Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. - Leviticus 19:18
The people of God were given many commands in the Old Testament of how to be a godly nation that would be different in the world. From various traditions, sacrifices, different clothing, different customs, to even different heart attitudes, God was calling his people to be separate. Here we read that the Lord asks his people not to seek revenge or to hold unforgiveness towards other fellow believers. In the verses before he says we are not to "go about spreading slander" (Leviticus 19:16) and "Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart" (Leviticus 19:17). These sins are listed before a list of gross immoralities that the heathen nations around them where indulging in. But for us as believers today of course we condemn divination, drinking blood, sexual perversions, yet to add to that list, slander and unforgiveness seems strange. God was saying to his people that he saw the sins of gossip, slander, and an unforgiving attitude as worse as the most evil practices of the ungodly nations. Why this is a hard word to many today is evangelicalism and modern Christianity is full of people who slander and gossip as if nothing is wrong about it at all. Character assassination, anonymous letters and posts on the internet, all are done thinking there is some sort of righteousness behind it.
When the next pastor falls into a sexual sin or falling, many are quick to spread the news as far and wide as possible. In other cases people just choose to disagree on worship styles, practices of a certain believer or doctrine of a church movement. No matter what the subject, slander defames and hurts those involved in the body of Christ and mars the testimony of Christ. C.H. Spurgeon said of slander, "Let us hate it with perfect hatred. It is better to be the victim of slander then the author of it. Shun slander as you would avoid hell." The early Church Father, John Chrysostom said, "Slander is worse than cannibalism." St. Isaac the Syrian, gives us a remedy, "Let them push you, but do not push; Let them crucify you, but do not crucify. Let them insult, but do not insult. Let them slander, but do not slander. Be meek, and do not be zealous in evil." When we flee from slander and those who slander we save ourselves from great sin in our Christian walks. Just as the people of God in the Old Testament were warned of this great error we should take heed to the admonitions. Lord, please keep my tongue and heart from slander and hating any other brother or sister in the Lord. Amen.