I got my Bible out this morning and opened to James 3.... Taming your tongue. Now I know that God has a sense of humor so I know it is no coincidence that I opened to this chapter.
James 3
Taming the Tongue
1 Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.
3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make the obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, 8 but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt
Two Kinds of Wisdom 13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.
Verse 1
Teaching was a highly valued and respected profession in Jewish Culture, and many Jews who embraced Christianity wanted to become teachers. James warned that although it is good to aspire to teach, the teachers' responsibility is great because their words and example affect others' spiritual lives.
Verse 2,3
What you say and what you don't say are both important. Proper speech is not only saying the right words at the right time, but it is also controlling your desire to say what you shouldn't....OOPS!!! Now for the convicting time... Examples of an untamed tongue include gossiping, putting others down, bragging, manipulating, false teaching, exaggerating, complaining, flattering, and lying. Before we speak we should ask "Is what I say true, necessary, and kind?"
Verse 6
James compares the damage the tongue does to a raging fire-the tongue's wickedness has its source in hell itself. The uncontrolled tongue can do terrible damage. Satan uses the tongue to divide people and pit them against one another. Idle and hateful words are damaging because they spread destruction quickly, and no one can stop the results once they are spoken. We shouldn't think we can say what we want apologizing later, because the scars remain. A few words spoken in anger can destroy a friendship that took years to build.
Verse 8
If no human being can control the tongue, then why bother? Even if we may not achieve perfect control of out tongues, we can still learn enough control to reduce the damage our words can do. We don't fight the tongue's fire in our own strength. We can't do it ourselves! The Holy Spirit will give us increasing power to monitor and control what we say, so that when we are offended, the Spirit will remind us of God's love, and we won't react in a hateful manner. When we are criticized, the Spirit will heal the hurt, and we won't lash out.
Verse 9-12
Our contradictory speech often confuses us. At times our words are right and pleasing to God, but at other times they are violent and destructive. Which of these speech patterns reflects our true identity? The tongue gives us a picture of our basic human nature. We are made in God's image, but we have fallen into sin. God works to change us from the inside out. When the Holy Spirit purifies a heart, he gives us self-control so that he person will speak words that please God.
Verse 13-18
Have you ever known anyone who claimed to be wise but acted foolishly? True wisdom can be measured by the depth of a person's character. What is character?? It is what we are when we are alone! Just as you can identify a tree by the type of fruit it produces, you can evaluate your wisdom by the way you act. Foolishness leads to disorder, but wisdom leads to peace and goodness.
Verse 14, 15
"Bitter envy and selfish ambition" are inspired by the devil...a.k.a. Ole' Scum Dog. It is easy for us to be drawn into wrong desires by the pressures of society and sometimes even by well-meaning Christians. Seeking God's wisdom delivers us from the need to compare ourselves to others and to want what they have.
That is packed full of "stuff" for us to apply but that can be hard at times! We need to train our thoughts to be pure and Godly, and that can be very hard in today's world!
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