April 18, 2005
The 10 Commandments Don't List Profanity
(Filed under: When I Was Your Age...)When I was your age, I could cuss with the best of them. I'd let loose with a string of four-letter words I'd heard from R-rated movies or when my dad let slip when a project wasn't working. Using swear words was dangerous, edgy, and yet somehow cool. Today's it's becoming commonplace.
You know what I think? Words are words. Now before you go drop the F-bomb for your teachers, hear me out. I work on a side project called Church Marketing Sucks and I wrote a piece defending our use of the word 'sucks.' I think my conclusions apply to words farther down the profanity scale as well.
Ephesians 4:29 tell us to not use unwholesome talk. But it doesn't give us a list of off-limits words. Instead it gives us a general guideline: build other people up. You see, God didn't define swear words. He told us not to take his name in vain, and that's about it. Profanity is culturally and contextually defined. Words themselves aren't naughty, it's the meaning culture gives to them and the context they're used in. You can be just as profane using clinical words as you can using "swear" words.
While I stand by my claim that words are words, we also have to pay attention to those around us. Some people are incredibly offended by profanity, and we need to be respectful of them. 1 Corinthians 8 is an interesting chapter that basically tells us sometimes we need to limit our own freedom for the sake of others. Swearing may not be wrong, but if someone has a problem with it, we're not helping them overcome it with our potty mouth. I don't always agree with that chapter, but the challenge seems pretty clear.
So what's the bottom line? The words coming out of your mouth should build people up. I don't think God will put a check in your sin column just because you use a specific word. But it might be a sin if your teachers or parents ask you not to use the word and you do it anyway. And it might be a sin if you're using the word to tear people down (which eliminates a lot of profanity).
While your parents, teachers and youth workers may disagree with me, I don't think profanity is a big deal. Honestly, I don't give it much thought. Instead, I focus on being respectful with the words I do use, and try to build others up instead of tear them down. I won't pretend I'm perfect, but I do think it's more important to focus on how we use our words, as opposed to being obsessed with blacklisted obscenities.
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at April 18, 2005 03:34 PM
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