Swearing Christians? No Such Thing!

“What is in the heart will come out of the mouth! How many are deceived? There is no pretending.”

I remember when I first got saved from my sins (Matthew 1:21; Revelation 1:5), was born of the Spirit of God (1 Peter 1:23), and broken down to nothing (Isaiah 66:2; Psalm 51:17), having in truth, a born again experience (John 3:3), one in which no one could deny, not even myself.

Before this conversion took place within me (Ezekiel 36:24-27), my favorite word used to be the “F” word. Everything that I said had to, for some reason or another, include the “F” word. Yet, now that I am now dead to my sins (Ephesians 2:1) and alive to the Spirit (Romans 8:10), my heart’s desire is to have my conversation to become the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:27), and that it would be led (Romans 8:14) of the Holy Spirit that the Lord would continually show to me all of His salvation (Psalm 50:23).

Oh, my lack of understanding when I first came into the American Church and how little did I know what I was getting myself into.  I thought that going into the Church was going to be a stark contrast to the world, from darkness to light. From the rock-n-roll lifestyle to the American Church, I speculated that the Church is where people are upright, honest, pure and having a care for one another.  How little of this did I see.

When it came to simple conversations and hearing the words that came out of these people’s hearts and then their mouths, it took me aback, and it still does today.

I remember once when a pastor’s wife had the impertinence and temerity to swear in a sentence and then say to me, “You didn’t hear that.” I was again sincerely shocked. Whatever starts at the top will at length go to the bottom. I went from one extremity to another and I did not want anything to do with the old man (Ephesians 4:22) whatsoever.  Neither did I want to be around people that were merely pretending to be something that they were not (Matthew 23:3).

Another experience that I had was when I was preaching up in northern Minnesota where the praise and worship leader came up to me and mouthed the “F” word as if to suggest that somehow or another he was going to get a pass and what he just said was somehow  acceptable. Is Christ the minister of sin (Galatians 2:17), god forbid, (Romans 6:1), yet this man was using the grace of God as an occasion for the flesh (Galatians 5:13), and out of the abundance of his filthy heart, his filthy mouth spoke.

“You brood of vipers! How can you speak good things, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” -Matthew 12:24

And they wonder why the world is not converted; is it not because they have not been yet converted (Psalm 19:7)?

How is it that those who call themselves Christians do not understand that that which is born of the flesh is flesh (John 3:6)?

How many times I have encountered this, even from those that I respected.  Yes, I said respected. as in past tense.  It is staggering.  What is it that these hypocrites do not understand?  Their profession of being Christ’s is a fabrication of their own deceit (Proverbs28:26; Jeremiah 17:9).

Scripture is very clear in the matter.

“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” -Ephesians 4:29

In James 1:26, Scripture tells us “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.”

“Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into. Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” – 1 Peter 1: 12-19

 It has been said that Christians are to preach the Gospel to the whole world, and if they have to, they are to use words.  This is a truth in part only (Action speaks louder then words! 1 John 3:18), but the fact of the matter is that Christians have to use words that Christ commanded us to preach when it comes to His Gospel (Mark 16:15).  In the process, let’s just make certain that they are His words in the preaching, either in word or in deed (Colossians 3:17), even going to so far as to our thoughts.

“…and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;” -2 Corinthians 10:5

The world is watching, and it is listening.