"A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." - Matthew 12:35-37 (NKJV)
The word translated "careless" in the NIV is translated "idle" in the New King James Version. I got thinking about the meaning of the word, "idle." According to Webster’s Dictionary, "idle" means: "Lacking worth or basis; not occupied or employed." With these definitions in mind, let’s think together about "idle words."
1. Idle words are words that do not benefit anyone.
They are words lacking in worth or basis. There at two examples of words that do not benefit anyone that we might think about today:
A. Gossip.
It is interesting that after Webster’s defines "idle" as "Lacking worth or basis," the word "rumor" is listed as an example of this definition.
Indeed, spreading gossip and rumor is an example of idle words.
As we think about gossip, we recognize that gossip can take one of two forms. First, there is ...
1) Active gossip.
This is when I tell something entrusted to me by another person to a third individual who is not a "need to know" person. We commonly refer to this as "breaking a confidence."
"Gossip is no good! It causes hard feelings and comes between friends. " - Proverbs 16:28 (CEV)
I need to ask myself if passing this bit of information entrusted to me is worth jeopardizing a friendship.
2) Passive gossip.
This is where I join in a conversation about someone else and tell things and offer perspective that I have no real basis for knowing. I just want to get my "two cents" worth in on the conversation.
"Better to have people think I have nothing on my mind than to open my mouth and remove all doubt."
B. Grumbling.
Certainly, grumbling does not benefit anyone. Rather, grumbling de¬stroys others and is often used by the evil one to halt the work of God. While gossip refers to passing along unfounded information about an¬other, grumbling refers to verbally opposing someone in authority.
In his book, "It’s Time to End Church Splits," Francis Frangipane shares this bit of insight about gossip and grumbling:
"Jesus made a remarkable statement concerning Judas. He said, ’Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?’ Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him" (John 6:70-71).
To what was Jesus referring when He identified Judas Iscariot as "a devil?" Was he speaking figuratively or factually?
What I believe Jesus is identifying in Judas Iscariot as a "devil" is something that, today, exists unchecked among many Christians: slander. In the New Testament, the Greek word, diabolos, which is translated "devil" in this text, is translated impersonally elsewhere as a "false accuser," "slanderer" or "a malicious gossip." In fact, First Timothy 3:11 and Second Timothy 3:3 both translate diabolos as "malicious gossip(s)."
In other words, in my opinion, Jesus is not saying "one of you is a devil" in an organic or theological sense, but that one of you is "a slanderer, a malicious gossip." So, while the disciples were almost bragging about their loyalty to Christ, Jesus corrected them, in effect saying, ’Yes, I chose you, but even among you there is one who is a malicious gossip, whose word will eventually betray Me to My
enemies.’
Betrayal is never a sudden thing; rather, it is an accumulative response to the unresolved anger, disappointment or jealousy one feels toward another. The offenses we do not transfer to God in surrendered prayer inevitably decay and become poison within our spirits.
To understand the betrayal of Christ, however, we must descend into its source: a grumbling spirit. When we lose sight of the many things for which we should be thankful, we become murmurers and grumblers, increasingly absorbed with a thought-life born in hell."
As previously mentioned, grumbling refers to verbally opposing someone in authority. It may be God. It may be my boss. It may be my pastor. It may be my parents. It may be my teacher or coach. It may be the committee chairman.
Whenever I involve myself in grumbling against someone in authority over me, I am guilty of something for which I will answer to God.
2. Words that don’t result in action.
As mentioned earlier, a second definition for "idle" is, "not occupied or employed.” In other words, with reference to our words, it means that I may "talk a good game," but I never do more than talk.
Unfulfilled promises are "idle words" for which we will one day be held accountable by God.
Think of promises you have made but never fulfilled. Have you made promises to others that you haven’t fulfilled? Have you made promises to God that you haven’t fulfilled?
We may have forgotten those verbal commitments we made, but God hasn’t. Often times, others haven’t forgotten the, either.
You know what happens to people who do not keep their word? No one takes them seriously. If you have a problem with keeping your word, you are someone that no one takes seriously. Our churches are full of people like this. People that the pastor has learned to take with "a grain of salt." He looks upon them with a "I’ll believe it when I see it" attitude. Could you be one of those?
Part of what God will hold us accountable for, I believe, are missed opportunities - things that might have been - if we had kept our word to Him or to someone else.
Everyone who is remotely acquainted with the game of golf knows that if one is going to do well for himself or herself, they need to work on their "follow through." It’s the same in life.
Some would offer the solution, "I just won’t make any commitments, then I won’t every break any promises." But that is impossible. Life is full of obligations and responsibilities, which involve making and keeping promises and commitments.
In fact, the path to spiritual growth and knowing the blessings of God are reserved for those willing to make and keep commitments.
Writer and speaker Lewis Smedes says: "Yes, somewhere people still make and keep promises. They choose not to quit when the going gets rough because they promised once to see it through. They stick to lost causes. They hold on to a love grown cold. They stay with people who have become pains in the neck. They still dare to make promises and care enough to keep the promises they make. I want to say to you that if you have a ship you will not desert, if you have people you will not forsake, if you have causes you will not abandon, then you are like God." - Lewis Smedes, "The Power of Promises
We live in an era of unkept promises. Nations sign important treaties and then break them at will. And many couples show little regard for their wedding vows. In this kind of society, we who are God’s people should be known for keeping our promises.
The brilliant Christian scholar and writer C. S. Lewis took his promises seriously. He was determined to pay what he had vowed. His biography tells of the suffering he endured because he kept a promise he had made to a buddy during World War I. This friend was wor¬ried about the care of his wife and small daughter if he should be killed in battle, so Lewis assured him that if that were to happen he would look after them. As the war dragged on, the man was killed. True to his word, Lewis took care of his friend’s family. Yet no matter how helpful he tried to be, the woman was ungrateful, rude, arrogant, and domineering. Through it all, Lewis kept forgiving her. He refused to let her actions become an excuse to renege on his promise.
Lewis understood the words of the David, who wrote:
"GOD, who gets invited to dinner at your place? How do we get on your guest list? "Walk straight, act right, tell the truth. Don’t hurt your friend, don’t blame your neighbor; despise the despicable. Keep your word even when it costs you," - Psalm 15:1-4 (The Message)
Conclusion: There’s one other definition in Webster’s Dictionary for the word, "idle." It is, "to run disconnected so power is not used for useful work." The example cited is "the engine is idling."
This gets us to the heart of the problem. Why are guilty of so many idle words? Because we are living lives disconnected from the power of God. If instead we live each day aware of God’s presence and dependant on His power, we will find he will deliver us from "idle words."
