We live in a culture that has become increasingly vulgar. The number of curse words used on prime-time TV has dramatically increased. According to one study, the use of profanity had a sharp increase from 1990 to 2005. This has impacted our society. One study estimated that the use of profanity in Twitter is about twice what people normally do in conversation.
Now what is also alarming is that we have become desensitized to these words. The reaction that many have is that “they’re just words.” What is worse is that this attitude is creeping into our churches. There was a discussion about this on Facebook between several “preachers.” To my amazement several defended using profanity as just a part of “normal” speech.
The problem revolves around the idea that our lives are compartmentalized. When we go to worship, to the church building, we act one way, but when we leave and go out of the building we feel free to act in other ways. That’s absurd! As followers of Jesus Christ, how we act and what we say should be the same.
The apostle Paul reminds us that we should be mindful how we live, He says, “do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore, glorify God in your body” (1 Cor. 6:19-20).
Notice that Paul did not say be careful how you live and what you say just when you are gathered together as the church. We are the temple of God where ever we are.
James tells us that what we say is important. “The tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell” (James 3:6).
We’ve been called to be different than the world because we serve a GOD who has faith in us. God believes that you and I can be better than that. Paul says in Eph. 5:4, “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.”
This is important as Jesus told us that the words that come out of our mouth actually comes from the heart! (Matt. 15:18-19). The words we say mean something and ...
