Is There a Bird in Your Bed?

Do you ever wonder where those interesting colloquial sayings come from? Some are a bit dated and some are new enough that I have no clue what is being referred to. When I was growing up I learned that there is, "More than one way to skin a cat". I am sure this is true, however, I have never tried and have no desire to test the theory that cat skinning holds a variety of methodologies. I did see the truth in "not looking a gift horse in the mouth", just be happy you got a free horse and do not worry about it's dental hygiene. I also like the newer phrases, such as "A few fries short of a Happy Meal". Which is an upgrade from "A few bricks shy of a full load" seeing as, these days, Happy Meals are more common than loads of bricks. Hebrew and Greek had these back in the days of Christ. "Putting a camel through the eye of a needle" is one that has generated a lot of theological conjecture while it seems to be nothing more than a colloquialism in Jesus' day. I wonder if exegetical work will be done on Happy Meals some time in the future?

The phrase that has captured my interest is, "A little birdie told me so". If you are not immediately familiar it was a sort of cute way of not revealing your sources. The question, "Where did you hear that?" could be bypassed by explaining that "A little birdie told me so" and thus keep the perpetrator of the rumor or your source of information anonymous. Though I was familiar with the phrase I was not aware that it was Biblical. It is drawn from Scripture. Ecclesiastes 10:20 reads, "Do not curse the king, even in your thought; do not curse the rich, even in your bedroom; for a bird of the air may carry your voice, and a bird in flight may tell the matter." Apparently little birds have been eavesdropping for quite some time.

Two things come to mind when I came across this verse in Ecclesiastes. First, that colloquial phrases have found their way from Scripture into the common English language. This tells me that there was a time when Scripture so permeated society that phrases like these became acceptable and common. For history buffs the battle for Dunkirk might come to mind. The British forces were on the verge of annihilation when they sent this phrase to London: "But if not." I wonder if this would have any meaning today. Back during World War II people immediately recognized this to be from Daniel 3 when Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego resolved that they would not bow to the golden idol but face the fiery furnace knowing that God could save them, "but if not" they would still not bow. Word spread of the pinned troops and every available fishing boat, yacht, and pleasure cruiser, headed into the Channel. The Germans hesitated in their advance, for no apparent reason, while the armada of little boats evacuated more than 338,000 soldiers. "But if not" became a colloquial phrase for standing firm, though it has pretty much died out today. We do toss around phrases like, "first remove the speck from your own eye" from Matthew 7:3 and "Don't put your light under a basket" from Luke 11. However, we might be hard pressed to come up with the reference. My point is simply that the influence of God's Word in Western society has certainly lost ground over the years. Which means the clear teaching of the Scriptures has waned as well.

The greater point is Solomon's warning. A warning a Jewish Rabbi named Jacob provided to the assemblies of believers back in the first century. We refer to his writings as a letter from James. In 3:6 he writes, "And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell." Pretty strong words.  James knows of the destructive power words can have. They are a gift from God that we can use to encourage and share the good news of Christ's offer of life and salvation. However, they are dangerous as well. Bringing reputations to ruin, damaging relationships, destroying ministries and families. Proverbs regularly warns of the use of the tongue. Reminding us that the Lord hates lies and deception. 

The words of Messiah Jesus are even more convicting. Matthew 12:36, "But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they give account of it in the day of judgment." We will give an account for every idle word? That should take a chunk out of eternity. The Lord's point here is to be careful what you say. Solomon tells us in Proverbs 17:28, "Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; When he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive." A variation of our own colloquial phrase, "that it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all  doubt." The use of God's gift of language is not to be taken lightly.

The reason goes back to Solomon's words about the bird. What we say and do cannot be hidden forever. Speaking to the tribes from the east of the Jordan River, Moses tells them they are to help their brothers conquer the land to the west. If they do not Moses gives this warning, "But if you do not do so, then take note, you have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you out" (Numbers 32:23). Your sin will find you out. Achan found this to be true in Joshua 7 as did Ananias and his wife, Sapphira in Acts 5. Sinful words like sinful actions will find their way out into the open. A little bird will make it known and you may well pay the price, if not now, when you give the Lord an account of what words you have spoken. If a little bird can hear what is said, we better believe the Spirit of God has taken note.

I conclude with the Apostle Paul's encouragement to the Colossians, "Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one"(Colossians 4:6). It is good advice, a little birdie told me so.

Should Christians Use the "F---" Word?

Words. They are a most useful means of communication. Even unspoken gestures and body language are translated by our brains as words or at least concepts that can be translated into words. What I have noticed, over the passing of time, is how effective the enemy of our soul has been at robbing the meaning of words. Of making the words of the divine profane. Profanity more than surrounds us; it permeates our culture and has infected the Body of Christ. We have acquiesced or outright accepted the Deceiver's ploy without a fight. It has touched your life and you are speaking far more profanity than you are aware. It is more than the proliferation of cursing and foul language. Most of us avoid the "F" word and give some passing cringe at the Lord's name being slandered or used in vain, but we are calloused or simply naive if we think that covers the subject. The profane saturates social media and flows freely from the keyboards and pens of those who claim to be followers of Messiah. As Matthew 12:36 reminds us, "But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment." If this is so, then we need to take a closer look at our words.

To begin with, it would be well to get some words defined. Profanity or the use of profane words are words most followers of Christ would want to avoid. You know, those coarse words or "dirty" words mom told us not to say. Most English dictionaries simply say profanity is not showing reverence or saying things that are offensive. The Hebrew word translated profane is chalal. It means to defile or pollute, but at its core it means to treat what is sacred as common. As we see in Lev. 22:32 “You shall not profane My holy name, but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel. I am the LORD who sanctifies you," Don't treat my name, which is holy or set apart, as common. The LORD who sanctifies you and makes you holy is not to be treated as common. Number three of the Ten Commandments warns to not take the Lord God's name in vain. Don't treat it as common so that it is robbed of its holy meaning. It is not an empty word; it refers to the sacred and omnipotent Creator and ruler of the universe. The phrase, "Oh my god!" has lost all real substance. The sacred has become common. It is profane. The Greek, bebalos, has a similar meaning. to be unhallowed or common. 2 Timothy 2:16 calls us to, "shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness." Shun common, empty, idle babblings, for who really wants to give God an account of those things?

The point is simply this: Don't turn what God has declared or referred to as sacred or set apart for His purpose as common or as an empty word. Let's take a few examples. "Oh my God!" is not usually a cry of worship. The phrase has become common. It is profane. "Damn it!" rarely brings the image of the lake of fire or the final judgement of a Holy God. "What the hell!" Same issue. No vision here of a final separation from the God of love and mercy while suffering torment. (By the way I don't think God is fooled by "gosh", "darn", or "heck" as replacements. The world knows what they replace and doesn't draw them to revere a Holy God).  I don't want to leave out "Heavens to Betsy". I am not sure what that means, but I am pretty sure my Grandmother talked of heaven that way. And how about the dreaded "F" word. How can that offend God?  How about Hebrews 13:4 ,"Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge." God designed sex. When He "fearfully and wonderfully" made us, He put those nerve endings where He did on purpose. Sex is a holy thing. Something set apart for Marriage. Not for fornication or adultery. The "F" word is slang for the intimate union designed by God for a man and woman to share in marriage. The prolific use of the "F" word and other slang expressions for the act of love has made the act empty, has taken God's sacred meaning and made it common. Not sure what God thinks with American's obsession with male bovine feces but there must be other ways to express ourselves.

As followers of Messiah, the Son of God, and those who claim that Yahweh is the one true God, our language is riddled with profanity. Making the sacred common. One last word to consider is "awesome". Deut. 7:21 “You shall not be terrified of them; for the LORD your God, the great and awesome God, is among you." Thirty to forty times, depending on your translation, God, or what He does, is referred to as awesome. It means to be filled with awe at who He is and what he does. It is a remarkable word of worship and reverence. It is not about pizza or a car. It is not about the winning goal or how your girlfriend looks. We have made the word empty of its intended reverence. We have, in truth, made it a profane term. Robbed of its association with God, it is a popular use of profanity. Having made what was connected to One Holy just something common.

A final thought or two. Have you ever exclaimed, "Oh my Allah!" or "Mohammed Prophet!". How about "Oh Buddha" or hit your thumb with a hammer and yelled "My Vishnu, that hurts!". Why don't we treat the Muslim, Buddhist, and Hindu deities with the same disrespect as the Jewish and Christian God? Could it be that the Devil doesn't care? He is the master deceiver so he deceives us into thinking God doesn't care. It's just slang. You know a colloquialism, I don't really mean anything by it. And that is the point. The words God gave to warn us and to draw us to Him have lost their punch, be it hell or damnation, there is no real meaning.Thus, there is no fear, there is no warning, there is no reason to repent or draw near to God. Our own profane use of words about sex, eternity, and honoring the Awesome God who loved us, died for us and delivered us from sin and death has left us with empty words. Just how vain do we take the name of the Lord our God? Maybe Commandment Three just doesn't matter any more. Or maybe it matters way more that you think. Just what will you say when you see the Lord and go through your "idle word" report?