No foul language should come from your mouth, but only what is good for building up someone in need, so that it gives grace to those who hear. And don’t grieve God’s Holy Spirit. You were sealed by him for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander be removed from you, along with all malice. And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ. (4:29-32)
When I first came to know Jesus in a personal way, the very first thing He cleaned up in my life was my language. Sanctification is a process… it is a process of becoming less and less like the old sinful person you used to be and more and more like Jesus. All of us have things in our lives that have to change after we are saved, and yet, all of us are different. Some things God removes by His grace right away and other things are a battle that we wage against a particular sin until the day we meet Him and are fully sanctified and glorified. For me, I cussed a lot and the very first thing God cleaned up in my life was my foul language.
Paul says that no foul language should come from your mouth. Of course, the definition of foul language is often culturally defined. There are certain words in African languages that would mean nothing to you but are considered very crude here. Conversely, I often cringe when I hear Africans using foul words in English without any knowledge of what they are saying or how offensive those things are in my culture. There is a debate raging, even in our culture today, about what is considered “foul” and what is not. Today’s generation makes light of certain words that in my day were very inappropriate (even for lost people), and it seems that anything goes when it comes to movies and ratings. Yet, I also see this generation wanting to re-define as “foul” certain words that were previously benign because they are now charged with the emotion of political correctness.
Language and meaning is definitely a moving target, but Paul helps us to know how to define foul language. It is not just the words you speak but it is the effect that those words have on other people. His admonition is not simply “Quit cussing!” (which is important) but it goes beyond that to say, “think about what you say before you speak and think about how it affects others.” It is not just about removing foul language; it is also a call to be sure that the ONLY language that comes from your mouth is what “builds someone up and gives grace to those who hear.” When Jesus saved me He cleaned up my language, but more than that, He called me to care about others more than myself. The real question is, “Does your language encourage others and give grace, or does it make them cringe when you speak?”
