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| “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths…” |
| —Ephesians 4:29a |
No, I’m not talking about well-brushed teeth and the frequent use of an alcohol-based mouthwash. A clean mouth is something that is harder and harder to maintain in our profane society today. Why? Because we are surrounded by vile words.
Most of you reading this probably never had your mouths washed out with soap. I’m embarrassed to admit that as a small boy, probably 7 or 8 years old, my mom took a bar of Ivory soap and applied it liberally to my tongue. I had used a four-letter word beginning with the letter “s” to describe the excrement of a neighborhood dog.
Today, such punishment, or even concern for the use of such language, seems ludicrous. But, I’m not at all certain that’s an improvement in our culture. In those long ago days, I never, ever, heard a woman use foul language. Today, everywhere I go, I hear women using the vilest language in normal conversation. They do this irrespective of who may be standing near them.
Every bit as common is the use of offensive words to describe people with whom we do not agree. The political discourse in our land has long ago passed any limit of civility. In fact, as I write this blog post, the leading candidate of one of the political parties uses the most offensive words to describe his opponents and the leading candidate in the opposition party has a long history of using coarse language in dealing with her staff and her supposed enemies.
We all fall prey to the fact that what we hear, we repeat. I spent 30 years working at an insurance company where vile language was the norm. Sadly, that vile language began to seep into my own thought life and, eventually, spill out of my mouth.
We need to push a reset button. We need to take seriously the words of the Apostle Paul, as recorded in Ephesians 4:29:
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
If we focused on only saying helpful words, we could change the whole complexion of our society. We don’t have to agree with people’s opinions that are the opposite of our own. Nor do we need to speak ill of them with such vile ferocity as we commonly do.
Let’s determine this day to push a reset button on our words and speak civilly and circumspectly to everyone we meet. Let’s change what we say to conform to the image of our Savior. Surely the Lord Jesus Christ would be pleased if we reverted to speaking kindly and cleanly.
