Speaking Hope

This past week, me and some other ministry leaders from the area went around to some of our downtown businesses and local government agencies and had the opportunity to pray with them. This was a blessing to do so and it really brightened their day to have someone just walk in, not offer to sell them anything, but to just pray for them.

There is so much power in our actions but also in our words. In the past, I have used the illustration that our tongues can either be a pocket knife or a paint brush. You can use it to cut someone with or use it to paint a beautiful picture. But I read this week that our mouths are often like a bow and arrow. See, with a knife, I have to get up close and personal with you. But with a bow and arrow, I can hurt you from a distance. Words don’t have to be up close and personal to hurt.

Power in our words.

God has given us both the ability and the responsibility to give hope through our words. Words matter. I believe that whole heartedly. That is why I have my sermon completely written out. It is because I know myself well enough to know I don’t need to come up here and not know what I am going to say because then I will be sticking my foot in my mouth.

I can remember when Peighton was younger that we would try to get her to understand how important it is to not say things we shouldn’t say. And we would use the idea of a tube of toothpaste with her. Words are like toothpaste. Once it gets out of the tube, you aren’t able to put it back in. The same with words. You cannot take back words once they are out there.

Words are so important that God has given us a book full of them to read so that we can know him.

So let’s take his word and open it up and let him speak to us this morning.

James 3:1–12 ESV

1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. 4 Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, 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 things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.

Prayer

The sort of theme that I have given us with the book of James is Hope in Action. Putting to action the hope that we have received in Jesus Christ. I get this idea from James 1:22 “22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”

This is the central theme of James. Now, what James does is he takes that and applies it to different aspects of our lives. Our text today deals with our speech, our tongues.

As Christians, we must have control of our speech

This should be a defining characteristic of a follower of Christ. People who know your confession should be assured that it is a true confession because of the words and the language and the love that flow from your lips.

Scripture has so much to say about our speech and it has to do with having positive speech and with us controlling what we say.

We can all think to people in our lives, and I pray that this isn’t you. But think about the most miserable person you know. Don’t look at the person next to you while you do this. But think about how they talk. Are they positive about their situations? Are they positive about themselves?

This isn’t a name it and claim it prosperity gospel thing I am talking about. This is what Jesus was talking about when he said that from the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. Your mouth is a mirror to your soul. If what comes out is nothing but nastiness, it is because that is what is in your spirit.

Scripture puts such an emphasis on the power of speech for this very reason.

Proverbs 10:19 “19 When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.”

Psalm 141:3 “3 Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips!”

Proverbs 18:21 “21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.”

Matthew 15:11 “11 it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.””

Matthew 12:36–37 “36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.””

If words were not so important, why are they talked about so much?

Words are powerful. They are so powerful, that when God created the world, he didn’t pick up a shovel and a hammer. No! He used words. Words are spiritual, words are eternal. John 1:1 “1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

So when we want to understand the power of words, we go to the word.

As Christians, we should have control of our speech. Why should we have control of our speech? I want to take what James says and point out 3 reasons why we should control our speech.

Our Speech Moves People

Entire nations have moved because of words. Empires have risen and fallen because of words. There are moments in times where we can hear the words that were spoken years later.

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself” - Franklin Roosevelt

“Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall” - Ronald Reagan

"I can hear you! The rest of the world hears you! And the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon!" - George W. Bush at the world trade center site

Our speech can absolutely move people. And it isn’t just former American presidents who can do it. When Jesus was calling his 12 disciples, he didn’t use some sort of bribery or healing or miracle to get them to follow. He used words. He told Peter in Matthew 4:19 “19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.””

I pray that the words that I use in delivering this sermon today will move you all to grow in your hope and deepen your desire to see others come to know that same hope.

James starts off this section with…

James 3:1 ESV

1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.

It is this very verse that makes me nervous each and every week to stand before you and bring God’s word. Because I know that one day, I will stand in judgment for the words that I have said.

James tells us that the teachers, in context the teachers of God’s word, will be judged with a greater strictness. In the early church, people who wanted power would try to get into positions of teaching because they were held in such high regard. This is a very direct warning to not go into teaching God’s word for the wrong reasons.

For us today, this is why we should be careful who we trust to teach God’s word. We should protect our pulpits and our classrooms. In the grand scheme of the church, more harm is done to the church by false teachers than ever will be by any worldly forces.

James 3:2 ESV

2 For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body.

Teachers will be judged on a stricter level, but we all stumble. Amen. Praise God for his grace when I am wrong or say something I shouldn’t say.

If you never stumble in what you say, you are perfect. Now, I know that none of us would never claim to be perfect but I know some people that might would claim that they have never said anything wrong. This is what you would call hyperbole. James is using an extreme and unrealistic illustration here to make the point that no one is perfect. No one is able to be perfect in their speech except for Jesus.

Then he gives us a couple of examples. I said last week that I love when the biblical writers gave us built in illustrations because I struggle at them already. So James gives us some wonderful examples.

James 3:3 ESV

3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well.

Admittedly, I am not a horse person. I can remember this one time that someone tried to get me on one and my feet wouldn’t fit in the stirrups so that was it for me. But for a horse, the main thing you want when you are riding one is control. To get this control, you put in it’s mouth what is called a bit. They aren’t extremely big instruments. You have what you call the bridle that holds the bits in place and then, your reigns are attached to the bridle.

Horses are not small animals but are able to be controlled by this very small instrument. What is amazing is that a child could climb onto the back of a 1,000 pound horse and with the lightest pull of the reign, control the direction of the horse. That large horse will obey.

He gives another great example.

James 3:4 ESV

4 Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs.

I have a lot more experience on a boat than I do a horse. But I am pretty sure that James was not talking about a bass boat on Lake Tillery with an 80 hp outboard motor. No, James would be imagining these large ships in his time that were probably larger than most of the fishing vessels they would have been used to. Maybe the ones that the Roman merchants would have been using that were around 100 ft long. They wouldn’t have had these massive steering systems. But would have had these small rudders to steer the ship. And the ship, by the way of these rudders would have went wherever the pilot wanted it to.

These illustrations are to point us to the fact that an extremely small instrument can make a big impact. Your mouth, your tongue makes such an impact wherever you go. Let us make sure that we are using it for the edification of others and the building up of the kingdom of God.

The next reason that we should have control of our speech is…

Our Speech has the Potential to Poison

The biggest lie that we ever were taught as kids was “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me”. What a lie.

Words hurt. They can bring healing or they could bring hurting. They can construct or they can destruct. I think of doing a home renovation. There are particular tools that you need for particular projects. But some tools have multiple uses. You give me a framing hammer and I can build a wall. If I plan to tear a wall out, one of the tools I am going to grab also happens to be a framing hammer. So the same instrument inside of our mouth, our tongue, can both prop up and it has the potential to poison.

James 3:5–8 ESV

5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

The tongue is a fire. This relationship between a tongue and fire and taming an animal is awesome. I have 2 dogs. I am fond of my dogs. They listen to me moderately. I have never tried to give them any formal training. But I know people who have done that. What is amazing to me is when people train these wild animals. You go to the circus and they have monkeys and elephants and giraffes and the trainer can get them to do whatever he wants them to do. If you take enough time, you can train an animal to do whatever you want it to do.

On the opposite side, think about fire. We have been in a severe drought lately. So much so that we had a burn ban for some time. If I were to take my lighter and start a fire, and a decent little wind come up, the potential that it will have for mass chaos and utter destruction is enormous. It doesn’t take much and it doesn’t take long.

I want to take all of that and focus in on verse 8 for a minute. No human can tame the tongue. What a great truth that is. I can attest as a dad to a teenage daughter that I may be able to control my tongue at times, but there are times when a teenage tongue has a mind of its own. That loose tongue is like a fire and it spreads rapidly.

So if we are to tame our tongue, and then James says that no one can tame their tongue, then is James trying to confuse us? What is he trying to tell us.

There is what we call progressive sanctification. Maybe you don’t know what that means. Progressive sanctification is the process of us becoming like more and more like Jesus over the course of our entire life. If you have been a Christian long enough, you know that there are things that you used to deal with or struggle with that now you don’t. And then what happens is more things pop up because we are all sinful and will be until we die.

This is applicable to our speech but it is also applicable to all areas of our life. If you claim to be a Christian, then it is part of you that you want to be more and more like Jesus. Your entire being, your entire life should desire to be like Jesus.

As a home for hope for all, one thing we have to understand though is that this will look different in everyones life. For some, the biggest hurdle they will have to face to be more like Jesus will look like a speed bump to others. When we have someone come here who is in the throws of addiction, who is alienated from society, who hasn’t held down a job in years, who possibly struggles to comprehend some of the most basic bible passages we can imagine, then we need to understand that next Sunday, when they come back, we don’t need to expect them to have their entire lives put together.

It is progressive. But being progressive means that we are always moving forward.

What are some ways to know we are doing this.

Be at church regularly. I am not going to win some sort of award for us having some sort of attendance measure. But I know that the most important church service for you is not going to be the one that you missed when you went to the ball field or golf course or attended bedside baptist instead. We must be committed to gathering together as a means of growing spiritually.

Be in God’s word regularly. When I say regularly, I don’t mean only on Sunday mornings at church. The Institute for Biblical Research put out a study recently that showed that 1-3 days of bible reading a week show the same effect on your life than someone who never does. But when you go 4 or more days a week of regular bible reading…

228% more likely to share faith

407% more likely to memorize scripture

59% less likely to view pornography

30% struggle less with loneliness

50% struggle less with anxiety

That threshold where you spend more days in God’s word than you don’t is important. Be disciplined in this to be sanctified by God’s word.

3. Be in fellowship regularly. I am not talking about you coming to church and sitting in a pew with people around you. I have covered that and we know that is important but that isn’t what I am talking about. I am talking about having those people in your life that will challenge you. That will hold you accountable and push you to be more like Jesus.

This is what is means to grow. This is what it will take to be able to tame a tongue or whatever else you are dealing with. If you want to be a body builder, you go to the gym, not Mcdonalds.

Be careful of our words. Make sure that we are being changed by the Holy Spirit to become more and more like Jesus because our speech has the potential to poison.

Our Speech Proves our Profession

One of the greatest tests of our witness is what others hear come from our mouth. I would say that just as much as actions proving our faith, our words prove our faith. I can say that I follow Christ, but when the words that flow from my mouth say something different, then is it actually true?

Our Christian profession is null and void when we are constantly hateful and negative in our speech, when we are habitual complainers, when the words that we say would make a sailor blush, when how we speak to others is the exact opposite of how Jesus would speak to them.

Our speech will prove our profession.

James 3:9 ESV

9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God.

The biggest stain on your witness is talking out of both sides of your mouth. Praising God with the same mouth that you cuss out someone else. If you do this and then invite people to church with you, you might have the answer as to why they aren’t coming.

These people are just like you. They are image bearers of God. You should never curse them. Not only is our language important but the delivery is as well. We have all lived in the south long enough to know that you can use righteous language to degrade someone.

“Bless your heart” = you sure aint the brightest crayon in the box

Be careful what you say to others because they bear the image of God just as you do.

James 3:10–12 ESV

10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.

If something is designed for a reason, you should never get out of it what it was not designed for.

I can’t remember where I was working or who said it but I can remember an older man once told me that just because it works, doesn’t make it right. Just because something can do one thing doesn’t mean that is what it was designed for.

Your mouth, your entire being was created for God’s glory. Just because cursing can come from it doesn’t mean that it should. We should expect from something what it was designed for.

Let’s say I am into hiking(very hypothetical), and a group of the men from the church here wanted to go on a hiking trip. We get several hours into the hike and my canteen of water just happens to end up empty. But one of the guys knows the trail and he knows that just up ahead, there is a natural spring. Praise the Lord. So we get there and I fill up my canteen and take me a big ole swig of fresh spring water just to find out that it is salt water.

Now, something is wrong if this happens. That fresh spring was not designed for nor purposed by it’s creator to produce salt water. But yet it does. At that moment of me drinking salt water from this spring, do you think I will ever trust the water from it again?

Our lives are a witness to the work of God. Our purpose here on earth is to build the kingdom and impact our community. We collectively do this at Immanuel together by being a home for hope for all. If we come in on Sundays and worship God and sing praises and raise our voices to him and then go out from these doors and the switch flips and we started yelling and cussing at others, talking down to them, treating them like they are the gum on the bottom of our shoes, our witness is gone and will not be trusted.

Our speech is so important in the life of a Christian because it continues to prove to others that our profession is a legitimate one.

Why is it so important for us to have control over our speech, our words? Most of all, Matthew 12:34 “34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”

Conclusion

I want to challenge you today to take this week and control your tongue as much as possible. If a negative thought comes up, don’t let it come out. If curse words come up, don’t let them fly. But it isn’t about being completely silent. God has given us this amazing gift of words that we can use for him. So take the opportunity to use your speech to magnify his name. Share with others what God has been doing with you. Go to work tomorrow and tell them about the sermon and about church.

God has given us an opportunity to use this instrument for good. Let us use it to bring others into this home for hope for all that God has brought us to be apart of.