There’s no such thing as housebreaking gossip. Sins like these seem harmless at first, but in the end are deadly poison. Ask the Holy Spirit to push them away from your life so that you can be free from its deceit.
Hi, I’m Joni, of Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope.
Back in college, I recall two Christian friends of mine who had an interesting arrangement. Knowing the warnings in Scripture about gossip, they made a solemn pact with each other. They promised never to gossip, except, with each other. They didn't have loose tongues with anyone else on campus because they knew it would be a bad witness. But I tell you what, when those two closed the door of their dorm room, oh, did they give each other an earful!
My friends thought they had housebroken their gossip. They assumed they had made their whispering about people respectable, and under control. But now, many years later, those two friends aren't even friends anymore. I suppose they encountered the truth of Proverbs 16:28, where it says that, "Gossip separates close friends." And in this case, it did – permanently!
And you know what? These two girls are not all that unique. Because it is so unfortunate that we Christians will do everything and anything we can to domesticate certain comfortable sins. We try to housebreak certain sins as though we can maintain control over them. We think we can tame them and make them our own; make them submit to our boundaries. But it doesn’t work that way. Though we might argue the point, it is usually sin that gains control over us! And it does so by deceiving us of its deadly sting. Sins we try to housebreak will say to us, “Oh, I’m not that bad; besides everybody’s doing it, and scripture isn’t really that clear on this topic. So, don’t you worry about me,” sin whispers, “I won’t entrap you; I promise I’ll stop when you want me to, really I will.” That’s how sin tries to convince us. But don’t you believe it. I mean take gossip, for instance. It seems like a rather small and private offense, and somewhat harmless if done discreetly. But in Romans 1:30, the Lord places gossips and God-haters in the same sentence. Man, I wouldn't call that harmless.
There’s a great remedy for sins that try to deceive you. It’s Psalm 139:23-24 where it says, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting." And if we need more help on that, consider what Bishop J.C. Ryle has written about sins we try to domesticate and housebreak. He writes, "Sin comes to us like Judas with a kiss; like Joab with outstretched arms and flattering lips. Sin in its beginnings, seems harmless enough, like David walking idly on his palace roof which just happened to overlook the bedroom of a woman. But do not be deceived. You and I may give wickedness smooth-sounding names, but we cannot alter its nature and character in the sight of God."
So friend, today remember my story about my two college buddies and their attempts to housebreak gossip. Let their lives be a warning. Examine your heart to see what transgressions you are trying to control, and trying to housebreak. Ask the Holy Spirit to point out to you those attitudes and actions that grieve his heart, and then push them away from your life like the deadly poison they are. And as you do today, please pray with me, “Lord Jesus, forgive me for taking a casual attitude toward the ‘little’ sins that you paid for with your very life. May I never cling to that which cost you so much. In your name. Amen.”
© Joni and Friends