04/15/2008
5 …Consider how a large forest is set ablaze by a small fire. 6And the tongue is a fire. The tongue, a world of unrighteousness, is placed among the parts of our [bodies]; it pollutes the whole body, sets the course of life on fire, and is set on fire by hell. 7For every creature—animal or bird, reptile or fish—is tamed and has been tamed by man, 8but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men who are made in God’s likeness. 10Out of the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things should not be this way.
Do you remember being in school and hearing a rumor and before you knew it, everyone was abuzz? When I was in the 9th grade, this particular girl and I were interested in each other, but her former boyfriend was slow to figure out that she was no longer interested in him. On the way to a basketball game, I sat with the girl on the bus. The other kids egged the boy on till he literally lifted me out of the seat and plopped down beside the girl. I was humiliated, but otherwise ok.
The next day, the entire class was buzzing about the event as I approached the classroom. As I stepped in, the classroom fell deathly silent. I immediately knew all the talk was about me and the episode the prior evening. The tension was suffocating. The story had exploded from the simple event that it was to much greater proportions. Nobody bothered to ask me about it. It seemed the source of the facts was the rumor-mill.
I, of course, got over that event, but the illustration is valid. We have a great amount of power in our mouths. We fail to realize the good and the harm we can inflict with it. I’ve had many things said about me and to me in my life, but the things that hurt me most came from the mouths of those I held most dear. And likewise, I have said many hateful things that have hurt people around me.
James is quite accurate when he says that we cannot tame the tongue. For some reason, we say things before we think. We allow our words to spring forth unhindered only to regret them later. From the same mouth comes blessings and curses. It should not be this way.
Will you consider your words before you speak them today? Who could be hurt by a careless word from you? Who can you bless by your words?
Jeff Justus
Cleff Publishing
www.cleffpublishing.com
©2008 Cleff Publishing, all rights reserved.
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