How do you refer to a prostitute? Do we use words like lot lizard, slut, ho, or skank?

How do you refer to people who are gay? Are we using words like fag, homo, lesbo, or queer.

How about the person asking for money? “Maybe words like bum, lazy, derelict. Maybe even drunk, or addict.

What about immigrants; what words do you use to refer to them? Are words like wetback, rag head, and other derogatory terms a regular part of your vocabulary?

What about that person who just made a really stupid move and cut you off in traffic? Do we come up with words like idiot, moron and others, that if I said, or printed, my mother would wash my mouth out with soap.

I hate to admit it, but I have used many of the above words to refer to people. Did you catch that? Stop and think about if for a minute. These are people. Do terms like lot lizard, faggot, drunk, bum, or idiot make you think of a person? It’s all too easy to use these terms to refer to those we see as less than we are. And that’s just it. Using these words helps us to dehumanize the people in question.

What happens if we see these same people as human? Well, then we have to acknowledge that that prostitute is someone’s daughter, sister, maybe even someone’s mother. There’s even a good chance she may be a victim of human trafficking.

We then also have to acknowledge that the gay guy is someone’s son, brother, or uncle. He might even be someone’s father. Or the lesbian is someone’s daughter, sister, aunt, and just maybe mother.

The same thing for the person asking for money, or the person who cut you off in traffic, and the immigrant. And on and on it goes. They are people.

Why does it matter what words we choose to use? It matters because they are people. If we can ignore their humanity then it becomes easier to treat them badly. Dehumanizing others allows us to excuse mistreatment of others. I would venture to say that the atrocities of the past prove my point. Hitler dehumanized the Jews, those who held slaves saw them as nothing more than chattel to be bought and sold. Of course those are just two examples within the past 200 years, but there are many other examples. More current examples would be terror groups calling people infidels and killing them for not sharing their beliefs, or hate groups who picket funerals of those they deem less than godly declaring that God hates them.

The most important reason that it matters is because Christ died for them too. We can’t reach them for Christ if we fail to see and recognize their humanity.  What distinguishes His people is our love for others. How can we expect people to come to Christ if we who claim He is our Lord and Savior are unloving with our words? Their idea of God will be shaped, at least in part, by how His representatives act, as well as speak.