Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Sermon James 3:1-12 “Tongues of Fire”
Presbyterian Church of Easton
September 12, 2021
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We are continuing, this morning, with our look at the Book of James, a New Testament book written in the first century by Jesus’ brother, James, who also served as the leader of the church in Jerusalem. He was writing to all of the churches that were now scattered around the Mediterranean.
Two weeks ago we heard from James about the need for members of the church to always listen first and then respectfully respond so that disputes are slow to turn to anger. Last week we saw that one of the disputes in the early church was how to handle the issue of poor people coming into the church. According to James the Word of God that is planted in our hearts through prayer and worship causes us to welcome our brothers and sisters who are much poorer than ourselves.
Today we will look closely at how the words we speak can lead to conflict within the church and discover why it is so important to follow James’ wisdom of listening first and then speaking. But before we get to the third chapter of James, let’s pray.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy Heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen. (John Calvin)
James 3:1-12 NRS James 3:1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 4 Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs.
5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell.
7 For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, 8 but no one can tame the tongue-- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing.
My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.
Let’s get started with a story. Robin and Ken have been married for seven years and are having some trouble in their marriage. They are visiting a marriage counselor. Robin starts the conversation by saying, “Ken just does not appreciate me.” Ken looks at her and then at the counselor and says, “Of course I do and I tell her how much I appreciate her all the time.” Robin replies, “When do you tell me that you appreciate me?” Ken says “yesterday”. Robin says, “When yesterday?” And Ken replies “When I came home for lunch.” Robin says, “You never said that you appreciate me yesterday at lunch, you didn’t even thank me for fixing the meal.” Ken said, “I came home to show you how much I appreciate you. You never listen.” The counselor pointed out that Ken was trying to communicate his appreciation of Robin by doing things for her, but Robin was waiting to hear Ken express his appreciation with words. Ken needs to accompany his good works with the words that Robin needs to hear.
We can see from this story that words are very important. Men and women are the only animals in God’s creation with the gift of speech. And we are commanded to use our gift of speech as a blessing for others. But as a result of sin, the gift of speech is often twisted from being a blessing into being a curse.
Using speech as a curse is common in our culture. How often have we heard: “Mind your tongue!” “Shut your mouth!” “Button your lip!” and since Archie Bunker appeared on television, “Stifle yourself!” We give people a “tongue-lashing”. And we do awful things called gossip and slander. James understood the harmful effects of the tongue. He called the tongue a symbol of evil, and told us that a misspoken word can cause as much devastation as a small fire recently did in California. Just imagine the harmful effect of the following words: “A C+. What’s wrong with you? Why aren’t you more like your brother?” or maybe you have heard these words, “I don’t love you any more.”
The reason words can be so damaging is that once spoken they can never be taken back. Words spoken in anger are remembered and continue to hurt for a long time. A word spoken as a curse cannot be undone by God. That’s why James refers to spoken curses as coming from the fires of hell.
It is up to you to control your tongue so that it will always be a blessing and never a curse. You need to think about what you are about to say and consider the consequences of your speech before you utter the words. Otherwise you might speak foolishly with unintended and lasting results.
James knows that the real problem with words is not just these harsh phrases, which we can control, but the insidious effect of an uncontrolled tongue in ordinary conversation. For example, you arrive at the church to help with Vacation Bible School and one of the super volunteers tells you with a slight sneer, “I am glad you are here today. You are usually so busy.” Sometimes a simple “Oh?” with an arched eyebrow is all it takes to say a curse. We may think that we are speaking kind words, but our nonverbal body language can communicate our real feelings of anger.
According to James, just as a boat needs a rudder and a horse needs a bridle to control their actions, so too does the tongue need something to control it. This is why James gave us the wisdom of being quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. This gives us time to consider what we are about to say so that when we do speak we speak the truth in love. By being slow to speak we have time to realize the true source of our anger, in our hidden fear, hurt, and guilt, and sometimes are able to deal with these issues before possibly ruining a relationship by speaking impulsively.
Of course, being slow to anger does not mean we should never be angry. Anger itself is not necessarily destructive, but the way we express it can be. The fourth psalm tells us to “Be angry, but do not sin.” We must never deny our anger because doing so means that our anger will come out in digs and jabs, and we speak cutting remarks with smiles on our faces. But if we acknowledge our anger then we can direct it to more healthy expressions. So “being slow to anger” means that we consider our anger first and not compound a problem by speaking a curse without thinking.
We have to confess that we do not always use speech as a blessing. Sometimes we use it as a curse. Once I was on a mission trip. I was with the pastor when a young woman ran into the room. She paused for a moment to catch her breath. Then she said “Pastor, we need to pray.” We joined hands and the young woman prayed, “Jesus, help Mrs. Smith because I just heard that Mr. Smith is having an affair with his secretary.” Then the pastor stopped the prayer and pointed out that gossip is gossip even if it is in the form of a prayer. Whenever we gossip, talking about someone else when they are not there and have not given us permission to talk about them, we are cursing, and according to James this is a sin.
Those who lead the church as pastors and teachers have an even greater responsibility to control their tongues. Those who preach and teach from the Bible are speaking God’s words. So the words that people hear when a pastor or Bible teacher speaks must always be words of blessing that communicate the blessings of God. Curses and words of anger are never appropriate when preaching and teaching in the church. Rather pastors and teachers must always speak words of blessing to build up the body of Christ and lead the church toward the Kingdom of Heaven.
James tells us that we should always use our tongues as blessings. He points out that both freshwater and saltwater never come out of the same spring. So blessings and curses should never come out of the same mouth. The ancient wisdom writer Sirach put it this way:
Sirach 5:11 - 6:1 11 Be quick to hear, but deliberate in answering. 12 If you know what to say, answer your neighbor; but if not, put your hand over your mouth. 13 Honor and dishonor come from speaking, and the tongue of mortals may be their downfall. 14 Do not be called double-tongued and do not lay traps with your tongue; for shame comes to the thief, and severe condemnation to the double-tongued. 15 In great and small matters cause no harm, NRS Sirach 6:1 and do not become an enemy instead of a friend; for a bad name incurs shame and reproach; so it is with the double-tongued sinner.
The book of Proverbs tells us: Proverbs 21:23 23 To watch over mouth and tongue is to keep out of trouble.
The author Eric Law gives us some practical advice for controlling our tongues. To help us remember what to do he has given us the acronym RESPECT. “R” means that we must always take Responsibility for what we say and feel without blaming others. “E” means that we always engage in Empathetic listening. “S” reminds us to always be Sensitive to differences in communication styles. “P” follows the advice of James to always Ponder what you hear and feel before you speak. “E” teaches us to Examine our own assumptions and perceptions before speaking. “C” tells us to keep what we hear from others Confidential unless given permission to tell it to other people. And “T” reminds us to Tolerate ambiguity, remembering that when we speak there is not always a right or wrong. So when we speak lets always do it out of RESPECT.
The best way to learn how to use our tongues as blessings is to use them in worship, by praising God. When we gather for worship we are practicing together the proper way to use our gift of speech when we speak prayers and praise. We use speech as a blessing when we read the Bible out loud, welcome each other by name, and extend the peace of Christ to one another in fellowship. In church and Bible classes we learn the language of faith and begin to testify about God’s work in our lives. As faith grows in our hearts so too does our ability to use speech as a blessing.
The only way that we can be sure that we are using words as blessings and not curses is if we follow God’s command to love our neighbor. If we are filled with God’s love by our faith, and if we then speak motivated by love then the words we use will be blessings for others. Language itself is tainted by sin. So we must always be immersed in the language of faith to ensure that the words we use are always blessings for others.
So today exercise your tongues in worship. Join in the singing and prayers. Greet people in love as you leave worship. Use this to practice your ability to speak as a blessing to others. And remember this as you speak to others throughout the week.
Whenever you are tempted to use language as a curse to hurt someone, pause for a moment, consider where your anger is coming from, and hold your tongue until you are once again able to speak a blessing. You have this ability, given to you by God, to control what you say. So never speak words of anger and hatred. Always speak words of love and desire for blessing.
The bottom line from James is that controlling your tongue is very difficult to do, but you must do it because failure to bridle your tongue can cause great harm. But with faith growing in your hearts you have the ability to tame your tongue so that it is always an instrument of blessing and never a curse. Let’s pray.
Holy One of Israel, we worship you today with tongues of prayer and praise. Help us to control our tongues and prevent them from speaking curses. Always keep a blessing on our lips. We remember your words to us that you would bless us so that we would be a blessing to others. And help me to always use words of blessing when I preach and teach. Amen.
