Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re gonna talk about the topic of gossip. Many of you out there know what I’m talking about, because we’ve discussed this matter before.
Have you ever been walking through a supermarket line, paying for your food at the counter, and you happen to notice a bunch of tabloid magazines that feature scandalous stories about the lives of celebrities, or other well known individuals? People publish these things out in the world, but in the church, we’re not supposed to gossip one about another. When you gossip, it means to casually report to someone about the activities of someone else.
Think about this for an example. Kids in the high school might have a friend who passes on secrets about another person, but tells you not to tell anybody else. That is what gossip is. Scripturally speaking, gossip is sharing information that should not be shared with other people. It doesn’t matter if it’s true or untrue.
I’ve said for many years before, that people may think that they’re shining the light while the truth is, they’re just spreading gossip.
I read today that one dictionary says gossip is a person who reveals personal or sensational facts about other people. These are the kinds of things when people hear them say, wow, I can’t believe it!.
Gossip is also rumor, or a report of an intimate nature. Intimate means that it is meant to be kept private and secret. These are private things within a family or private things within a bedroom between a man and a wife. Exposing those things is called gossip.
Gossip is defined in one dictionary as idle talk about the personal or private affairs of other people. It means to tell secret information to another person.
In our country, they have fought many wars. If you’ve ever been involved with government, they keep things secret. If you expose secrets when you’re in certain parts of the government, it is punishable. Without looking it up right now, I think espionage is revealing a country’s secrets to another country. Gossip is the same thing.
How does the government feel when it happens to them? How do you think a family member feels when someone reveals secrets that are meant to be kept private? It doesn’t even matter if it’s true or false. A gossip is a person who spreads intimate or private rumors or facts.
In the church, you have to remember that gossip is a sin, Jesus Christ died to cover your sins. A gossip doesn’t cover sins. They expose it and tell everybody else about it. The apostles and the disciples rebuked and corrected things within the church, but it was because they loved and cared for people. Gossip is completely the opposite thing.
We are all sinners. A gossip wants to put themselves into a better light, like they are somehow better than the person person they’re gossiping about. We’ve all come short of the glory of God.
People were gossiping about Jesus. They were trying to find something out about him, or to come out of his mouth so that they could find fault with him. The reason why they did this is because they hated him and they didn’t love him.
Gossip is conversation that’s informal, and involves other people’s business. If you are not directly involved with the issue at hand, then you’re probably gossiping.
To gossip shares information with others that’s not supposed to be shared. It’s secret information.
Private information is meant to be kept private. The reason why people gossip is because they don’t love their neighbor. Gossip doesn’t help a neighbor it hurts them whether it’s true or not.
Think about the government once again. If you were to share information that was meant to be kept a secret, what do you think they would do it to you? They would most certainly punish you. Think about that the next time you decide to gossip about a neighbor. If they punish people in the government for doing it how do you think God feels about it?
Maybe you’re old enough to remember the old saying, loose lips, sink ships, Gossip can hurt other people. How would it affect you if the roles were reversed?
Eph 4:29
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.
Pro 21:23
Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.
James 1:26
If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.
A gossiper is not in control of their tongue.
Pro 20:19
He that goeth about as a talebearer revealeth secrets: therefore meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips.
A talebearer is a person who maliciously gossips or reveal secrets about somebody else. A secret is something that is not known or seen or not meant to be known or seen by others. It is something that is kept from the knowledge of others.
As we talked about already, think about the government. They refer to certain information as classified material. It’s material that the government says is sensitive information that must be protected. That access is restricted by law to protect certain groups of people. In order to access it, you have to have a security clearance. If you don’t, it can result in criminal penalties. So in the government, they feel like secrets need to be kept secret, because it can hurt people.
How do you think God feels about people who reveal secret information about their own family? Is that more or less sensitive than what the government deals with? In the end, we’re talking about people getting hurt. Gossip is a sin. Revealing a secret matter is a sin, whether it’s in the government, in your home, or about your neighbor.
Gossiping hurts other people. Whatever hurts others is not love. Love for a neighbor does not do these kinds of things.
A gossip passes on personal details about a neighbor to another neighbor. Like I already said, it doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. Usually what happens is when you hear something that is gossip, your response is, my gosh, I can’t believe it!!! What people need to do is quit talking about the private affairs of other people.
A gossipper is a talebearer, who is defined as a person who officiously tells tales about other people. They actually believe that they have the right or authority to do these kinds of things.
Remember, in a household, you have a man, a wife and children. There are personal things that go on within that home. A man or wife are not supposed to report their private affairs to others. If they do, they are a gossip. A talebearer does that very thing. They communicate private information to other people.
If you read about Noah, one of his sons did the same thing. He gossipped about Noah’s indiscretion to his brothers instead of covering it up. Noah was very upset. God really hates this sin.
Pro 26:20
Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out: so where there is no talebearer, the strife ceaseth.
Pro 18:8
The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.
Tit 3:2
To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.
A gossip is somebody who betrays the confidence that you have placed in them. A trustworthy person will keep a secret when you talk to them about it. What did Judas do to Jesus? He went out and gossipped about Jesus to others. It was because of the gossip that he has spread about Christ, that they came to get him in the garden.
1 Tim 5:13
And withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not.
Pro 21:23
Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles
Lev 19:16
Thou shalt not go up and down as a tail bearer among the people.
Remember that gossip is sharing information with others that should not be shared. I mean, if it’s not going to benefit them, how would you like that information told about you if the roles were reversed? It’s evil. It doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. These are private matters that each of us have within our own family. It’s the wicked gossip that wants to tell other people about the secret information that shouldn’t be disclosed to other people.
Think about those things for today, and Lord willing we will talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye Bye, everybody.
Teufer Lake King James Bible Church 