Me and my wonderful roommate visited a different church this past Sunday. I really enjoyed the sermon that was focused on James 4:11-12. I have studied James a countless number of times but I have never looked at this passage the way he described it.
"Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgement on it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you--who are you to judge your neighbor?"
Wow. Not only is James telling us to not speak negative things about a brother, he is saying do not SLANDER one another. Do not speak true OR untrue things that might bring a brother down. Whether the information is true or not, don't speak of it. How many times have you spoken the truth about someone and in the back of your mind you know if that person heard you, it would bring them down? I know I have. The reason we do this is because we have self-centered motives whether we realize it at the time or not. It may be for/because revenge, self-righteousness, insecurity, or envy.
Why do we insist on tearing someone else down in order to build ourselves up?! It blows my mind when I think about the times I've done this. We do not need to hurt others to improve ourselves. Ridiculous! The next time you begin to speak truth, lies, or insults about someone else... remember what James said. DON'T DO IT.
No comments:
Post a Comment