The Untamable Tongue
James 3:1-12
1 My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we
shall receive a stricter judgment.
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.
3 Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and
we turn their whole body.
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.
5 Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See
how great a forest a little fire kindles!
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.
7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the
sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind.
8 But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of
deadly poison.
9 With it we bless our God and Father, and with it
we curse men, who
have been made in the similitude of God.
10 Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren,
these things ought not to be so.
11 Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same
opening?
12 Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear
figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh.
The human tongue is small but it can cause good and bad things
to happen.
Whenever we visit a general practitioner, we will be asked to show our tongues. By
just looking at our tongues, the doctor will be able to know the conditions of
our health. Our tongues will reveal what or who we are inside us.
What are on our tongues will give clues to what is going on with our
overall health. Medical problems, infections, stresses and even
traces of aging can leave some of their marks on our tongues.
Our tongues are good indicators of who we are within.
Luke 6:45
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good;
and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth
evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Good people do good things because of the good in their hearts. Bad
people do bad things because of the evil in their hearts. Our spoken
words will show and reveal what is truly in our hearts.
All of us will be assessed by what we speak especially those who are
teachers. Not many of us are good teachers. Those who teach will be
evaluated more strictly than others who are not. Those who desire to teach
should learn how to control what they speak or say as they can
influence and affect the lives of many others.
All of us make many mistakes. Some people would be considered to be
perfect if they never said anything wrong. They will be able to
control themselves if they can control and tame their tongues! Yes,
they will have self-control, which is an attribute of the fruit of
the Holy Spirit.
Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
We put bits into the mouths of horses so that they will obey our
instructions. By managing the bits, we will be able to control their
whole bodies.
It is the same with ships. A ship is very big, and it is pushed by
strong winds and waves. But a very small rudder controls that big
ship. The man who controls the rudder decides where the ship will
go. The ship goes where the man navigates it to go via the small
rudder.
It is the same with the tongue. It is a very small part of the body,
but it brags about doing great things. Small but extremely powerful
and dangerous. Thus, we need to learn how to
control the things we say or speak.
A big forest fire can be started with only a little flame. And the
tongue is like a fire. Among the various parts of our bodies, the
tongue can cause evil easily. And the tongue spreads its evil throughout the whole body.
It often starts a fire that will influence and affect our life
greatly. The tongue
can cause deadly fires, and destroy our own lives and also the lives
of others.
Gossips, fake news and false information spread faster
than good reports and true news! Falsehoods travel significantly
faster, farther, deeper, and more broadly than the truths. Yes, in
all categories and kinds of information. In almost all cases of mass
communication, whether in print, digital media, the Internet, social
media, radio and television, fake news has a far greater magnitude
and impact
than true news. The process of creating, sending, receiving and
forwarding false information and messages, via verbal, visual and
written media, is wide-ranging, and has larger audiences. Sad to
say, many people choose to subscribe to such news channels, and also
to spread those false news.
We can tame every kind of wild animals, birds, reptiles and fishes. But no one can tame the tongue.
It is wild, evil and untamable. It is full of deadly poison that
can kill.
We use our tongues to praise our Lord and Father, but we also use
our tongues to curse people. All people are made by God. They too
are created in the image of God. Who are we to curse others who are
also created by God? But we have allowed praises and curses to come
out from the same mouth! And this should not be so.
Can good and bad water flow from the same spring? Can a fig tree
bear olives? Can a grapevine bear figs? No! A well full of
bitter
water cannot spring out good and fresh water.
We need to understand the power of our tongues. Its power is
unimaginable, and incredibly mighty! It can bring life or
death.
Proverbs 18:21
Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit.
Our words can either convey life, or our words can
convey death. Our tongues can build others up, or they can tear them
down. We should always check what comes out of our mouths before
they start igniting fires beyond our control if they remain unchecked.
Thus we should learn how to speak life instead of death to others!
We should learn how to say some words and phrases like please, thank you, you
are welcome, I am sorry, I appreciate you, I forgive you, etc.
Simple expressions but hard to say if our hearts are not ready to do
so.
Psalm 19:14
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.
Let our spoken words and hidden thoughts be pleasing to the Lord.
Written on 7 February 2022