God's word on Gossip-
The funniest thing happened when it was announced that the topic of our Bible study would be "gossip". Several of the guys emailed or called and asked if this was a "women's only Bible study". And while we were at Bible study the men pointed out the many times "gossip" and "women" were referenced together in the Bible. It's undeniable that when women get together, we hear things like, "Did you hear about...", "You'll never believe what I heard this week...", or "Now you didn't hear this from me, but...". Women sharing information is not the problem; it is the intention in which we share that causes so many problems. God knows that women are caring, compassionate, and sharing creatures...He made us in this beautiful way. He also knows that as humans we are jealous and envious in nature-...Sin created this.
God is so good. Just as He does so often, He recognizes our weaknesses and gives us the instructions to battle our sinful nature.
James 4:11 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 judgment on it. Have you ever met someone that every time you run into them, they have a tiny morsel to offer you about someone else's horrible story? They always make it sound as if there is no hope for that person. Are they judging that person and passing the information along in order to get affirmation that their own sins are not so bad?
Proverbs 17:9 He who covers an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends. Woe! That's heavy stuff. We love our friends. We would never want anything to come between them. But that Satan... he is so clever. He gives us a little pinch of jealousy, dash of envy, and a smidge of resentment; and before we know it... our mouths are off and running, causing rifts and canyons wide enough to separate the closest of friends. Proverbs 18:8 The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man's inmost parts.
Time for Battle:
Step 1- An ounce of prevention: Proverbs 11:9 With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous escape. Get knowledge & follow God's instruction. Now, "knowledge" here does not mean to get more dirt on the situation. It's meaning is to have knowledge in the Word so that we may have the words to put an end to slander or gossip against our neighbors.
Step 2-Don't do it: Psalm 34:13 Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. 1 Peter 2:1 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. This is the "Just don't do it" clause. Sometimes the easiest thing to do is to not do something. Once you begin gossip, there seems to be no end and it can wear a person out. The easiest thing is to not do it.
Step 3- Let the flames die down: Proverbs 26:20 Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down. Surely we've all experienced this one. You hear about an argument or problem that someone has had with someone else... it sounds so riskay and scandalous... everyone knows and is talking about it.... for a while. How fast something dies down depends on the number of people that are willing to just let it be... and to seek God's counsel on matters rather than the opinions of person after person.
Step 4- Love your neighbor as yourself: Most of us have been in the middle of some form of gossip. Whether we have been involved in spreading gossip or sat by and "innocently" listened, we shouldn't have been involved at all. God's greatest command is to love. And God speaks against the opposite of love. Ephesians 4:31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Titus 3:2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.
Now it's here that I want to include a personal note. When this was picked as the topic of discussion, I was worried a little for everyone in this group; myself included. We are all guilty of being involved in gossip. I think that we all have seen through this message that sharing information with others can hurt others and can cost us our reputation. We are here to build up and not to tear down. We are here to show the love of Christ. 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.
