Revelation Twenty-One (Part 2) Series

The abominable are those who commit acts so terrible that God Himself calls it an abomination. An abomination is a thing that causes disgust or hatred. There are 79 Bible verses about what God calls an abomination and it is best to study the Bible to know what God calls an abomination, so you don't do it.

Murder falls under two categories:

physical and spiritual. Physical is self-explanatory. When you pick up a weapon of any kind or cause an illness that kills another, it is murder. You might be thinking, "Well, what if this person hurts me or somebody close to me?" "What if they did something so horrible that they deserve to die?" "The world would be better off if he/she were dead." Who are you to decide who lives and who dies? Are you God? No. God is the one who decides who lives and dies. He has a designated time when we are to leave this earth. It is not our right to take the life of another person unless you're defending yourself, your family, your country.

The second category of murder is spiritual. You're probably wondering what's the difference between physical and spiritual murder. Physical murder involves killing the body. When you kill somebody with a weapon or with poison, only the body dies. The soul moves on to either heaven or hell. Spiritual murder involves killing the inner man. The physical body lives, but the heart, soul, mind, dreams, self-esteem, and self-worth are either injured or killed.

A lot of people believe that they can gossip, criticize, and lie about other people and it won't cause any damage. They believe the adage, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." That's not true. Many people have had their hearts broken, their lives ruined, their relationships destroyed, dreams shattered, jobs and ministries destroyed because of slander, gossip, rumors, and criticism. The tongue is a weapon much more powerful than any gun or weapon used in war because the injuries inflicted go deep into the inner man.

Wounds on a body eventually heal. Wounds on the soul don't heal...at least not as fast as a wound to the body. Once words are spoken, they can't be retrieved. Once that rumor is spread, you can't undo it. Once you hit the send button on that mean email or text message, you can't unsend it. The sting that you placed on somebody's soul by your toxic tongue doesn't always stop stinging. There is a very good chance that person you hurt with your tongue will have those hateful words you spoke or typed etched in their minds and hearts for the rest of their lives.

That moment when you thought it would be funny to publicly humiliate that person may have destroyed their life. That moment you decided to drive a wedge between those friends set the stage for a fallout so great that there is no chance of them reconciling this side of heaven. That moment when you sabotaged your coworker with that rumor or false accusation cost them a promotion that could have meant a better life for themselves. That moment when you discredited your child's dreams so they can fulfill YOUR dream caused them to get outside the will of God.

That moment you falsely accused that man or woman in ministry caused great harm to them and the kingdom of God. Honestly, this category of murder in some ways is more deadly than physical murder because when you commit this kind of murder, your victims become the living dead. Yes, they're walking around alive, but inside; they're dead because their soul died from the injuries your tongue inflicted on them. If God is bringing somebody to your memory that you've hurt with your tongue, repent right now. Ask God to forgive you and resolve never to do it again. If you can find the person/people you hurt, go to them, and apologize. I can't promise that things will be made right as soon as the “I'm sorry” is uttered, but at least it will give them closure if they need it, and the situation will be resolved. And remember ??Matthew? ?12:37? ?says, "For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."