Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths …
Summary: Words have amazing power to build up or tear down. Paul is giving us a clue as to how we can monitor what is going on in our hearts and minds by watching what comes out of our mouths.
If you could take away our ability to use language in both thought and word, people would be little more than animals. Language is what sets us apart from the rest of God’s creation.
John’s Gospel tells us, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1)
God himself is “the Word.” To say, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths,” is to say do not let any ungodly talk come out of your mouths.
There is power in our words. “And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3) God used words to create our world. Even our DNA is a kind of language. Within our cells is a string of nucleotides akin to a Morse code message. The message in our cells contains the words of life.
Unwholesome words are the opposite of life. The Greek word used by Paul for “unwholesome” is defined by Strong’s Concordance with words like “rotten,” “worthless,” and “corrupt.”
As a child, my mom used to tell me that words didn’t have power. She taught me that saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.” But words do hurt. Words can cut like a knife. They can destroy lives. They can confuse us and lead us down the wrong paths.
Words have power, and the words we use reflect the spirit(s) in us. If unwholesome words come out our mouths, we need to examine ourselves (Matthew 7:3-5). I’m not suggesting that we “navel gaze,” but rather that we examine ourselves in the light of God’s Word.
The words we use can lift up or cut down. We can be a burden to others or a blessing. More importantly, to each of us individually, the words we use in our hearts and minds bring us closer to God or separate us from him.
Have we used words to build up walls in our hearts? Do we have compartments that we reserve for our own use? Do we imagine that we can keep secrets from our Father, who sees all?
When Paul says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths,” he does not mean “keep unwholesome words inside.” If there are rotten and corrupt words in you wanting to come out, something needs to be done. As Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians:
“Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?” (2 Corinthians 13:5)
Application: Be aware of what comes out of your mouth or is typed into a text message. Do your words reflect God’s love?
Food for Thought: How can we protect ourselves from unwholesome talk that others use, that we hear in the media (news), or that we are exposed to in the entertainment we watch?
How can we protect ourselves from unwholesome talk that others use, that we hear in the media (news), or that we are exposed to in the entertainment we watch?
Be mindful of what we let in. It is sometimes hard to pick what we hear. But more often, the phone, the remote control, the newspaper or magazine is in our hand. Be selective of what we entertain, and what we allow to entertain us. Here’s a subthought: the Old Testament is full of stories about people who battled with sin. They are both fascinating and have application in our lives today.
1 Corinthians 15:33 ESV Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”
Psalm 26:4-5 ESV I do not sit with men of falsehood, nor do I consort with hypocrites. I hate the assembly of evildoers, and I will not sit with the wicked.
Romans 16:17 ESV / 21 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them
Be mindful of what we let stay in. A sliver of truth is not the whole truth. Be mindful of agendas, including our own. Be mindful of what we agree to.
Romans 12:2 ESV Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Colossians 3:5 ESV Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
Philippians 4:8 ESV 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.
Be mindful of what we let out. Why are we saying what we are saying? Speak with purpose.
Ephesians 2:10 ESV For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Matthew 15:18-19 ESV But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.
Matthew 12:35 ESV The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.
The measuring stick is Jesus. Does what we say honor Christ’s sacrifice? Does it bring us closer to Him, to our neighbors, or leave us isolated? Another subthought: Also keep in mind, there is no honor anoung thieves. Unwholesome talk is usually between two or more cohorts.
Proverbs 21:10 ESV The soul of the wicked desires evil; his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes.
Matthew 22:37-39 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Isaiah 30:21 ESV And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.
1 Corinthians 10:6 ESV We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
Chris,
Good words this morning! Thank you! Perhaps the best is the one you saved for last:
“take every thought captive to obey Christ” (1 Corinthians 10:6)
How can we protect ourselves from unwholesome talk that others use, that we hear in the media (news), or that we are exposed to in the entertainment we watch?
Earmuffs….. take one of the guards from your heart’and have him guard your ear.
Prayer.
In one aspect, if you want to avoid unwholesome words, you must avoid other people, non Christians, the secular world. Just live in a bubble.
In another aspect, we are called to be ambassadors. You can’t be a representative of you aren’t a part of something distinctly diffrent than you. You also can’t be a representative if you change into something you’re not representing.
I would rephrase your question, how do we not participate in the unwholesome talk that surround us?
Just like every sin. Prayer, God’s power, confession when we fail, don’t stop trying to be like Jesus.
Good words, TAN!
I love the “earmuffs” strategy! But like you say, we are called to bring God’s light to the world and so we have to rely on the strength of our Lord and his Spirit to both guide and protect us.
BTW – Are you TAN from being out in the SON-light? 🙂
I appreciate the other posted comments.
I can’t add much that is new. Only that we can’t control what others say, but we can control what we listen to or open ourselves up to and we can control how we will respond.
Rich,
You make an important point: we can’t control what others say (no matter how badly we’d like to!). What we can control, as you point out, is how we respond to what others say. Thank you!
Romans 12: 17 – 18 comes to mind.
Great verse!
“Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
07-21-2023, How can we protect ourselves from unwholesome talk that others use, that we hear in the media (news), or that we are exposed to in the entertainment we watch?
LIVE THE LIFE GIVEN TO US BY GOD AS WE FULFILL HIS PURPOSES ON EARTH.
In John 17, we read the powerful prayer of Jesus to the Father. In verses 17:15-21, Jesus pray’s for His disciples and those who would come after them, which includes believers today, His disciples today. In this prayer, Jesus declares that all His disciples were, and are not of this world any more than He is. And He pray’s, not that God would take us out of the world, but that He would protect us while we are in it. This prayer makes clear that we are in this world but not of it.
1 Peter 2:9, Declares we are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, purposed to declare the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His wonderful light.
We have each received the power of the Holy Spirit, and are no longer controlled by the sinful nature of our flesh, but are impowered by the Holy Spirit, who is the seal of salvation for all those who believe. He is the power of discernment giving believers the sight required to see evil for what it is. The power to submit ourselves, to God as we resist the devil, and he will flee from us.
1 Corinthians 12:13, Romans 8:9, Ephesians 1:13-14, James 4:7
Ron,
You remind me of one of the characters in Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. In the first book, Frodo and his companions run across Tom Bombadil. The Bombadil character reminds me of Jesus in a way. Frodo, who is charged with carrying the evil “One Ring,” shows the ring to Tom who takes it in his hand. Unlike humans and hobbits, the ring has no power over Tom. Even when he puts in on his finger, nothing happens.
In a similar way, when we have Jesus in us, we are less affected by Satan’s wiles. The more we lean into the power of the Word and the Holy Spirit, the more we impervious we are to the devil’s lies. Because we are in this world for awhile, we need the Lord’s protection while we do his work.
Walking in the light disapates all darkness that may appear in our path.
Blessings,
Ron