If you know how many times you have had to 'bite your tongue' as my mother used to say, you will agree with the apostle James who wrote, "And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity (James 3:6) and "..the tongue no-one can tame, it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison" (James 3:8).
I've had a few occasions recently to think about a Bible verse which says, Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. (Ephesians 4:29 NIV). This is quite a challenge, but wait, there's more! Jesus said "A good person out of the good treasure of the heart brings forth good things: and an evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things." Matthew 12:35, and "out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks" Luke 6:45. He then went on to give this serious challenge, "I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak." That's a very sobering thought!
The Bible has a lot to say about the tongue, particularly in James 1:26 there is this very strong word, "If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless." Later it likens the tongue to a small flame that can set a whole forest on fire. James then goes on to say in 3:6, "We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check." Phew! We know that there was only one perfect person, Jesus Christ. Does that let me off the hook? No! But it does mean we should try to do better, without 'falling into a hole' when we fail......which we will.
So what is 'unwholesome talk'? Some translations say 'foul language', but I think it means much more than that. It's words that criticise or put people down, even people we don't know but see on TV or read gossip about. It's words that are not kind, words of anger and frustration. You can make your own list. Ephesians 4:29 says our words should aim to be helpful and encouraging, that they may benefit those who listen. That's a really good thing to aim for.
It's too easy to get caught up in conversations that don't fit into those parameters, and so easy to speak careless, unnecessary words. It is so easy to be misunderstood and our words misinterpreted, even if we have the best of intentions. What a different world it would be if we all thought about our words a little more, and the effect that they might have on others. Some use the guideline "is it good, is it necessary, is it kind?" The psalmist prayed this useful prayer, "Set a guard over my mouth, LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips." Psalm 141:3
Prayer: Lord you know my weakness, you know my moods, my opinions, my sins. Forgive me, I pray and help me to cooperate with your Holy Spirit to let my conversation be acceptable to you. Help me not to cause others to stumble. Amen
