Taming the Tongue
James 3:1-12
Introduction
We have been talking about having a faith that works.
We have looked at: Trials and temptations, Listening to and doing the Word of God.
Playing favorites, and last week faith and working your faith by being active.
James you remember is talking to believers, he is the half brother of Jesus and he himself was not a believer until after the resurrection of Jesus. I believe Jesus made a special point to reach James in his faith. This week let’s see what James says in chapter 3 about taming your tongue, and watching what you say. James 3:1-12. James 1:26-27 “If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.” The religion James talks about is taking care of orphans and widows. He has pain-stakingly given the Christian directions on keeping ourselves from being polluted by the world, and in this chapter on the tongue to keep us from polluting the world by getting control of our own tongues.
Illustration
General Robert E. Lee was once asked what he thought of a fellow officer in the Confederate Army, an officer who had made some mean-spirited remarks about him. Lee thought for a moment, then rated him as being very satisfactory. The person who asked the questions seemed troubled. “But General, I guess you don’t know what he’s been saying about you.” Oh yes, answered Lee. I know. But I was asked my opinion of him, not his of me” controlling our tongue is one of life’s greatest challenges. The tongue is very small but very powerful. The primary function of the tongue is to chew, swallow, and to speak. Animals such as the lizard, ant-eaters, frogs, use their tongue for food gathering. The human tongue has over 9000 taste buds. Most people think that the bumps on our tongue are the taste buds. They are on the surface, but smaller than the bumps on the tongue. The medical term for the bumps are papilla and they are used to create friction between the tongue and the food. 85 % of the people can curl their tongue into a tube. Tell the truth You just tried it The Guinness world record for the longest tongue is not Gene Simmons from the band KISS. It is Stephen Taylor at 3.74 inches long. The tongue muscles that guide your food are the same muscles you use to speak. From there the problems deepen. As babies we teach our children to talk, waiting anxiously for them to say their first words. As they get older, say teenagers, we wish they could be quiet, say till they are 30 years old. Words are like dynamite, if used properly and in the right place they are beneficial. Used improperly and in the wrong place they can produce a lot of damage. Which words would you like to hear? I love you, your important to me, thank you, you look nice. Or you disgust me, I hate you, never speak to me again. James wants us to understand something here this morning. Words are powerful They can tear down or build-up. They shape our lives and define who we are by the words we use.
3 points to this message this morning.
I. The Tongue has to be controlled
II. The tongue is a spiritual indicator
III. There is power in your words.
I. The tongue has to be controlled
V(3:3-4)
“ When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 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” James creates word pictures in our mind, we can imagine a horse being turned around with one yank of the reins, a ship being guided by the rudder steering a ship. James addresses teachers in V1-2, be careful what you teach, watch what you say because you will be held accountable for your words. Matthew 12:36-37 “But I tell you that men will have to give an account on the day of judgement for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned. James tells us we must get control of our tongues. We must have understanding both of restraint and direction. There are times when speaking your mind is saying too much. Times when our anger has gotten out of control and we have stepped over the line. Times when that juicy tidbit we just have to share should be kept to ourselves. There is negative people in the world. They just have to share things that tear down, hurt, destroy. 5 minutes with them and you feel like you need to take a shower again. Bite your tongue is something you must do
Illustration
There is a story of a women in an Indian village who maliciously gossiped about another lady and her family in the village. One day she found out that she was wrong about this lady and her family and had a change of heart. She went to the village wise man and asked how she could take back all the wrong things she had done. The wise man told her to go home and kill her chickens and pluck there feathers and put them into a bag. After this she was to go back and see the wise man again, but on her way back she was to scatter all the feathers she had plucked from the chickens. The lady did as she was told. When she got back to the man, he told her, “now go back and pick up all the feathers you have scattered” The women was astonished at such a command and said, by now the wind has carried the feathers through out the village and beyond. The wise man then told her, and so it is with your careless words. They are like the scattered feathers in the wind. You cannot retrieve them. With that the women with a broken heart determined from that day forward, to watch her words. Proverbs 18:21 “Death and life is in the power of the tongue.”
II. Tongue is the spiritual indicator
Luke 6:45
“ The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings up evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart, for out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”
7 things that God hates (Proverbs 6:11)
1. Haughty eyes
2. Lying tongue
3. Hands that shed blood
4. A wicked heart
5. Quick to do evil
6. False witness
7. A person who cause dissension
At least three of them has to do with things we say. A lot of people talk a lot and have nothing to worthwhile to say. James is not saying that silence is golden, but he is saying when we speak it should be controlled by the Spirit of God. The tongue remains hidden most of the time, it is surrounded by teeth and a lot of people should be biting their tongue.
III. Realizing the power of our words
Loose lips sink ship
Keep your words sweet, because you may have to eat them. We have all been hurt by words, relationships have been broken.
Acronym
Think before you speak
T- Is it true?
H- Is it helpful?
I- Is it inspiring?
N-Is it necessary?
K- Is it kind?
Illustration
Little boy selling a push lawnmower. Baptist preacher comes along and wanted to but it and asked did it run. Yes sir, said the boy. The preacher pulled and pulled on the rope and said, Son, this thing won’t start. The boy said “That cause you gotta cuss it. The preacher said, son, I’m a Baptist minister and I haven’t cussed in 18 years. Boy said, keep pulling, it will come back to you. Just words, no big deal. Yes it is, it is a indicator who has control of your tongue, and it is not the Lord. Anybody here besides me wish you could take back something that you said. You can say your sorry, and be sincere , but you can never take it back so the person never heard it.
Closing:
Sticks and stones may break your bones, and yes names will hurt you Calvin Coolidge “I have never been hurt by anything I did not say”
Proverbs 10:19
when words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise”
Are you understanding something here this morning? You cannot tame your tongue yourself.
James
“All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed by man, but no man can tame his tongue.
You cannot stop gossiping without God’s help.
You cannot stop cussing without God.
You cannot stop hurting people without God.
Because you need God to give you a new heart. Because fresh water and salt water cannot come from the same spring. We should not praise and curse from the same mouth.
(Close in prayer)
maybe today you realize that you cannot do it without God’s help, and you want to acknowledge that by raising your hand to the Lord and say...I need your help. I cannot do it without you , but I want to this morning.
Altar Call.
