Say Something Good - Tertullus

When Paul was called in, Tertullus presented the charges against Paul in the following address to the governor: . . .“We have found this man to be a troublemaker who is constantly stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the cult known as the Nazarenes.”

Acts 24:2, 5

During Winston Churchill’s last year as British prime minister, he attended an official ceremony where he heard, from several rows behind him, a man whispering to his friend, “That’s Winston Churchill. They say he is getting senile. They say he should step aside and leave the running of the nation to more dynamic and capable men.”

When the ceremony concluded, Churchill, known for his sometimes sarcastic wit, turned to the gossip and the man’s friend and said, “Gentlemen, they also say he is deaf!”

Sadly, too few people today live by the adage “If you can’t say something good, don’t say anything at all.” Though the Bible repeatedly enjoins believers to use words that build others up rather than tear them down, it’s very easy to find excuses to speak ill of another.

Tertullus, a Jewish advocate before the Roman government, was an extreme example of someone who went out of his way to tear another man down. The apostle Paul was one of his victims. Like many others of his day, Tertullus wanted to stop all the preaching about Jesus, and he intended to do what he could to make that happen.

Standing before Felix, the Roman governor of Judea, Tertullus accused Paul of disturbing the peace throughout the Roman Empire and preventing Jewish people from exercising their religion. Though Tertullus’s accusations were far more than just a spin on the facts, his words made a big difference in Paul’s life. Tertullus intended to have Paul imprisoned—or worse—but Paul continued his preaching, now in the presence of Roman leaders.

Words have real power to harm your brother or sister in Christ, including the ones in your own home. Before you say something about another person, ask yourself if what you’re about to say builds that person up or tears him down.