Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy;
No one who has a haughty look and an arrogant heart will I endure.
Psalm 101.5
October 5th brings me to Psalm 101:5…
Are you still singing the October Song and dancing the October Waltz. Are you still focusing on October Worth and cleansing your October Heart. Are you letting the verse by verse of this Psalm resonate…
If we are to be able to sing of the lovingkindness and justice of our God and walk with integrity in our house and not put anything worthless before our eyes and if we are to have a heart free of perversion and if we are to know no evil then we must remember Psalm 101:5.
What does it mean to secretly slander your neighbor but to gossip about them behind their back…
Has there ever been more greater damage done than by those who accuse someone of evil when the one they accuse is not there to defend themselves? That’s what slander is… it is to accuse.
The two latest I have seen that all will most likely know about:
1) Carrie Underwood and her kiss to a 12 year old boy: Oh my did the “christian” tongues wag over this! It was quite sad the way people jumped to accuse this woman of such evil and they slandered her without even having seen the act.
2) President Oboma and Mitt Romney and Big Bird: President Obama had an opportunity to address Mitt Romney’s comment about Big Bird there in Mitt’s presence, but instead he takes it to the campaign trail, takes it out of context, and slanders him when he is not there to defend himself… as did many others in the media.
God says that he will destroy him who slanders his neighbor. He will silence the accuser. When we are the accuser, the slanderer, it is not God that we are imitating…
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying,
“Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God
and the authority of His Christ have come,
for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down,
he who accuses them before our God day and night.
Revelation 12:10
We better be very careful when we begin to use our tongue to decide the motive of a persons actions. God is going to cast Satan down for his accusations against His people… please don’t let us think we would receive any less.
There are twelve references to accusers in the NASB… Job was accused, David was accused, Jesus was accused… so if you are the one being accused, my friend, you are in good company! And you can trust that eventually all your accusers will be silenced.
and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered,
those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame.
1 Peter 3:16
You see, if you are taking care of Psalm 101:1-4, then you will be keeping a good conscience before God and if you know that you are good with God… then what can man do to you?
Those who secretly slander, those who accuse, they do so with a haughty look and an arrogant heart.
If you are honest with yourself you know the difference in your attitude when you have become the accuser and not the concerned.
It is visible in you and it is visible in others… You can see it as you walk through the halls in any American school, from Elementary to High School, and sadly you can see it in corners of every American church, and most definitely from the platforms from most every political podium. You can easily recognize the haughty eyes when you truly choose to see.
You know when the person who approaches you is speaking out of an arrogant heart or whether they are speaking out of frustration…
You know, and you know that you know.
But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother
shall be guilty before the court;
and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’
shall be guilty before the supreme court;
and whoever says, ‘You fool,’
shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.
Matthew 5:22
So what you should do. If you are the accuser, the slanderer… repent. Repent before God, repent before the one you slandered to, and repent to the one you slandered. Once words leave your mouth they will produce a result… but God can take what you intended for evil and use it for good if you give it to Him.
Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar,
and there remember that your brother has something against you,
leave your offering there before the altar and go;
first be reconciled to your brother,
and then come and present your offering.
Matthew 5:23-24
We live in a world that is evil enough as it is. It’s full of accusers and slanderers and gossips. There are plenty who live to tear down another to make themselves appear better. We have a world full of people who do deeds of darkness let us not waste our words and energy trying to create evil out of good intentions… Let us pursue peace, and humility, and seek to build others up not tear them down.
To quote Ravi Zacharias, “with boldness but with love take your stand“
Face to face… heart to heart… believe me I understand the need to “vent” and I have those around me that I know I can “vent” to but venting is not accusing… it is not slandering… venting comes out of one’s own frustrations and it is an attempt at working through a personal hurt in order to heal and move on and not let the hurt or frustration take root within you (Hebrews 12:15, James 5:16)… but it still must be done in confidence because there are those who will take your “vent” and use it to slander and accuse.