Controlling the Tongue

James 3:1-12 ESV

“Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things.

“How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.”

Being a teacher of the Scriptures is a solemn responsibility which we must take seriously, and not lightly. And God holds us to a high standard. For as teachers of the Scriptures we have the God-given responsibility to be diligent about making certain that, to the best of our understanding, we are presenting the truth and not the lies which so many are teaching today. And that is because we have the power to influence other people in what to believe and in what not to believe.

Now, the rest of what is said here doesn’t apply only to those aspiring to be teachers of the Word of God. For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect person. And from what I understand of what the Scriptures teach, we will not be perfect (complete in Christ) until Jesus Christ returns one day to take his faithful ones to be with him for eternity. For it is only then that our salvation will be complete and that our marriage to Christ will also be complete.

So, it says here that no human being can tame the tongue. And it states that the tongue is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. But then after it describes all the damage capable by the human tongue, and it says that from the same mouth come blessing and cursing, then it says that these things ought not to be so. So, what is the solution? Is it all hopeless? Are we to believe that we have no hope of being able to control our own tongues? Well, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience… and self-control.

And what are we taught over again all throughout the New Testament? We are taught to put off the misdeeds of the flesh, by the Spirit, and to put on Christ and his righteousness. We are to stop lying, and we are to tell the truth. We are not to steal, but we are to give generously to those in need. And the list goes on and on. So, what we cannot do in our human flesh, by the Spirit of God we can do. So, in our flesh we cannot control the tongue, but by the Spirit we can, although not perfectly, most likely.

For the standard that God sets for us who profess him as Jesus and Lord is not a standard that demands absolute sinless perfection. But God does have a standard set in motion by which we are to live our lives. In the power and strength of our Lord we are to die daily to sin and to self, in life practice, and we are to follow our Lord in obedience to his commands in living holy lives pleasing to him. Sin must no longer be our practice, for if it is, we will not inherit eternal life with God.

So, when this says above that we all stumble in many ways, that is not giving us permission to make sin our practice and to sin deliberately and habitually and premeditatedly against our Lord and against other people. It just acknowledges that we most likely will not be absolutely perfect while we still live in these flesh bodies. But we should always be those who are striving toward perfection, and who are learning from our errors, and who are continually changing and maturing and becoming more like Jesus.

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer 

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897

Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,

This is my constant longing and prayer;

Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,

Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,

Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,

Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,

Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,

Holy and harmless, patient and brave;

Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,

Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,

Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;

Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,

Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,

Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;

Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;

Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrYhiK2nQBg 

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