A stock boy at a grocery store was asked by an elderly lady, “Can I buy half a head of lettuce?” He walked back to the manager’s office, not realizing that the lady followed him. He said to the manger, “You’re not going to believe this, but there’s an old bag out there who wants to buy half a head of lettuce.” He turned around and saw her standing right behind him. Quickly he added, “And this fine lady would like to buy the other half.”
Someone has said, “Remember your tongue is in a wet place and can slip easily.”
When you’re not feeling well, the doctor will often say, “Stick out your tongue.” Your tongue reveals what’s going on inside of you—not just physically but also spiritually.
“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” (v. 2).
“Stumble” – “Sin”
“We all stumble”
• “Who can say, ‘I have kept my heart pure; I am clean and without sin’?” (Proverbs 20:9).
• “There is no one who does not sin” (2 Chronicles 6:36).
• “There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins” (Ecclesiastes 7:20).
• “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
• “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8).
• “If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives” (1 John 1:10).
“In many ways”
• One of the easiest ways to sin is with our tongues. We always have the opportunity to say something wrong. We can’t do everything, but we can say everything.
• When Paul describes man’s sinfulness in Romans 3, he talks about man’s evil tongue: “‘Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.’ ‘The poison of vipers is on their lips.’ ‘Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness’” (vv. 13-14).
• We can sin with our tongues in many ways. Imagine there is a recording of all of your conversations of the past week. Which of the following “sins of the tongue” would you be guilty of: bragging, lying, flattering, slandering, gossiping, verbally abusing others, cursing, making off-color remarks, talking behind another’s back, passing on rumors, shading the truth, arguing, yelling, being sarcastic?
• This is probably one of the reasons why James says, “Not many of you should presume to be teachers.” Teachers use their mouths. That’s potentially dangerous.
“Perfect” – Two interpretations:
• Sinless perfection: Hypothetically, if you had the ability to not sin with your tongue, you would also have the ability to not sin in any other way.
• Spiritual maturity
1. WHY MUST I WATCH WHAT I SAY?
Three reasons:
a. My tongue directs WHERE I GO (vv. 3-4).
The tongue is small, but it has tremendous influence.
(1) The tongue is like a bit.
“When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal” (v. 3).
(2) The tongue is like a rudder.
“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” (v. 4).
b. My tongue can destroy WHAT I HAVE (vv. 5-8).
(1) The tongue is like a small spark.
“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” (v. 5).
“Consider” – “Behold” (KJV) = “Wow”
“The 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” (v. 6b).
“Corrupts” – Like smoke damage
“Course of nature” = “circle of life”; chain reaction
You come home from work and you’re tired and grumpy. A husband, tired and grumpy, walks in house and yells at his wife. The wife yells at the oldest kid. The oldest kid yells at the baby sister. The baby sister goes out and kicks the dog. The dog bites the cat. The cat comes in and scratches the baby. The baby bites the head off the Barbie doll. Wouldn’t it be a whole lot simpler if the husband had just bit off the head of the Barbie doll himself?
“Hell” – Can refer to the satanic host; they use the tongue as a tool for evil
“He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity” (Proverbs 21:23).
(2) The tongue is like a deadly, untamable creature.
“All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison” (vv. 7-8).
“No man” – Only God
“Restless” – There is always the danger that it will strike.
“Full of deadly poison” – “Snake venom”; you can “kill” someone with your words.
Just a few words can destroy a friendship, a marriage, a family, a church.
c. My tongue displays WHO I AM (vv. 9-12).
“With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be” (vv. 9-10).
The tongue is inconsistent. One minute we’re praising God, and the next minute we’re cursing people. One minute we can say something loving to our child/spouse, the next minute we can say something unkind.
“Cursing” – Putting down others (not necessarily profanity)
“God’s likeness” – Remember that every person matters to God.
(1) The tongue is like spring.
“Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?” (v. 11).
(2) The tongue is like a tree.
“My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water” (v. 12).
The Problem: MY HEART
My problem is not really my tongue. My problem is my heart.
Have you heard this excuse? “I don’t know what got into me. It’s not like me to say that. I don’t know why I said that. It’s totally out of character. I didn’t really mean it.” James would say, “Yes, it is. It’s just like you. You meant it. Quit kidding yourself. What’s inside your heart is going to come out of your mouth.”
A tongue problem is really a heart problem:
• A person with a harsh tongue has an angry heart.
• A person with a negative tongue has a fearful heart.
• A person with an overactive tongue has an unsettled heart.
• A person with a boasting tongue has an insecure heart.
• A person with a filthy tongue has an impure heart.
• A person with a critical tongue has a bitter heart.
On the other hand, a person with an encouraging tongue has a happy heart. A person with a gentle tongue has a loving heart. A person with truthful tongue has an honest heart.
Jesus said, “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34).
Matt. 15:11, 16-19
The tongue is a tattletale on the heart.
Peter – “…your accent gives you away” (Matthew 26:73)
“If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless” (James 1:26).
2. WHAT’S THE SOLUTION?
a. Get a new HEART.
“Rid yourself of all the offenses you have committed and get a new heart and a new spirit” (Ezekiel 18:31).
How do I get a new heart? Be born again by putting your trust in Jesus.
Christ – “No one ever spoke the way this man does” (John 7:46).
“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
“Create in me a pure heart, O God” (Psalm 51:10) because what’s in my heart is going to come out of my mouth.
b. Ask God for HELP every day.
“Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips” (Psalm 141:3).
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14).
Garbage in, garbage out: what goes into your mind, goes into your heart, and what goes into your heart, comes out of your mouth. Spend time reading God’s Word.
c. THINK before you speak.
“Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry” (James 1:19).
PERSONAL APPLICATION
Jesus warned, “I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken” (Matthew 12:36).
What recent “sins of the tongue” are you aware of? Confess them to God.
Are there any people that you have publicly slandered or put down? How can you “fix” this situation? What do you need to do? (See Matthew 5:21-24.)
HOW TO TAME YOUR TONGUE
James 3:1-12
“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” (v. 2).
3. WHY MUST I WATCH WHAT I SAY?
a. My tongue directs _________________________ (vv. 3-4).
b. My tongue can destroy _________________________ (vv. 5-8).
c. My tongue displays _________________________ (vv. 9-12).
The Problem: ____________________
“For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34).
4. WHAT’S THE SOLUTION?
a. Get a new _______________.
“Rid yourself of all the offenses you have committed and get a new heart and a new spirit” (Ezekiel 18:31).
b. Ask God for _______________ every day.
“Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips” (Psalm 141:3).
c. _______________ before you speak.
“Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry” (James 1:19).
(Credit: Outline by Rick Warren)
