James Chapman 3, verses 1 through 13. I told Jeremy, 1 through 18, so it's not a misnomer. That was my evening. But I decided to go with just a minute and a half. God and give it your full attention as it is read. 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 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. who was wise and understanding among you. By his good conduct, let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. May the Lord bless the reading of his word. Please be seated. Let's pray. O Lord, mercifully give us grace. Not only to be hearers of the word, but doers also. Not only to love, but also to live your gospel. Not only to profess, but also to practice your blessed commandments for the honor of your holy name. We pray these things in Jesus' name, amen. Now, whenever you preach occasionally, you know, it's always sort of difficult to figure out what to preach. I was telling my shepherding group that last week, last Sunday evening, and I was going to preach from a psalm. Psalms are always good to preach and, you know, it's a little more difficult to pick up in an epistle or a gospel somewhere in the middle. But I decided to preach on this passage, namely because it's something, and they tell you in preaching classes not to do this, what I'm about to do, but I'm going to do it anyway. Not to make confessions, you know, before a congregation, but this is something that I've always struggled with in my life as a believer, but I think in recent days I've struggled with it even more. So this is something that has been on my heart and I just wanted to share it with you this morning and hopefully you'll be edified by it as well. As we begin, I want to provide you with some questions of observation and interpretation to get you thinking through these verses that we're going to cover. Who are the teachers? Are they elders or just anybody in the church who wants to get up and speak? Why are teachers judged with greater strictness? What does James mean by the phrase stumble in many ways? What does James say about the one who does not stumble in what he says? What's his point? What are James' illustrations of the bit, the rudder, why, excuse me, are James' illustrations of the bit, the rudder, and fire so effective? What does James mean by our members in verse six? What does he mean by the phrase, the entire course of life? What is the contrast between what he writes in verse 7 and what he writes in verse 8? How does James describe the tongue in verses 8, 9, and 10? And then what does James point in verses 11 through 13? On a wide, excuse me, on a windswept hill in an English country churchyard stands a drab, gray slate tombstone. The faint etchings read this. Beneath this stone, a lump of clay, lies Arabella Young, who, on the 24th of May, began to hold her tongue. Let's hope that we learn what that woman never did, to tame the tongue. As a wise sage observed, as you go through life, You are going to have many opportunities to keep your mouth shut. Take advantage of all of them. As we look at our text this morning and glance back at chapters one and two, James has gone from preaching to meddling. He has just made it clear that genuine faith works. If God has changed your heart through the new birth, the saving faith that he granted to you that will inevitably show itself in a life of good deeds. But now he moves from the generality of good deeds to the specifics of the words that you speak, that we speak. Genuine faith yields to Christ's lordship over your tongue. With David in Psalm 141 verse 3, All true believers will pray, set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth. Keep watch over the door of my lips. While the monster may never be totally tamed, if you know Christ as Savior, you are engaged in the ongoing battle to tame the terrible tongue, that restless evil. In building his case, that all have sinned, the Apostle Paul zeroes in on the sins of the tongue in Romans chapter 3 verses 13 and 14. He writes, 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. It would be nice if conversion resulted in a total makeover of the mouth. But it is not so. Although we become new creatures in Christ, we also carry around with us the old nature of the flesh, which wars against the spirit. The tongue is one of the major battlegrounds in that war. To become godly people, we must wage war daily on this front. James is a savvy pastor who knows that we won't gear up for the battle and face our own sins of the tongue unless we recognize the magnitude of the problem. We all tend to justify ourselves by pointing to others who are notoriously bad with their tongue. In comparison with how they talk, I'm doing okay. I'm a lot better than they are. But James comes in with vivid illustrations to open our eyes to just how serious our problem really is. It's interesting that he never gives any advice on how to control the tongue. He just leaves you reeling from his portrait of how huge the problem is. He's saying this, to tame the terrible tongue, we must recognize the tremendous magnitude of the battle that we face. It's a little bit difficult to outline this section, but we can organize it under four truths that we need to recognize as far as taming our terrible tongues, that restless evil. First of all, to tame the tongue, we must recognize that we will be held accountable for what we say. We see this in verses one and two of chapter three. 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's a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body." Apparently, the churches to which James was writing had too many men who were self-appointed teachers. In the Jewish synagogues, rabbis were highly respected. And the office was often one that parents coveted for their sons. It was proper to respect the rabbis because of the sacred scriptures that they expounded. But it was wrong to give men the honor that God alone deserves. Jesus confronted the Jewish leaders on this account in Matthew 23 verses 6 through 11. They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues. and respectful greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by men. But do not be called rabbi for one who is your teacher and you are all brothers. Do not call anyone on earth your father for one is your father, he who is in heaven. Do not be called leaders for one is your leader, that is Christ. But the greatest among you shall be your what? Your servant. there's a certain inherent prestige in becoming a teacher. Presumably, you know more than those who you teach which means that in some way that they should look up to you. Because of this, there's this built-in danger that some will take upon themselves the office of Bible teacher for the wrong reasons or that those who took the position for the right reason later will fall into pride. If a man goes into teaching the Bible because of a secret desire for status or recognition, he's doing it for self and not for the Lord. James' point is that a man should not take on the role of teacher unless God has called him to it. Because teachers will incur a stricter judgment. We who teach God's word will be more accountable because our words affect more people. Anytime that we teach, we should keep in mind the serious fact that we will stand before the Lord to give an account. Verse two further explains what James writes in verse one. James includes himself when he says, for we all stumble in many ways. We're all prone to sin. One popular author and Bible teacher emphasizes that we should not view ourselves as sinners, but as saints who occasionally sin. Well, by God's grace, I'm a saint, but I'm a saint who stumbles in many ways. I sin, and not just occasionally. James then zeroes in on the tongue, saying that if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well. Perfect does not mean sinlessly perfect but rather mature. We can never achieve sinless perfection in this life but we can grow to spiritual maturity and one important gauge of that is our speech and the way that we talk. One way to tame the tongue is to recognize that we all will be held accountable for our speech. And Jesus says in Matthew 12, verses 36 through 37, but I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. For by your words, you'll be justified and by your words, you will be condemned. Now, Jesus was not teaching justification by works. But like James, he was teaching that our works reveal whether our faith is genuine faith. Our words either validate that we are true believers or reveal that we do not know God. If we sin with our speech, we need to ask God's forgiveness and repent and also the forgiveness of the one that we sinned against. Genuine believers have this sense of being accountable for their speech. Secondly, to tame the tongue, we must recognize its power for good or for evil. Look at verse three. 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. They are so large and are driven by strong winds. They are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of their pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things." James uses here two analogies to make the point that the tongue is small, but it's mighty. The bit and the rudder. A bit is a relatively small instrument, but when you put it into a horse's mouth, you can control the entire horse. The same thing is true of a ship's rudder. It is relatively small compared to the size of the ship, but with his hand on the wheel or tiller, the pilot can steer that mammoth ship even in a strong wind. James' point of comparison is not so much the matter of control, the tongue does not really control the body, but it's more of the inordinate influence of such a small part. And again, he says, so also the tongue is a small part of the body, yet it boasts of great things. James is essentially saying don't underestimate the power of the tongue because if you do, you won't be able to tame it. There may be a comparison in the sense of influencing direction. If you control your tongue, it can direct your whole life into what is acceptable in God's sight. But if you don't control your tongue, it'll get you in great trouble. Both the bit and the rudder must overcome contrary forces to direct the horse and the ship. A horse is a powerful animal that can do much useful work, but only if it can be directed. A ship is a useful means of transporting cargo and people, but if the rudder is broken, it will be at the mercy of the wind and the waves. And it couldn't result in a shipwreck causing the loss of life and of cargo. To work properly and accomplish good things, both the bit and the rudder must be under the control of a strong hand that knows how to use them properly. In the same way, the tongue must overcome the contrary force of the flesh and be under God's wise control if it is to accomplish anything good. James would vigorously disagree with the familiar children's taunt. We all know it. Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never harm me. James is steeped in the Old Testament and it, especially the book of Proverbs, has much to say about the power of the tongue either for good or for evil. In Proverbs 12, 18, We read, there is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. Imagine that all of us here today were carrying into the church an unsheathed, razor sharp, two-edged sword. It would be a miracle if we got through the morning without anyone getting cut. The fact is we all have a razor-sharp, two-edged sword in our mouths, and we should use them with the greatest care to bring healing and not injury. Proverbs has many other references to the tongue. For example, in Proverbs 16, 24, we read, Pleasant words are a honeycomb sweet to the soul in healing. to the bones. If we would all read Proverbs frequently and pay attention to its wisdom, we would be a source of sweetness and of healing in our homes and our church. So James wants us to recognize that we will be held accountable for how we use our tongues, especially those of us who teach God's word. He wants us to recognize the inordinate power of the tongue either for good or for evil so that we use it carefully. Thirdly, to tame the tongue we must recognize that it is a humanly untamable source of terrible evil. Go back to verse five. 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. James uses two more word pictures for comparison and contrast. A forest fire and tamed animals. Living here in the Texas Panhandle in the midst of wide open spaces of dry brush and grassland, we're very much aware of the potential danger and damage of brush and grass fires. All it takes is one tossed cigarette or one campfire that is not totally extinguished, or one chain dragging from a pickup truck that creates a spark. In thousands of acres, a beautiful land can be destroyed just like that. Under control, fire is useful, but out of control, it's frightening and devastating. In November of 1980, after a very dry autumn, on an extremely windy day, an arsonist lit a fire in the tender dry brush just above San Bernardino, California. The high winds quickly fanned the flames up the mountain toward the town of Crestline. And while the firefighters were trying to contain that blaze, the same arsonists drove to the east and then back to the west, lighting separate fires in each location. Many of those who lived on the mountain had only a few hours notice to evacuate their homes for several days so that they wouldn't be trapped if the flames came up that far. But several homes in San Bernardino were destroyed, killing at least four people. Forest fires, grass fires, brush fires, they're all devastating. In verse six, James states directly, and the tongue is a fire. The very world of iniquity, the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body and sets on fire the course of our life and is set on fire by hell." Scholars debate as to how to translate and punctuate that particular verse, but however it's done, the point is very, very clear. Our tongue is a deadly, powerful source of evil that taints every single part of our being. If we don't use it, if we do not use our tongues with great caution, we are like spiritual arsonists lighting careless fires that cause widespread destruction. James says that the one who is careless with his tongue is the first to be defiled. An unchecked tongue is the very world of iniquity that defiles the entire body. This goes back to James 1, verses 26 and 27, where he said that true religion requires bridling the tongue and keeping oneself unstained by the world. The sense is simply that since speech is the hardest faculty to control, it is there that one first observes the world in a person's heart. That was written by Peter Davids. Like a spark, that lights a bigger fire, it not only defiles us, but it also sets on fire the entire course of our life. If you have a careless tongue, it damages your entire life. Then James goes one step further and identifies the ultimate source of the problem when he says, and it is set on fire by hell. Hell translates the Greek word Gehenna. which is a transliteration of two Hebrew words meaning Valley of Hinnom or Valley of Hinnom. In this valley, just outside the walls of Jerusalem, it was there that the Jewish worshippers of Molech burned their children as sacrifices to appease the pagan idol. You see that in Jeremiah 32-35. And it later became a place to burn trash. The only other New Testament use is by Jesus, he uses that term 11 times to refer to the place of eternal torment. This is what James is saying, that an evil tongue is set on fire by Satan himself. Most Christians would shrink back from sins like homosexuality or molesting children or murder as being satanically depraved. Yet we tolerate gossip, we tolerate slander, we tolerate deceit, half-truths, sarcastic put downs, and other sins of the tongue as if they were no big deal. But James says that all such sins have their origin in the pit of hell. They defile the one committing them. they destroy others. As a believer in Christ, you, we, me, we must confront these sins in ourselves and we must be bold enough to confront them in others in love. James goes on to use an analogy from the animal world. If you've been to Sea World, you've seen trained whales, dolphins, and seals. And at the circus, You've seen trained elephants, lions, and tigers. But James says that there is one beast that cannot be tamed. That is the human tongue. He adds that it is a restless evil full of deadly poison. Being restless means that there is never a time when the tongue sleeps. You must always be on guard against it. Being full of deadly poison You should handle it as cautiously as you would a vial of anthrax." James does not say that the tongue is untamable. He says that no one can tame it. It is humanly untamable. Only God can tame it. James does not state that because he wants us to get a clear view of the horrible monster that we must do battle with. He does not state that because he wants us to get a clear view of the horrible monster that we must do battle with. When the Holy Spirit controls your heart on a daily basis over time the fruit of the spirit will appear and these include love, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control which all relate to the control of the tongue. To tame this terrible tongue you must daily walk in the spirit. Taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ and ultimately an evil tongue is the tool of an evil heart and that's James' final point. We see that in verses 9 through 12 and that's our fourth point. To tame the tongue we must recognize that its inconsistencies are rooted in its source. Look at verse 9. 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 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. Who is wise in understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. James points out a gross inconsistency that he no doubt had observed. Christians say, praise the Lord in one breath and in the next breath they or we say evil things about another person made in the likeness of God. We sit in church singing hymns to God and no sooner get out the door and we whisper Did you see so-and-so? She makes me sick, she's such a hypocrite. Do you know what she did?" We could go on and on. James gets very direct in verse 10 by saying, "'My brethren, these things ought not be so.' Then he points out that what often happens among Christians is contrary to all of nature. The same spring does not send out fresh water one minute and bitter water the next." And he asks rhetorically, can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives? Or a vine produce figs? Neither can salt water produce fresh. His point is the same as that of Jesus in Matthew 10, 34 where we read, you brood of vipers, how can you being evil speak what is good For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. Jesus also said in Matthew 15, 18, but the things that proceed out of the mouth comes from the heart and those defile the man. The mouth is simply the opening that vents whatever is in the heart. If there's raw sewage in the heart, there will be raw sewage gushing from the mouth. That's why Proverbs 4.23 exhorts us, watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life. Have you ever thought about how terribly embarrassing life would be if there were a direct open line between your thoughts and your mouth so that you blurted out loud whatever you were thinking? Instead of your polite, I'm pleased to meet you, Outcomes, I couldn't care less about meeting you. After listening to someone drone on about something instead of, yes, that's very interesting, you blurt out, how can I get away from this bore? I'm not suggesting that we should abandon politeness and become brutally blunt. I'm only pointing out that even if you control your tongue, you often have a heart problem. If you want to tame the terrible tongue, the place to start is with our hearts. We need to work daily at taking every thought captive again to the obedience of Christ. Walk daily under the control of the Holy Spirit. Renew our minds by memorizing scripture. We need to memorize passages like James 1 verses 19 and 20. This you know, my beloved brethren, but let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God." We need to memorize Ephesians 4.29, let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment so that it will give grace to those who hear. Rabbi Joseph Telushkin has lectured around the country on the powerful and often negative impact of words and he asked audiences if they can go for 24 hours without saying any unkind words about or to anybody. He says this, invariably a minority of listeners raise their hands signifying yes, some laugh, and quite a large number call out no. And he responds with this, those who can't answer yes must recognize that you have a serious problem. If you cannot go for 24 hours without drinking liquor, you are addicted to alcohol. If you cannot go for 24 hours without smoking, you are addicted to nicotine. And similarly, if you cannot go for 24 hours without saying unkind words about others, then you have lost control over your tongue." And he goes on to say, there is no area of life in which so many of us systematically violate the golden rule. He encourages his audiences to monitor their conversations for two days and he says to note on a piece of paper every time you say something negative about someone who is not present. Also record when others do so as well as your reactions when it happens. Do you try to silence the speaker or do you ask for more details? He adds, to ensure the test's accuracy, make no effort to change the content of your conversations throughout the two-day period. Do not try to be kinder than usual in assessing another's character and actions. He states, most of us who take this test are unpleasantly surprised. Why doesn't James give us a list of helpful tips on how to control our tongue? Maybe it's because most of us, like the alcoholic, are in denial about the magnitude of the problem. The first step to dealing with the problem is to acknowledge it. To say something like this, I have a serious problem. I have a tool of Satan in my mouth. Here are some questions to get us to think about what we've studied this morning. How can a man know if God is calling him to preach and to teach? How can we know whether it is right to speak out to confront sin or to remain silent since we can sin either way? What should you say when someone shares a juicy bit of gossip with you so that you can pray about it? Is it always a sin to criticize? When and how may it be proper? When is it appropriate? This is where I'll close. Leman Strauss considers James chapter 3 and I quote, to be a key to the solution of most of the ills in church life today. I'm going to read that again. To be a key to the solution of most of the ills in church life today. I would agree. and add that it is a key to most of the problems in our homes today. It is a forest fire season. Things right now are tender and dry. It is a grass fire season, brush fire season. But these things are tender and dry in our homes and in our churches. We have a fire set among our members. Let's ask God to tame this restless evil that is our tongue. Amen. Let's pray. Gracious God, grant that our words may be evidenced in deeds, our profession of faith be demonstrated in practice, our belief in you be backed up by godly behavior. that there may be within us no contradiction between lip and life but rather enable us to adorn the gospel that we profess through Jesus Christ our Lord and for his sake, amen.