Tame Your Tongue

"Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 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. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. 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. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things."  - James 3:1-5


Every Christian wishes they could stop sinning; wishes their life wasn't cluttered with imperfections and mistakes. Unfortunately, we Christians should expect that life for us is going to remain sinful. Though, through the power and sanctification God offers, our sin nature will be lessened, it will not go away in this lifetime. However, in this passage, James tells us how we can tame our sinful nature; how we can began to put an end to the evil thoughts and actions that rule many of our lives. The key, James says, is taming the tongue. 

James starts this passage by pointing out that not many people should be teachers of the gospel because we all stumble in many ways. The main problem being that teachers are leaders, leaders are looked up to, and if a leader is not able to control his mouth, neither will his followers, bringing greater judgement upon himself. Though we all stumble in many ways, James says the source of all stumbling comes from not being able to bridle the tongue. Evil thoughts are indeed a sin, but if we learn to not talk about those evil thoughts, its amazing how easily those evil thoughts go away. If I am angry with my brother but choose not to express it with my mouth, the anger fades immediately. James is trying to get the point across that if a person perfectly controls his mouth, than he will perfectly control his whole body. So though we will not be able to perfectly control our mouth, if we can control our mouth to some measure, to the same measure we will control our whole body. Just as a ship is driven by a small rudder and a horse is controlled by a bit in its mouth, we are ultimately controlled by our mouths. We are to be "slow to anger" (James 1:19), and this is done by the taming of the tongue. 

Control your mouths friends and think before you speak. If you can do this, your faith will grow. 

Do you remember what happened when Peter was quick to speak? Three times, he denies Christ. Once, he is condemned by Jesus for what he does. Peter's tongue got him into a lot of trouble before he learned to control it, but once he learned to control it, it was a powerful weapon against evil. Though the tongue can bring much evil, it can also bless much. It is a beautiful thing if tamed but a horrible thing if left to its sinful nature. Control your tongue, don't let your tongue control you.