Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things.
1 Timothy 3:11 (ESV)
And here:
Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good
Titus 2:3 (ESV)
In all three of these text, the Greek term that is translated as slanderous or slanderers is the term διάβολος (diabolos) which shows up in the New Testament 37 times and is only translated as slanderer or malicious gossips 3 of those 37 times. The other 34 times it is translated as devil, all in reference to the evil one who, as Christ says:
You are of your father the devil (διάβολος), and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
John 8:44 (ESV)
Christ here is pointing all the way back to the garden when the devil spoke lies to Eve and tempted her to doubt God and His word. Essentially what the devil did was murder Adam and Eve because he persuaded them to eat from the tree that God commanded them not to eat which brought about the death that God promised them would happen. So the devil is a murderer and a liar.
But it is this very word that is translated as slanderous or malicious gossips in relation to people, not the devil and it is here that we have to pay attention and understand the gravity of such practice and why it should not be practiced among those in the household of God.
Basically, when those in the household of God give way to gossip and slander what they are doing is being a mouth piece for the devil. In essence, it is akin to giving the devil a place or voice in the church of Christ when he should have not part in it.
Paul instructs us to “give no opportunity for the devil” (Eph 4:27). We are to speak truth in love to one another in the building up, not allowing the sun to go down on our anger, so that the enemy will have no opportunity, or occasion to act, in the church.
Our tongues, when used to gossip and slander, is used to cause destruction in the household of God instead of building up in love. So much so that James speaks strong words against the tongue.
For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.
James 3:7-10
When we consider the utter tragedy of gossip and slander, knowing that we are welcoming the evil one in our practice, changes the intensity of the sin doesn’t it? Not only are we disobeying the Lord, not only are we being unkind, not only are we murdering people with our words, we are welcoming the enemy as one of our own. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.
As born again believers, we all want to be useful to the King, and not useful to the enemy. We want to see Christ magnified in the lives of others and we want to see others grow in their affections for Christ. We want to see enemies of God be welcomed by God into His family because of His saving work that He does because of the perfect obedience of His Son on the Cross.
May the Lord help us and silence us when we are tempted to sin against Him by gossiping and slandering. May we be quick to repent from the sin of gossip and slander and go forth and gossip and slander no more. May we be quick to seek forgiveness from those who have been gossiped about and gossiped too.
May the King be glorified.