I have been thinking about the riots surrounding the deaths of several young black males the past three years. There was so much anger and destruction displayed in our streets as a result. I have had my fill of the political rhetoric from conservatives and liberals on the issue. And at times, I have been appalled by some of the things I read on Facebook from people I believe to be Christians.
Anyway, as I reflected on what I have seen and observed surrounding these deaths and riots, I thought about the following verse: “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers” (Ephesians 4:29, KJV).
Let me get right to my point. I believe Christians should talk differently than those who don’t profess to be Christians. We all get angry at times. Most if not all of us are passionate about something or some things. Those things tend to get us worked up at times. But our weapons are not carnal. We don’t fight like those in the world. And we talk differently than they do.
Sometimes, when I am posting on this blog page, I touch on sensitive issues. As I Christian blogger, my goal is to rise above the fleshly debates that do nothing more than inflame emotions. My ultimate desire is to inform my readers and to bring a biblical perspective on the issue at hand. That is the objective of the verse I quoted above.
Understand that this does not mean I am not tempted to get in the flesh. It does not mean I don’t have to rein in my emotions at times. Don’t think for a moment that as a dad of three black males, for example, that I don’t have strong feelings about the current discussions on the mistrust between officers of the law and the black communities they serve.
Oh, I do. But that’s exactly the point. We all have strong feelings about some things. We all have to wrestle with our flesh. We all can be provoked to engage in a war of words. But as Christians, we must stay above the fray. We must remain the voice of reason. When we talk, what we say should edify others and add value to the discussion at hand.
What about you?
Copyright © 2021 by Frank King. All rights reserved.