Without Exceptions

"... we should only speak the words of Jesus."

In writing, there are do's and don'ts, things learned by the effort of writing and through reading writing advice. Adverbs are a don't. For the most part, a writer must avoid them. We cannot do things happily, slowly, or falsely. Those three words being adverbs. Another rule, this one more personal. I was once chastised for having characters sit IN the floor. I tilted my head, wondering what was wrong with that. My mother had had us kids sit IN the floor all my life. Then someone corrected me. Apparently (adverb), we sit ON the floor. All these years later, I still just can't see what's wrong with it.

There are rules of writing for creating a plot, as well. Rules for writing motions, both the HOW and the QUANTITY. There are only so many times someone needs to get on and off the horse. Or go in and out the door or up and down the steps. There are rules for sentence structure and dialogue. I love writing dialogue. Dialogue gives the writer a little more leeway because people speak in ways, using structure that is acceptable in everyday talk but is, as I said, forbidden elsewhere.

Ya'll feelin' me?

Writin’ is what showed me how Southern I am, something I actually had not considered. And I've embraced it since then. There ain't no peelin' that turnip, ya hear?

Where am I goin' with this today? Well, we can apply rules, do's and don'ts, to speaking as well. There are ways of speaking that bring confusion. The pace of your words, for instance. That accent again, as well. Can hearers make out WHAT you say? And for me, what matters the most, are you truthful? I DON'T speak to avoid saying the wrong thing. I don't want to offend people. Or put myself in a situation where I have to "clean up the mess."

All of this, above, aimed toward any general reason for writing or speaking. People write books about many subjects – history, biography, how-to, as well as fiction. They speak about job performance, finances, politics, or on a lighter side, there is comedy. Which, frankly, needs a little more rules. Freedom of speech should not be an excuse to be disgusting. But turning this toward God's family, and those called to write or to speak the good news, we have one very important rule to hold against our heart.

We are called and anointed to say only what God would say, how He wants it said. We are living examples of His voice, His character, His nature, and His ways. He loves us, and all the things about us, our quirks and eccentricities. He loves my Southern-ness. But it is sin to act like the devil and call it Jesus. Having a pulpit, whether it is actual and in a church or on the internet or in publishing, does not give us the right to publicly air our complaints. We are not here, as Christ's anointed ones, to make accusations. The Spirit NEVER does that. NEVER.

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1 BSB)

We are not here to debunk anyone, to correct anyone (because we know better about a truth than they do), or especially, to use them as an example of error. The Holy Spirit brings conviction, not us, and He will NEVER use us in a public setting. He will NEVER use OFFENSE to make His point. He does not humiliate people.

And here's a big one: He does not need our defense. We are commanded to love one another, a love that has no boundary line. "I love you but since you aren't Pentecostal ... Baptist ... Caucasian ... American ... educated ... ordained ... male ... female ... up-to-date in technology ... in my home group ... tithing ...." I'll let that one ring for a while. "Then here's what you did wrong and here's what people should avoid doing to not be like you." God WILL NOT use people to point out people’s mistakes. Everything He does through us is done with the same love that hung on the cross. We pray for others because He loves them. We write or speak the Word of God because we love them, and our love is as forgiving as His. We desire to cover sins with God's love and never to reveal them (1 Peter 4:8).

Political systems are no excuse to be unloving. We cannot use those in the news in order to be unkind. People are not our point. They are not around us in order to show the judgment of God. God’s choice of judgment was the shed blood of Christ. His justice is always and has always been mercy. We cannot dig in His back pocket for Old Testament stories and label them the wrath of God either. If that is what you see, then you need to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the truth to you. When Israel was conquered and taken to Babylon. First, see Daniel and his friends, who stood firm for God's holiness in the midst of idol worship. Not everyone died from Israel and fell away from Jehovah. Next, see God’s mourning in the words of Ezekial and of Jeremiah. See His forgiveness in Isaiah and His promise of a Redeemer and Healer. In Malachi, look past the pronouncements of their sinful sacrifices and the Old Covenant requirements of tithing to the Son of Righteousness arising with healing in His wings in chapter 4. See us gamboling like young calves set free to frolic in a green pasture beside living water. See our new heart to give of our time and finances without measure for one reason—because we love people.

Our words need to be His. Just as Jesus only spoke the words of the Father, we should only speak the words of Jesus. We must hear what the Spirit is saying and say that, without wreathing it in criticism, condemnation, and offensive talk. Jealousy, envy, and making a list of people's wrongs is not who God is. We are told this in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. God is our defense. Jesus told His disciples this in Matthew 10:18-19. He said they wouldn't need to plan what to say before kings and other authorities because the Spirit would supply the right words. What we preach, what we write, even how we speak to men, must always be Jesus. Without exceptions.

The devil makes accusations. He stirs up strife. Our wonderful God set our sins away from us as far as the east from the west. And for others, so should we.

“Love is patient; love is kind and envies no one. Love is never boastful, nor conceited, nor rude; never selfish, not quick to take offense. Love keeps no score of wrongs; does not gloat over other men’s sins, but delights in the truth. There is nothing love cannot face; there is no limited to its faith, its hope, and its endurance.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NEB ©1961)

Image by Manfred Steger from Pixabay


----------
Suzanne D. Williams, Author
www.suzannedwilliams.com
www.feelgoodromance.com