Taming the Tongue
James 3:1-12
"Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check. 3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them 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. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being 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 human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.11 Can both fresh water and saltwater flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water."
In general, practical wisdom from James deals with savvy advice for Godly living. In many ways he confronts the incongruencies of those he writes to. To be incongruent is to have a faith in Christ and a practice that does not line up with that faith. From dealing with trials and tribulations, temptations, favoring certain people in the church body that seem more affluent than others, self-deception, faith without works, friendship with God, friendship with the world, Godly and worldly wisdom, to warnings to the rich.
Before going to James Chapter 3, I wanted to note two passages from James Chapter 1 that are valuable to consider. In regard to taming the tongue: “Be quick to listen, be slow to speak and slow to anger” 1:19 and “Keep a tight rein on your tongue” 1:26.
These statements are related to bringing about the righteousness of God and keeping ourselves from self-deception, double mindedness or as mentioned, incongruency.
James starts with a warning of greater judgement to those who have teaching gifts. We need these teachers desperately and they have a noble position in the church to rightly handle the word of God and feed His flock. James also writes that we all stumble in many ways but if we are faultless in speech our body will follow. He then provides some great illustrations for us to consider:
A bit in a horse’s mouth. A rudder on a ship. And a spark.
The bit in a horse’s mouth is fascinating to me. I have seen small children ride these majestic animals with such ease. By simply pulling back on the reins it engages the bit and restrains this massive 1,200 pound+ animal to do the riders will. Or releasing the reins puts the power to motion to accomplish amazing tasks.
The rudder on a ship - Having had the experience of going on a cruise ship I’m impressed at how massive these ships are. On average they are 1,000 feet long. That is over three football fields long. They also weigh over 220,000 gross tons. Yet all that weight, length and height they are steered by a relatively small mechanism controlled by the captain. This mechanism is called the rudder. It’s usually only 1/100th the size of the ship.
A spark - Recently relocating to a rural foothill community my wife and I were excited about experiencing the four distinct seasons. What we were not completely prepared for is the fifth season. Yes... The fire season! With the recent fires in Los Angeles, we are keenly aware of the anxiety that can come so quickly when there is a fire near your home. Such large devastating influence from such a small spark, grew into a massive forest fire that brought destruction to individuals, households and entire communities. May God himself comfort those who have lost so much.
These illustrations help us to understand the power behind our words. The Proverbs declare that “Death and life are in the power of the tongue and those who love it will eat its fruit”. Proverbs 18:21
James also reminds us that our speech and our words have a direction and can lead people on a definitive path. “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps”. Proverbs 16:9
Our words and tongue are influential in the lives of those we love as well as those we struggle to love. Our words can either build up or tear down. “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Proverbs 15:1
Our tongue is a small member in our body that can have a powerful, directional and influential life changing effect on all we come into contact with. Those in the faith and those outside the faith.
James encourages his readers that all kinds of animals are tamed but “No human can tame the tongue". 3:8 He continues with verses 9-12 of examples of incongruencies of the tongue and that they are not consistent with our faith in Christ.
Only in Christ when empowered by the spirit can we tame the tongue.
Only when we are "Quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger" submitting to the spirit's leading will we bring about the righteousness of God, expand His kingdom and give him glory.
Only by the spirit will we be able to "Keep a tight rein on our tongue". By walking according to the Spirit, we will be guarded from having our religion deemed ineffective.
Heavenly Father, grant us your Spirit that brings us a tongue that praises you. Help us by your Holy Spirit to overcome the flesh and the world that resides in our tongue. Help us walk in step with you, to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. To keep a tight rein on our tongue. To bring our faith claims and practices in alignment. In Jesus' name.