We’re back at it with James. And James is also back at it. We find in our
text some very strong words, some very pointed words. And yet, they must be
necessary words. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t be in the Scriptures. James
understands the seriousness of the topic that is before us. And so, he
drives home the point. I hope that you will also see the seriousness of the
topic of our text so that you might take to heart the preaching of this word
from God.
James is talking about the tongue. He’s referred to it already earlier in
this chapter. There he pointed out the power of the tongue for good. ‘…if
anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to
bridle his whole body.’ [James 3:2] But now James looks at the flip side.
Now, he talks about the power of the tongue for evil. ‘…the tongue is a
fire.’ Such a little flame consumes great forests. There is tremendous power
for evil in such a little thing as the tongue.
Notice how James describes the tongue. First, it is ‘the world of
unrighteousness’. ‘The world’ for James is that fallen, rebellious, sinful
manner of living. It is the antithesis of God, diametrically opposed to Him.
James comes back to this word in chapter four. ‘You adulterous people! Do
you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?’ [James 4:4]
Whatever God is – holy, good, loving, wise – the world is the opposite. And
where is the outpost of this world of unrighteousness? It’s the tongue that’
s in your mouth. And you carry with you wherever you go.
Next, James tells us that that tongue of yours is not limited in its
affects. According to James, the tongue stains your whole body. What do you
do if you find a bit of a stain on a shirt? You get out some spot remover
and scrub away. But what do you do if the shirt is filled with stains of one
sort or another? You toss the shirt. James is telling us that the tongue has
done its worst. It’s not just a little spot that, with a little effort,
might be cleaned up. Your whole body has been stained. The work of the
tongue is not limited to that one member of your body. It has affected your
eyes and what you look at, your feet and where you go, your hands and what
you do, your ears and what you give your attention to. The whole body has
been stained. Back in chapter one James told you to keep yourself unstained
from the world. And yet, here he warns you that you are carrying a bit of
the world in your mouth and that it shows in all that you do. The evil of
the tongue affects every area of your life.
Then he goes on. There are some sins that are with us only for a time. As we
grow older, the things that tempted us before don’t tempt us now. The
problem fades away. But not so with the tongue. James tells us that the evil
of the tongue ‘sets on fire the entire course of life’ [verse 6]. The sins
associated with the tongue do not just fade away with time. So, from your
first day to your last, your tongue is right there starting fires. Its
plagues are always there.
And as if that weren’t enough James tells you that the evil of your tongue
finds its source in hell. Go back to the Gospels. There was that time when
Jesus told the Twelve that He was to be crucified. Peter rebuked Jesus for
saying such a thing. ‘Far be it from you, Lord. This shall never happen to
you.’ How did Jesus respond? ‘Get behind me, Satan.’ [Matthew 16.22-23] Your
words can be downright satanic. Then, as the final touch James closes this
section by talking about the hypocrisy of your tongue. With the same tongue
you bless your God and then curse your neighbor who is made in the likeness
of that same God.
Now, bear in mind that James is not writing this as a tirade against foul
pagans. He isn’t upset at the foolishness that pours out of their mouths.
James is speaking to the Church, to Christians. He’s speaking to you. ‘My
brothers, these things ought not to be so.’ [James 3:10] The Spirit is using
this text to talk to you. It is your tongue that is so wicked and so
poisonous. It is your tongue that is so destructive and two-faced. No one in
this room should be thinking about how this text applies so well to someone
else. The text applies to you. Do you see the seriousness of our text?
So, what happens now? How should you respond to James’ words about your
tongue? One response that was quite popular was the call for rules. ‘Give us
the rules that we need so that we don’t sin with our tongues.’ And then what
would follow would be discussions about gossip and other sins of the tongue,
trying to be so very careful to define things just so, so that we might be
able to keep the rules. It’s interesting that that Scriptures never give
rules as the solution to some sin problem. In this case, it doesn’t give a
list of words that you shouldn’t say or anything like that. And the reason
is clear. Rules don’t work. Rule-keeping doesn’t go deeply enough. And
worse, it will result either in pride – ‘I keep the rules unlike some people
I know’ – or despair in those who can’t measure up. The Scriptures don’t
give rule-keeping as a solution. Instead, what we find are principles of
action.
Listen to one place where you are given some principles that relate to the
use of your tongue. ‘Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but
only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give
grace to those who hear.’ [Ephesians 4:29] Here, you have a principle from
the Spirit of God, a principle that will guide you as you speak to others.
And the first thing that you should note about this principle is that the
focus of what you say isn’t to be on yourself and how what you have to say
is good for you. No, the focus is to be on the other person. And that is so
important to remember since we all live in a very selfish society. The most
important question today is, ‘How this will affect me?’ But the Spirit is
quite clear. The words that you speak are to be words that have the benefit
of the other person in view. Do you see the difference? The focus for most
people today is on themselves. ‘What will benefit me?’ The focus for the
rule keeper is on the rules. ‘Will this satisfy the rules?’ But the focus
for the Christian is on others. ‘How can I benefit this person?’ And this
makes so much sense. What is the summation of the Law? ‘Love your neighbor.’
[Romans 13.9] So, as you speak, your concern is to be, ‘How can I build up
this person? How can my words give grace here?’ How different from asking
yourself, ‘Will I break some rule if I say this?’
Don’t forget the other point the Apostle makes, ‘as fits the occasion’. Or
as another translation has it, ‘according to the need of the moment’. There
isn’t a list of canned responses. Here, especially, you need to understand
the other person. What’s going on in his life? What does he need to hear?
This is especially necessary for married couples. A certain sensitivity is
required so that your words fit the moment and give grace to the particular
person standing in front of you. Of course, this requires wisdom, insight
into life and people. This means seeing life from the perspective of the
Scriptures. It is noteworthy that James next topic is wisdom. The Scriptures
give you what you need so that you can speak words that build up and give
grace.
This, of course, isn’t the end of the matter. There was a bit of our text
that I skipped over. Did you notice? ‘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.’ [James 3:7-8] James doesn’t say that
taming your tongue will be a bit of a challenge but that hard work and
perseverance will win out. Rather, he says, ‘No human being can tame the
tongue’. The Bible is not a self-help book. It is God’s revelation to us,
and it reveals to us exactly who we are. We are terribly sinful people.
Here, James tells us in no uncertain terms that our tongues are wicked and
impossible for us to tame. Self-help never works when it comes to sin. And
so, even biblical principles, if used alone as a ‘new, and improved’ form of
rules, will not work. It is only the Gospel that works when it comes to
sin. As the Spirit points out the sins of your tongue, repent of them. Be
honest. You know how bad it is. No sugar coating. Admit your sin and declare
your desire to be rid of it. That’s repentance. And then come again to
Jesus. Come boldly, remembering that He is a Savior. That means He welcomes
sinners; not the nice people but sinners. He welcomes you. Come and ask –
again – for forgiveness. He will never turn you away. And then ask for grace
to do it right. You can’t tame your tongue, but He can. Tell Him how you
want to follow those biblical principles, that you want to focus on the
welfare of the other person. Tell Him that you want to have the wisdom to do
that well. Ask Him for these things so that your life might be a glorious
billboard of the power of the Gospel. And as you ask He will give you all
you need.
