"The tongue also is a fire....no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison." - James 3:6,8We love to tear each other down, don't we? We tear each other down because it elevates the self. The self then puffs itself up and stands proudly over the other, victorious because of the pain it caused. Blunt words without thought. Slamming insults. Verbal daggers. Wounds of war. Demolition. By one or two carefully chosen words, ones sense of worth can be reduced to nothing, while the other's worth skyrockets.
"Loser!"
"You're really being a bitch!"
"You're weak."
"Fat ass!"
"Is that the best you can do?"
"You drunken whore!"
"I'm so ashamed of you."
"I hate you!"
"Faggot!"
"This is all your fault!"
"Man, you're so freaking stupid!"
"Libtard!"
"Teabagger!"
"Don't be a wimp!"
"Shut up!"
"Crucify Him!"
"Hail, King of the Jews!"
"He saved others, but He can't save Himself!"
But among all the insults, the daggers that we thrust at one another, we stand and proudly declare, "I'm a Christian."
Christ follower. Little Christ. Christ-like. Made in His image.
And yet the one in which we claim to follow came to live among us only to be torn down, so that we would not need to tear each other down ever again.
"Hypocrite!"
Lord, You came to be torn down, so that we would no longer feel the need to tear each other down. You came so that words would not destroy us; that death would not destroy us. Help us to realize that within the Kingdom of God, there are no verbal daggers. Teach us, Lord, to live our lives following Your better example. Amen
