What You Say Matters

 

"No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world." - Robin Williams

This coming Sunday, I will preach about the power of our words and how they can bring life and destroy life if they are wielded without conscience. 

I'm pretty excited about preaching this sermon, but I'm also mindful of the impact that my own words might have. This is a constant consideration I make as a preacher every time I deliver a sermon.  

Words matter.  The way we speak to one another and about one another matters.  

This is never more true than in the middle of a national election cycle (which we always seem to be in, but that's another issue).  

We are in the midst of an existential crisis as a country, brought on by the devaluation of public discourse. People no longer value the weight of words. 

In fact, they often ignore what is being said by their politicians of choice, even if it is blatantly awful, a bald-faced lie, extremely bigoted, tinged with hate, or just downright ludicrous.   

And lest ye think I am being partisan here, this sad fact is true across a broad political and social spectrum.  Ignoring what is being said is an entirely bipartisan activity.  

Depending on our political leanings, we tend to believe that everything the politicians on "our side" say is true, and everything coming out of the mouths of those on the "other side" is decidedly false. 

Let me say this, I do believe that when the words of politicians venture into name-calling, baseless accusations, outright fabrications, perpetuation of wild conspiracy theories, and pure old-fashioned hate-mongering, it should be called out by all of us. 

Sadly, we are not there as a culture, mainly because so many of us have lost our consciences and moral compasses out of fear, primarily triggered by the same politicians.  

The fact is that no matter how we have devalued the power of words as a society, they still carry the same weight.  

We might do everything we can to selfishly mitigate their power or plug our ears while we spout off all the reasons why what is being said doesn't matter, but we can't ignore their effect on us.  

And the effect they are having on us is painfully obvious.  Our divided nation is exhibit A.  

I was scrolling through Facebook this morning and saw some pretty awful political and religious posts by people I actually like.  They may not have been "saying" anything, but the images and memes they posted or re-posted spoke volumes.  

I was saddened by this because my first inclination was to be horribly disappointed in them.  But in a culture where words don't seem to matter much, and the truth is buried underneath fear and dread, I decided compassion was the right emotion.  

We're all feeling the effects of this issue in one way or another.  

In the epistle of 1 John from the New Testament, the author writes to early Christians about the dangers of listening to anyone who speaks without assessing the weight of their words: 

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. (I John, 4:1)

The problem that the author of 1 John addresses was common in the early days of Christianity.  All kinds of traveling preachers and teachers professed to have a corner on the market regarding the truth of the Gospel. 

Isn't it great that we've moved beyond all that kind of thing?  (he wrote sarcastically)

Here's the thing: We know when something is said that is wrong at its core. We know this because we have our own filters and guidelines for what we say (at least we should), and depending on our circumstances, we police our own words for fear of how they might impact those we care about. 

This is why testing the spirit of what is being said is vital for those who claim to follow Jesus. If what is being said directly opposes Jesus' teachings, perhaps we should be more careful in accepting it. 

If what is being said is more apt to destroy life than give it, we should resist rather than repeat it because it plays into our fears. 

May we learn to practice faithful discernment.  May we find compassion toward one another, as well as forbearance.  

And may the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us all, now and forever. Amen.