THE TONGUE KEY TO HOLY LIVING
JAMES 3:1 12
"Better to be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt." That is a word of wisdom I heard many years ago...but one that I haven't quite mastered yet. Someone also once said, "A closed mouth gathers no feet" and I suppose this is also true but for one who has chewed as much shoe leather as me may never find out for sure.
Is there anyone her this morning that ever had their mouth get them into trouble? Have you ever popped off a quick remark...one you knew was wrong but did it anyway. If we were to be completely honest...there's probably no other area in most of our lives that's caused us any more trouble than our tongues.
Today we've come to the 3rd chapter of James...a chapter that talks in very plain language about the tongue. And we could get very negative about this whole subject, but there are many positive things we can learn from this if we'll open our hearts and minds to what the Bible has to say to us in these verses. Read 3:1 12
One of the things churches are always on the lookout for is good teachers. In fact, we quit looking for good ones and will settle for any warm body that will take a stab at teaching. It doesn't matter a whole lot what their qualifications are as long as they have a willing heart. Right?
James begins this 3rd chapter almost like he was addressing a group of young people at a vocational conference and says..."Whatever you do, don't think of Christian service!" Watch out for this teaching and preaching stuff...cause it can bring you nothing but trouble....and on top of that God will put those who do teach under a stricter standard of judgment. And by saying this he intended to hit right at the heart of an important issue.
The tongue gives opportunities for many easy mistakes...and the more you talk the more risk you run of having your mouth get you into some sort of trouble. AMEN? Now, of course everyone is responsible for what they say...but the "mistakes" of those who hold public positions are wide open to closer divine scrutiny and a much greater divine reaction than those of Christians in a private capacity.
But James doesn't limit his argument simply to those who do teach in one form or another. James rightfully takes a very serious view of the tongue in all believers...and all of Scripture backs up his stance that there is hardly a sin more widely exposed and condemned than sins of speech.
Peter was a man who recognized that most Christians really do want to lead a good life and experience the blessings of God...yet he commands any who do desire this to "...keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile." And we already know that!
But you have to admit that we rarely stand along with the Scriptures in recognizing that our speech is the primary evidence of our fallen state. And we've not been told often enough, if at all, that a controlled tongue is the key to blessing. Let's look to James to see why the tongue is so important.
We've seen in verse 1 that teachers have a greater level of accountability for their words because others are looking to them for guidance. If we lead someone astray spiritually because of our mouth being out of line or biblically incorrect, the Bible says it would be better if we tied a rock around our neck and threw it in the river.
But if we could just control our tongues we could be perfect. And biblical perfection means maturity...the maturity that comes when God has brought us to be all that He intends for us in Christ. In other words, that we become like Him.
As Christians, we all fail...we make many mistakes. And most prevalent are the sins of speech....sins like a hasty word (engaging the mouth before the brain is in gear), the untruthful statement (the lie)...the sly suggestion...harmful gossip...innuendo...and any type of impure communication.
But James' purpose in this section of his letter is not to jump all over our case because of our wicked tongue. He wants to make the positive point that control of the tongue leads to control of ourselves and our entire lives.
He uses two illustrations in v. 3 4. As to the horse, a comparatively tiny thing...a bit, controls and directs all the power of this mighty animal. As to the ship, the point is essentially the same...a relatively small factor, a rudder, is the key to control and direction.
James sees the tongue in a similar way...it is little in comparison, but it boasts of great things. Now, the boasts of the bit and the rudder are not just idle boasts...they really do master the power of the horse and the storm. The same is true with the tongue...it can make huge claims and back them up!
James never says that many of the claims we make aren't true...the issue is one of control. And his view is that the tongue is the key factor in controlled living....and consistent living as well. It's the master key to holy living!
....PTL skating rink lighting... chase lights....Joe running it me shutting off master switch. If you control the master switch...you control all the lights. This is the great boast the tongue can make. It can control the rest of the body!
But the tongue is so much more than what we actually say out loud. In fact, actual speech is probably only a small percentage of the use of what James refers to here as the tongue. We can't think without formulating thoughts into words...we can't plan without describing to ourselves step by step what we intend to do...
...We can't imagine without painting word pictures in our minds...we can't write a letter without "talking it through" in our minds...neither can we resent without fueling the fires of resentment in words addressed to ourselves....we can't feel sorry for ourselves without listening to the self pitying voice which tells us how hard we've had it.
But if our "tongues" were so well under control that it refused to formulate the words of self pity...the images of lustfulness...the thoughts of anger and resentment, then these things are cut down before they have a chance to live...the master switch has deprived them of any power to "switch on" that side of our lives. So the control of the tongue is more than an evidence of spiritual maturity...its the means to it!
Now, the bit and the rudder that James uses for illustrations are actually passive objects...waiting to be used. But the tongue is active, a force in its own right...its a fire! As tiny as the spark is, once its fanned into flame and the flames take hold...it will keep on spreading until everything is on fire.
So the tongue has an actual power for evil. According to James, the tongue makes itself the focal point of all the unrighteousness that is in us...in fact he says it corrupts the whole person. Left to itself, the tongue leaves its mark of defilement everywhere.
And what is the source of all this defilement that is spread by the tongue? James says it is set on fire by hell itself. Hell, Gehenna, is the place of fire...(elaborate) ....and James sees the fires of Gehenna reaching up to the part of our sinful, fallen nature that is most easily set ablaze...the tongue.
The tongue becomes the instrument of Satan himself. And we've seen evidence of this more times than we'd care to think about. But we need to also realize that this is not confined to what we'd see as improper or questionable uses of the tongue...such as gossip, slander, innuendo..etc.
One day Peter took the Lord aside to give him the best advice he was capable of...and he did it with the most loving and concerned intentions. But how did the Lord respond to that well intentioned advice?
Jesus said, "Get behind me, Satan! You're a hindrance to me...you're not on the side of God. (examples...do this, do that...don't go to church for a while...take time away to get yourself together...all lies right from the pit of hell itself!)
So, James began by showing the good that can come from a controlled tongue...then he followed with the harm that can be brought about by an uncontrolled tongue. But now he goes on to make a third major point...it's humanly impossible to control the tongue.
In the beginning, back in Genesis 1, God gave Adam and Eve joint dominion over all of creation. And since that time the animal world has been and is being subdued. Lions and tigers and bears, (Oh my). Killer whales....
But by contrast, no human being can tame the tongue. Verse 8 says it is a restless evil. This word restless means "always liable to break out." It's like some beast were either half tamed or poorly tamed...for a while it accepts the limitations and restrictions...but then suddenly turns savage.
Again, we need to remember that when the tongue "breaks out" that doesn't necessarily mean hostile or nasty words. It can just as easily be a word spoken with the best of intentions, yet words that rise from the pit of hell, disguised by the angel of light.
Now we need to understand clearly that James doesn't just say that the tongue is untamable...but that it can't be tamed by any human power. So, does that mean we're doomed to forever fail in this most important area? Does this mean we have an excuse for the sin and abuse we dish out with our tongues? Absolutely not!
Does anyone know what special day this is on the Christian calendar? It's Pentecost Sunday. And that is a very special day...a day when a different kind of fire came forth. James speaks of a fire that ascends from Gehenna, hell itself, that is so often revealed through the tongue.
But on the day of Pentecost fire settled over the disciples as a group, and then the fire separated and small individual tongues of fire rested on each of those 120 men and women in that upper room...but this time it was fire from heaven!
Fire in the Bible is very significant...and in this case it spoke of the Holy Spirit's role to purge...purify...perfect...and then permeate. It came to kindle new powers and give new speech to the human tongue.
The coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2, evidenced by each of them speaking in tongues, shows how necessary it is for us to have divine help in making our speech glorifying to God. If you look back at Genesis 3:12, you'll see that the first sin committed after the fall was an abuse in the area of speech....and it hasn't stopped since.
But on the day the church was formed, the first act in this new creation was the renewal of the power of speech...of a tongue clearly and powerfully declaring the wonderful works of God. And this is why the whole controversy over tongues has raged. The last thing Satan wants is for us to gain control over his favorite instrument of destruction...the tongue...and to use it to glorify God.
Remember verse 1, where it speaks of a higher accountability for teachers? When Jesus told those 120 believers not to go anywhere or do anything until they received power from on high, He knew they could never successfully proclaim the mighty works and the power of God until they were filled with the Spirit.
Maybe this is what James wants us to learn from verses 7 8a. By the power of the Holy Spirit operating in us, the tongue can be redeemed and used to uplift and glorify the name of the Lord. I believe with all my heart that God desperately wants to do this throughout His church.
But let's move on to the caution that James gives us next, which centers on the area of consistency. Inconsistency is the sin which he refers to as a deadly poison. The tongue is used, in direct opposition to the word and will of God, to bless and curse. And it's made worse because we bless and curse the same thing...the image of God.
We look up toward heaven and bless and praise the Lord...we testify about how great He is and what He's done for us. But then we turn right around and look at our brothers and sisters and think nothing of defaming, denigrating, criticizing, and making sly innuendoes...even though they bear the image of God.
We think of Jesus and how shameful it is for people to use His name in vain...or despise His glory. But the same glorious image of God is in other people, and yet we hardly think of that and rarely hesitate to speak bad about them. This horrifies James, and he says there's absolutely no justification whatsoever for this ripping apart of a fellow Christian.
James makes us face something we can and must do. We must make a start at something that is precise, limited and manageable. It concerns the way we speak inwardly about a brother or sister in the Lord...the way we speak to others about a brother or sister...and also the way we actually speak directly to that brother or sister.
There is one last reason for guarding our tongues...it's the pollution, not the sweetness that prevails. Most of us have either visited Pittsburgh's point state park, or have seen pictures of it. This is where the Allegheny and the Monongehela rivers join to become the Ohio. Now suppose the Allegheny river was fresh water and the Monongehela was polluted and bitter...undrinkable.
You'd never know that the Ohio was half fresh water because the bitter flavor would prevail. This is what would prove to be the stronger element...this is what would leave its mark. This is why the tongue needs to be guarded...to prevent that bitter taste from being left behind wherever it makes itself felt.
Last year Nancy and I planted Zucchini in our garden...at least that's what we thought it was. That's what the guy said it was when he sold us the seeds. And it looked like zucchini when it began to grow, until we began to see yellow squash. Our good intentions and plans didn't turn that squash into zucchini.
God created and organized plant life so that each plant bears fruit according to its own kind. The nature of the plant determines the fruit......and the fruit will bear witness to the nature of the plant.
Jesus said in Matthew 12:34 "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." This is the reason we need to keep a watchful eye on our speech. A fig must have a fig tree as its source...a grape can only come from a vine...salt water has a salt source...sweet water a sweet source.
Just as true is the fact that bitter words come from a bitter heart...critical words from a critical spirit...sarcastic words from a sarcastic spirit. Unloving words come from a heart where the love of Jesus is a stranger.
None of us have the power to control our tongues. It is humanly impossible to do. But the Holy Spirit of God has all the power we need to use our tongues to glorify God and tell the world of all His mighty deeds. The question is..Do you want Him to?
Are you willing to allow the Holy Spirit to be poured out on you...and bring that most unruly member of your body under His control?
The same Holy Spirit that came in power on the day of Pentecost is here this morning to fill you with His Spirit...to give you the power to boldly, publicly proclaim the mighty works of God.
