05 May Using Our Words for Good

Words. I use a lot of them. Sometimes this works in my favor and, quite certainly, sometimes it does not. The crazy thing about words is that in just a few, you can honor Christ and build up a brother— but just a couple more and you can take almost any relationship to a place that is hard to come back from. Words are the definition of power.

In Ephesians 4:25-32, Paul talks to us about the importance of our words and the way we live our lives— how we must live our lives in light of the fact that we have been forgiven for so much. I love how he starts out the passage so bluntly:

25 So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. 26 And don’t sin by letting anger control you. Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.

Don’t Lie; Tell the truth. Seems like a pretty simple concept, right? Easier said than done. We live in a world where passive aggressive “subtweets” are a thing, where truth is buried under “acceptance,” and we all get fired up along the way. What seems a simple thing gets complicated and convoluted into something that becomes impossible to discern, and we are either frozen into silent anger or empowered to speak without authority. We must learn to use our words for good. We must learn to speak the truth in love so that we can rob the devil of any foothold that separates us from one another, that keeps any heart from knowing Christ.

This is a concept I’ve been forced to deal with in myself by being a part of Student Ministry. I had no idea how many hard conversations I would have to have in the last year.  I have had to learn to hold short accounts so that I can have productive conversations with both students and parents, speaking the truth in love to them. The passage goes on to say:

29 Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

Sometimes this means having that not-so-easy conversation so that we can find resolution with a brother or sister. This has been a huge area of refinement for me because very often I either want to avoid a conversation entirely or I want to speak out of an overflow of emotion—whether that be frustration or a burning desire to have a soul see Christ for the very first time. Good and helpful, an encouragement to everyone. Not just when we feel like it, not just when it’s a joy, not before it’s time—carefully, thoughtfully, we must speak.  We do this through the power of the Holy Spirit and through the Bible because as we learned earlier in Chapter 4, He has already equipped us to do the work He calls us to.

31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

“Just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”  I think that’s the key to the whole passage here—we must be living and speaking in a way that plainly communicates that we are forgiven and that we see how much we are in need of forgiveness. Christ paved the way and modeled that for us so clearly through His life in ministry—crying to His Father to “forgive them, for they know not what they do.”  Christ did not need to be forgiven, yet gave His life so willingly so that we could be. So, let’s build each other up this week; let’s live in light of that huge sacrifice. When we post, when we chat, let’s see if our words are qualified by this passage first. Let’s bring resolution to all our relationships and seek repentance for ourselves and joy in Christ for our brothers and sisters.

-Liz Wall, Downtown Campus