Taming the Tongue
Tom Shrader works through James 3:1-12, the longest continuous passage in Scripture on the tongue, showing that what we say reveals what is truly in our hearts. Using illustrations of a horse's bit, a ship's rudder, and a wildfire, he demonstrates that the tongue is a small but enormously powerful instrument capable of both great construction and great destruction. He calls the church to replace gossip, criticism, and slander with genuine encouragement and praise, and to go directly to a person rather than talk about them behind their back.
“The tongue is nothing more than a glimpse or a picture into your heart. What comes out of the mouth shows us what's there.”
— Tom Shrader
Series: Blue Jean Theology (2006)
Recorded: 2006 at East Valley Bible Church
Duration: 51 min
Themes: tongue, gossip, words, encouragement, slander, criticism, speech, self-control, struggling with gossip, dealing with conflict, husband, parent, new believer, young adult, mentor, navigating workplace tension
Scripture: James 3:1-12, James 1:22, James 1:26, James 2:14, James 2:17, James 2:26, 2 Timothy 2:15, 2 Timothy 3:16, Acts 20:27-31, Proverbs 18:21, Proverbs 25:18, Isaiah 6, Matthew 18
Theological Themes: sanctification, becoming holy, anthropology, heart transformation, biblical ethics, james 3, sin nature, wisdom literature
Full Transcript
Introduction to the Tongue
This is really a logical extension of what we studied last week. We looked at James chapter 2, verses 14 through 26, where James was talking about works and faith. Here is what he is saying: there has to be a difference in your life. I ought to be able to see your Christian faith. There ought to be life change.
We said that the key verse in this entire book, if you want to understand it, is James chapter 1, verse 22: "Prove yourselves to be doers of the Word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves." Now look at James chapter 1, verse 26: "If anyone thinks himself to be religious" — and use that in the best sense of the word, the spiritual giant — "if anyone thinks himself to be religious, yet does not bridle
The Call for Life Change
What James addressed last week is the idea that there should be life change in our lives. We have a mission at East Valley Bible Church to help one another learn God's truths and live biblically changed lives. It is a process — not just information being poured out from up front. We are helping one another take this Word, make it come to life, and see it make a difference, so that our lives begin to look as though they have been changed.
That was the question James posed last week. Chapter 2, verse 14: "What use is it, my brethren, if a man says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him?" Here is a man who is orthodox — he says he has faith — but there is no evidence of it. James answers in verse 17: "Even so, faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself." And again in verse 26: "For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead." There has to be life change. The heart must begin to change.
I have a tendency — and perhaps you do as well — to hear "life change" and immediately focus on behavior: things we need to be doing. That quickly flips into legalism. Are they doing this? How about this? Do this? Someone asks, "How's your quiet time?" and it always seems to come from someone who just had a great quiet time and wants to make sure you did too. Or someone says, "I was reading through Ezekiel today," while the rest of us are flipping through the table of contents trying to find it.
We naturally go to action, and I understand that. But what James is saying is that we must be very careful, because what changes first is the heart — and then all the actions begin to change. Now, the great indicator of what is going on inside of you, since none of us has the ability to look at another person's heart, is the tongue — what you say.
Reading the Passage: James 3:1–12
Let's read this passage — James chapter 3, verses 1 through 12 — and then we will come back and break it apart.
"Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment. For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well. Now if we put the bits in the horses' mouths so that they obey us, we direct their entire body as well. Behold, the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires. So also the tongue is a small part of the body, yet it boasts of great things. Behold, how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire. 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. For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race. But no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water? Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Neither can salt water produce fresh."
A Warning to Teachers
James begins by speaking about the tongue, and this is the longest contiguous passage in all of Scripture dealing with this timely and appropriate subject. It makes sense that he would begin with the one who is doing the most talking — the teacher. Especially in the early church, teachers were prominent in church life, roughly equivalent to the rabbi in the Jewish community. They were the ones doing the speaking, and James says: you need to be careful. There is a warning here.
He is not saying, "Don't become a teacher." He is not saying, "If you have a gift to teach, don't use it." That is not his point. He is simply saying: understand that there will be a stricter judgment.
Accurately Handling the Word
In 2 Timothy chapter 2, verse 15, every teacher without exception is to "be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth." When we talk about teaching, we need to understand not just the action itself, but the content of what we are talking about — and that means accurately handling the Scriptures themselves.
Turn a bit to the left in your Bible to 2 Timothy chapter 3, verse 16: "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable" for four things. For teaching — that is the content. For reproof — that is rebuke. For correction — a word that appears only this one time in the entire New Testament. It means to restore something to its proper place. If something was knocked over and lying on the ground, you would correct it by placing it back where it belongs. If a vase of flowers had been knocked over, you would correct it — put it in its proper place. That is what Scripture does. So it is profitable for teaching and reproof, for correction and for training in righteousness.
The Weight of Teaching
When James talks about teaching, he is talking about our presentation of the truth. It is the content of our teaching as well, not just the style. We have all sorts of different teaching styles. Some teachers, like John MacArthur, will look at the text word by word, and you could listen to him teach for a full hour and get maybe one, rarely two, illustrations or practical applications. Others are all stories. The point is that James is not concerned here with style. He is concerned with the intent, which is to deliver the truth.
James chapter 3, verse 1 tells us that teachers will face a stricter judgment. I think there are at least two points to that. First, you as a person are going to be judged. Your peers are going to judge you. The people are going to judge you.
A few years ago, Susan and I were invited to a Suns game. I don't mind basketball, but it is a real hassle to go, to me. The guy said these were really good seats, right at the end of the Suns bench on the floor, so we went. We sat, ate, and did our thing. Over the course of the next two or three weeks, I had eighteen to twenty people come up to me and say, "I saw you at the game. You were wearing this. You did this." It was a great reminder that you are constantly being evaluated and judged, and everybody is watching everything you do.
The minute you become a teacher — and when we talk about teacher, it is not just this position up front. Maybe you are a small group leader. Maybe it is one-on-one. Maybe you are the person walking into the office who is going to lead that small group. The minute you say you are a follower of Christ, everybody is watching you, and they are going to hold you to a strict judgment. They typically tend to hold you to a higher standard for your life than you hold for yourself.
But I do not think that is primarily how James is using it here. I think he is saying you will be judged for what you teach — how you live, for sure, but especially what you teach.
Paul's Warning to the Ephesians
Turn to Acts chapter 20, where Paul says goodbye to what I would argue is his favorite church, the church at Ephesus, and he gives them a warning. He has talked about his life and their relationship. Verse 27 of Acts chapter 20 reads, "I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God." He is saying, "I taught you all this Word has to say."
He continues: "Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, for the shepherd of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock and from among you." He uses that phrase twice, in verses 29 and 30. In my Bible I have circled that little phrase — "among you" — and drawn a connection between the two occurrences, so that when I turn there, my eyes go right to it and I can see the continuation of the thought. These wolves will rise among you and will speak perverse things to draw the disciples after them.
Paul then says, "Therefore, be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years, I did not cease to admonish each one of you with tears. And now I commend you to God and to the Word of His grace, which is able to build up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified." He is talking about the wonderful privilege and the enormous responsibility of handling this Word, especially as it relates to the basic doctrines of the truth, and especially to salvation.
When Denominations Waver on Salvation
Let me share with you a newspaper article from a couple of years ago, though not much has changed since then. The headline reads, "Path to Salvation Splits Presbyterians." The nation's largest Presbyterian denomination wrestled with what used to be a no-brainer for Christians: Is Jesus the only way to salvation? These are the words of the Dallas Morning News, not mine.
One side called for tolerance of non-Christian faiths. The other warned against weakening Christian teaching in the face of religious pluralism. In the end, neither side got its way at the General Assembly, the governing body of the Presbyterian Church USA. The debate was long and passionate, but orderly and polite. A majority of more than five hundred delegates, called commissioners, struck down a proposal that said Jesus is the lone vehicle of salvation.
What followed that vote created confusion within the body. After the proposal was struck down, a substitute proposal was approved. It said that assurance of salvation is found, "only in confessing Christ and trusting Him alone." But the statement
The Weight of Teaching
One of the commissioners said, quote, "I don't have the right to say that other people can't find God in other ways." Now, I don't want to do this little thing where all of a sudden I read about teachers and a stricter judgment, and I start looking for other people to blame. I need to take that, and I do, and I take this responsibility very seriously. It is really important to me that I get this as right as I can get it. But what I just gave you is a wonderful illustration of not getting it right.
It seems to me so clear that Jesus is the only way. We are talking about the only path. Is that not what Peter said? There is no other name by which we can be saved. There is no one else. "I am the way, the truth, the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me." There has to be a serious judgment that waits for us. And again, for all of us — me, us — who lead small groups, who are even taking somebody through a scripture study one-on-one, certainly those of us in this area, this is a responsibility that we have, and we need to take it very seriously.
We All Stumble
What James says in verse 2, James chapter 3 verse 2, is this: "We all stumble in many ways." He is talking now about the tongue itself. "We all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble," he says, "he is perfect." Now that word "perfect" could mean without flaw, or it could also mean mature — it is a sign of maturity. He is able to bridle the tongue.
Proverbs chapter 18 verse 21 says this: "Life and death is in the tongue." Another translation says, "The power of life and death is in the tongue." Ben Franklin said, "From a slip of the foot you may recover, but from a slip of the tongue you may never recover." And it has been said that great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, and small minds discuss people.
The Tongue Reveals the Heart
The tongue is our whole point today. The tongue is an indicator of your heart. Isaiah chapter 6 is a wonderful passage. You will hear Gary use it frequently to talk about worship, and indeed it certainly relates to that — that is certainly the main thrust of it. But in Isaiah chapter 6, Isaiah has this experience where he sees the Lord. He sees the whole setting around him. He sees Him on a throne, lofty and exalted.
He saw a seraphim on each side of Him, having six wings — two to cover his face, two to cover his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another saying, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is filled with His glory." And the foundations of the threshold tremble at the voice of Him who called out, while smoke was filling the temple. This is the amazing sight that Isaiah sees.
Isaiah's response is this: "Woe to me, for I am ruined." One translation says, "Woe to me, for I am undone." I thought I had it all together, but I am ruined. I thought I had everything in place, but when I see God for who He really is, I am undone. I see Him in His power and His might and His majesty and His holiness, and I am undone.
And listen to his analysis of his own life: "Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts." He is saying, I am ruined, I am undone — and how do we know that? My tongue, my mouth, it is unclean.
Back to James: Three Illustrations of Control
Back to James. James is talking about the tongue, and he is saying the tongue represents what is inside of us. Again, in verse 26 of chapter 1: "If anyone thinks himself to be religious, he doesn't bridle his tongue, he deceives his own heart, and this man's religion is worthless."
James gives us three illustrations of this idea of control, and the idea that the tongue can be either constructive or destructive. In verse 3 he says, "If we put bits into the horse's mouth so that they may obey us, we can direct the entire body." And in verse 4 he uses the same picture of a ship — two positive illustrations. Here is this huge ship, but the rudder guides it even as the wind moves it.
Secretariat and the Bit
When we talk about horses, I think of Secretariat. Secretariat is one of those things I have seen in my life that I will never see anything like again. Secretariat is a wonderful animal — beautiful to watch, chestnut in color with the blue racing cloth, just so muscular. In fact, when they did the autopsy on Secretariat, they discovered that his heart was twice the size of a normal horse's heart, and so it pumped all that oxygen into his body. Consequently, he not only won the Triple Crown, he won all three races in record time. He may be the greatest racehorse that ever lived.
The race that many horses run before the Kentucky Derby is called the Wood Memorial, and Secretariat ran, as I remember it, fourth or fifth in that race. Afterwards, they asked the jockey, Ron Turcotte, whether they were worried, and he said he did not think so. The problem, he explained, was that Secretariat had a boil on his tongue. Secretariat loved to run with his head up — that is how he ran, his head was high. When he put his head up with that bit pressing on the boil, it hurt, so he ran that whole Wood Memorial with his head down. Consequently, he did not have the speed.
Turcotte said, we get this tongue fixed, we get that bit in there, no problem — we will blow away the field. And did he blow them away in the Derby and the Preakness? And if you remember the Belmont, if you do not, come to my office — there is a picture on the wall, thirty-one lengths. In fact, it is a wonderful picture, because there is Ronnie Turcotte sitting there looking back to see where the other horses are, thirty-one lengths back. But the issue was right here. Control that, and you take this massive animal and direct him entirely.
The Rudder of a Great Ship
The same is true of the ship. I was watching a show the other day about these huge cruise ships, and the captain is literally directing it with a steering
The Power of the Tongue
So also, the tongue is set among the parts of the body, yet it boasts great things. Behold how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire. We are certainly familiar with that. There is somebody up camping, and they think they have that fire out — not much there, just a little flame — and it pops up, and the next thing you know, five, ten, fifteen, twenty thousand acres of forest are destroyed. His point is really simple: the tongue is a powerful instrument.
Someone has estimated — and I do not know how they ever figured this out — that we speak about 30,000 words a day. If I remember correctly, it was that men speak about 15,000 and women speak about 30,000 words a day. There is no judgment in that. My point is, by the time the guys are home, they are done talking. But if I speak 30,000 words a day and I sin one time in those 30,000 words — which seems fairly likely — one time a day over a 70-year lifetime is 20,550 sins. That is the great capacity he is pointing to: the power here of construction and destruction.
Proverbs chapter 25, verse 18 — let me read it from the New Living paraphrase: "Telling lies about others is as harmful as hitting them with an axe, wounding them with a sword, or shooting them with a sharp arrow." James uses this picture of fire. When Gary introduces the song "It Is Well with My Soul," he talks about Mr. Spafford and the Chicago fire, and it is a wonderful introduction to a wonderful song that gives it context. In that Chicago fire, there were 17,550 buildings destroyed, 300 people killed, and 90,000 people left homeless. It is the same fire we use to warm our bodies or to cook our food — and it is the same thing with the tongue.
Sins We Have Institutionalized
It seems to me there are certain sins within the body of Christ that we are comfortable with. We are really hard-line on sexual preference — and appropriately so — and on abortion. But we are pretty easy on gluttony. In fact, we do not even consider something church-sanctioned if there are not calories and donuts involved. Another sin that we have institutionalized, it seems to me, is gossip and slander.
I have long been intrigued by that. We are so wonderfully efficient at couching it in religious terms. We say things like, "I would never tell you this, but I want you to know how to pray for these people." Or the sentence begins with, "I shouldn't be telling you this." Oftentimes it flows from pride, always masked in care and spiritual concern — "I'm so concerned about these people" — but a lot of the time it is pride. We want to rip another person down, because if we do that, we build ourselves up.
Sometimes it is inadvertent, rarely. Sometimes it is a blatant intention to hurt somebody. Sometimes it is so you can make yourself look good. I have this happen regularly: I will be sitting in a meeting and they will start talking about somebody I know — I know a lot about him — and they will start talking about what a wonderful guy he is, what a terrific guy he is, what a great this and a great that. And everything in me wants to say, "Let me tell you what he's really like." But my whole intention there is not to edify or encourage or build anybody up. All I am trying to do is tear this guy down.
Talk to the Person, Not About the Person
Matthew 18 gives us a wonderful picture of how we are to operate. If somebody has sinned against you, or you become aware of somebody else's sin, what do you do with that? Matthew 18 is really clear: you go to that person. It seems to me this is a lesson that the body of Christ — the church in particular — has simply not learned. I was trying to put all of this together, and I wrote just this one sentence: we would rather talk about a person than talk to a person.
I see this all the time at East Valley Bible Church. We would rather snipe, and we have to find a way to frame it because we are uncomfortable. So somebody will come to me and say, "Someone has this issue." I will ask, "Have you gone to them?" They say, "I could never do that." Then you are done with it. The last thing you need to do is talk to all your friends, all the people in your small group, all the people on your worship team, all the people in your study, all the people in the office. No. It is destructive, and once it starts, you cannot stop it.
There is that well-known illustration of a young boy involved in all sorts of gossip and slander. His parents correct him and he asks, "What should I do?" They grab a pillow filled with feathers, slice it open, take it outside on a windy day, and throw those feathers into the air. They scatter everywhere. Then they say, "Now go pick up the feathers." He replies, "That's impossible." That is exactly how it goes once the tongue starts. You cannot undo it, and it is contagious.
Character Assassination
There is something in us that loves to rip and slash. We would never think about taking a gun and shooting someone or stabbing them. But we will commit character assassination just like that. I wrestle with how close to bring this home, and we are getting close.
I had somebody say to me this week, "I am going to change worship services." Now you are sitting there trying to figure out which service they attend and who they are — I am not going to say. But he said, "Everybody around me is complaining about how loud it is, how cold it is, how hot it is."
The Power of Words We Underestimate
Genuine encouragement never fails to help, no matter how influential, secure, or mature you are. Most of us need huge doses of encouragement as we slug it out through life. That conviction doesn't come naturally to me at all, and I have to work very hard at it. I don't always get it right, but I am conscious of it — which doesn't excuse anything. I simply ask you to be concerned about it in your own life.
Some of the hurt we cause with our words is deliberate, harsh, and intentional. But some of it we just don't realize — the pain we inflict with what we might even use as throwaway comments. I talked to someone this week who mentioned a passing comment somebody had made to him, and that person said it devastated them. I'll bet if I went to the one who said it, they would say they didn't really mean it that way. But we forget that.
Proverbs 18:21 reminds us again: "The power of life and death is in the tongue."
A Personal Example Close to Home
Susan and I were over in San Diego, walking down the beach in Carlsbad. There was this massive, really cool building that stretched across the street — a retirement center. I said, "I think God's called us to this. I think God wants us to come here and die rather than go somewhere else." As we walked and talked, reviewing life, we got onto the subject of encouragement and discouragement, and I mentioned a person. Remember, small minds talk about people. I said, "This person drives me nuts. They drive me absolutely crazy." She asked why, and I listed everything this person does. You know what she said? She said, "That's what you do." I said there was no way I did that. She said I did it all the time. Standing right there on the beach, I told her, "I will never do that again in my life." About a week later, I asked her how I was doing, and she said, "Better." That's the whole point about the tongue.
What the Text Actually Says
Is it unusual to control the tongue? Look at what James says in verse 6: "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. For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea is tamed and has been tamed by the human race, but no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil full of deadly poison."
Every species of reptile, beast, and bird. I watched a show on A&E one night that went behind the scenes of the making of a movie, and they were training spiders and crickets to be extras — to hop into a certain place at a certain time. Spiders and crickets. I also spoke with someone whose friend had just graduated from a Navy program where they were training dolphins. The trainer was matched with the dolphin, and if the dolphin didn't like the trainer, the trainer was gone — it was all about the dolphin. What they trained the dolphin to do was to dive and identify explosive materials. The dolphin would then surface and point to a board with six items on it: the first item indicated whether the device had been detonated, and the second indicated the kind of bomb it was. They were using this in Norway to locate remnants of World War II ordnance. Training crickets, training spiders, training dolphins — and yet no one can tame the tongue.
The Root of Tongue Control
One author writes that tongue control will never be achieved unless there is, first of all, heart and mind control. That is what James is ultimately talking about.
Years ago, I was invited out to North Scottsdale because Howie Hendricks was in town. Some of you know that name; probably most of you don't. He is a legend. He has been at Dallas Seminary for years. He is the preacher's preacher — the one who, years ago, just connected with everyone. So I went out to hear Howie.
A Word About Complaining
I also want to narrow something down. Someone told me that all they were hearing around them was complaining — that's all anybody was doing. Isn't that a sad thing? But that's how we do it, isn't it? That's what I heard when I came in this morning: "My gosh, it's cold." All last week I sat up here and watched it. We can't fully control the temperature of this building — we get it cold, we get it hot. What I want you to understand is that constant complaining is really, really destructive. It hurts people, you can't take it back, and it breeds a spirit that everyone around you picks up on.
My dad used to talk about East Valley Bible Church, and he always said two things: "I can't believe the amount of money that comes in, and I can't believe how happy the people are." That is a wonderful trait to have as a community characteristic — something everybody sees. I've never once received a note saying the temperature was perfect today, or that the music was the right volume with the right songs in the right mixture. But the spirit of a community is noticed, and it matters deeply.
This is really important, because what Paul tells us is to test ourselves, to examine ourselves. I always feel I have to offer disclaimers when I preach on something like this, and I hate doing it. But there is no specific precipitating event here. It is simply dealing with the text — a warning to you and to me equally.
No Relationship Can Withstand Constant Criticism
No marriage can withstand a constant barrage of criticism. Over the years I've expanded that to say no relationship can withstand a constant barrage of criticism — management and labor, neighbor to neighbor, brother to brother, brother and sister, husband and wife, parent and child. You start down that road, and pretty soon those kids are going to believe that they really are stupid and will never amount to anything.
I want to narrow it down, and then I'll speak autobiographically. I have a tendency, for whatever reason, to be much more polite in public than at home, and that has never made much sense to me — although as I talk to other men about it, it seems to be universal. We watch our tongue, even if it gets carried away in the workplace or in public; it still seems to be much worse at home. There is an old Mills Brothers song that goes like this — and I won't sing it: "You always hurt the one you love, the one you shouldn't hurt at all. You always break the kindest heart with a hasty word you can't recall. You always take the sweetest rose and then crush it till the petals fall." That is really beautiful imagery, and then — vintage man — "So if I broke your heart last night, it's because I love you most of all."
But we do that. And pretty soon you have to wonder what is in there that is coming out — what is this sick, dark, poisonous thing? What is it in you that loves the gossip, loves the slander, loves to talk about people rather than to people, feels compelled to get in the middle of everything and try to fix it or break it?
What Comes Out of the Mouth Reveals What Is Within
James makes the point in verse nine: "with it we bless our Lord and Father and with it we curse men that are made in the likeness of God. It comes forth from their mouth, both blessing and cursing." He says it should not be this way. You cannot take a fountain and get from it both fresh water and bitter water. You cannot take a fig tree and get olives, or a grapevine and get figs. If you say you are a follower of Christ, I ought to be able to hear it.
If you claim to be a religious giant and yet you go around sniping at people, criticizing people, gossiping about people, slandering people, then that religion you have is not worth much. What is in a man? Well, what comes out of him. And that whole process begins with a changed life, a transformed life, a different thought process.
Stonewall Jackson: A Tongue That Praised God
One of the men I love to read about is Stonewall Jackson. Jackson was a rugged man who was socially challenged and worked his way through a great deal of that. Like many men in the Civil War, especially on the Southern side, he was a strong man of faith, Calvinistic in his views. During the Mexican-American War, any man in the service wants to fight, but Jackson was sidelined — garrison duty, reconnaissance, keeping things together.
The author writing about him noted how Jackson occupied that time: he was busy visiting churches and writing letters to his sister. The author writes that God in His infinite wisdom would take care of Jackson, that God, his eternal Father, would look out for him. If the Lord intended for him to be in garrison duty, so be it.
Then the author offers this striking phrase: some youths worry about excessive carnal desires, sloth, and aimlessness — Jackson fretted, as he would later at a higher rank, about his rampant ambition. He kept it well hidden, as others do, throughout his life. There was something inside of him he wrestled with. And yet what came out from his tongue was not cursing of men, but praising of God.
He married a woman whose family included two pastors, and they loved to take shots at Jackson, especially because of his somewhat orthodox beliefs. So they would press him with questions. "What if you were blind? How would you feel about the love of God toward you then, Stonewall?" He said, "Such a misfortune would not make me doubt the love of God." They kept going. "What if you were placed in a position of pain for your whole life?" He said, "I would endure it and thank God for it." They could not stop. "What if you had to accept charity from those who had no claim on you? What if you were at the mercy of others? What if you were bedridden with pain for your entire life?" And he said, "If it is God's will, I think I could be content there for a hundred years."
The Power of the Tongue to Praise and Encourage
I recognize I have been focusing on what not to do — but what do we do with our tongue? We praise God. We encourage others. And the power of that is awesome. There are two young ladies in this church, Bonnie Cotier and Laura Ibsen. Every time I read what they write, every time I talk to them, there is a source of encouragement in them. Every time I hear their voice, every time I hear from others who have been with them, I am reminded of the power to encourage and the power to praise God. That is what James is saying.
Wisdom: The Source of What Comes Out
What we are really talking about is what is in a man — and what is in a man is wisdom. What does wisdom look like? What is the source of wisdom? How will I know wisdom when I see it? James chapter three, verses thirteen through eighteen address exactly that. I would encourage you to take those six verses and read them this week — grab a notebook or a scrap of paper, make some observations, and break it down. That is one of those passages I am very comfortable directing you to on your own. Draw a line down the middle of the page, and go after it.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank you for this day and this place. This is a passage of scripture and a topic that, for me and for all of us, is always a challenge. God, I pray that in these 30,000 words that we speak today, we would, first and foremost, praise You, that we would use our tongue to share the gospel and the truth, to be those who proclaim the truth in a lost world, that we would be a source of encouragement to others, that we would grasp this lesson that in this tongue lies the power of life and death. With it, we can do things that are destructive or constructive.
God, I pray that our hearts would be transformed and changed, and that it would be evidenced by the conversations that we have. As we begin to live this life, there will be those moments, those awkward moments when sin needs to be confronted, when things need to be viewed and repaired. God, give us the courage to, in love, go to the person.
Father, let us reverse what at least to me seems to be a trend in all of humanity. Let us start talking to people rather than about them. Father, we pray this to You here this morning, not in some flip way, not because it is that time of the week where we gather together and pray, but with the intention that You would take this Word and apply it to our heart. We would love You, therefore we would love Your people. We pray that in Jesus' name, Amen.