Taming the Untamable Tongue

James 3:1-18, “Taming the Untamable Tongue”
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Anyone ever had their mouth get them into trouble? … It may be only a tiny muscle, but a little tongue can cause a lot of damage if not ruled correctly. [Rancher vs. the DEA] If we could just tame our tongue – let our words and thoughts be guided by the wisdom given by God, we could save ourselves (and others) a lot of pain!

James 3 (NKJV)
1 My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.

A. The whole subject of Ch 3 relates to the tongue, so addressing teachers is a logical way to start out. Those who teach false doctrine have unruly tongues…not so much in that they can’t control what comes out of their mouths, but what comes out is poisonous & shouldn’t have been uttered in the 1st place. False teachers are nothing new to the Church (Paul encountered many!) – but we can be assured that it will only increase the further along we get in the end times (2 Tim 4:1-3).

B. Teaching the Scriptures is a good thing! To be called as a pastor/teacher is a gift (Eph 4:11), & to desire the position of a bishop/overseer is to desire a good work (1 Tim 3:1). But it’s a weighty thing; it’s not something to be taken lightly. With teaching comes responsibility – after all, this is the very word of God that we handle! Just as a prophet wouldn’t dare speak in the name of the Lord if he were going to lie about it, neither should a pastor/teacher get in the pulpit with a thought of ever mishandling the Scriptures.
__a. The pastoral ministry is not a career; it’s a calling… It’s a dreadful thing to assume & a dreadful thing to deny. Jeremiah couldn’t help but speak because the word of God was like a fire burning in his bones (Jer 20:9)… Yet Simon the sorcerer was rebuked because he looked at the Holy Spirit as a way to make money (Acts 8:18-19)… If God is calling someone & he’s not serving, he’s going to be miserable until he does. And if someone is serving who hasn’t been called, he’s going to be just as miserable.

C. Even beyond pastoral ministry, the idea is clear: anyone who teaches needs to be careful about what it is they’re teaching. There are many who would spout all kind of teaching & then try to hide under the excuse, “But I’m not a pastor.” Doesn’t work… In James’ day, it was common for people who visited different synagogues to get up and share something from the Scriptures (this was Paul’s SOP). Apparently many Christians were eager to do the same thing in an attempt to show off – but the only thing they showed was that they didn’t understand the teaching. It’s a good thing to have the opportunity to teach the word of God (regardless of your personal calling); but if you’re going to teach it, make sure you teach it correctly.

D. What awaits teachers? A “stricter judgment.” Probably a reference to the Bema seat judgment that every believer in Jesus Christ is going to face. At the judgment, every idle word men speak will be called into account (Matt 12:36), so it makes sense that every teaching is going to be answered for. If a pastor wouldn’t say it when standing before the Lord Jesus Christ, then he shouldn’t say it to his congregation either.
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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.

A. The tongue is an easy trap in which to get tripped up…it makes people “stumble”. Ever notice how quickly an argument can come simply through a few careless words? Proverbs 17:14 The beginning of strife is like releasing water; Therefore stop contention before a quarrel starts. [] It doesn’t take much before a torrent of sinful anger gushes forth… [parents/teens]

B. What does James mean by “perfect”? Perfect perfect?! Maybe – the word could simply mean “mature,” but this is the same word James uses in regards to the perfect gift of God (1:17) and the perfect law of liberty (1:25). A perfect Christ would obviously be mature – but James seems to be holding up an ideal here, that even he doesn’t reach yet. He admits that even he stumbles… But IF someone could fully control their tongue, that would keep them from all sorts of sins that follow.
__a. It may be an ideal in this life, but praise God it is reality in the next! Jesus is moving us towards perfection (process of sanctification), and that’s exactly what we’ll be in eternity (glorification).

C. A mature Christian can reign in his tongue (through the power of the Holy Spirit), which changes the actions that follow…
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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.

A. Example #1: horses & bridles… Example #2: ships & rudders… Unless you’ve got horses on a farm today, or go sailing often, this may be tough to relate to. The same principle applies to automobiles. Compared to the rest of your car, the steering wheel is tiny – and it can be turned easily. The littlest effort can turn several hundred pounds of metal, fiberglass, & rubber. The point? A little thing can make a big difference!

B. ‘So what? What’s the big deal about words?’ Keep our context in mind from last week. Ch 2 ended with an exhortation to do good works; now we see an exhortation to speak good words. Our works & deeds to much to demonstrate our faith in Christ Jesus – they show our faith in action (which is necessary, because although we are saved by grace alone through faith alone through Christ alone, the faith that saves will be a faith that works). But someone can do the right deeds with a wrong attitude. Handing out food to the homeless while cursing them under your breath misses the point. Showing grace to family members while complaining about them isn’t showing grace at all. Our works may be abundant in quantity, but our words make a huge difference in its quality.

C. Note vs 3-4 are mostly good examples…at the very least, ambivalent. Those who ride horses & sail ships need those small devices to drive them, otherwise they’ll never get where they need to go. Likewise, words by themselves aren’t necessarily bad things. We may need to let our words be few, but taking a vow of silence doesn’t solve anything. If it weren’t for someone speaking to us, most of us probably wouldn’t have ever heard the gospel! What’s necessary isn’t that our tongues aren’t used at all, but rather that they are used in the right way.
__a. But there are also bad examples…look at the rest of vs. 5…
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…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.

A. Example #3: a forest fire. In 2007, 38,000 acres in Southern California were burned because a 10-year-old boy was playing with matches (NY Times, Nov 1, 2007). It doesn’t take much of a spark to set a whole forest ablaze. Huge swaths of destruction take place every year in California due to wildfires. []

B. One unguarded phrase can start a world of hurt…and the effects last & last & last. To say “it is set on fire by hell,” James uses the word commonly used by Christ for Hell: gehenna. The picture was well familiar to Jews as a place outside of Jerusalem where fires were always burning & consuming trash, dead animals, & more. Jesus used it to describe a place where the worm never dies & the fire is never quenched – a very real place where very real people go and suffer for eternity (which is exactly what Jesus is offering to save you from!!) Contextually here, the effects from our tongues can last far longer than what we imagine. How many family members bear grudges for years based on some careless comment at a holiday dinner? For Christians, how many opportunities to witness about the Lord Jesus have been ruined because of hateful angry speech that spewed out of our mouths?

C. The tongue is capable of defiling the “whole body” – this is exactly what Jesus was teaching us about our thought life (of which our tongue is merely an extension). [controversy about washed hands] Matthew 15:18-20 (18) But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. (19) For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. (20) These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man.” [] Notice how thoughts & words bookend the list…it’s not just sinful works that show what’s in our hearts; it’s sinful words as well. (Praise God for our forgiveness through Jesus Christ!)
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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.

A. Example #4: taming wild animals… Interesting contrast here with our tongue. We think there are some animals that can’t be tamed – they’re too powerful & deadly. Yet even lions can be trained to do what a person wants them to (to a certain extent). But our tongues (which we ourselves control) have less of a capability of being trained than a wild beast! It’s ready to spew forth poison…and can do so at any time.

B. Seeing the danger with your words yet? James isn’t trying to leave us hopeless here. Man can’t tame the tongue, but God can. What is impossible with man is possible with God because with God, ALL things are possible (Luke 18:27).
__1. Most of the book of James deals with various aspects of our sanctification – that life-long process that begins the moment we’re saved as God continues to grow us in holiness & shape us into the image of Christ…making us the man or woman of God that He wants us to be. What all of this serves to tell us is that sanctification is just as much dependent on the work and grace of God as justification is. We don’t perform good deeds on our own, but as God works in us, we work good deeds for Him, demonstrating our faith. We can’t control our tongue & words on our own, but because we’re new creations & the Holy Spirit lives in us, we can learn to tame our tongue – not based on our work, but based upon HIS work. Goes back to James 1:17 – every good gift & perfect gift comes from God the Father. Every area in which we grow in our character & become more & more like Jesus is due to the grace of God!
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9 With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God.

A. This is the problem with our tongue – it was given us so that we could give praise, honor, and glory to God…but what we actually do with it is far different.

B. Note the hypocrisy being pointed out here: to bless God, yet curse men made in the image of God is flat-out hypocritical. If anyone says they love God & hate their brother, they’re a liar (1 John 4:20). People (though fallen) are made in the image of God – to curse them, hate them, insult them, etc. is to insult the God who made them.
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10 Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so.

A. Like the old phrase, “You kiss your mother with those lips?” … Of course it ought not be so! We ought to be giving praise to God – speaking comfort to men – building one another up – exhorting one another to good works – proclaiming the gospel to those around us & more. The Bible gives us many things to do with our tongue other than cursing!
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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.

A. Example #5: unity in nature. Interesting illustration. Nature shows us that one source generates a certain kind of product/fruit…not opposite kinds…

B. If that’s the case with nature, how is it different with us? Here’s the idea: we console ourselves thinking that our mouths are sometimes good/sometimes bad. But the problem is that even in nature, it can’t be both. Thus if it’s sometimes bad with us, then in reality it’s ALL bad because it’s all been spewing from the same place. I.e. even our blessings to God are somewhat tainted because it’s come from a mouth that spews forth curses on His created beings…
__a. This is where grace comes in. Praise God for the righteousness given us by Jesus Christ! Left to our own devices, even our praises are rotten – but in Christ Jesus, we are made pure & perfect in the sight of God. Even when we trip up in sin & accidentally curse our brother, Jesus has already paid the price for that at the cross… God made the bitter waters sweet by the hand of Moses (Exo 15); God made our bitter praises sweet by the grace of Christ.
__b. BTW – it’s precisely because the Lord Jesus already paid the price that our behavior ought to change. The Son of God didn’t pay the price for your sin in order that you could have the liberty to keep sinning as much as you wanted – He paid the price for you & made you a new creation so that you would change! We of all people have even more reason to watch what comes out of our mouths & hearts towards our brothers & sisters…we want whatever it is to honor the Lord Jesus Christ who redeemed us.
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13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom.

A. Change of subject? Not really…how does someone control their tongue? How do they attempt to tame it through the power of the Holy Spirit? By Godly wisdom. The wise man/woman demonstrates his/her wisdom through “meekness.” The idea here is that meekness is the opposite of wrath & cursing. A wise man has his tongue under control…which is demonstrated though his “good conduct.”

B. Consistency is the key. Virtually everyone has occasional times when they fly off the handle – but wisdom is demonstrated through consistency. The person who praises God in the church building, but lives with outbursts of wrath when they get home in private cannot claim to have shown good conduct. The one who controls their words in public AND private is the one who shows him/herself to be wise & understanding.
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14 But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth.

A. What’s “bitter envy & self-seeking”? “Envy” = zeal…but obviously the context here isn’t a godly zeal. “Self-seeking” comes from a word that means to work as a day-laborer. James’ intent is that the person is looking out for their own interests, without regard to others or to the truth. [] It’s easy to think of worldly examples of bitter envy & self-seeking (ambition) – but remember that James is writing to the Church (“my brethren”). What does this look like in the Church? Some might be false teachers/unqualified teachers per vs. 1 who just want the perks of being “in the ministry.” Others might be folks that have a good cause, but go about it in such a way that it demeans Christ & it just serves to build up their own name.

B. So what is someone to do if James is describing you here? Don’t lie about it. Certainly don’t boast in your sin, but don’t lie & claim you’re not self-seeking or zealous with an ungodly zeal. Problems aren’t solved by ignoring them. The Holy Spirit didn’t put these verses in the Bible to condemn us & leave us feeling guilty; if He convicts your heart, He wants you to do something about it! Repent from the sin & submit to the Lord’s guidance…

C. James goes on to describe what this false wisdom is like – see vs. 15…
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15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.

A. Selfish egotism is demonic & leads to evil. Just as the demons have a type of “faith” that doesn’t begin to approach real faith (2:19), they have a type of “wisdom” that doesn’t approach the real thing. To be zealous for oneself & one’s own motives is thought of as wisdom in the eyes of the world, but it’s truly soulish & selfish & is precisely the opposite of what it means to love our neighbor as ourselves.

B. Keep the context in mind. Those with unruly tongues do so many times because of envy & self-seeking in their hearts. They’re setting themselves up for the same trap as the Devil who rose up against God in pride & was cast down.
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17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.

A. The opposite of “demonic wisdom”… True wisdom is yielded to the things of God & reflects the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23). True wisdom is not of the earth; it’s from above (like every other good gift) – true wisdom doesn’t seek itself; it’s willing to yield – true wisdom doesn’t spew forth blessings & cursings; it’s without hypocrisy. We want to be wise with our words…seek true wisdom!

B. Keep the promise of Ch 1 in mind: James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. [] Wisdom is something God wants to give you! We have not because we ask not.
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18 Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

A. Great summation. Those who sow peace with their tongues display a fruit of righteousness with their actions…they demonstrate the wisdom of God & give praises to His name. As Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.” (Matt 5:9)

Conclusion:
Men & women – may we be careful with our tongue & the words of our lips! James tells us many things about our tongue:
• Tongues that teach are judged (vs 1)
• Tongues trip us up & are tough to tame (vs 2-7)
• Tongues can be tainted (vs. 9-12)
• Tongues tell the type wisdom – demonic or Godly (vs. 13-18)

So how’s your tongue? Do you use words as a balm or a whip? It’s easy to fall into the line of thinking that words don’t matter – after all, they just disappear into thin air. But the schoolyard rhyme is a lie: Sticks & stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me. Wrong. Words DO hurt – and words can hurt for a long time with devastating effects.

Maybe you’re here & have been hurt by words in the past… Turn to Christ Jesus who alone has the words of life. Maybe you’re here & have hurt others with your words – your kids, spouse, neighbors… Ask forgiveness from God – seek to be reconciled to others – and then ask God for wisdom in using your tongue best. Submit your tongue to Him by the power of the Holy Spirit & start sowing peace…