Profanity and Crude Speech

Profanity and Crude Speech

By Carl O. Cooper

If I ask you as the reader, if you can show me a passage of scripture that specifically condemns gambling in the lottery, you would not be able to do it. But most of us do not need a specific scripture that specifies the lottery, to condemn the evils of gambling. There are other places in the Bible where we find this type of behavior to be condemned.

On the other hand, if I ask you to show me a passage of scripture in the Bible that specifically condemns profanity and crude speech as sin, a quick look at a concordance shows that this behavior is specifically named and specifically identified as sin. Look at what the Bible has to say about this subject;

Ephesians 5:1-5
¹ Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.
² And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a             sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.
³ But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as   is fitting for saints;
⁴ neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather           giving of thanks.
⁵ For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater,      has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

When we read the words in this scripture, I have to confess, I wonder how it can be possible for members of the Church of Christ to take these words so lightly. When I ask people to tell me how they feel about the sinfulness of crude and profane speech, many times I’m told that it’s just no big deal. Some people feel that this is just a minor thing and too minor to worry about. But look again at what these verses say. But first, remember who wrote these words. These words are the words of God. Look at what is said in verse 3. The Bible is telling us that these sins listed here are “not even to be named among you”. We are not to be near, close, or even to name these sins among us. And then the sins are listed. In addition to fornication and covetousness, God includes filthiness, foolish talking, and coarse jesting. Is there any way to misunderstand what these words are referring to? We all understand this, don’t we? Dirty and off color jokes, crude words and profanity, and crude innuendo is what this is referring to. God refers to this behavior as sin and He includes it in the same list as fornication and covetousness. Do these words of God not give these sins of profanity and crude speech clear and precise identity as sin?

And as if this was not enough, look at the words in verse 5. People who engage in these sins “have no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God”. Should we take serious any sin that will keep us out of the kingdom of God and of Christ? I think we all know the answer to that.

Profanity and crude speech are serious sins. For us to belittle this would be to belittle the Holy Words of God. This is why it amazes me how people today can take this so lightly. And yet I know the reason why they do. Our people are becoming desensitized to profanity and crude words because they are so immersed in it by non-Christians around us. It is blasted out to us from movies and TV. We hear it at work and at school. And it fills the pages of the books we read. May God help us to escape these temptations, and may we not be corrupted by what we hear.

We need more lessons from the pulpits condemning this behavior as sin, and we must never see God’s words as insignificant.

Carl O. Cooper