Tame Your Tongue
Notes
Transcript
Tooth Paste Tri-athalon
Tooth Paste Tri-athalon
Open with the toothpaste Tri-athalon- have two volunteers compete in a compition 1. Find the brown bag with the appropiate number. 2. empty the tooth paste onto the plate the fastest. 3. put the toothpaste back in the tube.
Our words are like the toothpaste once they are out there, we can't take them back.
Todays message Tame Your Tongue.
Read James 3:1-2
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.
James is adressing Christians everywhere. His letter was meant to give direction, give wisdom, and it is compared to the proverbs of the New Testament.
Pastor Keith one time said to me, "Jenn if you can do anything else, go and do it." There is a wisdom that comes from this statement. If the call of God is upon your life to teach or preach in this fashion, there is a unrest in any other profession, if this call isn't being fullfilled. The position of teacher is one with authority and influence and James says we will be judge more strict. He doesn't say by what measures he just says more strict.
He then goes on to say, Indeed we all make mistakes - he becomes once again inclusive of everyone. So it is not that the teacher has to live a holier life than anyone else, it is more so that we all need to live a holy life, we all make many mistakes. The Kingdom of God is filled with people who make mistakes but if we could control our tongues we would be perfect because we could also control every other area of our lives.
Read James 3:3-6
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.
James 3:3–6 (NLT)
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.
talk about being on the boat with Jerry and how he was able to steer the boat with the motor attached to the back. It was interesting, he had to toggle the motor a few times and push some buttons and pull some strings to get the motor to work, there was work that went into getting the motor started. In the same way there is work that must be done to get our tongues going in the right direction.
The power of the tongue is immense, to set your whole life on fire. Our words matter, if our tongue can sometimes get the better of us, in a negative way, it can cause conflicts, dis-unity and quarrels. We are warned of that else where in scripture but at the same time we have to know that there will be times when we stand on truth that it causes these things to happen.
Read James 3:7-12
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.
Out of our mouths can come blessings and curses. What is a blessing and what is a curse.
A blessing in the form of a speech act of praying for divine favor or protection; especially with the idea that even the audience (as well as the recipient) receives a benefit from the utterance.
A curse communicates information, for example about a person's religious status, but more importantly, it is a speech act, which means that it performs a funtion. For example, when a minister says to a couple, "I now pronounce you man and wife," they aren't just communicating something, they are changing the social status of the people before them. Similarly, a curse is a deed which requires an authoritative figure performing the deed and acceptance of this authority by those hearing it.
Although the term is not something we hear alot of in our Christian culture it is very much a part of us. In the beginning when God created and Adam and Eve sinned, then God cursed them because of their disobedience and then mankind is cursed with original sin at birth. Jesus in turn takes on this curse on himself to redeem mankind.
Read James 3:13-16
If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.
Did you catch that? Our jealousy and selfeshness are earthyly, unspiritual and demonic.
Read James 3:17-18
But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness.
I believe this right here is the secret to taming the tongue and spreading a holy fire, Living out these principals. I think this is the righteous harvest that James is speaking of. The more we emerse ourself in the things of God, his word, his work, his worship, his perspective the more pure our tongue becomes. The more seeds of peace loving
Willing to yeild to others, does not equal follow others, it means simply to yeild to their passing by.
What kind of seeds will you plant this week?