Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me….Huh?
God created mankind with such wonders and intricacies that His handiwork cannot be traced nor credited to a Big Bang Theory; nor to the work of a human man. The tongue is a fleshy, movable, muscular organ, attached in most vertebrates to the floor of the mouth. It is the principal organ of taste, an aid in chewing and swallowing, and, in humans, an important organ of speech. It has a powerful role in the survival of mankind and without it the body is handicap.
In James Chapter 3:1-12, we are reminded of the “power of the tongue” and in case you didn’t know…words that are not seasoned with grace do hurt. The Lord does not approve of us using our tongues to sin by cursing, swearing, lying, deceiving, committing abominable acts (i.e., sexually), nor tearing ourselves and others down with the words we speak; nor does He approve of us using our tongue to speak blasphemy and hypocrisy.
One of the first issues that James addresses concerning the tongue is the issue of desiring to be teachers of God’s Word. He warns us (believers) that the very words we preach and teach as ministers of God must be backed up and matched by our lifestyle and if not, we are in danger of a stricter judgment for being hypocrites and disobeying God’s Word. Being a teacher myself, I have pondered this very passage over the years and contemplated (at least once) abandoning the call on my life to teach when I felt like I was not living it in the same manner or degree to which I was teaching. It’s time for us (me included) to start getting into the word of God more consistently and intently and to examine ourselves in light of the scriptures. We can’t fake it until we make it, we must be authentic, genuine, sincere, consistent, and committed.
The strength to control our tongue definitely comes from the Lord. We can’t do it without Him and until we realize this we will always walk in darkness and error. To keep our tongue is less about being a good little Christian but more importantly about the Holy Spirit working in us, giving us the power to exercise self-control. We must also recognize that He gives us all freewill and there is a part that we have in this process. James also recognized that as we strive for perfection and completeness in Christ, we will or may stumble in our words. Clearly there is a difference between intent to do harm with words vs. stumbling and misstating words. He further states [my paraphrase] that if we are able to exercise power over the tongue we have power and self-control over other areas of our life as well. Don’t you want that?
He uses examples of the small bit in the horses’ mouth and the small rudder of a ship in contrast to the tongue another small part of the body; making the distinction that this little organ can’t be tamed as the others. The tongue boasts a great amount of things that it’s not able to live up to nor justify in measure and stature. King David speaks in Psalm 12 of man’s treachery and how man speaks idly concerning foolish things. When the tongue has the feet of sin, it speaks with contradiction and reveals the very intent of the heart and mind. That is why King Solomon says in Proverbs 4:23 that we must keep our hearts with all diligence lest it springs forth the issues of our life. God is the contrast to foolish and sinful speaking and everything He says is pure, validated and outlasts everything else.
The power of the tongue as James continues to say in verses 6 through 12, is so great that it is like fire which can consume, devour, and/or refine, and it produces either the righteousness of God or unrighteousness; which is sin. It cannot produce both and if we are coasting along or riding the fence in between both we must make a choice and make that choice now.
We must be delivered from the controlling power of our tongue. It is not appropriate to “tell it like it is”, “nor to speak as loose cannons” and then turn around and ask for forgiveness, rather, we must seek the LORD on what we should and should not say in order to remain in right standing with Him. We must remember that if we consider ourselves to be “brethren” or “Saints of God” we must act and live completely set apart from the culture and mind of the world and gain control of our tongue. We must depend upon Him to guide us and answer our prayers all the while submitting fully to Him.
Finally, we must consider and pray as stated in Psalm 141:3-4 (KJV):
Set a guard, O LORD over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips; Do not incline my heart to any evil thing, To practice wicked works; With men who do iniquity; And do not let me eat of their delicacies
Muzzle your mouth, because others are intently listening and looking for an occasion to prove your life to be less than holy. God must get the glory!