Controlling the Tongue: Part 1 - James Lesson 16

 We are going to continue this morning in our verse by verse study of James. We have come to chapter 3. In Chapter 3 we find that James has a lot to say about something a lot of us need to hear. I know I need to hear it. James is going to be teaching us of the importance of controlling the tongue. In the last half of chapter 2 James has been teaching us about the importance of giving evidence of genuine saving faith by the good works of our life. He has demonstrated clearly that a claim to faith without the corresponding works which prove the transforming power of the gospel is a dead faith. Now, James gets specific about one of the works which prove our faith to be genuine saving faith. The good works will include the words we speak.

 The control of the tongue is the next test of genuine saving faith. If the work of salvation is real, we will respond properly to trials, to temptations, and to the word of God. These were the tests of genuine faith found in chapter 1. In chapter 2 we examined the test of impartial love and the test of good works which prove the reality and validity of our faith. Now we find this test of the control of the tongue. This test of the tongue is important because the words of our mouth will eventually and inevitably reveal the truth about the condition of our hearts. Our words will reveal whether our faith is a genuine saving faith or a dead faith. It won’t necessarily be the words we speak while we are here at church. It won’t necessarily be the words we speak in public. 

 We all come to church with a determined intent. We come through those doors with the intent of speaking the right words and acting the right way. If we are truly born again, we come here for the purpose of worshiping and honoring God. We intend to do that with the words of our mouth. If we are not truly born again, but are among the deceived who only believe we are saved, we come here for the purpose of convincing ourselves and others that we really belong here. Most often,  a spiritual fraud will know what to say and how to act while here. It is easy to pick up on the words and learn those things you need to say to be able to hide the true condition of your heart while you are at church. There have always been tares among the wheat.

 So, it isn’t the words of your mouth while you are here that tell the truth. It is the words you speak when you are not prepared. It is the words you speak when your guard is down. It is the words you speak when confronted with the circumstances or the people who have the ability to push your buttons. These are the telling words. These are the words that reveal the true condition of your heart. The one possessing genuine saving faith will control the tongue even when confronted with those circumstances or people that tend to bring out less than our best. The one possessing dead faith will not.

 You don’t have to read very far in the Bible to find out that our words are a true reflection of what is in our hearts. Adam opened his mouth after the Fall and blamed God for his sin. “It was the woman You gave me.” In the presence of God, Isaiah’s declaration of his sinfulness centered on his lips. “I am a man of unclean lips.” As Paul described the extent of man’s sinfulness in Romans 3 he quotes the Psalms which say, “Their throat is an open grave, with their tongues they keep deceiving, the poison of asps is under their lips, whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.” (Rom. 3:13-14) The tongue, or the words of our mouths, are a true indication of the sinfulness of our hearts.

 But is it the tongue that is actually the problem? Jewish thought often attributed the problem to the body part, even though the real problem was not the actual part of the body, but rather the heart of the person. Proverbs 1:15-16 is a warning from a father to his son about the dangers of keeping company with sinners. The father says, “My son, do not walk in the way with them. Keep your feet from their path. For their feet run to evil and they hasten to shed blood.” The feet are blamed for the problem because they are responsible for carrying them into evil. Listed in Prov. 6 among the things the Lord hates are haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, and feet that run rapidly to evil. We know what Jesus said to do with the hand or the eye that caused us to stumble. These are examples of the way Jewish thought associated the body part with the problem. James reflects that thinking in this passage.

 James has more to say about the tongue than any other New Testament writer. He mentions something related to the words we speak in every chapter. In 1:19 we learned that in our response to the word of God we are to be quick to hear and slow to speak. In verse 26 of chapter 1 we learned of the need to bridle the tongue lest we prove our religion to be worthless. In 2:12 we are told to speak and act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. When we get to 4:11 we will see a warning against speaking against one another. In 5:12 we will find a warning against swearing oaths. But by far, James says more in chapter 3 than anywhere else.  

 In these first five verses James admonishes us to control the tongue as an evidence of the genuine work of salvation. In this admonition James gives us some compelling reasons why we must control the tongue. James addresses the problem by first introducing a principle. This is a fundamental principle which we need to understand regarding our words. The weightier our words, the greater accountability we will have before God regarding our words. Those in positions of authority speak words that have consequences. The greater the potential for your words to have consequences, the greater your accountability before God for the words you speak. That is the principle James introduces.

 James introduces this principle by addressing an issue which evidently existed among the people to whom he wrote. There were many aspiring teachers among the people. One of the things we learn about the structure of the early church was that there were often several people given the opportunity to speak in the worship service. The early church service was much less formal than today. Reading 1 Corinthians, especially chapter 14, gives us a picture. There were different speakers sharing. Some were speaking with tongues which no one could interpret so no one was benefiting. In that passage, Paul is instructing those who speak to share something that edifies the believers, not just to impress them with your ability to speak in tongues. We are not going to venture off into the issue of tongues. I point to that passage as an example of how the early church functioned. That mode of functioning led to the problem James addresses. Because several people had the opportunity to teach, many were taking advantage of that opportunity. With the opportunity to speak comes great responsibility and because of the responsibility there is greater accountability.

 These to whom James wrote this letter were Jews who had come from a background where the role of the teacher was one of the most elevated roles in the culture. Teachers were called “Rabbi.” The word means “my great one.” Young men counted it their highest honor to get to carry the rabbi’s burden, bring him water and load his donkey. The honor and respect shown to the Rabbi was equated with the fear of God. It is easy to see why so many may have sought the position of teacher within the early church.

 We should not understand James’ warning as a prohibition against teaching. This would contradict other Scripture where the legitimate exercise of spiritual gifts of teaching and exhortation and prophecy are encouraged. This is a warning against spontaneously seizing any opportunity to say whatever one might think ought to be said. This is a warning to those who have trouble refraining from speaking. There are some people who, if the floor is open for speaking, so is their mouth. If the mouth opens for the purpose of trying to teach others in the church, there is a greater degree of accountability for what one says.

 James says to those people, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.” There is a higher level of accountability for words spoken for the purpose of teaching others what the word of God has to say and therefore how to live according to the word of God.

 If you are a parent, you are a teacher. If we are grandparents we are even in something of a role as a teacher. If you are a husband, you are the spiritual leader of your family and a teacher. We all have some kind of opportunity to teach. We should be aware of the accountability that goes along with that responsibility.

 One thing I am sure James has in mind with this principle is the responsibility the teacher has not only to be careful regarding what he teaches. He also has in mind the need to be faithful to live in a way consistent with what he teaches. John Calvin preached from his church in Geneva. The pulpit was highly elevated in that church. He once wrote that it would be better for him to fall from the pulpit and break his neck than to preach the word of God without first applying it to his own life.

 Having established the principle, James then gives us the reasons why it is so important to control the tongue. First, we must control the tongue because the tongue is the most common way a person falls into sin. We would have to all agree that nothing gets us into trouble more quickly than our words. No type of sin comes more easily than words spoken when we engage the mouth before fully engaging our brains. We speak words that are offensive, hurtful and soon regretted. There is a reason God put the tongue behind a cage of teeth and walled it in on the inside of the mouth. Our tongues slip a lot because it is always wet in there.

 Look at verse 2. “For we all stumble in many ways.” To that one statement we would all have to give a hearty “Amen!” James has put in writing something we all know very well. We do all stumble in many ways. In many of the ways that we stumble the mouth is leading the charge.

 The word stumble is translated “offend” in the KJV. The NASB translators translated it “stumble” because that is the literal meaning of the word. The use of this word indicates an offense that is not necessarily intentional. It is the Greek word “ptaiso.” The more common word used to speak of an intentional sin is “skandalizo” and it is usually translated “transgress.” James does not say we all transgress in many ways. Non-believers and those with dead faith transgress in many ways. True believers still stumble. We make plenty of mistakes. We are far from perfect because we all still live in the flesh plagued by the Fall. However, the transformed heart of the true believer will keep him from frequent and habitual transgression. This is why John tells us in 1 John 3:6 tells us, “No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him.”

  James goes on in verse 2 to say, “If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.” James does not mean perfect in the sense that a man is sinless. He uses perfect in the same way he used it back in 1:4. It speaks of someone who is mature, complete, and sound in the faith. The person who is able to keep from stumbling in what he says demonstrates an uncommon maturity. He gives evidence of a purified and mature heart. We will not be perfect in the sense that Jesus was perfect and never committed sin. But we can be mature and complete and sound enough in the faith that the words from our mouths give evidence of the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and minds.

 I have dealt with people over the years who are only able to get control of their tongues in certain settings. They may know the right things to say in certain settings, such as at church, or around other Christians. But outside of those settings there are few things they say that would leave you believing they are truly Christians. Away from other Christians, when no one is around other than their spouse or their children, their words are critical, harsh, angry, belittling, demeaning, unkind, unloving, and offensive. This kind of person is not a mature man. This kind of person gives evidence by his or her words that they are not even a Christian. Not having the power to control the tongue, they show they are not able to control other things, like their temper, or their lustful thoughts, or other areas of life where self-control plays an important role.

 The mature man, the one who has a living faith, and who demonstrates that faith through the good works of a controlled tongue, will demonstrate the ability to bridle the whole body as well. The body is a reference to the person in general, to the various aspects of his life. The point is clear. If a man is mature enough to control the tongue, which is the most vulnerable of our members and the most difficult to control, this person will be able to control everything else as well. If a person’s speech is God-honoring, not just when he is at church, but also at all other times in his interactions with others, all others, then we can be sure that the rest of that person’s life is marked by spiritual health, strength, and well-being.

 James gives two examples of successful control. He uses the examples of a horse and a ship. Look at verse 3. “Now if we put the bits into horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well.” Verse 4 gives the example of the ship. “Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires.”

 Neither of these examples is hard to understand. I am not a horseman. Norman Gilbertson could explain the workings of a bit in a horses mouth much better than I. All I know is that once the bridle is placed on the horses head, and the bit is put into the horses mouth, and Norman gets on that horse, the horse will do exactly what Norman wants him to do, at least most of the time. It isn’t because the bit is bigger and stronger than the horse that makes it effective. The bit that goes into the mouth is small and insignificant relative to the size of the horse, but it works to control the animal.

 In the case of a ship, the size of the rudder is also very small and insignificant relative to the size of the ship. Ships in James’ day were small compared to the vessels that sail the oceans today. But one thing hasn’t changed. These very large ships are still controlled by a very small rudder as directed by the pilot of the ship.

 I don’t want to read more into this than what is here but I think James uses these two examples for good reason. With the bit in the horse’s mouth you control what? You control the nature and power of the horse. You are actually taking control of the will of the horse and harnessing the power of a big strong animal. If you are controlling the horse with a bit in his mouth you are controlling everything related to the nature and character of that horse. You are making an animal whose nature is wild, whose will is strong, and whose power is great, and you are making it do what you want it to do. You are controlling all things internal in regards to that horse. His will, his nature, his power. These are all things that the horse inherently possesses.

 What about with the ship? With the small rudder of the ship you are controlling all things external. James mentions the strong winds. What else fights against the direction of the ship? The currents of the ocean must also be overcome. The very small rudder of the ship controls the ship and the pilot makes it go wherever he wishes in spite of the external forces fighting against the will of the pilot.

 I don’t think it is an accident that James chose two illustrations, each one focusing on a different area of control. Everything about the internal nature and will and tendencies of horse is controlled. How interesting? How many times do we offend with our mouths and blame things that we say are the result of the way we are by nature. “I have a problem with anger. I loose my temper and say hurtful things because that is the way I am made. That is my nature.” So what. The horse by nature is rebellious and independent and powerful enough to do what he wants, when he wants. But he is controlled by a small bit in his mouth.

 In verse 5 James says, “So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things.” Listen, your tongue will boast of great things. It has the capacity to build up or destroy. It tells the truth about your relationship to God. It can tear down and destroy your marriage, or your children, or the church, or even the world. I read somewhere that about 100 people died in WWII for every word in Hitler’s book “Mein Kampf.” The tongue boasts of great things.

 Your tongue can also boast of the great power of God to transform an angry person into a patient, loving, compassionate, tender, Christian. Your tongue can boast of the power of God to overcome those inward, natural, internal character traits that we blame for our failures. Just like the bit overcomes the internal, natural, powerful traits and tendencies of the horse, the tongue can boast of the power of God to overcome the internal, natural, powerful tendencies of a sinful person.

 What always works in tandem with our internal, natural tendencies to make our tongues boast of great things? External circumstances will also come into play. You take a person who is given to anger by nature, and another person mistakenly pulls out in front of that person in traffic, and you have the makings of a tongue that boasts great things. If you have a person whose internal character is selfish, angry, and immature, and you  put into his path external circumstances that disrupt his happiness and comfort, and you will find a tongue that boasts of not so good great things.

 James is challenging us to let our tongues boast of great things. The great things of which our tongues should boast are the things about the power of God to deliver us from our internal tendencies and our external circumstances.

 I think James’ point is that our words say a lot. Your words are proclaiming a loud message. What is the message being communicated by your words? If you are controlling the tongue, the message of your words is that our great God is a powerful God who transforms sinners into mature and faithful followers of Christ. If you are not controlling your tongue, the message of your words is that you are still in your sin. Your tongue is a small member, but it boasts of great things.

 We are going to close our worship time with one of the most worshipful activities the church does. We are going to share the Lord’s Table together. This is a time for honest and careful self examination. We must be careful we do not partake of the Lord’s Table in an unworthy manner. If there is offense between you and another, you really should take time to make that right. Be reconciled to one another before you do this.