Can Christians use curse words?

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Reborn

Senior Member
Nov 16, 2014
4,087
216
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#1
Dictionary.com [h=1]curse word[/h]


noun1.a profane or obscene word, especially as used in anger or for emphasis.

2.any term conceived of as offensive.


Since birth we have always been told that certain words can and should not ever be said--especially by Christians. This may be true...to us? Pouring over scripture, I have yet to find something (besides our Lords name in vain) that tells us how/what is an appropriate way for words to come out of our mouths? Since God searches the heart--he knows exactly what we say and mean when it proceeds from ours mouth---curse words or not? The context in which a word is used in a sentence and how/ the intentions behind our statements, dictate which words are truly offensive? Agreed? A word is just a word unless it's used intentionally to hurt or offend someone. TECHNICALLY a curse word can be used just to emphasize a statement. (like "way" or "completely") I myself, will not go around saying eff this-or that, but why do we teach others that cursing is "bad" when there are no clear outlines in the Bible on how word/speech patterns are to be conducted? Is it a culture thing? My mother is from Thailand, and words we use here-and think are "clean" are super offensive in the Thai language. (and that's just Thailand!) Just wondering if we all are guilty of teaching man made commandments sometimes? God Bless.

Matthew 15 : 8,9
[SUP]8 [/SUP]This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
[SUP]9 [/SUP]But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
 
M

MadParrotWoman

Guest
#2
Dictionary.com curse word




noun1.a profane or obscene word, especially as used in anger or for emphasis.

2.anytermconceivedofasoffensive.


Since birth we have always been told that certain words can and should not ever be said--especially by Christians. This may be true...to us? Pouring over scripture, I have yet to find something (besides our Lords name in vain) that tells us how/what is an appropriate way for words to come out of our mouths? Since God searches the heart--he knows exactly what we say and mean when it proceeds from ours mouth---curse words or not? The context in which a word is used in a sentence and how/ the intentions behind our statements, dictate which words are truly offensive? Agreed? A word is just a word unless it's used intentionally to hurt or offend someone. TECHNICALLY a curse word can be used just to emphasize a statement. (like "way" or "completely") I myself, will not go around saying eff this-or that, but why do we teach others that cursing is "bad" when there are no clear outlines in the Bible on how word/speech patterns are to be conducted? Is it a culture thing? My mother is from Thailand, and words we use here-and think are "clean" are super offensive in the Thai language. (and that's just Thailand!) Just wondering if we all are guilty of teaching man made commandments sometimes? God Bless.

Matthew 15 : 8,9
[SUP]8 [/SUP]This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
[SUP]9 [/SUP]But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
You are SO right, I don't believe it is ever right to use God's name as a curse word but as a former agnostic I never ever realised that by using Jesus' name as an exclamation that I was in actual fact committing blasphemy. Even now on occasion in situations at work and always without thinking I may let it slip - or a swear word. I am immediately full of remorse and take it to the Lord in prayer, begging forgiveness. 53yrs of saying pretty much what I wanted is a very hard habit to break but these days it is a rarer occurrence. Praise God! It was never in my heart to use the Lord's name in vain - I didn't know there was a God so how could I? I hope He does know my heart, He would know how much I love Him.

General swear words are not mentioned as bad in the Bible - as far as I'm aware but they are hardly becoming for a disciple of Jesus are they? We need to cut them out of our vocabulary. :)
 

Reborn

Senior Member
Nov 16, 2014
4,087
216
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#3
You are SO right, I don't believe it is ever right to use God's name as a curse word but as a former agnostic I never ever realised that by using Jesus' name as an exclamation that I was in actual fact committing blasphemy. Even now on occasion in situations at work and always without thinking I may let it slip - or a swear word. I am immediately full of remorse and take it to the Lord in prayer, begging forgiveness. 53yrs of saying pretty much what I wanted is a very hard habit to break but these days it is a rarer occurrence. Praise God! It was never in my heart to use the Lord's name in vain - I didn't know there was a God so how could I? I hope He does know my heart, He would know how much I love Him.

General swear words are not mentioned as bad in the Bible - as far as I'm aware but they are hardly becoming for a disciple of Jesus are they? We need to cut them out of our vocabulary. :)

Indeed? Maybe? Since most cuss words ARE offensive to others, then yes, we should cut them out. Why offend, knowing this right? But my question is what words are considered offensive? I myself, do not use "Jesus" or "OMG", or His name in anyway unless I am referencing Him. I can tell you I don't beat myself up though if one slips when I'm telling a story. Like I said--if we are to cut out "bad words" we first need to distinguish which words are truly are "bad". I have been around others from around the world and some of our most common "clean" words offended them. Maybe.....just maybe, that is why God never gave us a list of words we can or can not use in life? God Bless.:D
 

Fenner

Senior Member
Jan 26, 2013
7,507
111
0
#4
I don't curse a lot, but I have and still do sometimes. I've sworn out of anger. I was a waitress years ago and worked with this nice guy who used the f word all the time. I kindly asked him to stop, one of the women that worked there who had a filthy mouth said, well it's just a word. When she was gone, I said to him, Jason, you're a nice person, I know you're smart but using that word over and over like you do makes you seem uneducated. I told that I didn't want to offend him and hoped I didn't. He was really cool about it and said, no, I appreciate your honesty and I think it's become a bad habit. After that he didn't say it as much.
 

blue_ladybug

Senior Member
Feb 21, 2014
70,862
9,579
113
#5
Indeed? Maybe? Since most cuss words ARE offensive to others, then yes, we should cut them out. Why offend, knowing this right? But my question is what words are considered offensive? I myself, do not use "Jesus" or "OMG", or His name in anyway unless I am referencing Him. I can tell you I don't beat myself up though if one slips when I'm telling a story. Like I said--if we are to cut out "bad words" we first need to distinguish which words are truly are "bad". I have been around others from around the world and some of our most common "clean" words offended them. Maybe.....just maybe, that is why God never gave us a list of words we can or can not use in life? God Bless.:D

When in doubt, if it sounds bad, then it's an offensive word. I don't consider words like (and i'm gonna misspell them so i dont get banned), "heel", "daymed" (as in condemned), and "azz" to be swear words, because they are IN THE BIBLE. The F word is definitely a bad word!! More or less, it's the context in HOW YOU USE a word that makes it profane or not. :)
 

Reborn

Senior Member
Nov 16, 2014
4,087
216
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#6
I don't curse a lot, but I have and still do sometimes. I've sworn out of anger. I was a waitress years ago and worked with this nice guy who used the f word all the time. I kindly asked him to stop, one of the women that worked there who had a filthy mouth said, well it's just a word. When she was gone, I said to him, Jason, you're a nice person, I know you're smart but using that word over and over like you do makes you seem uneducated. I told that I didn't want to offend him and hoped I didn't. He was really cool about it and said, no, I appreciate your honesty and I think it's become a bad habit. After that he didn't say it as much.
True--cursing can make someone seem uneducated. But curse words are just words....I've seen people shrug off the 'F' word, while going into despair while reading the words "insufficient funds". Words have always been lethal in how/when we choose to use them. Curse words can be very offensive, I get that, but all I try to do in life is find out what God wants from me, and how He expects me to act or talk...not do/act the way men tell me to. Sorry...could go on forever on this subject. :D Be well.
 
Nov 5, 2013
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#7
I agree to not take the Lord's name in vain. Having said that, I think that the more frequent use of curse words is a societal thing. I don't know about anyone else, but I see kids today using curse words with greater frequency than they did years ago. Perhaps they use them to "fit in", to become part of the crowd. We should not offend other people, but we can do so with words. They may be curse words or other words. And I agree that some of our seemingly tame words in English are offensive to those in other countries.

To the point, I don't curse as I find it offends ME. I don't like hearing other people curse as that offends ME. If I am around a group of people who are cursing I walk away. If I watch a movie on television where the actors curse every minute, I turn it off. BUT, this is MY preference. This is what I do. But I don't force my actions or opinion on others. What they do is their choice. However, as a Christian, I don't believe using curse words is a good thing. Certainly the Bible doesn't have a list of such words, but I am sure that Jesus wouldn't want us to go around cursing. As He would find it offensive, so do I.

Cursing is a very bad habit and to lead a Christian life and to be respected by others, I do not curse and would hope that others don't as well.
 

blue_ladybug

Senior Member
Feb 21, 2014
70,862
9,579
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#8
True--cursing can make someone seem uneducated. But curse words are just words....I've seen people shrug off the 'F' word, while going into despair while reading the words "insufficient funds". Words have always been lethal in how/when we choose to use them. Curse words can be very offensive, I get that, but all I try to do in life is find out what God wants from me, and how He expects me to act or talk...not do/act the way men tell me to. Sorry...could go on forever on this subject. :D Be well.
ok, so the F word is just a word? it's not offensive to you at all? I can assure you God gets displeased when we swear. He wants CLEAN LANGUAGE coming out of our mouths! Not filthy ones as the devil would have us use. Curse words are NOT "just words"!! They are offensive to God. Even though some people may not get offended at being told to eff off, GOD certainly takes offense. God expects us to act as Jesus did, with love and respect and clean talking. :) You're on shaky ground with God, if you think curse words are just simply words with no real meaning. :(
 
Aug 30, 2014
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#9
Personally, I don't mind other people "cussing", but I usually don't. Even being an atheist, I'm not at all worried about blashpemy or righteousness, but I still don't really like the sound of certain words with no reason to say them. And when I hear a christian cussing, I can't help but think they don't take their image very seriously. It doesn't seem to me to represent the values they hold. Maybe that's just bias left over from when I was a christian, but it just doesn't look good to me, and it definitely makes people seem less intelligent sometimes. Of ourse, in some situations, certain "bad words" convey a meaning that no other word does, and I feel it is appropriate to use the word. I just don't like when people misuse them.
 

Reborn

Senior Member
Nov 16, 2014
4,087
216
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#10
ok, so the F word is just a word? it's not offensive to you at all? I can assure you God gets displeased when we swear. He wants CLEAN LANGUAGE coming out of our mouths! Not filthy ones as the devil would have us use. Curse words are NOT "just words"!! They are offensive to God. Even though some people may not get offended at being told to eff off, GOD certainly takes offense. God expects us to act as Jesus did, with love and respect and clean talking. :) You're on shaky ground with God, if you think curse words are just simply words with no real meaning. :(
Whoa...My point proven that ALL words can be taken out of context and offend! Have you read this entire post? I SAID please show me WHAT WORDS ARE CONSIDERED OFFENSIVE IN LIFE/BIBLE-BEING DICTATED BY THE LORD HIMSELF?. Just because you tell me cuss words are offensive doesn't mean that man is right?! Read the entire post please...all is explained. Thank you and God Bless.
 

santuzza

Senior Member
Feb 12, 2013
1,609
38
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#11
But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth - Colossians 3:8

CAN a Christian curse? Of course. SHOULD a Christian curse? Of course not.
 
Nov 3, 2014
1,045
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#12
To the OP

They do ..... but should refrain, especially with today's habitual and accepted speaking
 

blue_ladybug

Senior Member
Feb 21, 2014
70,862
9,579
113
#13
Whoa...My point proven that ALL words can be taken out of context and offend! Have you read this entire post? I SAID please show me WHAT WORDS ARE CONSIDERED OFFENSIVE IN LIFE/BIBLE-BEING DICTATED BY THE LORD HIMSELF?. Just because you tell me cuss words are offensive doesn't mean that man is right?! Read the entire post please...all is explained. Thank you and God Bless.
Oh no, no..I'm not offended. :) It's kind of hard to give you examples of words without getting ourselves banned..lol :) If you think God would not like to hear a conversation with you speaking words that sound bad, then odds are that those words are offensive to him. I find it strange that you cant figure out for yourself what words might sound offensive. And yes, I have read every post on here, including your OP, but as I said it's hard to give you examples w/o getting myself banned.
 

Reborn

Senior Member
Nov 16, 2014
4,087
216
63
#14
But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth - Colossians 3:8

CAN a Christian curse? Of course. SHOULD a Christian curse? Of course not.
Great verse. But please define "filthy language".....like I said, the words we find offensive and/or clean in the states, have different meaning to the rest of the world. Anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, are when we use words with the intent to harm. Filthy "communication" (KJV) is once again, speech with the intent to offend- not particular, singled out words. So to a Muslim the words "Jesus Christ" are blasphemy...obviously we do not see those words that way, Jesus means peace to us? It's all is HOW THE INDIVIDUAL sees a word- and how he uses it.
 
Nov 3, 2014
1,045
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#15
There really is no excuse .... but people look for it

Can the Lord change your demeanor?

He can .... but you must seek this
 

Nautilus

Senior Member
Jun 29, 2012
6,488
53
48
#16
words are wind. If you have a personal conviction about these words than follow it. Personally I think they make one sound ignorant and uneducated.
 

Reborn

Senior Member
Nov 16, 2014
4,087
216
63
#17
Oh no, no..I'm not offended. :) It's kind of hard to give you examples of words without getting ourselves banned..lol :) If you think God would not like to hear a conversation with you speaking words that sound bad, then odds are that those words are offensive to him. I find it strange that you cant figure out for yourself what words might sound offensive. And yes, I have read every post on here, including your OP, but as I said it's hard to give you examples w/o getting myself banned.
Like I said..I myself, refrain from using curse words. I KNOW they offend, my friend-But that is how I personally feel. This thread was asking if MAYBE us Christians MIGHT be teaching people man made rules about cursing, instead of going to scripture to find out if what we are teaching is even right? Is "thought shalt not use those 7-20 'bad' words" sound doctrine...or commandments of men?
 
E

ELECT

Guest
#18
True--cursing can make someone seem uneducated. But curse words are just words....I've seen people shrug off the 'F' word, while going into despair while reading the words "insufficient funds". Words have always been lethal in how/when we choose to use them. Curse words can be very offensive, I get that, but all I try to do in life is find out what God wants from me, and how He expects me to act or talk...not do/act the way men tell me to. Sorry...could go on forever on this subject. :D Be well.
Will God use cuss words ? Why or Why not ?
 
P

psalm6819

Guest
#19
what's the cause of the cursing? anger? (you @#$%^&) dismay? (what the *%$ am I gonna do) a knee jerk response (slam door on finger @$%^!!!) maybe it's not as much abt cursing as controlling our tongue
 

blue_ladybug

Senior Member
Feb 21, 2014
70,862
9,579
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#20
Like I said..I myself, refrain from using curse words. I KNOW they offend, my friend-But that is how I personally feel. This thread was asking if MAYBE us Christians MIGHT be teaching people man made rules about cursing, instead of going to scripture to find out if what we are teaching is even right? Is "thought shalt not use those 7-20 'bad' words" sound doctrine...or commandments of men?
​I would have to say "thou shall not use those 7-20 bad words" IS equal parts doctrine AND common sense..lol :) If Jesus wouldn't say it, why should we?