Taming the Tongue

James 3:1-12

3:1 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.


Why do we worry what others think of us? What do we worry what they say behind our backs? My guess is that we worry so much about what others say and think of us because we know our own deeds behind closed doors. We know our dark secrets and sins, and we are afraid that others do the same. What if we focused on building people up instead of tearing them down? My guess is that we would be less paranoid and worried with our own fears if we instead lived differently.


James offers instructions for us and reminders from the natural world to emphasize the importance of taming the tongue. You know, perhaps for Christians, we should remember the wise wisdom passed down through the ages, "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." If we lived in a way that built people up, perhaps we would see that others are building us up. Rather than thinking that others are talking behind our back, because we are doing the same thing, we can live a life that reflects a better way of living.


Taming the tongue does not end with us not talking about others, it begins with looking at the positive of life. It helps us to focus on the positive in life. We want to surround ourselves with positive thinking people. Other people will want to be around us. Not only the way we look at the world, but the way we live in the world reflects the life we live in secret. Taming the tongue is so much more than what we say. It is how we live.


Prayer: God, as I try to be better, let em receive the grace you give to follow you. Amen.


G. Thomas Martin