Swearing

Dear Victorious,

I know the Bible says we are not to take the name of the Lord in vain. So I understand that to mean we should say things like, "God d____it!" But what about the other words we hear so commonly. They are ordinary "cuss words" and don't have God's name in them. Does that mean they are okay?

Joseph R. - Jackson, MI

Dear Joseph,

No, just because ordinary cuss words don't invoke the name of the Lord does not mean they are okay. They are not okay. In fact, the Bible tells us that no words should ever come out of our mouth that aren't edifying to others. What that means is that we should never say anything that isn't useful to others. Perhaps your grandmother taught you, "If you can't say something nice, then don't say anything at all." As it turns out, that's Biblical. Christians should never have words coming out of their mouths that wouldn't come out of Jesus' own mouth. It is that simple.