Just as a nuclear bomb causes great destruction through one tiny particle, our tongues have incredibly destructive power. In James 3:5–12, we are called to be marked by a transformed tongue through Christ’s power.

The Problem of the Tongue

The tongue causes outward destruction when you speak hurtful words to friends, family members, and classmates. It creates worlds of unrighteousness. Words can take you places and create images that seem so real. If every word you have spoken was laid out today for you to see, what worlds would they create? Would your words get justification or condemnation?

The tongue also causes inward contamination, bringing guilt, shame, brokenness, and lasting pain. We gossip, spreading unfavorable information about someone else. We slander, making a false statement about someone else to hurt their reputation (for example, assigning motives to why someone did what they did). We lie in moments when we want to exaggerate or omit the truth. We boast, ridicule, and use sarcasm or empty flattery. We do all these things to try to make ourselves look better and to make others look worse. But what we’re actually doing is heaping guilt on ourselves and thinking poorly of the holiness of God.

The Prognosis of the Tongue

There is no human solution to fix the tongue — just trying harder will not work. This is because the tongue speaks from what the heart wants, and our hearts are depraved. Hope cannot be found in us, but in Christ.

The Promise Greater than the Tongue

In verses 9–12, James lovingly calls out the Christians to whom he’s writing. He wants them to consider that what they say about Christ does not match what they say to each other. This is also true of us. We sing worship songs in church or chapel and then walk out and gossip, lie, or speak harshly to people made in God’s image. We have spoken the words of life in one place, but then we spread the words of destruction somewhere else. This shouldn’t be true of Christians. Change only comes from a changed heart. Our hope is in the Savior who bore our sin on the cross, exhausted God’s wrath toward it, and rose from the dead to defeat it.

The Practice for the Changed Tongue

We must stop, recognize the power of our tongues, and actively work to get rid of the destructive words. In order to speak words that honor God in the moment when we’re confronted with an opportunity to sin, we need to preach the Gospel to ourselves daily. Remind yourself that you and your tongue have been crucified and brought to new life with Christ. Transformed tongues can be used to bless others. These are real promises for us. May we speak from a changed heart, encouraging and loving one another because of what Christ has done for us!