Take Heed What Ye Hear
G.C. Tullar
Table of Contents
Take Heed What Ye Hear
Christians who have to come in contact with the unsaved in the factory, the office, or the school are often confronted with the trying situation of not knowing just what to do about the filthy conversation that falls upon their ears. We cannot go out of the world until it is the Lord's time, so we must face these situations. Nor can we change the world; it is "this present EVIL world." Satan is its god and prince and he controls people through the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eye, and the pride of life. The world has an outward appearance of respectability and morality, but underneath is an abundance of corruption and violence. Very many foul and impure acts are committed, and these are often rehearsed within the hearing of the child of God. And there are people who have not committed such things themselves who enjoy hearing and telling such stories.
Surely a Christian ought to feel distressed when he finds himself present at rehearsals of moral depravity, often coupled with profanity. The filthy conversation of the wicked, and the vile jokes, must fall like a dead weight on the soul of him who seeks to please his Lord. The deeds of darkness cannot be welcomed by those who are the children of light. Then what can or should the child of God do in such circumstances?
Now there is never a problem or a difficulty in the Christian pathway that cannot be answered by the Word of God. Truly it is the lamp for our feet and the light for our path (Psa. 119:105). So then while we traverse the regions of darkness we need to be well acquainted with that which alone is divine light in order that we may not stumble. As a mariner consults his charts and compass, so should we be familiar with the only guide-book which can show us our way through an uncharted wilderness which is in an enemy's hand. As there are a number of points involved in the general subject we shall consider them separately.
First
Very often those who hear distressing conversation are in places where they should not be. If they had not, of their own choice, been in the midst of the company of the ungodly they would not have heard their speech. We see a remarkable example of this in Lot who dwelt in Sodom." Sodom was a very wicked city; in fact, it was so wicked that God could not find ten righteous persons in it, and He destroyed it with fire and brimstone. We know from 2 Peter 2:8, 9 that Lot was a "righteous man" although living in the city of gross wickedness. And God lets us know what passed through his soul daily when he saw and heard their awful corruption: “And delivered just Lot, VEXED with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man DWELLING AMONG THEM, in seeing and hearing, VEXED HIS RIGHTEOUS SOUL from day to day with their unlawful deeds.)”
How did it happen that Lot was "dwelling among them"? For a long time Lot had gone on in company with his godly uncle, Abraham, who did not live in Sodom nor company with the men of it. Good had it been for Lot if he had followed his uncle's example, or better still if he had remained close to him. But Lot viewed the whole country around Sodom and evidently thought it offered better worldly advantage, so he made a deliberate choice. He parted company with his godly uncle only to company with the ungodly to the distress of his soul. May we beware of choosing the companionship of the ungodly for any cause. Lot did not get into that position in one step, but gradually. We need to beware of the first steps that take us into the world. Let us remember the first verse in the Psalms: “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”
Lot could have avoided having his soul vexed from day to day by remaining out of Sodom. He may even have thought that he could exert a good influence and improve Sodom, but good does not come from doing evil "that good may come." Let us then avoid the companionship of the "ungodly," "sinners," and "scornful." May we rather seek our "own company" (Acts 4:23) which are those "who call on the Lord out of a pure heart." Another verse bearing on this subject is: “ENTER NOT into the path of the wicked, and GO NOT in the way of evil men. AVOID it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away." Prov. 4:14, 15.
Peter was sitting by the fire of the ungodly warming himself when he denied his Lord (Mark 14:54,66-68). If we deliberately or needlessly place ourselves in bad company it is very likely that we too shall dishonor our Lord.
Second
Then there may be times when in the ordinary course of our work we are where some very defiling talk is going on. There may even be an attempt made to entangle us in it. In such cases we should reprove their works of darkness. We may get into circumstances where our silence would be a mistake and would lend our sanction to what is said or done.
“Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them." Eph. 5:11.
A Christian man traveling on a train through the northwest walked into the wash room. As he entered he heard one man telling another a vile story. This child of God did not wish to even hear the story, so he walked straight to a wash bowl where his back was to the two men. There, without turning to see which one was the speaker, he said quite audibly: “The Word of God says, 'Fools make a mock at sin.'" Prov. 14:9.
On hearing the solemn word of reproof, the conversation stopped instantly with apologies. We do need wisdom from above to know just when we should reprove the works of darkness.
Third
Then there are times when we may be in certain places where the conversation becomes defiling that we may quickly leave the scene. If this should be the case we ought to leave without delay. In a verse already quoted from Proverbs we are told to "TURN FROM IT AND PASS AWAY." By such action we give silent but effectual reproof. This does not require the courage that open reproof does, but it preserves us from hearing the defiling talk, while it expresses our definite disapproval. In some cases the Lord may lead one to combine this rather negative testimony with the positive rebuke previously mentioned.
Fourth
In some instances we may hear "evil communications" when we are definitely in the line of duty and where we may not be free to leave. We might be doing our work faithfully and as unto the Lord and have to remain; it may also be that the conversation is not intended for our ears, and, due to all the circumstances, it would be out of place for us to "break in" to "reprove" those who speak. At such times the word in Eph. 5:11 is important:
“HAVE NO FELLOWSHIP WITH the unfruitful works of darkness.”
We should be very careful that under no circumstances we have "fellowship" with what is said or done when it is evil. Sometimes we little realize how easily fellowship may be expressed. Just a smile is sufficient to implicate us; therefore we should be very careful what we smile at. It would indicate that our righteous souls are not much vexed by the filthy conversation when we can smile or laugh at it. It certainly indicates a very low state of soul when a child of God is not distressed by hearing defiling conversation or the name of his God taken in vain. May we so breathe the atmosphere of heaven that we shall not inhale the impure air of the defiled earth without feeling it. To express fellowship with evil defiles us, and it lends encouragement to the ungodly in the very things that are going to bring the wrath of God upon them, for we read: “Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be ye NOT THEREFORE PARTAKERS with them." Eph. 5:6,7.
Fifth
Now if in some way we have heard a defiling story we should be very careful NOT TO REPEAT it. For us to repeat the story or incident would have a three-fold bad result: it would increase our defilement and impress it more deeply on our minds; it would defile and harm the one to whom it was told; it would displease our Lord and be contrary to the exhortation in Col. 3:17:
“And whatsoever ye do in WORD or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.”
Some of the other verses that bear on this subject are: “For it is a shame EVEN TO SPEAK of those things which are done of them in secret." Eph. 5:12.
“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." Eph. 4:29.
“But now ye also put off all these,... filthy communication out of your mouth." Col. 3:8.
We are exhorted to think about the things that are pure, lovely, virtuous, and of good report (See Phil. 4:8). If our minds are on these things then our conversation will savor of them. It is also true that if we allow our minds to dwell on the evil and defiling things we shall bear their impress.
Sixth
Now it may truthfully be said that when we hear "corrupt communications," although we neither have fellowship with nor repeat them, we are defiled by them. Yes, we become defiled even through unavoidable contact with evil or profane speaking, and need to heed a word found in Num. 19 which gives an important principle: “And every OPEN VESSEL, WHICH HATH NO COVERING BOUND UPON IT, is unclean.”
Numbers is the book of the wilderness experience and the wilderness is the place where defilement is contacted. In the nineteenth chapter many things are mentioned that would defile an Israelite, and this has a spiritual application to us. An Israelite was defiled if a man died in the same tent with him. Now it is obvious that he could not prevent a man dying, but still he was defiled and needed the water of separation for his cleansing. So with us, there are times when we seem to come unavoidably into contact with that which speaks of moral death and are defiled thereby. How easily communion with God is interrupted by just the breath of the contaminating evil in the world! (The seriousness of defilement and the means of cleansing as found in Num. 19 are nicely brought out in a pamphlet by C.H.M., entitled, "The Red Heifer.")
The fifteenth verse of this chapter is the one that especially concerns us in the subject we are considering. What made an "open vessel" unclean was to have "NO COVERING BOUND UPON IT." How often our MINDS are like OPEN VESSELS! They are standing open and ready to receive anything that may fall into them. Much is said about our minds in the Word of God. We are to gird up the loins of our minds, and we are to set our minds on things which are above. Our minds are the seat of much that goes wrong. If we allow them to be filled with the things of this world they cannot at the same time be filled with Christ. If we store them up with the vanities, the foolishness, or the filth of the world, we shall not only prevent that much space in them from being used for the things of the Lord, but we shall discover that the whole mind is defiled. God has a purpose in telling us that an open vessel, which hath no covering bound upon it, is unclean." He would teach us the importance of having our minds closed to the things that would defile us. If we cannot leave the scene where evil is being talked about we should carefully guard our minds so that the evil will not find a lodging there.
Keeping a covering bound upon our minds might be illustrated by the story of the little girl who had been taught that it was wrong to listen to the gospel preaching. One night she was taken by a friend to a gospel meeting. On the way home after the meeting this child said to the other children in the company: “I thought about everything else I could all the time that man was speaking, so that I would not hear a word he said.”
Her mind was not open to the gospel but was closed by a very definite effort to think of other things. While we may hope that some word did get into her mind and heart in spite of her resolve, her case does illustrate keeping the mind closed to that which is going on. May we, fellow-Christians, be more careful when we are within hearing distance of evil to close our minds to it.
This subject of our attitude toward the "evil communications" is a large one, and is one of immense importance; it may well be weighed very carefully before the Lord. May we seek wisdom, grace, and strength to walk in a way pleasing to Himself. We are aware that we live in the last days and that evil abounds on every hand, but let us remember that in the days before the flood, when corruption and violence filled the earth, "Noah WALKED WITH GOD" (Gen. 6:9-12). It was possible then and so it is today.
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