Albert Camus in his one act play No Exit famously said that ‘Hell is other people.’ Forever bound to other fallen people who all want to be in control and therefore ignite perpetual conflict is mental torture. So, other people can seem like hell. Perhaps. But hell is also loneliness. Having no vital connection with anyone, being all alone in a dark and fright-filled world can be excruciating. We, as God’s image bearers, are made for communion with other image bearers. We are to know others and be known by them. To be in fellowship with each other. We hunger for deep, intimate, interpersonal relationship with others.
Speech connects us to other people. Words convey our heart and mind Verbal communication can minister to others. It can help them to understand themselves and to navigate through their journey. Journey where? Their journey back to God.
We are all lost and trying to do the best that we can, In our fallen world. We are all seeking directions with our temptations, weaknesses, brokenness without a map. We are empty and confused. As we flail amidst the great waves, we tend to drag other underneath the water with us. But, the gospel is a life jacket. It provides us the map, the solution. It leads us to Jesus in whom is life and that life is the light of men (John 1:4).
We can share the life jacket. So, other people can point to heaven! Knowing these people, those sanctified by the grace of God and living the heavenly life now, can be a taste of heaven. Our words should minister grace to each other. “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” (Ephesians 4:29).
It is true that our words can carry the power of death, and often have. “The tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell” (James 3:6).” Words can be a scourge. We are painfully aware of the lash of biting and hateful words. It is hell!
But life is also in the power of the tongue. Wise, compassionate, gracious words bring healing. “Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body” (Proverbs 16:24). Can you think of a conversation that breathed life into your soul?
How do you use your words? Do that bring life, help, healing, grace – heaven? Or do they tend toward death? To you build deep, lasting friendships with your words, or do you burn bridges?
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits” (Proverbs 18:21). He a slice of heaven to other people.