VIDEO
What Do We Do With Gossip? (Psalm 41:4-8)
GIST: Understand the heart of gossip and repent of it; remember your identity in Christ and stand through it.
This morning, we’re returning to our study of Psalm 41. When we started talking about this two weeks ago, we looked at what this psalm has to say about how we love people. It was a hard conversation because it focused on us loving people we don’t want to love— the weak, the needy, the unwanted.
Just a quick heads up, the conversation doesn’t get easier to swallow today. Let me read the verses (4-8) then we’ll introduce the topic.
“4 As for me, I said, "O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you!" 5 My enemies say of me in malice, "When will he die, and his name perish?" 6 And when one comes to see me, he utters empty words, while his heart gathers iniquity; when he goes out, he tells it abroad. 7 All who hate me whisper together about me; they imagine the worst for me. 8 They say, "A deadly thing is poured out on him; he will not rise again from where he lies."”
What’s this part of the psalm addressing? Slander or gossip. I actually thought about titling this sermon: “No, I wasn’t trying to target you with this message”, but my titles are always questions, so… :)
David talks about facing slander here. Thousands of years later, we’re still facing it. In fact, it’s so embedded in our society, many of us probably don’t get through a day without hearing some kind of gossip, or, worse still, dishing it out ourselves. I spend enough time both being and being with humans to tell you with confidence: this is a real problem for us. Therefore, unpacking this from the text, here’s what we’ll be walking through today: Understand the heart of gossip and repent of it; remember your identity in Christ and stand through it.
I. A Gossiping Heart
Last time, we talked about how helping the poor comes from a heart that has been transformed by the love of Jesus. Let’s start today by breaking down verses 5-8 to get some insights into the kind of heart that’s inclined to gossip. I guess you could also put it like this: what does our tendency toward gossip reveal about our hearts?
“5 My enemies say of me in malice, “When will he die, and his name perish?” 6 And when one comes to see me, he utters empty words, while his heart gathers iniquity; when he goes out, he tells it abroad.” In my notes, I labeled this “False Friends Snooping for “Scoops””. David appears to actually be struggling in this situation. And people are excited by that. In fact, they’re so excited they come around pretending to care about his plight while really just looking for some mud to throw.
Guys, this has been really convicting to me this week. We don’t just gossip. We want to do it. Our desire for negativity reveals our hearts more than those we’re critiquing.
“7 All who hate me whisper together about me; they imagine the worst for me. 8 They say, “A deadly thing is poured out on him; he will not rise again from where he lies.” I summarized this as “Whispering Widely Worst Possible Scenarios”, and there are at least two points to draw from this. First, not only is our desire for dragging people down revealing of our own perverse hearts, so is our tendency to expect the worst. Rather than assume good intentions, we take every action as a personal slight or an act of vengeance, or a premeditated evil. And if someone tries to tell you otherwise or approaches us with a more gracious perspective, we can’t even consider any other motive. Does that reflect the heart of the Savior who came and loved us sinners?
There second point I want to make here is that it doesn’t matter if it’s true. I’ve heard this argument from students a lot and know adults live like they believe it: “It isn’t gossip if it’s true.” If you are saying anything that tears someone else down, even if everything you’re saying is true, it’s gossip, and it reveals sin within your heart.
David was a screw up. If people thought this, they were right. But their approach to him was slanderous and to be condemned and avoided in our lives.
So, examine your heart and repent of your gossiping spirit. Now, let’s take the second half of that gist and look at what we’ll call→
II. A Transformed Identity
To wrap up, let’s take the flip side. Yes, we’ve spent the first part of this message criticizing our propensity to be gossips. However, the widespread nature of this particular sin means most of you have also been the subject of gossip. Some of you might not even realize it, but some of you have felt the pain of that reality. It hurts to have your name drug through the mud, or it can, unless we let another reality rule in our hearts. I labeled this the “Reality of Transformational Love”.
Think about it this way. Let’s say you were just given a million dollars, no catch, no “hidden fees”. Then, someone steals your car. Under normal circumstances, that blow would be devastating, but now it’s really not that big of a deal because you know you can afford to replace it.
In the same way, slander can destroy us unless we remember how extravagantly we’re loved. Look again at verse 4. “4 As for me, I said, “O Lord, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you!”
I could draw this out, but there are at least 3 truths that should transform how you face slander outlined in this verse.
1. You have sinned against God. Some of what people are saying, might be true because we’re all screw ups who do stupid things. Bigger than the things we’ve done to hurt ourselves and others is the fact our sin is against the eternal God who created us and loves us. Yet→
2. Jesus has been gracious to you. What David pleads for here has already happened. Jesus’ response to your brokenness is grace, and→
3. He does bring ultimate healing. Which is why you can stand through slander. When your name is drug through the mud, remember who you are. You’re a child of the King. You’re one who is so deeply loved that Jesus gave up everything, not to generically “save the world”, but to rescue you.
TAKEAWAYS
Examine your heart and repent. Why do you feel the need to slander?
Guard your tongue. Really think about what you’re saying this week. If it is tearing someone down or drenched in negativity, don’t say anything. If we take this admonition seriously, some of us are about to get much quieter :). But you can still talk.. just learn to replace your trash with joy.
Learn from slander. I know that sounds weird, so let me explain. Slander will come. Don’t be surprised by it. But→
Be aware of your needs. Eat the meat. Throw out the bones. If there is truth in the slander, learn from it.
Be aware of His voice. Remember, who you are and how extravagantly you’re loved.
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