Gossip: The 8th Deadly Sin Proverbs 18:8

Charles Kimball
Introduction: In this sermon on gossip, Charles Kimball teaches about the heart of
gossip. By getting to the root of gossip, we can learn the effects it has on others as well
as how to overcome falling into this sin. Filled with scripture references, this sermon
outline will provide you with study tools as well as sermon illustrations on gossip and
controlling ones tongue. Read on to prepare to preach about gossip.

Who am I? I have no respect for justice. I maim without killing. I break hearts and ruin
lives. I am cruel and malicious and gather strength with age. The more I am quoted, the
more I am believed. I flourish at every level of society. My victims are helpless. They
cannot protect themselves against me because I have no name and no face. To track
me down is impossible. The harder you try, the more elusive I become. Im nobodys
friend. Once I tarnish a reputation, it is never the same. I topple governments and ruin
marriages. I destroy careers and cause heartache and sleepless nights. I wreck
churches and separate Christians. I spawn suspicion and generate grief, make innocent
people cry on their pillows. Even my name hisses. I am gossip.

Fifteen hundred years ago Pope Gregory the Great classified the sins that cause
humanity to stumble (the 6th century). He looked at every sin mentioned in the Bible
and boiled them down to 7 categories of sin. His list of 7 sins is known as The 7 Deadly
Sins. The 7 deadly sins are pride, anger, indifference, envy, greed, lust, and gluttony.
The 7 deadly sins include nearly every kind of human sin imaginable. But there is a
deadly sin that failed to be included in the list of the 7 deadly sins. The 8th deadly sin is
gossip.

All the sins of the tongue are deadly. Profanity, insults, lying negativism, complaints,
and criticism are all harmful. Gossip is a particularly deadly sin. Gossip has destroyed
more people, tarnished more reputations, broken more friendships, and split more
churches than any sin Im aware of. Gossip is quickly told, quickly heard, and quickly
spread. Worst of all, gossip is quickly believed. People will confess to theft, adultery,
even murder. But no one confesses to gossip.

The book of Proverbs warns us of the deadly allure of gossip as well as its deadly
effects over and over again. Proverbs 18:8 says, The words of a gossip are like choice
morsels; they go down to a mans inmost parts. Whether we admit it or not, we have a
fascination with gossip. Thats why talk shows and grocery store tabloids are so
popular. Proverbs says gossip is like a tasty morsel that we like to savor. Gossip is like
a hot fudge sundae made with Blue Bell ice-cream. Gossip is like peach cobbler with
real whipped cream. Gossip is like steak and lobster. Gossip is like an all you can eat
buffet with a desert bar. We cant get enough of it.
Not only does Proverbs warn us that we have a perverse attraction with gossip.
Proverbs also warns us of the corrupting effect of gossip. When we listen to gossip, it
goes to our inmost parts. Gossip sinks its teeth into our hearts, souls, and minds and
corrupts us like a fast spreading cancer.

We know what gossip is when we hear gossip or when we speak gossip. But we dont
often take time to define words like gossip.

We want to see what Gods Word says about gossip. Lets take a moment to consider
the meaning of gossip and its sister words as the Bible uses them. It helps us to know
the meaning of the words as they are used by Jesus and His apostles in the Greek New
Testament. Simply put, gossip is talking about people behind their backs.

The New Testament Greek word for gossip (psithuristes, Romans 1:29) is literally a
whisperer a person who whispers behind your back with the intention of hurting you.
The Greek scholar Godet describes a gossiper as someone who pours out his poison
by whispering in our ears. With the telephone, we dont even have to whisper behind
peoples backs. We just badmouth them over the phone without their knowing. With the
advent of E-mail, gossip spews forth through the Internet onto the computers in our
homes and work places.

The Bible links gossip and slander together as sister sins (Romans 1:29-30). The New
Testament word slander (katalalos) means to speak evil of someone. When we
gossip, we speak evil about people; we badmouth them. The King James Version
describes people who gossip and slander people as backbiters (Romans 1:30). When
we badmouth someone with gossip, we bite them behind their backs, whether the
gossip is true or not. All too often we can be like Dennis the Menace who whispered in
his neighbors ear, Now listen good. I can only tell you this once cause my Dad told me
not to repeat it.

I. The Origin of Gossip

Gossip is like a tasty morsel that we like to hear. The question is: Where does gossip
originate? In a number of Scripture passages, the Lord informs us about the origins of
gossip so that we will avoid it.

Gossip is fueled by hells flames

Gossip is one of Satans fiery arrows that he shoots at us and entices us to shoot at
others. The Lord doesnt mince words in James 3:6 when he tells us about the origin of
the sins of the tongue: The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the
body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself
set on fire by hell.
The flames of hell ignite gossip. Satan is behind all gossip, either directly or indirectly.
When we listen to gossip, we give the devil a foothold in our lives. When we speak
gossip, were speaking as Satan wants us to speak. As the old saying goes, A gossiper
is the devils postman.
Gossip originates from the evil in our hearts
In Luke 6:45 Jesus tells us, The good man brings good things out of the good stored up
in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For
out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks. Jesus tells us that our words reveal
what is in our hearts. Gossip comes from a heart full of evil. Insults come from a heart
full of evil. Criticism comes from a heart full of evil. When we allow our sinful natures to
control our hearts, evil fills our souls, and evil spews out of mouths.

Gossip can be the result of hatred

In Psalms 109:3 the Old Testament King David said of his enemies, With words of
hatred they surround me; they attack me without cause. When we allow hurt, anger,
bitterness, and rage to live in our hearts, we entertain thoughts of hatred, retaliation,
and revenge (Ephesians 4:31). One way that we vent our anger, bitterness, and rage is
through gossip. We wound people behind their backs by badmouthing them. We
retaliate by shooting people in the back with verbal bullets. Unless we find comfort for
our hurt and resolution for our anger, we often vent our hurt and anger with our tongues.

Gossip is a product of idleness

1 Timothy 5:13 tells us how idleness can lead to gossip: Besides, they get into the habit
of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers,
but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to. People with too
much time on their hands often become gossips and busybodies. As the saying goes,
Idle hands are the devils workshop.
Sometime ago the LA Times carried a horrific story about a college student who visited
a prostitute. As his lips approached hers, she moved a razor, hidden in her mouth,
between her front teeth. With two quick swipes, she cut off his lips. Gossip is a razor
blade in our mouths.

II. The Trouble with Gossip

Gossip is always trouble. Gossip obscures the truth. Gossip drives us from God. Gossip
ruins reputations. Gossip destroys relationships. Gossip divides churches. The trouble
with gossip is

Gossip is incredibly destructive

James 3:6-8 says, The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the
body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself
set on fire by hell. No man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly
poison.
Gossip is a wild fire gone out of control. We try to put it out. We try to control it. But the
gossiper keeps pouring gas on the fire. Like a forest fire that is beyond control, gossip
takes on a life of its own. The story grows and changes the more the gossip is spread.
The story even grows within the mind of the gossiper.
Not only is gossip a wild fire. Gossip is full of deadly poison. I got food poisoning last
year. The poison of bad barbeque got into my stomach. My stomach was so sick that Id
make you sick to describe it. I had 24 hours of misery and was washed out for days.
Gossip is a deadly poison. Itll make you so miserable that you will wish that you were
dead.
Gossip is a characteristic of unbelievers
Romans 1:29-30 describes the lives of unbelievers who have shunned God: They have
become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and depravity. They are full of
envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters,
insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their
parents. Gossip and slander belong to unbelievers who have rejected God. When we
gossip, we talk like people who have rejected Christ.

Gossip spreads falsehood

Ephesians 4:25 says, Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully
to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. When we gossip, facts are
distorted. Lies are spoken as truth. Half-truths are heralded as gospel. Gossip may have
an ounce of truth to it. But gossip is usually combined with a ton of lies. People often
have the attitude, Dont bother me with the facts. My mind is already made up.
A couple of years ago, someone ran a red light and totaled my car. I replaced my
Toyota MR2 with a Toyota Camry. When I drove the new car to get a haircut, the
receptionist misread the emblem on the car. She thought I had bought a Lexus. She
said, I love your new Lexus. I said, What Lexus? Thats only a Toyota. Ive never
even been in a Lexus. Thats how gossip works. Half-truths and misunderstandings are
turned into unbelievable stories, like your pastor buying a new Lexus.

Gossip separates friends

Proverbs 16:28 says, A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates
close friends. In a few seconds gossip can ruin a friendship that took years to build. Not
only does gossip ruin friendships. Gossip can do great harm to a church.

People leave churches when they believe gossip. People leave churches when they
have been wounded by gossip. Churches have split over gossip started by a single
person. Proverbs 6:19 tells us that of the 7 sins God hates, the sin god hates the most
is stirring up dissension among His people.

A grandmother was saying bedtime prayers with her two grandchildren. She said,
Tonight, were going to talk about sin. Do you know what sin means? Seven-year-old
Keith said, Its when you do something bad. Four-year-old Aarons eyes widened, I
know a big sin Keith did today. Thats how gossip works. We see the speck in our
brothers eye but ignore the log in our own.

III. The Antidote for Gossip

We know that gossip originates with Satan. We know that gossip is a product of our
sinful nature. We know how incredibly destructive gossip is. Now we need to consider
Gods antidote for gossip.

Overlook an offense
Proverbs 17:9 says, He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever
repeats the matter separates close friends. Overlooking an offense is an act of love
and friendship. It is also a sign of Christian maturity. Christians can be too thin skinned.
We can wear our feelings on our shoulders. We need to develop rhinoceros thick skin.
Churches are a family. Sometimes family members offend family members. Dont be
surprised when it happens. Were too quick to get offended. Were too quick to tell
others about how another church member offended us. Its wrong! Gods says to
overlook the offense. If you must talk about the offense, talk to the person who offended
you, and that person alone.

Dont listen to gossipers

Proverbs 20:19 tells us, A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid a man who talks too
much. Did you hear that verse? Dont listen to gossipers and their gossip. Gods word
says, avoid the gossiper. When someone begins to gossip to you, tell them plainly, I
dont want to hear any gossip. We dont want gossip hurting our church. Dont worry
about offending them by telling them you dont want to hear any gossip. Gossipers need
to be put in their place.

Confront gossipers
If someone gossips about you, Jesus tells us how to confront them in Matthew 18:15-
17.

First, speak to the person one-on-one. If that doesnt work, bring a couple of spiritually
mature Christian friends with you to confront them. We must confront people with the
right facts and the right spirit. Ephesians 4:15 tells us, Speak the truth in love.

Watch your tongue carefully

Ephesians 4:29 says, Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but
only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit
those who listen. Watch your tongue. If your words tear people down rather than
building them up, keep quiet. As my mother used to tell me, If you cant say anything
nice, dont say anything at all.

A man won the million-dollar lottery. He flew with his wife to New York City for a
weekend get away. They had such an argument over how to spend the money that she
threatened to divorce him. In a fit of anger, he went to the top of the Empire State
Building. She ran up after him, thinking he might do something crazy. Once she got to
the top she said, Honey, I love you. We can work it out. But by the time she reached
him, he had already torn the check into pieces and thrown the pieces to the ground.
They got to the ground as quick as possible to gather up the pieces of the check. But it
was too late. The wind had gotten a hold of the pieces. They couldnt piece the check
back together again, no matter how hard they tried. Thats how it is with gossip. Once
gossip gets out, it gets out of control. Once it gets into the wind of peoples ears, theres
no way to put things back together again.

Jesus warns us about sins of the tongue in Matthew 12:36: I tell you that men will have
to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. We
all need to pray Psalms 141:3: Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over
the door of my lips.
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