No Such Thing as Freedom of Speech

As this political season heats up, I can feel my temperature rising.  I have never enjoyed election years, but so far, this one takes the cake.  The whining and mud-slinging are just plain annoying.

Oh, I’m not talking about the candidates, I’m referring to the voters.  There are those that take freedom of speech to new heights.  Our so-called freedom of speech is not meant to be a free-for-all of hate and disdain being volleyed back and forth like a shuttlecock.

Christians have a responsibility to share their views in ways that reflect Christ’s love at all times.  This doesn’t mean that we have to be soft on the ideals we hold dear, but we do need to consider our desired end result.  We should examine our hearts and motives carefully before jumping on a bad wagon or plastering our car bumpers with political paraphernalia.

Every word that comes out of our mouths has the potential to be a fiery dart.  Is it more important to point the lost to Christ or prove a fleeting point?   Freedom of speech may be a constitutional right, but is it a God-given right?  Scripture gives us many stipulations about the way we speak.  We don’t have carte blanche.

We should stop deluding ourselves into believing that the world can’t see through the thinly veiled hatred behind our words and deeds.  As the saying goes, “you catch more flies with honey…”  Not that people are flies, but you know what I mean.

So please, before you hop in your car and “eat mor chikin” or post your latest dig at “obamacare” or “r money”, please ask God to give you the wisdom to love your neighbors first.  We have to make sure that we are not using God as a shield to hurt others or propagate our own twisted opinions.  The ultimate goal is to win another to Christ.  Let’s not lose sight of that.

                                             “Speaking the truth in love…”  Ephesians 4:15