"Please, Excuse My French"

There is no doubt in my mind that I have heard these four words countless times. But I heard them again last night while I was at work. A man pulled up in a Mercedes, asked me "Who is the ****ing boss of parking around here?!" Being the valet I went up to his car and said I'd park it for him (valet at Volare is complimentary). He then told me, "Please excuse my French. That was French." Now, I'm not expert in French, but the "f-bomb," as I understand it, has no connection to the French language--nor does this word exist in French. I'm not trying to belittle this man, I can understand the frustration, for Jane St. is quite narrow (with cars parked on both sides it is extremely narrow), and there is very little parking in the vicinity of Frankfort Ave.

My mind at that moment did not race to accuse the man for his inappropriate language, but rather to see the folly of making excuses for our words and actions (It is not my job to judge those outside of the church, 1 Cor. 5:12-13). Making excuses is a form of covering up--seeking to hide in the darkness what has become manifest in the light--an attempt to justify oneself. As the old trite comment goes, "Excuses are like dirty socks [insert 'underwear,' etc ad infinitum], we all have them and no body wants them."

I am not saying that I am better than this man--not by any means. I often try to make excuses for myself. Rather than subjecting my sinful actions to the Light of Christ, I try to hide them in the darkness. Rather than repenting of my illicit 'tax collecting,' so to speak, I Pharisaically hide my dead bones behind the most ellaborate of tombs. O, how pretty we make our tombs. A few flowers, an American flag, and a poetic epitaph seem to make everything so restful--while inside, '6 feet under' lies the truth--death--foul, stinking death!

My plea here is to both believers and unbelievers in 'The Way.' It is to stop hiding. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 admonishes us:

Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the whole duty of man.

For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.

Jesus warns us in Matthew 12:33-37,

"Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. 36 But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."

For a tree to bear good fruit, it must be a good tree. So it is with humans. For a person to speak righteous words, the heart must be purified, made new by the Holy Spirit. Like vipers, we spew poison. Why? Because we are vipers! (cf. Romans 3:13-14)

The apostle writes in John 3:19-21 to clarify why those who do not come to Christ are condemned:

"This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."

I speak this especially to any and all unbelievers: You hide your deeds rather than bringing them to Christ and allowing Him to bear your reproach and curse, not because you find no facts and truth in the Bible and the gospel--to claim you need a sign from God or that there are errors in Scripture is a facade!--you do not believe in Christ because to do so you would have to acknowledge your own estate--you are sinful, foul to God--rightly condemned for your godless living! REPENT! Trust in Christ, and John 3:16 will be true for you (those who believe in Christ will not face the condemnation for their sins, but will be given eternal life in Christ).

As for believers, I recommend to you 1 John 1. God is light.

"If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

1:8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives." (1 John 1:6-10)

Do not try to hide your sins. Wesley was wrong--perfection cannot be attained in this life. Do not try to hide your sins--pride, envy, lust, greed, self-righteousness, anger, hatred, fear, etc--in darkness. Confess your sins to God. Bring them under the scrutiny of Christ, into the Light of God--let the Hoover sweep-up the dirt rather than throwing a rug over it or putting the lamp in another room. Confess your sins, and they will be forgiven and removed (though removal may be a long, painful process).

Please, don't excuse my French. It is from my heart that my mouth pours forth undrinkable water (James 3:2-12). Clean the spring and the well will have fresh water.