And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.    James 3:6 NKJV

Yesterday, we talked about the weight our idle words carry. Knowing we will be judged for every idle word makes controlling our tongue very important. In James chapter 3, he talks about how much control the tongue has over the body and how it can defile the body.  He describes it as untamable.

He begins by saying that teachers will receive a stricter judgment. He talks about how we all stumble and our most common stumble is in our words. He goes on to say that we use bits in the horse’s mouth to control their whole body. Ships are turned by a very small rudder.

Then he describes a forest fire and how it can start from the smallest spark. In our Scripture passage for today James describes the tongue as a fire, a world of iniquity. This is pretty strong words when one of our smallest body parts is described as a fire or a world of iniquity. And he goes on to say that it is set on fire by hell.

We are most likely to say things we shouldn’t say in anger. This is why controlling our anger is also very important. In Ephesians 4:26, Paul warns against letting the sun go down on our anger. We all get angry, it happens. But we should resolve the matter as quickly as possible to avoid sinning in our anger. We should never let our anger get the best of us. And we should never let it get the best of our tongue.

Jesus said in Matthew 12:34 that out of the abundance of the heart, our mouths speak.

We can use our tongues to pray and praise the Lord. We can use our tongues to destroy. Just like a fire destroys, the tongue has the power to destroy a home, a family, a business and even a church. In verse 8, James describes the tongue as an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. James points out in verses 9-10 that out of the same mouth can come blessings and cursing. He tells us this should not be so and uses the analogy of fresh water and salt water. A spring cannot have salt water and fresh water at the same time.

God often talks about life giving water. Water can cleanse, it can put a fire out or it can destroy as with a flood. The same goes for our tongues.

I’d like to conclude today by looking at the analogy of the tongue set on fire. It begins with something we see or hear that displeases us. Then thoughts come into our mind. This is where we must adhere to 2 Corinthians 10:5 and take every thought captive. Don’t allow your mind to go there. Nip it in the bud before it gets into your heart. When bad thoughts lead to anger, they can get into our hearts and fill our hearts with things like anger and pride. And when this happens our tongues can be set on fire and spew flames. We need to stop all of this before it starts.

While it is nearly impossible to tame the tongue, we can begin by taking thoughts captive and not allowing bad thoughts to infiltrate our minds and our hearts. When we feel this happening, we must pray. We must ask God to remove bitterness and anger from our hearts. Believe me, I’ve done this and it works.

Once this is removed, we will find that our speech changes. Only God can save us from the damage our tongues can do. Trust in Him to guide your thoughts, your mind, your heart and your tongue. He won’t let you down.

Have a great day!