"Sticks and stones . . ." You can all finish that little ditty. The question is whether or not it's true. After some experiences with the devastating effects of slander and gossip, I might have chosen the sticks and stones instead. Words seem so easy, so insignificant, but they carry enormous power.

The book of James uses some compelling metaphors to describe the destructive power of words (the tongue). They are like the relatively small rudder that can turn a very large ship. Words are also like a fire that "sets the whole course of one's life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell" (3:6).

The ninth commandment is usually interpreted to prohibit lying, and, of course, it does. But it points to a specific kind of lying: bearing false witness. The focus is the law court in which one is called to be a witness. Bearing false witness against someone could result in their being unjustly punished for a crime they didn't commit. That's why witnesses in American courts must swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

The main thrust of this commandment, then, has to do with protecting my neighbors' well-being by always telling the truth about them, whether in court, on the street, in the classroom, or on the ball field. It goes without saying that it isn't that simple; telling the truth involves more than declining to tell a lie.

Note that the Q&A tells me that I should not "hurt my neighbor by gossip or lying." Lying is not telling the truth about my neighbor. Gossip, on the other hand, may be telling the truth but telling it maliciously, unnecessarily, and hurtfully. Much gossip is all too truthful, but it is also hurtful and unwarranted. Its intention is to put down my neighbor rather than building up him or her.

Technology has amplified the power of words, both for good and for ill. In our day we can, with a twitter or a Facebook entry, spread the word not only about ourselves but about others. There have been recent stories about how youth and young adults are using these social media tools to tear down their classmates and destroy their enemies. From broad insinuations to passing along suggestive or compromising photos, this kind of electronic gossip has led even to suicides.

So this commandment deals with a reality very close to the lives of many in your group. The first question for them to ask, then, isn't whether something is true but what repeating it might do to their neighbor.

The Q&A then turns to the flip side of the power of words. "Instead I should love the truth and speak it openly." Loving truth is more than loving factuality; it's loving the whole truth, including the consequences of telling that truth for malicious ends (gossip and slander). We have all experienced the power of words to bless, from the gospel of grace presented in words that brought us to salvation to words of blessing spoken to or about us by a parent, friend, or other significant person in our lives. Those words are the whole truth. They not only tell us something true but are meant to build us up rather than tear us down.