A Tongue On Fire!
by Pastor Fee Soliven
James 3:1-6
Wednesday Night
March 6, 2013
1 My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.
Saints, James taught that people should not rush to become teachers in the church. Many of his status-conscious readers would have desired the reputable position of teachers in the community. Coming hard on the heels of chapter 2, one of the most honorable “works” that would immediately come to the Jewish mind would be the position of teaching. James has in mind a greater emphasis on spiritual growth and self-control before someone assumed the role of a teacher. Teachers will be judged by God with greater strictness. Teaching authority carries with it greater responsibility. As works reveal the depths of a person’s faith, so words show the depth of a person’s maturity. The teacher is held to greater accountability because of his or her key teaching role.
Luke 12:42-48
42 And the Lord said, "Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 44 Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has. 45 But if that servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, 46 the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. 47 And that servant who knew his master's will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48 But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.
2 For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
Saints, we all make many mistakes or slip up when we are off guard. We all stumble, but our most frequent failures occur when we are speaking. Because we are prone to make mistakes in our speech, we need to be even more careful to let God control what we say. He is capable of guiding our motivation, our thoughts, our very choice of words, and even the impact our communication has on others.
Psalm 39:1
1 I said, "I will guard my ways, Lest I sin with my tongue; I will restrain my mouth with a muzzle, While the wicked are before me."
Saints, many people may think that it is impossible to control their tongues, but most people haven’t even begun to try. The ability to control the tongue is the mark of true maturity for the Christian (“be slow to speak”). When Jesus confronted the religious leaders about their accusations against him, he said that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks—showing that what is inside of a person affects what they do with their speech.
Matthews 12:33-37
33 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. 34 Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. 36 But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. 37 For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."
Saints, Jesus also said that we must give account for every careless word we utter.
Matthew 12:36
36 But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.
People who can control their tongues will be able to control themselves in every other way. The wisdom and love from God and the self-restraint given by the Holy Spirit will help us exercise this control.
Proverbs 15:1-4
1 A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. 2 The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness. 3 The eyes of the LORD are in every place, Keeping watch on the evil and the good. 4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, But perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
3 Indeed, we put bits in horses' mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body.
Bit . . . Rudder . . . Tongue . . . Spark. Saints, what do these things have in common? They are all small but very effective controllers—they each direct something much larger than themselves. James is building a case for the damaging power of our words. We see this evidenced in history when dictators such as Adolph Hitler, the Ayatollah Khomeini, Joseph Stalin, and Saddam Hussein used their words to mobilize people to destroy others. We see it evidenced in church splits and in the ruining of a pastor’s reputation. And we see how verbal abuse in the home can destroy the very personhood and character of spouses and children.
Psalm 32:9
"Do not be like the horse or like the mule, Which have no understanding, Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, Else they will not come near you"
James 1:19-20
19 So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; 20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
Proverbs 17:27-28
27 He who has knowledge spares his words, And a man of understanding is of a calm spirit. 28 Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; When he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive.
4 Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires.
Behold also the ships - This illustration is equally striking and obvious. A ship is a large object. It seems to be unmanageable by its vastness, and it is also impelled by driving storms. Yet it is easily managed by a small rudder; and he that has control of that, has control of the ship itself. So with the tongue. It is a small member as compared with the body; in its size not unlike the rudder as compared with the ship. Yet the proper control of the tongue in respect to its influence on the whole man, is not unlike the control of the rudder in its power over the ship.
Which though they be so great - So great in themselves, and in comparison with the rudder. Even such bulky and unwieldy objects are controlled by a very small thing.
And are driven of fierce winds - By winds that would seem to leave the ship beyond control. It is probable that by the "fierce winds" here as impelling the ship, the apostle meant to illustrate the power of the passions in impelling man. Even a man under impetuous passion would be restrained, if the tongue is properly controlled, as the ship driven by the winds is by the helm.
Yet are they turned about with a very small helm - The ancient rudder or helm was made in the shape of an oar. This was very small when compared with the size of the vessel - about as small as the tongue is as compared with the body.
Slide> of ship
5 Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles!
Satan uses the tongue to divide people and pit them against one another. Idle words are damaging because they quickly spread destruction. We dare not be careless with our words, thinking that we can apologize later, because even when we do, the damage remains. A few words spoken in anger can destroy a relationship that took years to build. Remember that words are like fire; they can neither control nor reverse the damage they do.
Proverbs 21:23
Whoever guards his mouth and tongue Keeps his soul from troubles.
Proverbs 26:20-23 (Living Bible Translation)
20 Fire goes out for lack of fuel, and tensions disappear when gossip stops. 21 A quarrelsome man starts fights as easily as a match sets fire to paper. 22 Gossip is a dainty morsel eaten with great relish. 23 Pretty words may hide a wicked heart, just as a pretty glaze covers a common clay pot.
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.
Saints, the tongue is full of wickedness because of the damage it can cause in the world and bring to the rest of the Christian community. The uncontrolled tongue can turn one’s life into a blazing flame of destruction. This means that the tongue can destroy all the good that we’ve built up over a lifetime. While we have ministered for years and years and seen abundant fruit, if we fail to control the tongue, we can undo all the good we have built up in our years of ministry. Our speech has a power that few other capabilities possess, for our tongue can be set on fire by hell itself. Flames of hate, prejudice, slander, jealousy, and envy seem to come from the very lake of fire where Satan will be punished.
Revelation 20:10-15
10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. 11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.
13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
Let's Pray!