Ephesians 5:29
29 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.

Exodus 23:1
1 “Do not spread false reports. Do not help a guilty person by being a malicious witness.

James 4:11
11 Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.

Proverbs 18:2

The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.

Slander is defined as, “the action or crime of making a false spoken statement damaging to a person’s reputation.” God is urging us to not gossip about each other. Even when we are right about the other person’s transgressions. We are essentially breaking the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill” when we speak anything negative against another. We need to be careful how we speak. Words are so powerful, God uses them to speak the world into existence. In Matthew 18:15, it says, “If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offense. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back.
If we don’t have this opportunity for whatever reason, it is up to us to take it to the Father, and see what He has to say. And we must forgive as God forgives us.
In Proverbs 19:11, we see, “Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.”
And in Ecclesiastes we hear, “Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you. Your heart knows that many times you yourself have cursed others,” in chapter 7:21-22.

Mission- Are you easily offended? Do you run to vent to someone or do you forgive immediately by taking it to God and not letting it take root in your heart? Think about the last time you were offended. Are you still offended, or can you give the offense to Jesus and heal you’re heart?