Wednesday | James 3:1-12

James 3:1-12

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 saltwater? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.

The theologian, Hendrikus Berkhof, said that “only a renewed heart can produce pure speech; and consistently (though not perfectly) pure speech is to be the product of a renewed heart.” On several occasions in the pages of Scripture, we are shown that what and how we use our words are an indication of the condition of our hearts (Matthew 12:34). 

The exhortation that James has for us today is that good things don’t produce bad things; one who is double-minded and inconsistent with the things of God in his heart will be double minded and inconsistent in his speech. And yet, there is grace for us in Christ Jesus! A grace that forgives unconditionally and pours out onto you continually in order that you may be made more and more like Jesus. It is this same grace, through the Holy Spirit, that brings us conviction of our sin. 

In our conviction, the grief of our sin turns into repentance because grace is our hope! Christian, what is making you bitter? What is it that you are coveting? What idols rule your heart? Surrender yourself to the Lord Jesus that He may rule and dwell richly in the depths of your heart and soul for His glory and your good.