Is it a sin to say curse words?
They’re just words, so what’s the big deal? What if you’re just joking around? And if cursing IS wrong, why do some believers do it casually, without conviction?
It’s important to understand the reasons for the standards we set in our lives. And especially as Christians, if we are bold & humble enough to examine ourselves and ask such questions, our faith can be radically deepened. We're definitely not perfect, and have never claimed to be, but we can strive to be our best and not dishonor our Savior. We must remember that everything we say and do, directly reflects upon our Lord. As His follower, I personally do not want to do or say anything that would bring shame to Him or His name. I do not want to give in to the flesh.
So is swearing a sin? The Bible says with certainty, it is.
Ephesians 4:29
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
Ephesians 5:4
Let there be no filthiness, nor foolish talk, nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.
James 1:26
If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue, but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless.
James 3:8-10
But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.
Colossians 3:8
But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.
Exodus 20:7
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
Matthew 15:18-20
But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.
Matthew 15:11
It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.
I much rather prefer, that my speech before the Lord, be positive, happy, and brings glory to my Savior. Cursing is the language of the devil.
James 3:10
From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.
If we say we are followers of Christ, then everything we say and do, should reflect that...not bring shame to Christ, His image, nor as His representative. When we made a commitment to follow Christ, we committed to leaving our old, sinful lives behind. Not because we had to, but because we wanted to, and have set ourselves apart from our old sinful ways. Christ does give us the victory over this. He gave us victory over sin and death. Sin and death can no longer condemn us, as we are reconciled to Christ by the forgiveness of our sins by Him, to everlasting life in heaven.
I'm sure it makes the Lord cringe, when he sees professions of faith and discipleship in one post, then in another by the same person, either calling someone an idiot, ignorant, or a curse word. That definitely goes for even "jokingly" defining another with a cursing adjective. These words should not spill from our mouths, if we're believers...period! Regardless of which context you use it in.
Paul warns us in Ephesians 4:29 “Do not let any unwholesome (filthy) talk come from your mouth, but only what is good for building someone up in need.”
Then he says in Ephesians 5:4 “Nor should there be any obscenity, foolish talk or crude joking, which are out of place.”
This is why instead of a list, the Bible gives us verses as a standard to discern what is “out of place”, unfitting & dishonorable to God (aka sinful), that we shouldn’t use. Regardless of words in our English language deemed cuss words, if a word or phrase is unwholesome, vulgar, foolish, filthy, crude, or obscene, it is sinful to say.
The joke may seem funnier and your friends laugh harder, when you say the cuss word, but God isn’t laughing. Not even in drunkiness.
I think back to when I was in high school, and some wanted so badly to be popular and "cool". Who decides what’s popular? Being popular is simply being known for something. What do you want to be known for?
Scripture should give such confidence, as to stop looking to the world to define what’s “cool”, and start looking at what does God say is cool. If God doesn’t find our sin funny, why should we?
Galatians 1:10 “Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.”
When Jesus' mission on earth was completed and He went back to His Father in heaven, He called His disciples to go out and spread the good news of salvation in Christ. But we cannot compel people to consider Christ, by looking like the world.
I once heard a nutritionist say that everything we put in our mouths is either making us healthier or making us sicker; and thinking about this will help us make wiser food choices.
But what if we used that same thought, about what comes out of our mouths?
Proverbs 18:21 says “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”
Think about that for a minute. Every single word you speak, either brings someone closer to Jesus (life) or pushes them farther away (death). We have a responsibility as Christians, to stop and choose the words we speak, wisely, so that we may produce that which makes everyone around us, spiritually healthier.
Are we COMPELLING people to come to Jesus, with the words we speak? Who decided cussing is cool? The same guy who decided getting drunk is cool, and that gossiping is cool, and that watching pornography is cool. The same guy who convinced Eve that eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden was cool. His name is Satan – the Prince of Lies, and he has taken over our televisions, our music, and even our coffee shops with so much filthy language, in attempt to slowly desensitize us to the sound of sin. And it’s working.
Satan convinces us that God isn’t concerned with something so small as our tongue. That's another of Satan's lies.
In James 3, God urges us that although the tongue is a small part of the body, it controls the whole course of our life.
“No man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.”
God takes our words seriously, and so should we. “Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.” James 1:26
How can we tame our tongues when Scripture says it’s impossible?
Matthew 19:26 says, “Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” We tame our tongues by relying not on ourselves and our own willpower, but by partnering with the Holy Spirit and using the supernatural strength of the Lord inside of us.
Jesus warns us to not conform to the patterns of this world, but then gives us this hope: that amidst our most sinful addictions and bad habits, with Jesus we can be transformed through the renewal of our mind. (Romans 12:2)
Christianity is not moralism. Since we love God greatly and all He sacrificed for us, even death on the cross, we want our hearts filled with genuine desire to bring honor to His name.
My prayer for all of who follow Christ, is that whatever standard we set for our lives and our families, we know the biblical reason behind it. I pray God renews our mind and transforms the language we use. I pray that we are so filled with gratitude and the Holy Spirit, that there is no room for unwholesome words
to pour out of our hearts. I pray we stop looking to our peers and pop culture to tell us what’s cool and acceptable — and that we become known for bringing Life to people around us through our words and give God the glory He deserves.
It’s important to understand the reasons for the standards we set in our lives. And especially as Christians, if we are bold & humble enough to examine ourselves and ask such questions, our faith can be radically deepened. We're definitely not perfect, and have never claimed to be, but we can strive to be our best and not dishonor our Savior. We must remember that everything we say and do, directly reflects upon our Lord. As His follower, I personally do not want to do or say anything that would bring shame to Him or His name. I do not want to give in to the flesh.
So is swearing a sin? The Bible says with certainty, it is.
Ephesians 4:29
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
Ephesians 5:4
Let there be no filthiness, nor foolish talk, nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.
James 1:26
If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue, but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless.
James 3:8-10
But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.
Colossians 3:8
But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.
Exodus 20:7
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
Matthew 15:18-20
But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.
Matthew 15:11
It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.
I much rather prefer, that my speech before the Lord, be positive, happy, and brings glory to my Savior. Cursing is the language of the devil.
James 3:10
From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.
If we say we are followers of Christ, then everything we say and do, should reflect that...not bring shame to Christ, His image, nor as His representative. When we made a commitment to follow Christ, we committed to leaving our old, sinful lives behind. Not because we had to, but because we wanted to, and have set ourselves apart from our old sinful ways. Christ does give us the victory over this. He gave us victory over sin and death. Sin and death can no longer condemn us, as we are reconciled to Christ by the forgiveness of our sins by Him, to everlasting life in heaven.
I'm sure it makes the Lord cringe, when he sees professions of faith and discipleship in one post, then in another by the same person, either calling someone an idiot, ignorant, or a curse word. That definitely goes for even "jokingly" defining another with a cursing adjective. These words should not spill from our mouths, if we're believers...period! Regardless of which context you use it in.
Paul warns us in Ephesians 4:29 “Do not let any unwholesome (filthy) talk come from your mouth, but only what is good for building someone up in need.”
Then he says in Ephesians 5:4 “Nor should there be any obscenity, foolish talk or crude joking, which are out of place.”
This is why instead of a list, the Bible gives us verses as a standard to discern what is “out of place”, unfitting & dishonorable to God (aka sinful), that we shouldn’t use. Regardless of words in our English language deemed cuss words, if a word or phrase is unwholesome, vulgar, foolish, filthy, crude, or obscene, it is sinful to say.
The joke may seem funnier and your friends laugh harder, when you say the cuss word, but God isn’t laughing. Not even in drunkiness.
I think back to when I was in high school, and some wanted so badly to be popular and "cool". Who decides what’s popular? Being popular is simply being known for something. What do you want to be known for?
Scripture should give such confidence, as to stop looking to the world to define what’s “cool”, and start looking at what does God say is cool. If God doesn’t find our sin funny, why should we?
Galatians 1:10 “Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.”
When Jesus' mission on earth was completed and He went back to His Father in heaven, He called His disciples to go out and spread the good news of salvation in Christ. But we cannot compel people to consider Christ, by looking like the world.
I once heard a nutritionist say that everything we put in our mouths is either making us healthier or making us sicker; and thinking about this will help us make wiser food choices.
But what if we used that same thought, about what comes out of our mouths?
Proverbs 18:21 says “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”
Think about that for a minute. Every single word you speak, either brings someone closer to Jesus (life) or pushes them farther away (death). We have a responsibility as Christians, to stop and choose the words we speak, wisely, so that we may produce that which makes everyone around us, spiritually healthier.
Are we COMPELLING people to come to Jesus, with the words we speak? Who decided cussing is cool? The same guy who decided getting drunk is cool, and that gossiping is cool, and that watching pornography is cool. The same guy who convinced Eve that eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden was cool. His name is Satan – the Prince of Lies, and he has taken over our televisions, our music, and even our coffee shops with so much filthy language, in attempt to slowly desensitize us to the sound of sin. And it’s working.
Satan convinces us that God isn’t concerned with something so small as our tongue. That's another of Satan's lies.
In James 3, God urges us that although the tongue is a small part of the body, it controls the whole course of our life.
“No man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.”
God takes our words seriously, and so should we. “Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.” James 1:26
How can we tame our tongues when Scripture says it’s impossible?
Matthew 19:26 says, “Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” We tame our tongues by relying not on ourselves and our own willpower, but by partnering with the Holy Spirit and using the supernatural strength of the Lord inside of us.
Jesus warns us to not conform to the patterns of this world, but then gives us this hope: that amidst our most sinful addictions and bad habits, with Jesus we can be transformed through the renewal of our mind. (Romans 12:2)
Christianity is not moralism. Since we love God greatly and all He sacrificed for us, even death on the cross, we want our hearts filled with genuine desire to bring honor to His name.
My prayer for all of who follow Christ, is that whatever standard we set for our lives and our families, we know the biblical reason behind it. I pray God renews our mind and transforms the language we use. I pray that we are so filled with gratitude and the Holy Spirit, that there is no room for unwholesome words
to pour out of our hearts. I pray we stop looking to our peers and pop culture to tell us what’s cool and acceptable — and that we become known for bringing Life to people around us through our words and give God the glory He deserves.
