How to Do Life
The Most Powerful member in the Church
James 3:1-12
* This world is has a deep thirst for power. Governments fall, corporations collapse, organizations explode, & churches implode over this issue of power. Everyone is truly interested in power; who has it and/or can I get it! In fact, some are here to discover ‘who’ the most powerful member in the church really is.
* What do you think of when you hear the word, “Power?” Do you think of horsepower, nuclear power, jet power, electrical power, or even the power found in dynamite?
* The Bible teaches us the about the most powerful member of the body. Let’s read. (READ TEXT) The Word of God says the most powerful is the tongue. The tongue has great power of use & equally has great power of abuse.
* Because this is such a highly personal & sensitive subject, it is easy to find funnies. Warren Wiersbe tells the story of a woman coming to the altar and saying to the preacher, “I want to lay my tongue on the altar.” The preacher turned and looked at the altar responding, “I don’t think the altar is big enough.” Another story I read is where a doctor asked a woman to stick out her tongue. She did and he took his prescription pad and wrote a script. When he was through writing, he simply said, “That’s good.” She snapped, “You didn’t even look at my tongue.” Calmly he said, “I didn’t want to look at your tongue, I wanted to keep you quiet while I wrote the script.” (She probably found a new doctor)
* The tongue possesses interesting power. It is the power of words multiplied by the power of a person. This past week we saw the power of the words from a Jury (Casey Anthony). Whether a president or a peon, words are big.
* James says that a mark of maturity is the ability to control your tongue (it would follow that mark of immaturity is the inability to control your tongue.
* A cursory reading of our text reveals that James, as the leader of the First church in Jerusalem, had seen the problems from the tongue so he gives us the Lord’s view of uses for the tongue. There are three.
1. The Power to Direct – James begins this subject talking about the most power which the tongue enjoys, that is the power to teach. Directing lives on the correct path is serious business. In fact, it is in teaching that the ‘milestone’ principle comes into play. Additionally, in Galatians 1:6-8 we find a warning about false teaching which is so strong, Paul finishes the thought with “let the one who teaches falsely BE ACCURSED.” The responsibility and task of shaping lives is serious business. We have children, young people, & even “not so young people” to teach, lead, & direct. It is this directing part which James develops very well.
* Here is one of ‘my personal’ principles; “Either control your tongue or your tongue will control you.” Candidly, the text would state it this way, “Direct your tongue or it will direct you.” James gives us a couple of illustrations.
* Years ago, my family & I used to ride & show horses. We put bits in the mouths of these horses so we could control them. The bridle (which contained the bits) controlled the direction of that 1000 lb animal. (But it took consistent, regular, and ongoing training for the horse to respond.
* The next illustration was that of a boat & rudder. In the Bible days, by & large, boats were driven by the wind in their sails. With the rudders they could use a ‘contrary wind’ and redirect the ship to the right course. It was not easy and many times not quick, but it could be done.
* To think of these two illustrations is to know that the one who is controlling the horse and driving the boat needs to have training & experience. In the same way, the text says “no man (or woman) can tame the tongue.” In fact as I read this I get the message that the tongue is a ‘wild animal beyond taming.’ So just like the horse & ship needs masters to control it, so does the TONGUE need THE MASTER to control it and direct it.
* Proverbs 18:21 says, “Death & life are in the power of the tongue.” The tongue has the power to direct. It is both bits & a rudder for life.
* Never forget how much your use of the tongue affects the lives of others. Words have power. Words chart the course for lives. Think about how the words of Jesus could have changed lives in another way. Seeing the woman at the well and the woman caught in adultery, Jesus’ words could have had a detrimental impact “IF” He had responded like the ‘crowd’ thought He should. Our words can change someone’s life. It is by our words that people will be directed to heaven or doomed to hell.
2. The Power to Destroy – Our text clearly gives us a picture of destruction as produced by the tongue. The first picture of such a tongue is seen in “FIRE.” Few things are as destructive as fire. When a section of forest is burned out, nothing is left but ash. When I was a kid, we went to my mom’s folks the day after New Years. The teenagers had some firecrackers left from the New Year’s day celebration, so we thought we’d have some fun. The wind was blowing a little, the ground was dry, and the lighter would not stay lit; so we decided to build a little fire. Between the dry ground & the wind, we quickly had to call the fire department. October 8, 1871, the fire from O’Leary’s barn spread to burn Chicago. The result was 100,000 homeless, 17,500 buildings destroyed, 300 deaths, & $100,000,000 in damage.
* Our words start fires that no man can put out. When church members can’t control their tongue, a fire rages that no one can put out. There is discord in the fellowship and damage to the gospel.
* Consider what the writer of Proverbs has to say to us: Proverbs 26:20-22
20 Without wood, fire goes out; without a gossip, conflict dies down.
21 As charcoal for embers & wood for fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.
22 A gossip’s words are like choice food that goes down to one’s innermost being.
* To take away fuel from the fire is to extinguish the fire. As an aside, “even if you know something to be true, is no license or obligation to spread it.” Words can defile people, friendships, homes, SS classes, & yes, a church. Satan is subtle in his work. Because of the person who says just enough to get something started. What they are doing is ‘striking the match & trying to hit the haystack.’ The tongue is like a fire.
* It is also like a wild animal. Some animals will never be tamed. I remember a story about a family taking in a Lion cub. He was sick & mal-nourished. They took care of Him and for quite a long period of time he was their pet. One day the day was at the pool and the lion (now grown) was lying beside him licking his hand. After a while, the man’s hand began to hurt. Looking down at his pet, the man called to his wife & asked her to get the rifle and come quickly. His instructions were explicit, “Shoot the lion between the eyes & don’t miss.” She did what she was told, but obviously was unclear about why. After the lion was dead, the man showed his wife his hand. The lion has licked until the blood came to the surface and for the first time the lion had the task of blood in his mouth which evoked the look of a hunter in his eyes. It was either kill or be killed for this man. This is the nature of the tongue. Left to its own, without any godly restraint, it will kill like the lion.
3. The Power to Delight - In verses 9-12 James also give a picture of good the tongue can have and do. Fairly, he gives us 2 illustrations;
* The Fountain of Water – Can you imagine going to a water fountain, expecting fresh water, and getting a mouth full of salt water? For country folks, a ‘fountain’ of water springing from the ground is the best kind of water. In some areas it is used for washing, cooking, farming, as well as drinking. Water is life-giving. You play any sport & run till you’re tired, you do not want Coke or Pepsi, you want WATER!! Also, water speaks of cleansing. We take a bath to get clean &the Bible speaks about being washed with the water of His word. John 15:3 says, “God’s word is a spiritual word that cleanses.” The words we speak can be like a river flowing through the parched land. It brings life to that land.
* A final thought about a fountain of water – it cannot be both good & bad. The principle of leaven applies. When our tongue possesses bad & ungodly things, the good we try to speak is flavored by the bad we speak. Most of us have drunk water from ‘some container’ which left an after-taste. This is the concept trying to bring good water from where salt water has flowed.
* Like a Tree – have you ever considered all the benefits of a tree?
* First a tree helps hold the soil together. A healthy tree provides stability for the environment. Words, properly given, can do the same & is desperately needed in our culture today. The New Testament church holds the key to a happy, healthy, and holy society. Our words must be heard like the tree of life. It seems to me that everyone knows what we are against, while few know what we are for. We have the wonderful words of life, let us not hold them & hoard those words. “Good news is not good news, unless you hear it in time.”
* Another benefit of a tree is that it provides both beauty & shade. In the world of ugly, this world needs a word of encouragement. Through us & our words, Christ can provide both beauty & shade for this culture. Our words either help or hurt. Today, we try to live in the gray areas, try to straddle the spiritual fence, and in the process, try to appease our own failures. Yet, the principle of scripture is clearly, ‘choose.’ Choose who you will serve. Choose which way you’ll go. Choose life or death, right or wrong. Choose. That what we do and our choice is reflected in our tongue.
4. The Power to Disclose – While the tongue directs, destroys & delights; it also discloses who & what we are. Jesus said, “The mouth speaks out of the overflow of the heart.” Peter, quoting Psalms 34) tells us (1 Peter 3:10-12) 10For the one who wants to love life and to see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit, 11and he must turn away from evil and do good. He must seek peace and pursue it, 12because the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and His ears are open to their request. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.
* No one, no life can count for God is his/her tongue is destructive. When a person has a hot temper and has difficulty talking without blowing up, it reveals who & what they truly are. The old story of the 3 men, members of the same church, out on a boat, fishing. The first one says, “Guys, I have bad personal problem. When I’m upset, I tend to cuss. Will you pray with me about it?” The other two agreed. The next one said, “When I feel stress & am alone, I reach for a cigarette. Will you guys pray for me?” The other two agreed. After a long silence, the two talkers turned to the friend who had remained silent and said, “We have told you our deepest struggle, now what do you have to say?” “My sin is gossip & I can’t wait to get home.”
* The old hymn says, “I Love to tell the story” and it’s talking about telling the story of the good news of Jesus. What are we known for telling?
* Question is; “what will YOU do with this message?” Some will ignore it. Some will say, “The preacher did a good job.” Others will respond, “If they’d been here, you’d got them.” Listen, WE ARE HERE and the PREACHER didn’t ‘get us,’ God did & does. So what will we do?
