Webster defines gossip as: "An idle tattler, idle talk, to prate, to run about and tattle."

        Gossip is a terrible, ugly, monstrous, devastating thing. It can damage and destroy the victim but more often it will harm the one who indulges in it. Gossip is a negative, cowardly attack upon someone's reputation. It is more sinister and dastardly than an outright slap in the face or kick. It is often with or without ulterior motives but regardless always possesses its venomous poison and character assassinating properties.

        Gossip has no virtue, builds no character, solves no problems, heals no wound, avenges no wrong, creates no friends. Gossip may be weapons of hate, jealousy, envy, revenge or may be engaged in merely through a careless tongue when turned loose.

        Gossip has been known to cause grief, despair, heartache, anger, divorce and murder. It has ruined young maiden' reputations, separated married couples, broken up long standing friendships, wrecked homes and lives. The tongue can emit fire and acid that is all consuming, that cannot be extinguished. The Bible refers to the unruly tongue, stating that it is a demon of great magnitude. The tongue can manufacture poison for which there is no antidote. It is ruthless when turned loose and not controlled, insidious, heinous and villainous.

        Let us notice a few verses from Proverbs that deal with this matter of spreading rumors and lies.

Prov. 11:13 (KJV)
¹³ A talebearer revealeth secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter.

Prov. 16:27 through Prov. 16:28 (KJV)
²⁷ An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips there is as a burning fire. ²⁸ A froward man soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends.

I.   The Sin Of Gossip

        Gossip is the tool of the coward. Christian courage never resorts to the baseness of gossip to achieve its end. Gossip is the product of shallow minds. They try to impress others with what they pretend to know. Gossip is the diversion of a fool. Wisdom is gainfully employed in the application of knowledge. Gossip is like a muddy stream that seeks to find its own level. Sincerity and love will have no part in it. Gossip is really lower than a viper; only it strikes without warning. Gossip associates itself with lying; and thrives on half truths.

        The slanderer is usually known by his gossiping. Like all gossipers, he has few or none of the facts. Because of his lack of understanding, he gets things all mixed up. Like a blotter, he soaks it up but gets it all backwards. He consciously or unconsciously perverts the facts and assumes the role of judge, becoming harsh and critical.

        Paul asks in Romans 14:10; "But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for w shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ." We are called to be witnesses, but at no time has our God appointed us to the bar of justice as judges. He alone is the judge. We are commanded to pray one for another but never to judge.

        Gossiping, backbiting and acrimony are important wedges used by Satan to destroy Christian unity and harmony. Indescribable injury is being suffered in the church of Christ as a result of this loathsome disease.

        Frequently slanderous speech assumes some form of grumbling, complaining, or murmuring. The children of Israel had no sooner been miraculously delivered from their Egyptian bondage than they began to murmur and complain against God. The early church, shortly after its inception, began to prosper. Yet what do we read next but that "there arose a murmuring."

        Someone has well said, "Some Christians are very polished; everything they say casts a reflection on someone. They appear very sanctimonious and pious, but their speech betrays them. We are told in James 1:26: "If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this men's religion is vain." It is totally inconsistent with the christian pattern of life to praise God in one breath and to criticize our brother in the next. God declares this kind of Christianity to be but vain chatter.

        Gossip is made of mostly of lies. There are people in this world so wicked that allow their hearts to become the devil's workshop. They are quick to start lies. Even if a rumor is the truth it has to change hands only a few times for it to become a lie. Unfortunately the gossiper does not recognize the fallacy of his own evil. How many times we have been approached by those who say, "Now I am not gossiping, but I think you should know . . ." They prefer to think of it as information, but this is just a self justifying, polite way of prefacing a piece of bitter gossip. Christian, if gossip comes to your ears, do not pass it on!

        One woman to another: "I won't go into all the details; in fact, I've already told you more about it that I heard myself."

        Letting things go in one ear and out the other is bad enough; but it's worse when things go in one ear, get all mixed up, then come out the mouth.

Prov. 25:18 (KJV)
¹⁸ A man that beareth false witness against his neighbour is a maul, and a sword, and a sharp arrow.

Prov. 6:12 (KJV)
¹² A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth.

Prov. 6:14 (KJV)
¹⁴ Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord.

        A family living in a small town in North Dakota was destroyed by an untrue story. The mother had not been well since the birth of her second baby, but everyone knew she did all she could to create an atmosphere of love in that home. The neighbors would see the father being met at the door each night with hugs and kisses from his wife and two small children.

        One day a village gossip whispered that the man was being unfaithful to his wife. The story was entirely without foundation, but it began to spread. Eventually it came to the wife's ears. Because of her weakened condition, it was more than she could bear, and a few weeks later she suffered a mental collapse.

        One evening when her husband came home, no one met him. The coldness and quietness sent a chill of fear over his heart. Soon the awful truth became apparent. His wife, sick and in despair, had taken her own life and those of her two children! The man was beside himself with grief. Later the lie was exposed but it had already done its deadly work.

        Someone has said, "A lie can travel around the world and back again while the truth is lacing up its boots."

Prov. 20:19 (KJV)
¹⁹ He that goeth about as a talebearer revealeth secrets: therefore meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips.

        Gossip: Something that goes n one ear and over the back fence or over the telephone. Dr. Alber H. Cantril, professor of psychology at Princeton University, ran a series of experiments to prove the velocity of gossip. He called six students to his office and in strict confidence informed them that the Duke and Duchess of Windsor were planning to attend a certain university dance. Within a week this completely fictitious story had reached no less than two thousand students. The town officials phoned the university demanding to know why they had not been informed. Press agencies were frantically telephoning for details. Dr. Cantril observed, "That was a pleasant rumor -- a slanderous one travel even faster."

        We sin when we say more than we know for certain and when we say something we don't now for certain -- something that will needlessly hurt someone. One admits to doing just that: "When I was a teenager, I said of a man I knew only casually, "Too much wine, women, and song." A mother of one of my friends looked at me reproachingly and said, "Herbert, do you know that to be true? And if it is, was it necessary for you to say it?" Wow! I flush with shame as I recall the incident. I had repeated something I had merely heard, but I had no evidence that what I said was true. Even if it was, saying what I did was unkind and unnecessary.

        It is sinful to listen to gossip. Now many people will forget that they have used their tongues in a manner displeasing to God.They will perhaps pat themselves on the back and gloat in their self righteousness and think about all the other people they have heard speak sinfully. But the Bible condemns those who listen. Those who listen to people who sin with the tongue sin by listening. Paul called people who listen "silly women laden with sin, led away with diver (different) lusts, ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth" (2 Timothy 3:6-7). In other words silly women laden with their own sins listen to others who sin by what they say. Moreover, these listener's are always learning but they are never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Why not? Because they are not listening to the truth -- but to falsehoods, gossip, deceit, filthy communication, slander,k etc. They cannot come to the knowledge of the truth because they "resist the truth" (2 Timothy 3:8). They are men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith (2 Timothy 3:8). They listen to fables (Titus 1:14).

Prov. 19:27 (KJV)
²⁷ Cease, my son, to hear the instruction that causeth to err from the words of knowledge.

        Then there are those who are anxious to hear gossip. Their ears are always open to catch any rumor that might be floating around.

Prov. 18:8 (KJV)
⁸ The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.

        It doesn't take a lot of people to stir up a stink. Just a few, one or two, can do a good job at it. The following story points out that truth.

        A farmer came to town and asked the owner of a restaurant if he could use a million frogs legs. The proprietor asked where he could find so many frogs. "I've got a pond at home just full of them," the farmer replied. "They drive me crazy night and day." After they made an agreement for sever hundred frogs, the farmer went back home. He came back a week later with two scrawny frogs and a foolish look on his face. "I guss I was wrong." he stammered. "There were just two frogs in the pond, but they sure were making a lot of noise!" The next time ou hear a lot of noise about how bad things are at church, just remember: it may be nothing more than a couple of chronic complainers who have little to do but grouch and croak!

        A woman went forward and said to the pastor, "I want to lay my tongue on the alter." He said, "The alter is only 7 feet long but lay as much of it on there as you can."

        Some evangelist said that some women (and some men too) have such long tongues that they could sit in the living room and lick grease out of the skillet in the kitchen.

II.   How Are Christians To React Toward Gossip?

        First of all Christians should not gossip but the sad truth is that many do. The heights and recesses of Mount Taurus are said to be much infested with eagles, who are never better pleased than when they can pick the bones of a crane. Cranes are prone to cackle and make a noise, and particularly so while they are flying. The sound of their voices arouses the eagles, who spring up at the signal and often make the talkative travelers pay dearly for their imprudent chattering. The older and more experienced cranes, sensible of their besettleing foible and the peril to which it exposes them, take care, before venturing on the wing, to arm themselves each with a large stone, large enough to fill the cavity of their mouths, and consequently to impose unavoidable silence on their tongues, and thus they escape the danger.

        You have all heard of Luther Burbank, who worked such wonderful changes in fruits and flowers, getting rid of their objectionable features and developing what!ever is useful and beautiful; and if fruits and flowers can be so modified that they hardly seem the same thing, how foolish it is for any girl to say that she has to be blunt and tactless because she was "made that way." If a cactus can get rid of its thorns, surely you can dispense with the traits that are likely to wound your friends.

        One wise mother tells her children to divide all people into 2 classes: friends and strangers. Friends, we love too well to gossip about; strangers we know too little about. -- Heywood Brown