Part 7: True Faith Has Good Words

Introduction

Have you ever said something that you wish you could take back, but you’ve said it and it’s already out there? We call this “sticking your foot in your mouth.” I have done this too many times in my life. And I’m not going to give any examples.

We have to be careful with the words we say.

We’ve been talking about what true faith looks like. We continue with true faith has good words.

1. Warning: Words are Weighed (3:1)

James 3:1 NASB95

Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.

What James says here may seem a little out of place because he is talking about the tongue, and to be careful with our words. But if we think about it, this instruction here is directly connected to the tongue. The teacher’s ministry is all about the tongue. Teachers and tongues go hand in hand.

Teachers and Tongues

Teaching in the church is so important. Just the term “teach” is used 125 times in the NT. This does not even include other words and phrases that mean the same thing, like “feed the flock” or “feed the sheep.”

Over and over, the NT emphasizes that teaching is the primary activity in the local church. This is especially the primary responsibility of elders-pastors-ministers of the church.

In the letters that Paul writes to Timothy and Titus, he instructs the elders, Timothy, and Titus to teach and feed the flock of God no less than 18x.

Paul writes to them that elders are to “be able to teach” and “correct false teaching.”

E.g., Titus 1:9 an elder is to “[hold] fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.”

“The first duty of a shepherd is to feed the sheep. No food, no flock! The importance of feeding sheep is evidenced by the fact that sheep are nearly incapable of feeding and watering themselves sufficiently. Without a shepherd, sheep would quickly be without pasture and water and would soon waste away.” ~Alexander Strauch

[Strauch, Alexander. Biblical Eldership: Restoring the Eldership to Its Rightful Place in the Local Church (p. 35). Biblical Eldership Resources. Kindle Edition.]

Greater Judgment

“stricter” = lit. “great” (from megas) = “greater in size or importance or degree”

Judgment here is not the idea of the second coming of Christ, etc. It is not a reference to that judgment. Rather, judgment here means that teachers will be “more scrutinized by the Lord more carefully” (Moo). Teachers of the church--and leadership is in view here--have a very important, serious task: to convey the truths of God in his Word accurately and correctly.

Douglas Moo in his commentary:

“Teachers, because their ministry involves speech, the hardest of all parts of the body to control, expose themselves to greater danger of judgment. Their constant use of the tongue means they can sin very easily, leading others astray at the same time.” ~Douglas Moo

The most important responsibility and the primary duty of the leadership of the church is to teach--feed the flock.

Application

This is why the elders and ministers of this church make the study of God’s Word the most important among the things we do; this is why we emphasize it so much.

The leadership pours hours/wk into preparing messages, Sunday school lessons, and Wed Bible studies and much more.

The leadership pours their entire selves--heart, soul, mind, and body--into the preparation of all their teaching and preaching. We are held accountable to Almighty God and Christ our Savior for what we teach, and he scrutinizes what we say, and we want to get it right as best as we can.

we do it so the flock of Jesus Christ will be fed, and hopefully, their hearts and minds will be changed, molded, and shaped into the image of Christ and empowered to live for Christ.

There are preachers and elders in this world who will not teach and feed the flock of God. They refuse to do it in many cases. They are afraid of what people will say; they are afraid of losing members; they tire of fighting the sheep over what they want vs. what Jesus wants; they give in to teaching pop psychology to make people feel better in the pews; they teach the same thing week in and week out about how Jesus is going to give you your best life now (using Joel Osteen as their model)

I do not say these things to boast or from a stance of pride. I say these things to let you know, “Not these elders and not these ministers at this church!”

All the leadership here want to be able to echo what Paul said to the Ephesian elders in Acts 20:27 “For [we] did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God.”

A teacher is in constant use of his tongue, and he must be on guard with his words:

2. Words are Small but Mighty (3:2-5a)

James 3:2–5 NASB95

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 into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. Look at 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, and yet it boasts of great things.

James teaches us here that controlling the tongue is one of the most--if not the most--difficult things to do. In fact, it is so difficult that he maintains that if you can bridal your tongue, then you can also tame all the sinful passions of your body.

Bridal the Tongue; Bridal the Body

“If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.”

The tongue, being so small, has so much power. James will elaborate on this shortly. But first he compares the tongue with:

Horses and Ships

Slide illustration of a horse’s bit

The tongue is like a bit one puts into a horse’s mouth. The bit is meant to control the behavior and direction of the horse. It’s used to control the entire horse. Where the bit tugs the horse goes. The bit is so small but has so much power.

Slide illustration of a rudder

James then says think of a ship. How does one control its direction? It is also controlled by something very small: a rudder. But as small as it is, it can turn an entire ship around and change its direction.

What’s the point? Just as a horse and ship are entirely controlled by something very small, so are our lives. Our words set the direction of our lives and even others.

Jam 3:5a: “So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things.”

Application

Have you ever considered that your words have tremendous affect on your life as well as others?

TobyMac, “Speak Life”: “We can turn a heart through the words we say; Mountains crumble with every syllable; Hope can live or die.”

Have you ever considered that what you say reflects whether you have true faith in Christ?

Unbelievers do. I have heard and read many, many stories of people (including pastors) who have given up their faith in Christ because of how people of the church have hurt them with their words. They have ridiculed them, gossiped about them, yelled at them, were critical of them, made comments about what they wear or what they look like, what they eat, what they drink, what politician they support, the list goes on and on.

True faith in Christ has good words. We are to control our tongues. Why? Because:

3. Words Set a Life on Fire (3:5b-6)

James 3:5–6 NASB95

See 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.

Have you ever heard the song “It Only Takes a Spark?”

“It only takes a spark to get a fire going, and soon all those around can warm up in its glowing. That's how it is with God's love; once you've experienced it, you spread His love to everyone; you want to pass it on.”

It Only Takes a Spark . . .

The opposite is just as true: it only takes one little, critical word (just a small spark) to get a raging fire going in a person’s life that will destroy, or help destroy, him. The little, critical word does not even have been said in an angry voice or sarcastic tone. It can just be what you are saying.

Examples:

“I really enjoyed your play at school last weekend. I wasn’t going to come because all your other performances have been horrible. So, good job last weekend!”

“Wow, you look beautiful tonight. Last night there was just something missing from your vibe/aura.”

Illustration of Reader’s Digest (2023)

Five African grey parrots were on display at the Lincolnshire Wildlife Center in the U.K. A problem developed when every single one of them began cursing at everyone who passed by. For the sake of children, the zoo decided it was best to put the birds in separate enclosures until they can behave.

I’m sure the parrots learned the words from the employees or others who visited the center. And knowing parrots, I’m sure they were cussing in just a matter-of-fact way. They weren’t being mean or yelling. But the words still had an effect. I’m sure some children heard the parrots and probably began to mimic them at home.

It only takes a spark . . . and all hell fire can rage.

For Hell Fire to Rage

James 3:6 “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.”

The tongue, our words:

(1) are a WORLD of SIN

(2) Defiles the ENTIRE body

(3) Sets on fire the course of our LIFE (others, esp)

(4) Set on fire by HELL

Application

“Well, that’s just the way that I am. I speak plainly and straight-forwardly. I speak it like it is.”

Yeah, and that’s the problem, says James. And his point is actually much stronger than this: you do not have true faith if that’s just how you are. Remember: faith without works is dead, faith without controlling your anger is dead; faith without good words is dead.

“You need to just ‘man up’ and quit being a wimp.”

If you will not hear James, then hear Jesus:

Matthew 12:33–37 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil. But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

If we speak hurtful words, it is an indication of a bad heart.

4. Words Are Difficult to Tame (3:7-10a)

James 3:7–10 NASB95

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 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.

Tame an Animal, but You Can’t Tame the Tongue

Mankind has tamed all sorts of animals: dogs, cats, dolphins, monkeys, etc. Have you ever tried to tame an animal? This is quite different than training an animal. Training is teaching a dog to sit, etc. This can be difficult. But what about taming? Taming is taking an animal from the wild and domesticating it. This is difficult.

And James tells us that we can tame animals, as difficult as it may be, but no one can tame the tongue.

One minute we are encouraging someone and building him up, and the next we are cursing him.

Cursing God and Cursing His Image

James says, “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.”

When we curse others, we need to be aware that we are not merely cursing the person our words are aimed at. We are cursing God. Why? Because mankind is made in God’s image. Remember Jesus’ words about giving someone else a drink: “when you did it to the least of these, you did it to me.” The same is true for our speech.

Application

Too many times we meet with the church and worship God, and then we leave and curse others. We open our Bibles and study them, and the next moment we are gossiping. One minute we’re praying, and the next we are slandering or criticizing someone.

Take a moment to consider something here: it is sometimes claimed that Scripture nowhere says we ought to avoid using swear words. In fact, some preachers anymore cuss from the pulpit in their sermons.

Well, here we are. Words that are used to hurt someone else are exactly what James is talking about. Cuss words do exactly this. They are mostly intended to tear people down.

Not only this, but Paul reminds us in Ephesians 4:29 “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.”

“unwholesome” = rotten, putrid, diseased

Our words cannot be tamed. So what can we do? If we cannot tame it, what’s the use in trying?

If we take this approach, we might as well say, “Let’s continue on sinning because we’re under grace.” But we know the response to such an idea, don’t we? May it never be!

By the grace and mercy of God, we can tame the tongue--we can have good words.

Moo:

The Letter of James A. Control of the Tongue Manifests the Transformed Heart (3:1–12)

James does, indeed, suggest that the ultimate taming of the tongue is impossible. Should this lead us to abandon all efforts to bring our speech under control? Of course not. The realization that perfection in something is unattainable should not dampen in the least our enthusiasm to become as good at it as possible. We may never reach the point where the tongue is perfectly controlled; but we can surely advance a long way in using our speech to glorify God.

Jesus wants to make us better, to be more like him--to love others better with our words. This is one reason for salvation: he has made us a new creation so that we can walk in his ways by the power of the Holy Spirit.

God prophesied about giving His Spirit to us and why he would do so:

Ezekiel 36:26–27 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”

5. True Faith has Good Words (3:10b-12)

James 3:10–12 NASB95

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? Nor can salt water produce fresh.

Fresh vs. Bitter

What James says here about our mouths spewing both fresh and bitter words reminds us of Jesus’ teaching about the mouth:

Matthew 15:11 “It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man. . . . Matthew 15:17–20 Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated? But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders. These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man.”

The heart that has been transformed by grace ought to lead to words transformed by grace.

True Faith Cannot Continue to Produce Bad Words

James just puts it right on the line: “My brethren, these things ought not to be this way.”

Application

So, we have to ask ourselves: what are we going to do to correct our words? If we have a genuine faith in Jesus, then we must rely upon the Holy Spirit to help us to have good words.