The other night I tried a new restaurant, and the food was horrible! It actually made me sick. So I got a to-go box and took it home so I could chew on it for several days and share it with my friends. 

Sound crazy? Of course it is. Thankfully my story never actually happened. I just wanted to illustrate how foolish it is for us to keep dwelling (chewing) on negative experiences and sharing them with our friends. Sometimes we feel we have been offended and we share the painful experience over and over with out friends. Sometimes we want them to validate our negative feelings. However whenever our friends justify our hurts and feelings of being offended, they are encouraging us to walk in the flesh instead of the Spirit. Sometimes we share the bitter experience to turn our friends against the person who hurt us. This is when we start tinkering with cannibalism. 

My brethren, clear your souls before God. Cease your criticizing and fault-finding. Satan will keep you at this till the Lord comes, if he can. He knows that thus he can most effectually hinder the Lord’s work. Backbiting is cannibalism. -Ellen White, General Conference Bulletin, April 2, 1903

When the serpent tempted Eve, he started off with a very subtle slander. 

“Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”Genesis 3:1 NKJV

Notice he forms the insinuation as a question. Not accusatory. Maybe even “sincerely” seeking for clarification, but the idea is now thrown out there that God is restrictive and holding good things back from us.

Image © Krieg Barrie from GoodSalt.com

2 Corinthians 2:11 says we are not ignorant of Satan’s devices, and of course we are not. We even use his devices! Gossipers and slanderers in the church will often start off very subtly, hoping to gain an ear. Once they have that ear, they turn from subtle hints to outright slander just like the serpent did with Eve. 

And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden;  but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. Genesis 3:2-4 NKJV

Now the serpent has called God a liar! He started off subtly to gain an audience. Now that he has captured his audience, he has moved into outright slander! There are predators who groom entire congregations by sweet-talking them and buttering them up, even lending a helping hand whenever needed. Then they will subtly point out that they are helping the congregation more than anyone else. After their sweet talk and “good deeds” they insinuate that they deserve your loyalty more than the pastor, since after all, they have helped you more than the pastor, haven’t they? Then they begin to slander the pastor and usurp his influence. And you owe them your loyalty, because, after all, they have helped you so much with all their “kindness” and “encouraging” words. Absalom, in 2 Samuel 15:2-6, is an excellent example of grooming people, pretending to have their interest at heart, when in reality just wanting to promote self. 

Jesus has a cure for slandering, gossiping and backbiting. It is the exact opposite of those things. 

“But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.  Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise. Luke 6:27-31 NKJV

Paul adds,

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Romans 12:14 NKJV

Peter describes Satan as a lion looking for someone to devour with his mouth. When we gossip and slander others we too are like the lion looking for someone to devour with our mouth. This is cannibalism. Revelation 16:13 talks about three unclean spirits like frogs. Frogs catch their prey with their tongues. When we gossip about someone are we trying to catch our victim with our tongue? When we gossip are we practicing Satan’s device? In Genesis 3:1 the NKJV says the serpent was “cunning.” The KJV says he was “Subtle.” The NIV says he was “crafty.” Satan is too cunning, subtle and crafty to just walk up to you and invite you to practice cannibalism. So what does he do? He relabels it “white lies” and “gossip.” Or even more benign than that, he will label it “just venting to a friend.” Remember, when a friend validates your feelings of being offended and wronged, he is encouraging you to walk in the flesh instead of the Spirit. Love keeps no record of being wronged. (1 Corinthians 13:5 NLT)

2 Corinthians 2:11 tells us we are aware of Satan’s devices. This means we are not supposed to use them ourselves in the church! Subtle and outright slander, lying and cursing are all Satanic tactics and should not be practiced by Christians. As Seventh-day Adventists preparing for translation, let’s remember the seal of God is not just about the Sabbath. There will be many in heaven who kept Sunday and many who kept Saturday, but there won’t be anybody in heaven who made a practice of slandering. I personally fear more people will be excluded from the 144,000 over gossip and slander issues than Sabbath issues. John says the 144,00 have no guile in their mouths. (Revelation 14:5 KJV) Google “guile meaning” and you will find, “cunning,” “craft,” etc. basically all the things that make up gossip and cannibalism. 

Who may worship in your sanctuary, Lord? Who may enter your presence on your holy hill? Those who lead blameless lives and do what is right, speaking the truth from sincere hearts. Those who refuse to gossip or harm their neighbors or speak evil of their friends. Psalm 15:1-3 NLT 

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