Taming the Tongue

IIT UBF - University Bible Fellowship at IIT

Taming the Tongue

Date: Sep. 20, 2022

Passage

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.

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Daily Bread

Key Verse: 3:9

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

Being a Bible teacher is difficult! Bible teachers are held to a higher standard by God than those who are not Bible teachers. This is because we have a great responsibility to use our tongues wisely. It’s a difficult thing to do! The tongue is a very small muscle, but it is a very powerful one. As a small bit in a horse, or a small rudder on a large ship can control the direction of the horse or ship, the tongue has power to move a person’s life in one direction or another. Used wrongly, our tongues can corrupt the whole body. As important as it is to tame our tongues, no one can do it all alone.

The tongue is a restless evil. It is also like a fire that can set the whole course of one’s life on fire. It is also true that our tongues can be used for beautiful things. With our tongues we praise God and we sing hymns of praise to him. But with it, we also curse others. This cannot be! Just as both fresh water and salt water cannot flow from the same stream, we cannot praise God and curse our brother with the same tongue. Our tongues should be used to praise God and to build up our brothers and sisters.

Prayer: Prayer: Father, it is so hard to control my tongue! Have mercy on me and help me to use it only for the praise of you and the building up of others.

One Word: One Word: Tame your tongue!

A Satanic Threat

2 Kings 18:17-37

Key Verse: 18:36

But the people were silent and answered him not a word, for the king’s command was, “Do not answer him.”

Today's Question

What benefits do those who are effectively called share in this life?

See answer and references