Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the
church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly. Indeed, we all make many
mistakes. For if we could control our
tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other
way. We can make a large horse go
wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth. And a small rudder makes a
huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are
strong. In the
same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on
fire. And among
all the parts of the body, the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting
your entire body. It can set your whole
life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself. People can tame all kinds of animals, birds,
reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly
poison. Sometimes
it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been
made in the image of God. And
so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not
right! Does a
spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? Does a fig tree produce
olives, or a grapevine produce figs? No,
and you can’t draw fresh water from a salty spring. James 3:1-12(NLT)
The power
of words…
The tongue
can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences. Proverbs 18:21a(NLT)
Scott
Pruitt was the EPA Administrator who resigned last week under increasing
pressure from national scrutiny over his actions; in his resignation letter to
the president he referenced the power of words:
…the unrelenting attacks on me personally, my family,
are unprecedented and have taken a sizable toll on all of us.[2]
The
Apostle James called the tongue a raging fire, totally unable to be tamed.
James
tells us the tongue is like the rudder on a big ship, or a bit in the horse’s
mouth. It is a small thing, behind the
scenes, yet the most powerful muscle in the body. It should be used for the highest of
purposes! Here are several ways a
Christian ought to govern his or her words:
George
Lucas is Star Wars’ creator. He was
given a lifetime achievement trophy at the Academy Award ceremonies in
1992. In accepting he said, I've
always tried to be aware of what I say in my films because all of us who make
motion pictures are teachers, teachers with very loud voices.[3] We are all
teachers, and we are teaching all the time.
Jesus said
you shall
be my witnesses (Acts 1.8). When I
attended New York Institute of Technology, I had a creative writing teacher who
encouraged me greatly. I turned in a bad
essay. It was a really bad essay, full
of big words to impress my teacher. It
was poorly conceived, badly composed, and grammatically a stench in the
nostrils of all my English teachers combined.
She handed it back to me without a grade. What she did say was: How
about choosing a subject about which you know something? Write it plain, so I’ll understand it.
My teacher
wasn’t interested in my vast vocabulary – she wanted to help me grow as a
writer. So, I went back to the drawing
board. I turned in a story about our
church youth camping trip. It was ok –
even a bit sappy. But her words, written
in red on that paper are forever an encouragement to me:
Russell
– this is more like it! This is good –
you should really do something with your writing – submit it to a publisher.
I don’t
know how I ever got the courage to submit anything to a publisher – but the
mere fact that I ever did is attributable to a teacher whose name I can’t even
remember. Her words taught me to try.
As in
teaching, leading is always happening too.
Leading, good or bad, is a matter of the example we set by our response
to the world around us. Gossip is one of
those responses to our world around us that the world could do without. We can begin to put an end to that by not
showing an interest in gossip.
The moral:
you can abort gossip bound conversations
by quickly affirming the person targeted by negative comments. Want to know what to say when someone starts
to tell you gossip:
I don't want to hear it; I don't even believe what
they're saying about you.
We have
been led with words.
· Consider Patrick Henry's resounding: Give me liberty or give me death.
· Who can forget JFK's inaugural speech and the words: Ask not what your country can do for you.
Ask what you can do for your country.
· I have a dream; Martin
Luther King Jr.'s stirring words from the Washington D.C. Plaza mobilized the
black community three decades ago, and still ring in our ears.
Words such
as those changed the course of history. They challenged our very souls and
spirits and as a result our country and we will never be the same.
Words can
do the same for people and their perception of themselves. They can be used for
good. They can be used to inspire, lift-up, motivate, instruct, and empathize.[4]
Finish
this statement with me – Sticks and stones may break my bones, but….
You and I
know that is not true. There are people
in this room right now that can tell you in a moment the hurt they have
received in their lifetime – from words either carefully aimed to wound, or
words carelessly dropped that stung just as badly.
A child
has a fragile makeup emotionally. Our words
or temper out of control for just an instant can deliver a blow that will cause
a lifetime of punctured dreams and hopes.
We, with our words, can drive someone down a pathway of doubt and
second-guessing.
On the
other hand, we can speak words of kindness.
Every wedding I do, I suggest the bride and groom speak the words of
kindness from Ruth as they light the unity candle. It is the only way to start a marriage –
committing to kindness.
In an old
PEANUTS cartoon, Peppermint Patty phones Charlie Brown and says: "Marcie
and I are about to leave for camp, Chuck. We're going to be swimming
instructors." Marcie takes the phone and adds: "We just called to say
good-bye, Charles. We are going to miss you. We love you."
Charlie
Brown's little sister, Sally, asks, "Who was that?" Standing there by
the phone with an ear-splitting grin of satisfaction on his face, Charlie Brown
answers, "I think it was a right number." Right numbers heal!
Jesus said
we’d be His witnesses. We sang the hymn,
Wonderful
Words of Life. Were you
listening while you sang?
Sweetly echo the gospel call, Wonderful words of life;
Offer pardon and peace to all, Wonderful words of
life;[5]
When you
go to the doctor, often he will ask you to stick out your tongue to examine
it. He can tell a lot about what’s going
on inside you just by looking at your tongue.
The Great Physician can also tell if there is a revival or a riot going
on by your words.
Selwyn
Hughes is the author of Everyday Walk with Jesus. In an interview he told about his
grandfather.
In 1904 Wales had a great Holy Spirit revival when a
hundred thousand people were converted in six months without any preaching,
just God coming down, touching peoples' lives.
The miners underground would suddenly stop working and cry out to God to
become converted. In schools youth and children
would have their heads on the desk weeping, and the teacher, often a Christian,
would pray with them, leading them to Christ.
Such was the impact of this movement of the Holy
Spirit, this awesome flood of God that was going through Wales, that many of
the drinking saloons, the public houses closed down….
One of the men who was converted in that revival was
my grandfather. He was a miner. His job was leading the horses that pulled
the tubs of coal from the mine.
My grandfather was a blasphemer and had a filthy
tongue. The way he used to train his
horses was by swearing at them. Then he
got converted, and for days the horses didn't know what to do because he
wouldn't swear at them. They had to
learn a new language. So even the horses
knew there was a revival going on because the change was so dramatic.
My grandfather then led my mother to Christ. My mother led my father to Christ. My father led me to Christ. So I see myself as a product of that revival.[6]
So, this
morning, let’s conduct a tongue checkup.
n Are your words teaching valuable character?
n Are your words leading in positive pathways?
n Are your words healing?
n Are your words being used by the Holy Spirit in
saving?
If your
answers do not satisfy you, here’s how to change:
And now, dear
brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and
honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things
that are excellent and worthy of praise. Philippians 4:8(NLT)
The tongue
is your most powerful muscle. To have it
under control this way is to follow Jesus.
May it be so with you. In the
name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; Let the church say “Amen”!
[2] Scott Pruitt’s full
resignation letter to President Trump, Fox
News
[3]
Quoted by Edwin A. Roberts, Jr., in the Tampa Tribune, April 5, 1992. Christianity Today, Vol. 36, no. 8
[4] Rev. Billy D. Strayhorn In a
sermon, Sticks And Stones, SermonCentral.com
[5]
Words and tune WORDS OF LIFE, Philip
P. Bliss, 1874.
[6]
From an interview with Selwyn Hughes, author of Everyday Walk with Jesus Growing Churches, Spring 2001, p.12
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