FROM THE HEART TO THE TONGUE
The tongue is a marvelous complex instrument with
several functions. It used as a sense organ, containing about 9000
taste buds which distinguish between different flavors such as
bitter, salty, or sweet things. It aids in the forming and
movement of food as we eat for ease of swallowing. And it is
frequently used to express the temperament of the heart.
Webster dictionary defines the tongue as being a flexible
muscular organ in the mouth used in tasting, swallowing, and for
speech. This is the textbook
explanation of what the tongue is but for our lesson this morning we
are going to be examining what the Bible says about the tongue and
just how powerful it can be when it used to express the intent or
disposition of someone’s heart. I think we have all experienced what
happens when we or someone else loses control of their tongue. As
one person said, “Many things are opened by mistake, but
none so frequently as the mouth.”
Lesson Text:
James 3:2-13
James gives us some great details about how powerful
the tongue is and how difficult it is to control in:
James 3:2 "For
we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word,
he is a
perfect man, able also to bridle the whole
body."
Here James is pointing out to us, that as Christians
we stumble in many areas of our lives because we are not perfect and
God knows this but if it were possible that we could control our
tongue then James said we could be perfect and that we would be
fully capable of controlling our entire body so that we would never
stumble. In this we are being taught that the tongue is harder to
control than any things else.
James 3:3 "Indeed, we put bits in horses' mouths
that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. 4 Look also at
ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds,
they are turned by a very
small rudder wherever the
pilot desires."
When you think about the illustrations that James
gives isn’t amazing that something so small like a bit or rudder can
control such big objects like a horse or a boat. He uses this
illustration to point out the power of the tongue even though it is
a small member of the body as we read in:
James 3:5 "Even so the tongue
is a little member and
boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles! 6
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. 7 For
every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is
tamed and has been tamed by mankind. 8
But no man can tame the tongue. It
is an unruly evil, full
of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our God and Father, and with it
we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. 10 Out of
the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these
things ought not to be so."
We learn from James
the tongue can be used for both good and for evil. When we fail to
control of our tongue the words that we speak can be a powerful as a
spark in dry forest because it can burn everything down in it path.
James tells us it is difficult to control the tongue and we as
Christians can learn to control our tongues with diligence and
through the help of God and by keeping God’s Word in our heart.
I have seen first hand on several occasions where a person who
claims to be a Christian will praise God out one side of their mouth
and then foul language and harsh word will come out the other side
of their mouth but this should not be the case.
Another thing we need to realize about the tongue is
that it will eventually express what is in a person's heart.
You can usually find out how serious a Christian is in the heart by
what kind of language comes out of their mouths.
Jesus points this out to his disciples when he
responds to the Pharisees
after they accuse him of casting out demons by Beelzebub.
Matthew 12:34 "Brood
of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of
the abundance of the heart the
mouth speaks. 35 "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings
forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings
forth evil things."
The words that come out of our mouth are reflection
of what is in our heart and if our heart is not pure eventually it
will be made known by what comes out of our mouth. That is why
it important that we learn to heed what Paul said in 2 Corinthians
10:5, "...casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts
itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into
captivity to the obedience of Christ" (NKJV).
Later on Jesus also rebukes the Pharisees and the
scribes for trying to say that unwashed hands defiles a person. He
tells them, "Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what
comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man." Matthew 15:11
(NKJV),
Peter doesn’t understand what Jesus is telling these Jews here so he
explains it to him in, Matthew 15:16-19, "So Jesus said,
"Are you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not yet
understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and
is eliminated? 18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth
come from the heart, and they defile a man. 19 For out of the heart
proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts,
false witness, blasphemies." (NKJV).
So the tongue will reflect what is in a person's
heart. It is up to us on whether we use our tongue for good or for
evil. If we choose to use it for good:
Proverbs 16:24 Pleasant
words are like a
honeycomb, Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.
Proverbs 25:11 A
word fitly spoken is like apples
of gold In settings of silver.
But if we choose to use them for evil,
Proverbs 29:20 Do
you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a
fool than for him.
Proverbs 15:26 The
thoughts of the wicked are an
abomination to the LORD …
We have free will and we must make our choice on how
we use our tongue but understand that we will be judged by how we
use our tongues as Jesus says in,
Mt 12:36 "But
I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give
account of it in the day of judgment. 37 "For by your words you will
be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."
We need to keep this in mind before we let lose our
evil tongue on those around us. We also need to realize that the
tongue has the power to bring about life or death.
Proverbs 18:21 "Death
and life are in
the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit."
Those who use their tongues well, will have life. Those who
use their tongues for evil will have death.
The power of an evil tongue brings death...
Paul gives the Christians in Galatia a list of things
that will keep them from inheriting the kingdom of God. He
writes in
Galatians 5:19-21
"Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery,
fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred,
contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions,
dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and
the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in
time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the
kingdom of God. "
NKJV
Of these these things Paul mentioned several are
directly attributable to our speech. Contentions, outbursts of
wrath, dissentions, heresies and revelries are all tied to the
things which come out of our mouths.
Lies are a sin of the speech and will keep us out
heaven,
Revelation 21:8
"But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually
immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part
in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second
death." NKJV
In Revelation 21:27, John goes on to say again, "But
there shall by no means enter it [Heaven] anything that
defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are
written in the Lamb's Book of Life. "NKJV
And then again in Revelation 22:14-15
"Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have
the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into
the city. 15 But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral
and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie."
NKJV
Three times in a row John makes the case that there
will not be any liars in heaven. Therefore if anyone has a
problem with telling the truth and they want to live in heaven with
God, then they need to make a change in behavior.
How about Gossip? Paul uses some very strong
language about this and other sins of the speech in
Romans 1:28-32
"And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge,
God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are
not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual
immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy,
murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30
backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters,
inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning,
untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing
the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things
are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of
those who practice them. " NKJV
Paul says whisperers and back biters are worthy of death. Gossips
whisper behind the backs of others. They make false
accusations against others behind their backs. Gossips slander
others, meaning they speak evil of them. Paul wrote to Timothy
in 2 Timothy 3:1-5,
"But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2
For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters,
proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful,
unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without
self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong,
haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, "
NKJV
Gossiping is a sin of speech which will bring death
to those who practice it. Notice Paul used the word
"blasphemers" in this list of people who won't be spending eternity
in heaven if they don't repent. Blasphemy is a sin of speech
which will keep us out of heaven. Blasphemy is a term
which means to speak evil of. It can mean speaking evil
against God or others. This word in the Greek language
is also translated as railers which is someone who engages in
malicious and abusive speech. The term for blasphemy is not in
any way limited to a sin against God. When anyone reviles, or
speaks in a malicious and abusive manner towards another, they are
guilty of blasphemy in the sense that this word portrays.
Concerning the conduct of Christian, Paul wrote in the same letter
to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:24-26
"And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all,
able to teach, patient, 25 in humility correcting those who are in
opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they
may know the truth, 26 and that they may come to their senses and
escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to
do his will." NKJV
And now come to the most obvious of all. Filthy
speech. Many today use the term cussing. What it all
boils down to is filthy language coming out of our mouths.
Paul mentioned this in Colossians 3:8-9
"But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath,
malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. "
NKJV
Paul mentions this with some very harsh words in
Ephesians 5:3-5
"But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not
even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; 4 neither
filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are
not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this you know, that
no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater,
has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God" NKJV
James summed it up completely in James 1:26
"If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle
his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is
useless."
NKJV
James comes right out and says that if a Christian
cannot control his speech, his religion is useless or worthless,
meaning it's for nothing. Lying, gossiping, slandering,
boasting, quarreling, filthy language, foolish talking and course
jesting are all sin of speech and if practiced unrestrained, will
keep any Christian out of eternal life in Heaven with God. If we
want our religion to be of any use at all, either for ourselves or
for others, we must learn to bridle or control our tongues.
Proverbs 18:21 "Death
and life are in
the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit."
Those who cannot or will not control their tongues will eat of the
fruit of death.
So how about the fruit of life?
Good speech which contribute towards life.
Ephesians 4:29-30
"Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good
for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the
hearers."
NKJV
We must use our speech to help edify and build one
another up.
Colossians 4:6
Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that
you may know how you ought to answer each one.
NKJV
Colossians 3:16-17
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom,
teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
NKJV
These are examples of speech that not only help to
bring life to us, but help one another as well. We are
commanded to use our speech for good. Good speech portrays a
good heart and sincere love and concern for others.
We use our speech to proclaim Christ to the world.
Paul wrote in Romans 10:8-10, "But what does it say? "The word is
near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of
faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the
Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from
the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto
righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."
NKJV
And then Paul well on to write in the next chapter,
Romans 10:14-15, "How then shall they call on Him
in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of
whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a
preacher? 15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it
is written:
"How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace,
Who bring glad tidings of good things!"
NKJV
Our speech can be used to glorify God. In
Romans 15:6, Paul wrote, "that you may with one mind and one
mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."
NKJV
Evil speech brings the fruit of death.
Controlled, gracious, gentle and kind speech brings the fruit of
life.
As we learned earlier, what comes out of our mouths is a reflection
of what is in our hearts.
All of these things we looked at so far on
controlling the tongue has to do with the condition of our heart. So
the key to using your tongue for righteousness is making your heart
pure which means your thoughts will be pure and words will be pure.
Paul stresses the need for us to control our thought in,
2. Cor 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are not
carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting
down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the
knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to
the obedience of Christ,
This should be every Christian’s goal to bring into
captivity every thought of man to the obedience of Christ. This is
not an easy task because evil thoughts may arise which could cause
us to sin. But, if we stay as close to God as possible, and have an
active prayer life, even these thoughts can be brought into
obedience of Christ. We must train our minds with the Word of God so
that eventually good thoughts, not evil, will dominate our hearts.
This can only come about by much prayer and much training. However,
it should be the goal of every Christian. Someone once said, "You
may not be what you think you are, but you are what you think." One
who thinks filthy thoughts is likely to live that kind of life. The
book of Proverbs also teaches this.
Proverbs 23:7 For
as he thinks in his heart, so is he…
Proverbs 4:23 Keep
your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the
issues of life.
Jesus told us in the great Sermon on the mount that
it is possible for us to commit murder or adultery in our hearts (Matt.
5:27-28). Bringing our
thoughts into captivity is a never-ending battle. However,
it can be done and must be done. Keeping our heart and speech
pure is necessary in order to keep ourselves away from the
corruption of the world. It takes constant diligence and
effort because we are out in the world on a daily basis and it is so
easy to allow ourselves to become influenced by it. It is easy
to become weary of resisting it and let our guards down. It is
so easy to allow the things of the world to creep in and overtake
us. We must never give in to Satan and never give up.
James wrote in 1:27
"Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this:
to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself
unspotted from the world." (NKJV)
I hope this lesson has made us all think more about
how we use our tongues and I hope that if we have not been using it
properly that we will start today. I also hope we have leaned how
important it is for our hearts to be pure so that our thoughts can
be pure and finally I hope we have learned that the our tongue has
the power to make the difference between life and death.
Adapted from a Sermon from:
From the Heart to the Tongue
