AN EVIL REPORT
"God’s people must guard against an evil report"
Num 13:29-33
29The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.
30And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
31But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.
32And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
33And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
KJV
Num 14:36-38
36And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land,
37Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the LORD.
38But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.
KJV
We learned as children the little Sunday school song that says:
"Be careful little ears what you hear, be careful little ears what
you hear, for the Father up above is looking down in love, so be
careful little ears what you hear."
"Be careful little eyes what you see, be careful little eyes what
you see, for the Father up above is looking down in love, so be
careful little eyes what you see."
"Be careful little feet where you go, be careful little feet where
you go, for the Father up above is looking down in love, so be
careful little feet where you go."
"Be careful little (big) mouth what you say, be careful little (big)
mouth what you say, for the Father up above is looking down in
love, so be careful little (big) mouth what you say."
This all seems to be a bit humorous, but what truth is found in this song. We find in it a great reminder of how careful we should be careful about evil reports. So, what is an ‘evil report’?
AN EVIL REPORT - (defined)
An evil report is primarily a distortion of facts, incomplete facts, and false information. The danger of an evil report comes, not necessarily in its results, but rather in its beginning. An evil report develops like a disease.
1) Through ignorance of preventative measures.
2) Exposure to infection.
3) Contamination.
4) Infection, like germs, overcome natural defenses.
5) The disease is an infection that destroys vital life-supporting functions.
STAGES OF SPIRITUAL INFECTION
1) IGNORANCE -
2 Corinthians 2:11 - Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.
James 3:6 - And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.
Proverbs 17:9 - “Destroys friends” He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends. NKJV
Haggai 2:11-14 - "Unclean defiles."
11"Thus says the LORD of hosts: ’Now, ask the priests concerning the law, saying, 12"If one carries holy meat in the fold of his garment, and with the edge he touches bread or stew, wine or oil, or any food, will it become holy?" ’ " Then the priests answered and said, "No." 13And Haggai said, "If one who is unclean because of a dead body touches any of these, will it be unclean?" So the priests answered and said, "It shall be unclean." 14Then Haggai answered and said, " ’So is this people, and so is this nation before Me,’ says the LORD, ’and so is every work of their hands; and what they offer there is unclean. NKJV
* Evil reports influence us to form bad opinions of each other!
Definitions:
* A whisperer - one who secretly or privately passes on an evil report.
* Gossip - magnifies and sensationalizes rumors.
* Slanderer - uses facts or distorted facts to destroy another’s credibility and reputation.
* Busybody - Digs up evil reports and spreads it around by means of whispering, gossip, or slander.
What motivates these things?
· Bitterness
· Rebellion
· Deception
· Pride
· Guilt
· Jealousy
· Envy
2) EXPOSURE -
Exposure is entering into a conversation with a carrier.
Proverbs 27:12 - The prudent see danger and take refuge,
but the simple keep going and suffer for it. NIV
Psalm 101:5 Whoever slanders his neighbor in secret, him will I put to silence; whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart, him will I not endure. NIV
Ephesians 5:10-12 10finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. 11And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. 12For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. NKJV
Romans 16:17-18 Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple. NKJV
3) DEFILEMENT -
Defilement happens when we receive it and believe it is true.
Proverbs 26:22
22 The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly. KJV
22 The words of a talebearer are like tasty trifles, And they go down into the inmost body. NKJV
Hebrews 12:15
15Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; KJV
15See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. NIV
2 Samuel 15:1-6 (Absolom)
1 In the course of time, Absalom provided himself with a chariot and horses and with fifty men to run ahead of him. 2 He would get up early and stand by the side of the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone came with a complaint to be placed before the king for a decision, Absalom would call out to him, "What town are you from?" He would answer, "Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel." 3 Then Absalom would say to him, "Look, your claims are valid and proper, but there is no representative of the king to hear you." 4 And Absalom would add, "If only I were appointed judge in the land! Then everyone who has a complaint or case could come to me and I would see that he gets justice." 5 Also, whenever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him. 6 Absalom behaved in this way toward all the Israelites who came to the king asking for justice, and so he stole the hearts of the men of Israel. NIV
4) INFECTION -
Infection comes as a result of defilement and when we respond with human reasoning.
Proverbs 14:15 - The simple believes every word, But the prudent considers well his steps. NKJV
Proverbs 26:21 - As charcoal is to burning coals, and wood to fire,
So is a contentious man to kindle strife. NKJV
Proverbs 17:4 - An evildoer gives heed to false lips; A liar listens eagerly to a spiteful tongue. NKJV
5) DISEASE -
Disease is when you are mentally and emotionally controlled by the report and the destruction of the carrier.
SYMPTOMS OF SPIRITUAL DISEASE
* Believing the report to be true.
* Forming negative opinions of persons involved.
* Focusing on negative aspects of the person.
* Developing bitterness and rebellion.
* Judging matters of God’s responsibility.
* Searching out false reports (Proverbs 16:27).
* Believing that we are doing God’s will to expose them (2 Corinthians 6:5-8)
* Interpreting this as supporting evidence of a preconceived opinion.
* Judging motives.
* Rejecting those involved within your spirit.
* Telling the report to others.
HOW TO OVERCOME
1) Ask God to cleanse your mind of defilement.
2) Ask God to give you a love for those involved.
3) Use appropriate scriptures to help you.
Ask yourself some questions:
>Have I accepted it? (Proverbs 14:15; Psalm 19:13)
>How do I feel toward these people? (Proverbs 15:4; Romans 2:1;
1 Peter 4:8; 1 Corinthians 13:5-6)
>Do I long to tell others? (Ephesians 4:29; Proverbs 11:13, 17:9)
Your heart is clean when:
* You lose your urge to tell.
* You grieve over the report.
* You love the person involved.
* You examine your own life for failures.
4) Act on what you have heard.
* God may direct you to:
>Contact the carrier to ask him questions.
>Contact the person involved in order to check the facts, and if necessary, to restore them.
>Contact those who are spiritually responsible for the situation. (Proverbs 17:4, 26:24-25; Leviticus 19:16)
HOW TO DEAL WITH A FALSE REPORT
"You must learn to deal with a false report or it will ruin you as a person, an emplyee, a church member, and a minister!"
1) Ask the carrier some tough questions:
* Why are you telling me?
* Where did you get your information?
* Did you go to those directly involved?
* Have you ’personally’ checked out the facts?
* Can I quote you if I go and check this out?
2) Politely remind them of their Christian duty to pray for all involved and encourage them to keep that information to themselves.
3) Pray for the carrier and for those supposedly involved.
4) Follow steps of how to overcome being defiled by an evil report.
5) Leave it in God’s hands.
QUIPS TO REMEMBER
* A dog is smarter than some people. It wags its tail and not its tongue!
* Intelligence is like a river, the deeper it is, the less noise it makes.
* Take a tip from nature; your ears are not made to shut, but your mouth is. Also you were given two ears and only one mouth.
* The unhappy man is the one whose expenditure of speech is to great for his income of ideas.
* Wisdom is divided into two parts; having a great deal to say, and not saying it.
* As a man grows older and wiser, he talks less and says more!
* It is not how much we know that counts, but how well we use what we know.
* Some men speak from experience; some from experience do not speak.
* One minute of keeping your mouth shut is worth an hour of explaining.
* There is the same difference between tongues of some, as between the hour and the minute hand. One goes tem times as fast, and the other signifies ten times as much (Sydney Smith).
* Wise men never talk to make time; they talk to save it (Uncle Esek)
