WARNINGS AND WORDS TO TEACHERS
A. Demonstration of a living faith in controlling what we say
1. (James 3:1-2) Opening observations; the greater accountability of teachers and the difficulty of not stumbling
Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment. For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.
At the end of Chapter one, James taught us an important principle about Christian living. ("Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls" James 1:21.) We should put aside all filthiness and wickedness and receive the word of God, which will save us--saving us in the sense of sanctifying us. This sanctification saves us from the consequences of our sinful choices. And the sanctifying process is a result of receiving the word in humility by hearing the teaching of God's word.
Moreover, James goes on to say if we are merely hearers of the word and not doers of the word, we deceive ourselves into thinking we are religious. In chapter one verse 26, James offers a gold standard for measuring who is truly putting the word into practice. ("If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religious is worthless" James 1:26.) If we cannot learn to bridle our tongue and control it with authority, then our religion is worthless.
Any life of religion that does not present itself as sanctified, i.e., a life that is steadily becoming more Christ-like and holy, is of no value or worth. Outward religious practice that does not lead to an inward conforming to Christ in our lives will not profit God. It will not profit our neighbors. It will not profit ourselves.
At the end of chapter two, James reminds us that our life goal must be to declare our faith publicly by doing the works that faith requires. Works are anything that display our faith. It is an action, a word or even a thought. For James, the words we use are a particularly good indicator of our faith. In chapter three, James focuses on speech and its relationship to spiritual maturity.
Let not many of you become teachers: James begins the chapter with a harsh warning--teachers will be held accountable for their speech and will be held to a higher standard. Many folks in the church in James's time were becoming teachers and gave no credence to the influence they had on the church. How many people in today's churches have the same view and casually take on a teaching position, giving little thought to what proceeds out of their mouths? Through carelessness and ignorance, teachers have the ability to lead people astray. Jesus warns us "to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed of him they will ask the more" (Luke 12:48).
A better sense of the Greek is this: "Do not press yourself into the role of a teacher." We are not to presume to speak on behalf of the LORD concerning His word. We should not seek the role of teacher because we are all prone to sinning and stumbling. Therefore, we are not to place ourselves into the position of possibly sinning with your speech while teaching because teachers will incur a stricter judgment.
Failing to handle the word of God properly is a particularly damaging sin for a Christian. Teachers who sin through poor teaching stand to receive an even harsher judgment when they face Christ. They will be graded by tougher standards.
For many years, I have had a yearning to teach God's Word. I did not know how to go about organizing a Bible study nor did I have the confidence to do anything on my own. However, God has always seemed to pave a way for me in which I have developed the experience needed to teach His word. My first teaching position was educating three and four year olds in my church's Sunday School program. Years later, a woman called me up and asked if I could help her expand her faith by answering her Bible questions. This ultimately became a one-on-one weekly Bible study session. Immediately after this Bible study, God placed in my heart to teach a Bible study at my local community center. The study started out very tiny, with only one or two participants showing up each week. However, as my ability to teach improved with each session, God expanded the Bible study. I am very apprehensive about teaching God's Word as I know every word which proceeds out of my mouth is being judged. However, I love God, love His Word and love to share His Word with others. I try with a sincere heart to teach things correctly. However, I know I have stumbled many times and have erroneously taught material. I just pray God has mercy on me and knows I try my best to proclaim His truths.
As one reads James's admonishment, we can ask, "Is James trying to discourage us from teaching God's Word?" In a way yes, but not so that we will not have teachers. But teachers are called by God and gifted by Him.
One thing to keep in mind is James is writing to a Jewish audience. In Jewish culture, a teacher is an important authority figure. They call teachers rabbi, which is a term of authority and power. Henceforth, James is speaking about leaders in the church who express their leadership through a teaching role. And by teaching, we mean establishing an interpretation of Scripture for a body of believers. Today, we might call these people pastors, teaching pastors, Bible study leaders, Sunday School teachers, etc. These are the roles which should particularly heed this warning.
The warning says not to press yourself into one of these roles. Do not make holding a leadership teaching role a goal unless you are specifically gifted and called into that role. Teaching without the spiritual gift means you are working outside your gift. It is not the work of the Spirit. We are thus placing ourselves in jeopardy in the coming judgment day. Because we inevitably mishandle God's Word in the course of teaching, we have deceived ourselves and others concerning God's Word. Our mistakes are magnified by being multiplied in the hearts and minds of our students.
Finally, all Christians are given the ability by the Spirit to read and understand Scripture to a certain extent. I am not proposing that only certain people can read and interpret Scripture. (This was the heresy perpetuated by the Roman church prior to the reformation.) We are a kingdom of priests, and all believers have equal access to the Spirit and to the opportunity to know and understand God's Word. But there is a difference in God's economy between knowing something for ourselves and endeavoring to teach Scripture to others. The Spirit may reveal some aspect of Scripture to us--just what he feels we need to know--while at the same time, not giving us a complete picture to carry the message to others.
For we all stumble in many ways: In verse two, James is quickly broadening the discussion beyond the teacher. His intent is really aimed at a more general point--we sin with our speech. The ancient Greek word translated "stumble" does not imply a fatal fall but something that trips us up. It is something which hinders our spiritual progress. James uses the word "we" which includes himself among those who stumble. Notice he does not excuse his stumbling or ours. We know that we all stumble, but we should all press on to a better walk with the LORD, which will be marked by less stumbling.
James is continuing his theme from chapter one, talking about self-control. The most important work we can do is the work of conforming our behavior to the commandments of Scripture. The best test of our spiritual maturity is found in how well we control ourselves, particularly our tongue.
He is a perfect man: If we can reach a point in our Christian walk where we are self-controlled in our speech, we will have become spiritually mature. That is what James mean by "perfect". The word in Greek is teleois which literally means having reached an end, or being complete.
Our degree of spiritual maturity shows itself most readily in our speech patterns. If our speech is godly and pleasing to the LORD in all respects, we may fairly judge ourselves to be maturing in our walk of faith. But, this is a tough standard. It addresses lying, gossiping, boasting, slandering, cursing and a whole host of other tendencies. Until we have put all those aside, we still have work to do.
This is why James gives a warning to those who might wish to teach. If we are not a mature believer with a Spiritual gift to teach, we are most likely going to see our teaching become impregnated with one or more of these sins. And then comes the stricter judgment because our sin is affecting our students.
To the one who may doubt the relationship between the tongue and the rest of our spiritual maturity, James gives several analogies to support his claim. First, James establishes that a small thing can have great power.
2. (James 3:3-6) The power of the tongue
Now if we put the bits into the horses' mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. Look at the ship also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires. So also the tongue is a small part of the body and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a forest is set a flamed by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.
We put bits into the horses' mouths: First, a horse is a large animal, but a trained rider can make it do anything merely by controlling the bit in his mouth. When you think about it, that is really quite remarkable. And the principle here is equally amazing. When we finally learn to yield to the Spirit's controlling influence in our speech, then we will have also yielded in other areas of our lives.
It is as if James is saying that the last thing we tend to give over to the Spirit is our speech. Perhaps it is because our speech is so closely connected to our thinking and motives. Jesus says the following about our speech: "But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders" (Matthew 15:18-19).
In examining the analogy James sets forth, if we are the horse, then the Holy Spirit is the rider. Once we give Him control over our tongue, He will be free to direct our whole body into a Christ-like life.
Look at the ship also: The second example extends from the first. A ship faces many challenges and trials on the open water. But as long as the captain has control of the rudder (a very small part of the vessel), he can guide the ship safely through the strong winds. If the captain does not control the rudder, those strong winds will eventually result in shipwreck.
Obviously, we are the ship, and the rudder is our tongue. If our Captain gains control of our tongue, he has the opportunity to guide us safely through difficult times. But if our rudder remains outside the Spirit's control, we face spiritual shipwreck.
Paul alludes to an example of just the same situation in his first letter to Timothy:
"This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight, keeping faith and good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith. Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan, so that they will be taught not to blaspheme" (1 Timothy 1:18-20).
Hymenaeus and Alexander could not discipline their tongues and maintain a good conscience (meaning a good testimony). So, the LORD brought discipline through Paul, and their faith was shipwrecked.
You do not solve the problem of an unruly horse by keeping it in the barn. In the same way, you do not solve the problem of a hard to steer ship by keeping it tied to the dock. Continuing the analogy to the tongue, you cannot solve the problem of a tongue by taking a vow of silence. The only way to tame the tongue is to control it.
If the tongue is like a bit in the mouth of a horse or the rudder on a ship, it leaves us the question: Who or what holds the reigns. Or who or what directs the rudder? Some people have no hand on the reigns or the rudder; they say whatever comes into their minds. Others direct their tongue from their emotions or from aspects of their carnal nature. James point us to the answer: the Spirit of God, working through the new man, sets His hands on the reigns and rudder that is our tongue.
The tongue is a small part of the body: The tongue is a small part of the body, but it can boast or lay claim to great power in our lives. Unfortunately, not only does it have great saving power in our walk with Jesus, but James turns to the negative. He reminds us that it also has the power to condemn.
And the tongue is a fire: James uses a third analogy to emphasize the negative side of the tongue. A small flame can burn down a forest. And this leads to James's second point--as small as the tongue is, man is not capable of controlling it by himself.
The tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body: Our tongues represent the very world of sin, of hell itself. In the sense of the sin and evil that a tongue can ignite in ourselves and in others. James says that our sinful speech defiles the entire body. And like a rudder, it can set our life on a course of evil.
And sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell: James is saying essentially the same thing as Peter. "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8). The devil (or hell) can set our life on "fire". It can set us on a course that brings our lives to a disastrous end. James is not suggesting a Christian who cannot tame his tongue will end up in hell. No amount of sinning can erase our trust and belief in Jesus. However, he is saying that we will see the enemy taking advantage of our weakness and driving our Christian witness and testimony into oblivion, leaving us with nothing at our judgment.
The problem of our tongue cannot be corrected with man's own efforts. The answers cannot be found in the self-help books. They only place they can be found is in the Bible. Only God's Word with the Spirit can bring about spiritual maturity and the taming of our flesh, including the taming of our tongue.
3. (James 3:7-8) The difficulty of taming the tongue
For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race. But no one can tame to tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison.
For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea: James mentions four categories of animals that have been tamed or subdued by man. These four categories are noteworthy because they match the four categories in Genesis: beasts, birds, creeping things and sea creatures. The word translated "reptile" is actually the Greek word herpeton which means to creep.
So, James is intentionally referencing the four categories of the animal kingdom God created and gave to man to subdue. Just as God commanded Adam, man has subdued these creatures. We have invented many ways to bring them under our control to a certain degree. There are limits of course. (My family cannot seem to control the influx of ants which invade our home every summer.)
However, the tongue is not something man can control in that way. We cannot subdue it in any way comparable to the way we control animals. We may wish to control it, but sooner or later it re-exerts itself. We then see our weakness.
It is a restless evil and full of deadly poison: James says the tongue is an unruly evil, meaning it is an unrestrainable evil. James's point is that God gave us the power to subdue the animals, but the power to restrain sin in our bodies comes only through the Spirit and God's Word. We must recognize this is a problem we cannot solve without Him guiding us. And the good works of faith begin with receiving God's word in humility (James 1:21). Then, being doers of the word by seeking to conform our lives to what we learn, we yield to the Spirit as He takes authority over our lives.
The untamable tongue is even more dangerous when we consider the deadly poison it can deliver. It murders men's reputations by the slander it utters. It murders men's souls by the lusts and passions it stirs up in them. And many times their bodies too are murdered by the contentions and quarrels it raises against men.
A woman once came to John Wesley and said she knew what her talent was. She said, "I think my talent from God is to speak my mind." Wesley replied, "I don't think God would mind if you buried that talent." Speaking forth everything which come into one's mind is unwise, poisonous speech.
Finally, James challenges us to not be content with an untamed tongue.
4. (James 3:9-12) The contradictory character of the tongue
With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water? Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh.
From the same mouth come both blessing and cursing: At one moment we bless His name with our tongues, and at another moment, we curse men who have been made in His image. Cursing does not mean using curse words. It can be any expression of hatred or condemnation made against someone. We are talking about all hateful or ungodly speech.
It is back to the principle from James 2:10: If you violate one law, you violate them all. And though we bless the Lord in one moment, we are effectively cursing Him when we curse the men He made in His own image. You cannot have it both ways, and yet we do it all the time.
Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water: James uses a classic example that Jesus makes in the Gospels. Fountains of water are not expected to produce both good and bad water. Or a plant cannot produce both good and bad fruit. As new creatures in Christ, we were born again by the Spirit so that we might bear fruit and glory to God. When we allow our tongue to remain untamed, we are failing to live up to that eternal purpose. Our very reason for being saved is unmet in God's view so long as our tongue, and the rest of our body remains outside the Spirit's control. We will one day bring forth fresh water, and then the next day we bring forth salt water. And in that way, we fail to bring our LORD glory.
Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine produce figs: It does not matter how hard we try, we cannot change what we are. A fig tree is always a fig tree. An olive tree always produces olives. You can label a fig tree "olive tree" and that will not make it an olive tree. You can trim a fig tree to look like an olive tree, but that will not make it an olive tree. You can treat a fig tree like an olive tree, but that will not make it an olive tree. You can surround a fig tree with many olive trees, but that will not make it an olive tree. You can transplant a fig tree to the Mount of Olives, but that will not make it an olive tree.
Sometimes the oldest advice is the best. As our mothers said, "If we cannot say something nice, do not say it at all." Like James says in James 1:19 "This you know, my brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger."
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