Help I still cuss!
Q: I love my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I have radically changed my life to be more godly. No more porn. No more looking with lust. No more drugs. No more drunkeness. I volunteer and attend church. However I still vape, I try to no longer take the Lord's name in vain (accidently, I do slip sometimes because I used to constantly say JC , GD, omg alot).
I still swear but only to my workmates that are doing the same thing all the time. Is swearing a big sin? Dropping the occasional (F or S) in a sentence, but I wouldn't dare do that in church or around family. Same with vaping, should I really work to remove these from my life? I do intend to quit vaping, but should I also remove all vulgar language from my life, no matter the audience?
It is difficult, a lot of the time I stop myself before pronouncing the vulgar word and do not finish or slur it into something else. I can feel myself getting better.
A: When you come to Christ you become a new creature, your old nature was crucified with Christ on the cross (Galatians 2:20). You are no longer who you were.
If you still use God's name as a cuss word it is possible you are not saved and are just being moralistic, which is why you cleaned up some areas of your life but still misuse ( treat with with disdain and hatred) the name of the God you claim to love and the Savior you claim to love. No one who loves God would just let that fly out their mouth. What is in someone's heart will come out of their mouth.
(See below verses).
It shows you might be doing this externally to appear good or religious since you dont do it at church or around family. You do not want to be living as a hypocrite, but truly as a new creation who is the same wherever you are. A converted person is not double minded, but is transformed in the inner self (by God).
It also shows you do not have a proper fear of God and dont know enough about this Holy God you claim to know to have a right love for Him. Understanding that, the cross & Gospel itself would be enough to have killed that horrible sin when you were converted. You would now hate sin and love God and love righteousness.
But if by chance you are a new believer who has truly been born again by God then you need to get this dealt with immediately.
It destroys your witness as a believer to talk and behave that way around the unsaved. You cannot talk to others about the Gospel and how God transformed your life through conversion if you behave the same as the unsaved world. This is an area of sin you need to kill and have victory over, so those unsaved around you are drawn to God because of your witness (in general and in sharing the Gospel). Many times the problem is a misunderstanding of and clarity needed around Sin and having a proper fear of God as well as clear understanding of Him.
This can help as you move forward.
4. A reason you might still be cussing is to try to look cool to those you work with, it could be a pride and ego and/or insecurity issue, and desire to be accepted. You need to kill that sin - because Christians live in humility not boastfulness. Live boldly and confidently in righteousness. The world will not accept you, but the redeemed will; as God has embraced them and you, and He is all you need. He us who you are desiring to please, not the children of Satan.
I will give you another study here, to help you understand the first commandments about Loving God. Not for following in a legalistic way but in a right way. Remember, Jesus fulfilled the Law in our place, but in the Law of Christ we live out the spirit of the law; our new nature lives out loving God and others "naturally" (we are reflecting His character). So we need a good understanding of it so we can do so. Does that make sense? This study has a focus on God, loving God, and there is a study on helping you avoid idolatry too. God will grow you in the faith over time but you cannot neglect studying. You need to know Scripture to be renewed and changed by it, and in the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Being in the Scriptures daily is vital. We have an active faith and one that grows. Christians are not complacent nor lazy.
2 Timothy 2:15
Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth
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Verses to think on:
Matthew 15:18-19
18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander...
James 1:26
If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is worthless.
Luke 6:45
The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.
Matthew 6:24
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.
Mark 12:30
And he said to him, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength
Matthew 6:21
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also
Acts 8:22
Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you
1 Corinthians 14:25
The secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you
2 Corinthians 4:16
So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day
Ephesians 6:6
Not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart
James 4:8
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded
Jeremiah 17:10
“I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds.”
Proverbs 21:2
Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart
Ephesians 4:29
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
Romans 12:2
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
1 Timothy 1:5
The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
Psalm 19:14
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer
Proverbs 13:3
Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin
Proverbs 28:14
Blessed is the one who fears the Lord always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity
Luke 8:15
As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience
Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths
Psalm 119:11
I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you
Psalm 26:2
Prove me, O Lord, and try me; test my heart and my mind
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The Holy Spirit will convict you, if you are sinning and it does hinder your relationship with the Lord (including blocking your prayers from being heard). So conquer every sin that you find you are committing, so you are living rightly, and remain in right fellowship with God. A believer will grow in sanctification to become more like Christ, more holy. Sanctification doesn’t happen instantly though, give yourself patience just as the Father does, but hold yourself accountable to actively kill sin in your life. He sees your efforts and growth. Focus on Reading Scripture daily and on your relationship with God, and the things in your life that need changing will come to the surface for you to deal with them, (and do take care of them in all seriousness).
Your witness
As far as your workmates, when you catch yourself starting to cuss, cut yourself off and say to them, "😱😳 oh I need to conquer this cuss sin. Praise God he has removed my dependency on alcohol and the sexual sins from my life. I am going to need to conquer the root issues that still lead me to cuss and the vaping, but I will have victory over it soon. While God does eliminate many things immediately upon conversion He does have a believer grow in sanctification. We are not perfect until we get to Heaven, but we grow in holiness until we get there." And if you have a solid Testimony written and memorized you could add "Have I ever told you how I got saved?" And then either hand them a copy of your testimony (if you keep some in your back pocket), or text them a link to your testimony that is pinned to the top of your Facebook page or that is posted on your church website. When you give it just say "Check it out, & if you have any questions let me know 🙂."
If they ask you things you dont know, find out from your Sunday School teacher, your Pastor or Gotquestions and pass it along to them. No need to feel inadequate or dumb. Your a baby in Christ, and until people reach a certian level of maturity they wint know the answers to many questions. But once you learn- it was beneficial for your spirituak growth too and helps arm you with solid answers for the next time someone asks. 😊
When Christmas (special service) and Easter come around, give them a written invite to join you at church. And afterwards ask if they ever understood the real reason people are Christian. And send them a gospel link (NeedGod.com).
If you use the [noted above] at work or around your workmates on break then it is another way to personally hold yourself accountable to conquer these sins, so you can be a example to these coworkers and it might lead them to Christ too (if not now, at some point in their life). [You never know how long you are at this job, so be a faithful witness, and work as unto the Lord while you are there.]
Then, stop going outside for breaks if you use it to vape & hang out with smokers. Replace vaping with prayer moments, and seeking peace and all help with God who is your comfort. Once you no longer are a slave to vaping/smoking then you can conquer other areas that need to be killed as you grow in and mature in the faith 🙂.
Make sure you are exchanging your unequally yoked friendships more and more to equally yoked friendships in Christ among the brethren 'in your church'. You are to be spending your time and life among those in Christ. They are the godly example for you, and where your life is centered at now. You exchanged the things of this sinful world, and turned your back on it. You now live following Christ and the righteous path. This means the people you spend time with are now to be among the redeemed.
Stay reading the Bible daily and go to church every week. This will help you grow and avoid sin too. But help your love for God grow more as well.
Here are a few more resources:
Cussing counseling (& books)
On Hypocrites
Religious but not right with God
On Sanctification (study)
Really good resources for growing believers
Note.
To blaspheme we are slandering and reviling His name. To take it in vain we are saying it has no substance or worth. I find it helpful to look into the etymology of a word to distinguish but if someone is referring to either of these it is generally the same reference. When you violate this you are assaulting Him. You are damaging His character. Him who is perfect. Psalm 139:20 says, "They speak against you with malicious intent; your enemies take your name in vain."
God bless
Conquer and have victory over this sin 💪🏆
When we put our faith in Christ, we receive a new nature from God (2 Corinthians 5:17), our hearts are transformed, and our speech reflects the new nature God has created within us (Romans 12:1–2). Thankfully, when we fail, our great God is "faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).
Footnotes & further references
*Bookmark this page so you can go through all of the earlier links, this week and through next month. Make it a priority.
If you are not saved, not sure you are, or were sent here by someone else and want to embrace Faith; not just so God can help you conquer these areas, but to be right with God, then review this and embrace it. God will give you a new heart, mind and desires.
God bless
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