Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Dealing with our tongues
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Dealing with our tongues
It seems to me that there are many things that I worry about far too much. But at the same time, there are a few things that I don’t worry about nearly enough. Today, I want to look at a couple of passages that should probably worry us all more than they do.
As I look through the New Testament, I see a few evils that are singled out and condemned very harshly. Before I begin, I want to make it clear that God’s grace not only forgives us for these evils but gives us the ability through our new creation in Christ to overcome them. I say this because we are about to look at some very strong language, some from Jesus and some from his brother James, and I don’t want anybody to feel overwhelmed and condemned.
The particular evil we will be looking at today is the harm we can do through our speech. Let’s begin with James 3:
... 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.
[James 3:1-12 ESV]
Here, James describes the devastation caused by the malicious or even the careless use of our tongues. He describes the tongue as a deadly poison and a fire that shapes the direction of our entire lives, the source (and it seems the destination) of which is hell. It is, according to James, an untameable evil, but thankfully, that is not the whole story. James goes on to say in the rest of the chapter that there is another source: There is a wisdom that comes from above that is pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering and without hypocrisy.
To James, it all comes down to sources. Some words and deeds flow from jealousy and selfish ambition, while others flow from divine wisdom. The good news is that we can now, in Christ, do what we could not do before. The bad news is that our natural heart or natural inclinations are still with us, and they are still not good.
Jesus said it this way:
10 And he called the people to him and said to them,
“Hear and understand:
it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person,
but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.”
…
18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart,
and this defiles a person.
For out of the heart come evil thoughts,
murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.
These are what defile a person.
[Matt 15:10-11; 18-20 ESV]
We have been given a new heart. But as long as we are in this body, our old heart is never far away. As believers, we must choose: will we live according to our new life in Christ or continue to follow our old fallen heart? Through the Spirit of God, we now have a real choice. We are no longer slaves to sin because we have been set free through the death and resurrection of Christ.
For the Americans reading this, we just celebrated Thanksgiving Day, and as Christians, we have a lot to be thankful for. We can be grateful that we are not alone in this. We have hope. Jesus has set us free from the tyranny of our old, fallen hearts. And that is a very good thing because the last passage I want to examine is the harshest one so far. I’m not sure I have ever heard a sermon on this one, in fact, but from the wording, it seems pretty important.
I tell you that on the day of judgment,
people will give an account for every worthless word they speak.
For by your words you will be justified,
and by your words you will be condemned."
[Matthew 12:36-37 NET]
Here, Jesus is explaining that our words really do matter. They can heal and hurt, and their effects carry forward into eternity.
This Week
This is a somewhat overwhelming selection of passages this week, and there is a lot to think about here. But I don’t want to look at this, throw my hands up, and walk away because I don’t know what to do with it. There is a way forward. God has not put an impossible task before us without giving us the grace to do it.
This week, I want to start small. By God’s grace, I can do things today that I failed to do in the past. I can use my tongue for what it was intended for today. Paul gives us a first step with this advice in Ephesians:
You must let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth, but only what is beneficial for the building up of the one in need, that it may give grace to those who hear. Ephesians 4:29
This week I will work to speak only those things that build up others rather than tear them down. I want to speak life to people, not death. Individually, these are small and doable steps, but jealousy and selfish ambition have to go to make this happen.
Since this has been a kind of heavy day, I would like to end with some encouragement that Paul gave to the Philippian church:
Rejoice in the Lord always;
again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentle spirit be known to all men.
The Lord is near.
Be anxious for nothing,
but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God,
which surpasses all comprehension,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute,
if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise,
dwell on these things.
The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me,
practice these things,
and the God of peace will be with you.
Philippians 4:4-9 NASB
Get full access to On walking the Way at tompossin.substack.com/subscribe
I can’t add anything to that except to say busting stuff is easy, and building stuff is hard, but building others up is worth the effort. Remember, “The Lord is near!”.
Have a great week!
Get full access to On walking the Way at tompossin.substack.com/subscribe
View all episodes
By Tom PossinIt seems to me that there are many things that I worry about far too much. But at the same time, there are a few things that I don’t worry about nearly enough. Today, I want to look at a couple of passages that should probably worry us all more than they do.
As I look through the New Testament, I see a few evils that are singled out and condemned very harshly. Before I begin, I want to make it clear that God’s grace not only forgives us for these evils but gives us the ability through our new creation in Christ to overcome them. I say this because we are about to look at some very strong language, some from Jesus and some from his brother James, and I don’t want anybody to feel overwhelmed and condemned.
The particular evil we will be looking at today is the harm we can do through our speech. Let’s begin with James 3:
... 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.
[James 3:1-12 ESV]
Here, James describes the devastation caused by the malicious or even the careless use of our tongues. He describes the tongue as a deadly poison and a fire that shapes the direction of our entire lives, the source (and it seems the destination) of which is hell. It is, according to James, an untameable evil, but thankfully, that is not the whole story. James goes on to say in the rest of the chapter that there is another source: There is a wisdom that comes from above that is pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering and without hypocrisy.
To James, it all comes down to sources. Some words and deeds flow from jealousy and selfish ambition, while others flow from divine wisdom. The good news is that we can now, in Christ, do what we could not do before. The bad news is that our natural heart or natural inclinations are still with us, and they are still not good.
Jesus said it this way:
10 And he called the people to him and said to them,
“Hear and understand:
it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person,
but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.”
…
18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart,
and this defiles a person.
For out of the heart come evil thoughts,
murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.
These are what defile a person.
[Matt 15:10-11; 18-20 ESV]
We have been given a new heart. But as long as we are in this body, our old heart is never far away. As believers, we must choose: will we live according to our new life in Christ or continue to follow our old fallen heart? Through the Spirit of God, we now have a real choice. We are no longer slaves to sin because we have been set free through the death and resurrection of Christ.
For the Americans reading this, we just celebrated Thanksgiving Day, and as Christians, we have a lot to be thankful for. We can be grateful that we are not alone in this. We have hope. Jesus has set us free from the tyranny of our old, fallen hearts. And that is a very good thing because the last passage I want to examine is the harshest one so far. I’m not sure I have ever heard a sermon on this one, in fact, but from the wording, it seems pretty important.
I tell you that on the day of judgment,
people will give an account for every worthless word they speak.
For by your words you will be justified,
and by your words you will be condemned."
[Matthew 12:36-37 NET]
Here, Jesus is explaining that our words really do matter. They can heal and hurt, and their effects carry forward into eternity.
This Week
This is a somewhat overwhelming selection of passages this week, and there is a lot to think about here. But I don’t want to look at this, throw my hands up, and walk away because I don’t know what to do with it. There is a way forward. God has not put an impossible task before us without giving us the grace to do it.
This week, I want to start small. By God’s grace, I can do things today that I failed to do in the past. I can use my tongue for what it was intended for today. Paul gives us a first step with this advice in Ephesians:
You must let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth, but only what is beneficial for the building up of the one in need, that it may give grace to those who hear. Ephesians 4:29
This week I will work to speak only those things that build up others rather than tear them down. I want to speak life to people, not death. Individually, these are small and doable steps, but jealousy and selfish ambition have to go to make this happen.
Since this has been a kind of heavy day, I would like to end with some encouragement that Paul gave to the Philippian church:
Rejoice in the Lord always;
again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentle spirit be known to all men.
The Lord is near.
Be anxious for nothing,
but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God,
which surpasses all comprehension,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute,
if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise,
dwell on these things.
The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me,
practice these things,
and the God of peace will be with you.
Philippians 4:4-9 NASB
Get full access to On walking the Way at tompossin.substack.com/subscribe
I can’t add anything to that except to say busting stuff is easy, and building stuff is hard, but building others up is worth the effort. Remember, “The Lord is near!”.
Have a great week!
Get full access to On walking the Way at tompossin.substack.com/subscribe