“When we slander, we are doing Satan’s evil work.
When we speak words of evil, we are furthering the plans of the enemy.
When we lack the control of our tongues, we become slaves.“
A. C. McGuire, Renew Your Mind
When I first seen the word slander, it made me think of the word slaughter. After looking it up, I found out that it pretty much IS slaughter – of a person’s character. The real definition from the Oxford Dictionary is: “a false report maliciously uttered to a person’s injury.” When we maliciously utter statements about another, we’re not only slaughtering their character, but our own and Christ’s. Speaking poorly of another not only says something about the other person, but about us and our hearts. If our heart is not in the right place — if our heart is not in line with the Lord’s will — we become slaves to Satan.
When we slander our friends, we become slaves to Satan
When we slander our friends, whether it be to their face or behind their backs, we must question our motives for doing so. Most people would qualify themselves as nice people, but most people slander their friends behind their backs. This could either stem from learning it from others around us, or it could stem from bitterness. Either way, as adults, we must know better and do better. And as adults who would identify as Christians, we must definitely do better, or else we slander the name of Jesus every time we slander others.
Slandering our friends does nothing to further or grow relationships. Slandering our friends is not of the Father’s will. If we have nothing nice to say about them behind their back, then why are we friends with them? And if we have nothing nice to say to their face, maybe it’s time we move on from the “friendship.”
When we slander our family, we become slaves to Satan
“Honour thy father and thy mother,” the fifth commandment says. This is not to be taken lightly. God tells us to honour our parents because they are the head of the house. God chose them, specifically, to be our parents. Though we may disagree with them on some (perhaps all) topics, we must still respect them. Especially as Christians, if we do not respect our earthly father and mother, how are we to ever respect our Godly Father?
The same goes for our siblings. If we can’t love our earthly sisters and brothers, how are we to ever respect our brothers and sisters in Christ?
When we slander our family, it pulls everyone apart. Satan wants the core of the family unit to be under tension so that it’s easier to attack. The family unit is a powerful and mighty tool the Lord uses to further His Kingdom and work. But if it’s being attacked from within, it can no longer help God, but instead further Satan’s plans. He wants children and parents to be at war. He wants brother and sister to hate each other. Satan wants husband and wife to bicker and slander each other.
Remember this the next time you feel the urge to slice and cut your family with evil, slanderous words: the weak family furthers Satan’s plans; but the strong family unit furthers God’s Kingdom.
When we slander strangers, we become slaves to Satan
“When my mouth speaks words as sweet as honey
But my mind is filled with mold and mud;
When I forget my thoughts are more important than my words…
I know I must rest in the Lord.
(For the Lord judges the heart and not outward appearances.)“
A. C. McGuire, Rest In The Lord
Slander isn’t always speaking out loud. You could slander in your thoughts too. That snide comment you thought about the “half-dressed” girl? Slander. The rude remark you thought about the mom with the disobedient son? Slander. The hideous thought about the homeless person, the troubled looking teen, the one with tattoos and piercings and coloured hair? Slander.
I came across this quote that reads: “Every person you see is someone that Jesus chose to die for. Remember that.” We are all God’s children. We are all created in His image. We must remember this with everyone we see. We must not allow our “righteousness” to become pride. The Lord sees the heart, not the outward look of people. We must remember to do the same. We can’t see someone’s heart through the way they look on the outside. We must not slander. We must be kind to each and every one of God’s children (Proverbs 19:17, Zechariah 7:10, Luke 6:30, James 1:27).
“He that hath pity upon the poor length unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.” Proverbs 19:17
“Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother: and oppress not the widow, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.” Zechariah 7:10
“Give to every man that asketh of thee, and of him that taketh away thy goods ask them not again.” Luke 6:30
“Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” James 1:27
When we slander ourselves, we become slaves to Satan
When we have been beat down, trampled on, and left all alone, we start to believe that nobody loves us and that nobody ever will… This is where the grace of God can lift us up. This is where we need to know that we are always welcomed and loved by Jesus. His grace accepts us for who we are, and helps us become all that we can be.
Instead of slandering ourselves, putting ourselves down deeper in the hole of pity, we need to look to Jesus to remind ourselves who we are. Once we know who we are, we can and should allow ourselves grace, just as Jesus does. When we know we are children of the living God, we do not need to wallow in our shame and misery any longer. We can break free from the slander and hate, and walk in step with our identity in Christ and Christ alone.
When we slander God, we become slaves to Satan
Whenever we begin to doubt the truth of God, we allow ourselves to fall into the evil chatter of unrighteous people. We allow their words to reach our hearts and minds with ease, and welcome the sinful act of slander against God… We allow the blaspheming to begin and we do not stop it or curse it. We join in.
Whenever we become impatient with God, we become unfaithful. We also become evil and guilty of eternal sin, if we blaspheme the Holy Spirit, for Jesus said, “Verily I say unto you, all sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme, but he that shall blaspheme the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation” (Mark 3:28-29).
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Remember:
Satan is a master deceiver. He knows our weak points and he especially knows that we all have a hard time controlling our tongues. But as I said before, slander is always a speech issue. We slander others with the thoughts we have as well, which makes it a heart issue…
Questions we can ask ourselves when we’re feeling particularly slanderous:
What is my heart filled with today? Is it filled with bitterness, anger, hatred, frustration, disgust? Or is it filled with love, compassion, grace, mercy and kindness?
Where is my heart leading me today? Is it leading me towards God or is it leading me towards Satan?
How is my heart making me live? Is it making me live with an eternal perspective – leading me towards Heaven? Or is it making me live in the destruction of Satan and his slanderous, evil ways – leading me towards Hell?
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We must always make sure we are assessing our hearts and minds daily & always making sure we are leaning on God and His strength in our weaknesses, for His power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). Our Lord is the only One who can help keep our hearts on track.
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