Watch Your Mouth: The Power of the Tongue

Watch your mouth. I'm going to read this passage one more time for us. James 3, 1 through 12.

It says, Do not many of you become teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will

receive a stricter judgment, for we all stumble in many ways.

If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he's a perfect man,

able to bridle the entire body as well.

Now, if we put the bits into the horse's mouths so that they will obey us,

we direct their entire body as well.

Look at the ships also. Also, though they are so great and are driven by strong

winds, they are still directed by a very small rudder, wherever the inclination of the pilot wills.

So also the tongue, in verse 5, is a small part of the body,

and yet it boasts of great things.

Behold how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire.

If the tongue is a fire, the very world of unrighteousness, righteousness.

The tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body and

sets on fire the course of our existence and is set on fire by hell.

Verse 7, for every kind of beast and birds of reptiles and creatures of the

sea is tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no one can tame the tongue.

It's a restless evil and full of deadly poison. Verse 9, with it we bless our

God, our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men who have been made in the likeness of God.

From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.

Does a fountain pour forth from the same opening fresh and bitter water?

Can a fig tree, my brothers, produce olives, or a vine produce figs?

Nor can salt water produce fresh water.

Let's pray. Father God, I just ask today that you'll let our words reflect your

goodness, Lord, your mercy, your kindness to the world around us.

Help us to heal and or forgive others for the times when words may have harmed

or offended us in any way, Lord.

And I pray that you'd be exalted today in our speech. In Jesus' mighty name we pray. Amen.

Well, again, welcome everybody today. Today, we're actually tackling this amazing topic together,

deals with the tongue, as y'all already let me know, words, and specifically

the place where we share most of our words with others, the mouth, right?

Words, y'all, impact everyone. I know we all know this.

They're everywhere, and even though they're small, they're incredibly powerful, aren't they?

Words are powerful because they have the ability to shape thoughts,

to influence emotions, to actually drive actions.

They can build up or they can tear down. They can create understanding or they can sow confusion.

They can foster connection or division.

Through words, what do we do? We communicate our deepest beliefs,

our intentions, our feelings, shaping the way that we literally interact with others, right?

And with the world around us. And whether spoken or written.

Words carry the potential to actually inspire, to change, to heal wounds,

to transform lives, making them one of the most potent tools that we possess.

In fact, the Bible actually has a lot to say about the tongue and the words that we speak.

And today we're going to be looking at this passage we've read,

James 3, 1 through 12, where James actually offers a strong warning to us that

the potential of our words to direct,

to destroy, and to reveal the condition of our hearts. We're going to break that down today.

And as we tackle this passage, I hope that we'll see just how crucial it really

is, church, to watch our mouths.

First, I'm going to give you a summary of what we're going to look at in just

a moment before we get going.

But first, we'll discover how words have the power to actually steer the course

of our lives and others' lives.

Then we'll confront the reality of how destructive words can be,

capable of causing deep harm and hurt to others and to ourselves, too, right?

And we'll also see how the words that we speak reflect what's truly in our hearts.

Revealing our inner spiritual state. And my prayer today is that as we go through

this message and then we work through this passage, that we'll all be challenged.

Remember, it starts with me first, right?

Y'all, when I prepare to preach a sermon, I always preach it to myself first,

right? It starts with me.

It starts in my heart first and my response to God's word.

And my prayers, we go through this, we'll all be challenged to examine our speech

and seek God's help and actually using our words to reflect,

get this today, his love, his grace, and his truth to the world around us.

So with that thought in mind, the first point I want you all to see today,

and this is taken from James 3, the verses that we read, specifically this one,

probably verses 3 through the first part of verse 5, point number one today,

the tongue's power to direct, as

we see in this first lie the tongue's power to actually direct james actually

begins this passage today by illustrating that the tongue's power has two vivid

examples he puts with it remember one of them is a bit in the horse's mouth

now how many of you have have or have had horses.

You know, that's effective, right? That's effective. And so,

and a rudder, the other one, on a ship.

Though both of these are small in comparison, both bit and the rudder have the

ability to control and direct something much larger, right?

And in the same way, he's saying our tongues, though they're small,

they have the power to steer the course of our lives and sometimes the lives of others around us.

And as we see on this slide, this first bullet point, the words that we speak

can actually set the direction of our relationships, our personal growth,

even our spiritual journey.

And just a slight movement, think about it, just a slight movement of the rudder

can change a ship's entire course, right?

A single word, church, can influence the trajectory of one person's life for better or for worse.

This power, y'all, to direct. Think about it today. It shouldn't be taken lightly, should it?

We often underestimate, I think, the impact of our words, thinking that what

we say in the moment may not have lasting consequences.

However, if we look at God's words, scripture reminds us that the words,

that words actually have the

power to influence decisions, to shape perceptions and alter the future.

And as followers of Christ, we're called to use our words intentionally,

guiding other people to truth, love, and righteousness.

And whether it's encouraging somebody in their faith, speaking wisdom into a difficult situation.

We'll talk about that more in a moment, or simply offering a kind word.

As we say in this next bullet, our speech actually has the potential to lead

others closer to God or, conversely, away from Him.

And we got to ask ourselves, think about this today. Are we using our words

to guide others in the right direction?

Or are we carelessly steering them off course? point number two this is our

next slide the tongue's power to destroy.

In verse 5, the second half of verse 5 through verse 8 here,

James actually continues. He's painting this sobering picture,

he's would, of the tongue's potential for destruction.

He compares it actually to what?

You remember? A small spark or fire, right? Always reminds me,

it only takes a spark to get a fire going.

I'm just saying, it's just a little bit, just a little spark.

That small spark can do what? It can set an entire forest on fire, right?

I was trying to combine the words forest and fire. It didn't work out well,

but it can set a forest on fire.

And it really illustrates how something as seemingly insignificant as a word

can unleash devastating consequences is what James is saying here.

The tongue is described here in this passage as a world of evil capable of corrupting

the whole body, setting the course of one's life on fire.

And being itself, it actually says in the passage, set on fire by what? Hell.

Yeah. I mean, this imagery, y'all, it underscores, again, the destructive power of words.

Think about it. In moments of anger, frustration, carelessness,

we can speak words that influence deep wounds and they inflict deep wounds, right?

That damage relationships, cause lasting pain.

And as we see in this next bullet point, the destructive potential of the tongue,

it's not limited to the harm it causes others, is it?

It also reflects the inner corruption of the one who speaks.

Don't miss this today. James makes it clear that the tongue is restless.

It's full of deadly poison.

It's highlighting here in this passage how difficult it is to tame.

And that should lead us, y'all, to a deep sense of humility and caution.

Because as we see in this next bullet point, every word that we speak,

don't miss this, every word you speak, every word I speak carries weight.

And once spoken, guess what? words cannot be taken back.

You can't take them back. The pain caused by harsh, critical,

or deceitful words can actually linger for years, impacting not only the one

who hears them, but also the one who speaks them.

That calls us, y'all. The call for all of us is to repentance,

a renewed commitment to use our words wisely.

Striving to speak in ways that heal and encourage and, as we talked about earlier,

even point people in a difficult circumstance to who?

To God Almighty, to better their life, to build them up.

By the way, and you'll see this in a moment, we'll see that sometimes words hurt in a good way, too.

I'm going to mention that before we get through, but we ought to think this

morning, the words we speak.

In fact, as we're going to see in a minute in this next point that's coming

up in the next slide, the tongue's power to reveal.

And this all ties together, verses nine through 12 here, that final section

of the passage, James actually challenges us to consider what our words reveal

about the state of our own hearts.

Now, I know I'm going to have hands go up, but have you ever been around somebody

who's always complaining, who's always bickering or always just talking about somebody else?

We call it gossip. You can call it all kind of stuff or downing other people, right?

Or you're around them and they tell you, can you believe so-and-so did this?

Can you believe my Sunday school teacher said this?

Can you believe the pastor did this? Can you believe your student minister said

this? Or can you believe this happened?

Do you believe this person did this to me at school, right?

And I'm not saying sometimes we're not treated unfairly, but sometimes we just

make a habit of just running people down without thinking about it.

And we're always complaining, always bickering, and always it's everybody else's fault, right?

And I want you all to realize, James says in this passage, that the words that

come out of our mouths here, and as we see in other passages I'll point out

in a moment, actually reflect, they reveal what's inside.

You hang around somebody who's always running other people down and complaining

about somebody that really doesn't take the opportunity, as Scripture says,

to go to that person directly, right?

But they're always talking about somebody behind their back.

They don't have the courage to say it to them in their face, right?

Then you can see that person has a poisoned heart. They've revealed what they're really about.

And that's what James is saying. Don't realize the power of the tongue to reveal

what's inside your heart.

Because as we'll see in a moment, out of the abundance of the heart,

the mouth speaks, right?

And so James challenges us here to consider that.

And he actually points out the inconsistency of using that same tongue to praise

God and curse those who are made in his image.

That contradiction, what does he liken it to? A spring that produces both fresh

and salt water or a fig tree that bears olives, right?

And those things ought not to be possible, he says. But our fallen nature,

we often find ourselves speaking both blessings and cursings.

And that duality in our speech reveals that deeper issue, which is right here,

as you see, Dakota put up here, our words are a reflection of what's truly in our hearts.

Think about that. Do you want people to really see you for who you are?

Just be around them long enough to let them hear you speak for a while.

And I promise you, you're around somebody long enough and listen to them speak

enough, you know who and what they're all about. And that inconsistency,

James highlights, it serves as a call again to self-examination.

What do our words, ask this question for all of us today, what do our words say about us?

This next bullet point, if our speech is filled, again, with negativity,

with criticism or deceit, it indicates that our hearts are not fully aligned with God's will.

Don't miss that, y'all. if our speech is

characterized by all that negativity criticism that is not to build others up

right is to tear them down or deceit it indicates that our hearts are not fully

aligned with god's will luke 6 45 actually says from the overflow of his heart

of the heart his mouth speaks.

Well, in other words, what's inside is going to come out.

On the other hand, if our words are kind, if they're truthful and uplifting,

they reflect a heart that is being transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit.

In other words, we can't produce good fruit from a bad tree,

and we can't consistently speak good words from a corrupt heart.

So the transformation of our speech has to begin with the transformation of

our hearts, church. We got to seek whose help?

God's help in renewing our minds and renewing our hearts so that our words naturally

flow from a place of love, truth, and grace.

And I want y'all to know this today. And I mentioned this earlier,

that sometimes words are hurtful in a good way.

What I mean by that? Well, Proverbs 26, excuse me, 27, verse 6,

Proverbs 27, verse 6 actually says this.

Proverbs 27:6

It says, faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

In fact, some translations say faithful are the wounds of a friend,

but profuse are the kisses of an enemy, right?

And basically what that's telling us, there are times when we speak words into

other people's lives to build them up, to share truth with them.

We love them, but we also share truth.

And when we share it, we do it in that spirit of building them up.

But I want y'all to know something.

I've been on the receiving end of this more than once, and it hurts. It hurts.

You know what it hurts? Sometimes it hurts our pride, right?

Sometimes it just hurts because we don't like other people not seeing us as

perfect in every way, even though we know we're not perfect in every way, right? None of us are.

But sometimes when we're challenged with that kind of speech that's there to be faithful,

and yes, it's going to hurt when a friend who loves you in Christ maybe challenges

you on something or shares words with you that causes you to step back or maybe

become defensive sometimes because we all are our own cheerleaders, right?

We always think, well, every decision we make is perfect.

That's all of us, right? That's our inclination.

But when we're challenged, sometimes we don't realize that sometimes that truth

spoken into our lives, yes, it needs to be wrapped in love and grace,

but we need to hear that sometimes and it does hurt for the good reasons.

I just want y'all to know that today, just to see that little point there,

because faithful are wounds of a friend.

In other words, in that passage, if I don't love you enough,

if I don't care enough about you as your brother or sister in Christ to challenge

you and to walk closer to God and to serve him,

and that may cause you to get your pride hurt, and that may cause you to be

hurt, right, for a little bit.

You little wounds here. Faithful are the wounds of a friend.

But you know what's deceitful and profuse? It's somebody that says,

oh, don't worry about it. You just keep going the way you're going.

You just keep on living the way you want to live. that's a deadly combination

that's not loving people that's not being truthful with people and that's certainly

not showing grace to people because guess what y'all if we're perfect we don't need grace.

We just don't need it because we're perfect. We don't need salvation.

But I want y'all to see that today.

And as we come towards the end of our time together, as we see in this last

slide, I want to encourage us all to reflect deeply this morning,

every one of us on the heart of the message today. Let's recap that.

The power of our words is immense, for good or for ill.

Our tongues can direct the course of our lives, destroy relationships,

reveal the true condition of our hearts.

And James' words here that we studied today challenges us not just to hear this

truth, y'all, but to actively apply it to our daily lives.

And as we see in this next slide, the question that we need to ask ourselves

as we leave here this morning is how will we use our words to glorify God and

to build others up this week?

How will we use our words to glorify God and build others up this week.

Let's go through a few ways.

Bullet number one here, let's commit to being intentional with our words.

Take time, y'all, each day this week, think about it, to pause.

You know, pause is a good thing sometimes.

A lot of us, we just like that, you know, steady, steady, steady.

Sometimes we need to hit the pause button before we speak, especially,

y'all know this, in moments of frustration or stress.

Because I mean, every one of us here, if I did a survey, how many of you spoke

something before, you sure wish you could take back the words,

hit undo, and nobody would ever hurt it.

Ask yourself, you know, well, what I'm about to say, I hit the pause button,

well, what I'm about to say bring life or harm, life or death,

will it guide somebody closer to God or away from Him?

And by pausing just a little bit to reflect, y'all, we can prevent careless

words that might otherwise cause damage, not only to others, but to ourselves.

You might even consider, for those of you that have a smartphone like Brother

Ryan, Maybe setting up a reminder on your phone or placing a sticky note somewhere visible with the words,

watch your mouth, to remind yourself of this commitment throughout the week,

throughout the day, each day.

And then number two, secondly here, the next bullet point, let's seek opportunities

to speak words of encouragement, of blessing.

And y'all, sometimes though, like I said, you know, they could be faithful wounds

sometimes of a friend, but it's all to build people up. It's to bless them, to encourage them.

And this week, make it a point to intentionally uplift at least one person,

whether it's a kind word to a family member, maybe a note of encouragement to a coworker.

Some of y'all are saying, Brother Joe, note of encouragement to a coworker? Yeah.

Or maybe it's a message or a card or whatever it might be, however you might

say it, of appreciation to a friend.

Y'all, I want you to know the small acts of kindness can have a profound impact on people.

There's not many people today who go out of their way to actually be kind to somebody.

And as you do that, as I do that, remember that your words have the power to

steer others in the right direction.

And as we go to the next slide, we need to use that power to guide them toward

hope, towards love, towards the truth of God's holy word. Amen?

Well, number three here, if you've hurt someone with your words in the past,

this week, today even, is an opportunity for healing.

Reach out to those maybe whom you've wounded with careless or harmful words,

even though they may not know it.

I mean, if you've spoken about someone behind their back or you find, hey, you know what?

That's me. I'm always criticizing everything, everybody. I'm always trying to down other people.

And that's just my default setting. I don't know why, but that's who I am.

Maybe just come before the Lord and say, Lord, help me, Lord. Change my heart, Lord.

Apologize sincerely. Seek to make amends. Healing, y'all, you know where it begins?

With humility and honesty. That's where it begins.

And y'all, by taking that step, You not only help repair the damage done,

but guess what's more important?

You align your heart. I align my heart more closely with the heart of God who calls us to do what?

To be peacemakers.

And then lastly, as we see on this next bullet point, let's focus on the condition of our hearts.

Because remember, our words are a reflection of what's inside.

And the challenge is to spend time in prayer.

Spend time in prayer. Meditation on God's word.

Asking the Holy Spirit, Lord, purify my heart and my mind.

You might even want to consider starting and ending your day with a simple prayer.

It's actually from Scripture in Psalm 19, verse 14.

Psalms 19:14

It says, Lord, let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight.

What a prayer, y'all. Maybe that's what we should quote when we hit the pause

button before we speak it.

As God transforms your heart, my heart, your words, they're going to naturally

begin to reflect his love, his grace, and his truth more consistently.

You know, as we go into this week ahead, I want us to be mindful again.

Don't forget this, the power of the tongue.

Let's use our words to build up, encourage, and to guide others toward Christ.

I mean, let's seek healing, y'all, where there has been hurt and allow God to

actually continue his work in transforming our own hearts.

And as we do that, may our speech, Eastwood, become a living testimony to the

power of God's love and his work within each and every one of us.

I want you to know God is doing some great things at Eastwood Baptist Church. Amen?

I mean, some awesome things. But I've always said this before,

and I believe it with everything in me.

When God starts to move in people's lives, when he starts to touch families,

when he starts to move in people's hearts and in church's hearts,

and people start to want to actually

serve their king for the amazing love he's given them, guess what?

You become a target and you're on the enemy's hit list.

I was sharing earlier this week, if I'm not on the enemy's hit list,

if I'm not on Satan's hit list, I am irrelevant.

I don't know about you, I know a lot of us want to say, hey,

I want to be on Satan's hit list, but you know what?

If we're living out our faith, if we're living out what this passage tells us

here even, if we're serving God with all that we have and we're speaking that

to a lost and dying world, you're going to be a target of the enemy.

My point here in that last part is Satan is going to be active to destroy not

only the fellowship at Eastwood Baptist Church, but the effectiveness of Eastwood Baptist Church.

And y'all, it's more than ever an opportunity for every one of us to not only watch our mouth,

but to more importantly see the condition of our heart through the power of

the Holy Spirit as He shines His light on our heart and our obedience to Him

as we surrender to our King.

Because this world is listening. This world is listening to what Eastwood Baptist Church is sharing.

This world is listening when they come in your midst, when they fellowship with

us, how we talk about our own, how we talk about God.

The world is listening when you work throughout the week. Because you know what?

Christianity doesn't stop at the door of the church, does it?

In fact, I often argue that the real worship service starts when you walk out those doors.

That's the worship service 24-7, seven days a week there. It never stops.

And you know where the most important can happen is in your home with your own family.

And that is the number one target, y'all, today of the enemy is destroying the family.

And y'all, let's be a church that is known not only by our love,

but by the truth that we speak and by the grace that we share it with. Amen.

Father God, I pray as everyone stands together today, Lord, that God,

as we've looked at your word today and we've looked at the challenge of watching

our mouths, God, maybe there's some here today who just need to say,

Lord, I'm sorry, I repent.

Lord, I got carried away. Maybe others today are just saying,

you know, I realized maybe for the first time or been reminded heavily here

that, you know, my words have an impact.

And God, I need to do some apologizing or I need to do some praying.

I pray today, Lord, that every one of us would respond the way you'd have us to.