James 4:11

James 4:11 says "do not speak against your one another brethren." I don't know why this hit me this time in reading it. I know I've read it many times before but this time the Lord reminded me of many conversations in which I spoke of a brother or sister in less than positive ways. I spoke truth and was concerned for them to know truth, but I wasn't speaking to them.

I looked up some references to this verse and saw in II Cor. 12:20 Paul's concern that he would find in the people:
strife, jealousy,angry tempers, disputes,slanders,gossip,arrogance,disturbances

Could my words cause such things?

...and in James 5:9 Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door.

Complain? That sounds so wrong, and yet that is what I have been guilty of. Yes, I pray for the person and ask God to speak to them, but I don't always stop there.
...or is my complaint actually against God?

...and then I looked up 11-12 in the Message and saw:

Don't bad-mouth each other, friends. It's God's Word, his Message, his Royal Rule, that takes a beating in that kind of talk. You're supposed to be honoring the Message, not writing graffiti all over it. God is in charge of deciding human destiny. Who do you think you are to meddle in the destiny of others?

Speaking against another somehow doesn't sound as bad as bad-mouthing someone.

I don't think I've ever thought of my words as having been against God's Word, Message and Royal Rule, yet they are.

It's something most of us do without thinking much about it. I wonder what would happen if we stopped and silently prayed for the person instead of speaking of them.

In Phil., Paul exhorts the Believers to "conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel."

I pray that I will take this to heart in the manner of my words and ask anyone who knows me to call me on it when you hear me speaking in a way "unworthy of the Gospel" in regards to a brother or sister.