The Good Name: The Power of Words to Hurt or Heal
Digital Verbum Edition
Overview
The Good Name by Samuel T. Logan, Jr. encourages readers to see the dangers of false witness among Christians, especially when dealing with disagreements, which can cause damage to individuals, the church, and the good name of Jesus.
By exploring what it means to be a true witness in the Bible and the Christian church, Logan emphasizes the power of words both divine and human and explains how our Christian responsibility is to honor others in truth and respect, especially when we disagree.
This powerful book draws on Scripture and historical evidence of all the damage that verbal nastiness of Christians has done to the cause of Christ.
Christians often disagree with one another and, because they are Christians, they tend to hold their beliefs very strongly. This sometimes leads us to speak harshly to and about one another. But the Bible has more to say about the way we speak than it does about almost anything else, and The Good Name examines how we may express our disagreements in a way that honors Jesus.
Logan provides biblical wisdom and practical help through specific examples of how to talk to and about those with whom we disagree on “hot button issues,” such as abortion, evolution, same-sex marriage, the place of women in ministry leadership, and so on.
While encouraging readers to honor the good name of Jesus and love their neighbors, Logan also explores how Christians have undermined the gospel throughout church history. But words have the power to heal, not just hurt, and this resource outlines how to be winsome and respectful in all conversations, especially disagreements.
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- Encourages readers to see the dangers of “false witness” among Christians
- Explains how our Christian responsibility is to honor others in truth and respect
- Provides practical help for discussing disagreements
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- 1. The Power of Words, Divine and Human
- 2. True and False Witness
- 3. The Damage Done by False Witness
- 4. Principles of Bearing True Witness
- 5. So Can We Talk at All?
- Appendix A: Selected Guidelines for Bearing True Witnes
- Appendix B: Selected Bible Passages about the Power of God’s Word
- Endnotes
In his book, The Good Name, Logan provides a careful and complete look at how we must live out the ninth commandment. He provides solid biblical grounding, relies upon a range of Confessions of the church, considers historical contexts, and challenges the reader to speak faithfully. Most helpful is his format for approaching the challenging issues of the day. Most compelling is the way he encourages us to speak to each other even in the face of our disagreements. Take this book to heart, and let it speak to you.
—Steven R. Timmermans, Executive Director, Christian Reformed Church in North America
Sam Logan’s book, The Good Name, is needed in our internet age of rising incivility and increased polarization. Christians often are ‘conformed to this world’ in reactively expressing their opinions electronically rather than thoughtfully following the Scriptures in general and the implications of the ninth commandment in particular. Logan’s book is both self-deprecating and insightful as he applies the ninth commandment to himself and our culture of instantaneous communication. The level of our conversations and communications will be improved by our listening to what Sam Logan has to say.
—L. Roy Taylor, Stated Clerk, The Presbyterian Church in America; former professor, Reformed Theological Seminary
In an era when the person who yells the loudest or makes the most outrageous claim is the person who is heard in the public square, The Good Name by Sam Logan urges followers of Jesus Christ to stop and think before engaging. When Christians speak, whether on social media or in face-to-face conversations, they are also representing their Savior and Lord. Addressing how to think and speak biblically in this divisive, polarized culture, Logan expounds extensively on the biblical and confessional affirmations that address the ‘power of our words,’ with a special focus on the ninth commandment. Examples from church history are cited to show where failure to manage well this power led to unnecessary division in the church and a compromised witness for the gospel. A significant contribution is his thinking about honoring ‘the good name’ of your neighbor, and how to honor this often-overlooked part of the commandment to not bear false witness. Out of this exposition comes helpful and (in some cases) challenging guidance for how to speak into current hot topics such as abortion, evolution, women in ministry leadership, social justice, and same-sex marriage. While the confessional study draws primarily from Reformed confessions, any Christian committed to a biblically based life will benefit greatly from The Good Name.
—Jeff Jeremiah, Stated Clerk of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC); former senior pastor of First Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Renton, Washington