The believers goal: Purity in Speech

Explanation: James develops his theme of spiritual maturity, but in a different direction. He has just taught on the necessity of action, how a believer will display his or her faith through good works. Now he teaches that a genuine faith is a full-orbed entity in that it includes words as well.

In this section of his letter, James is going to highlight the goal of spiritual maturity, and he is going to show that a spiritually mature person can be identified by patterns of speech.

He begins with a warning that is directed towards those who would be spiritual teachers or leaders. At first glance, it sounds like James is discouraging believers from becoming teachers. This is not his point. His point is that a person is to make sure he or she is not seeking a position of leadership for glory or recognition.

The goal is not to restrict teaching or leading; rather it is to ensure those who enter this field be aware of the power of their words. It is one thing to speak inaccurately to a few people in a private conversation, but it is very important to not misrepresent God when speaking on His behalf.

Illustrate: Rob Bell in his book Love Wins discourages Christians from believing in the reality of Hell for unbelievers.

Also - don’t put new believers in positions too early. Former drug addict who spoke to young people at a 5th quarter. He had only been saved and delivered for about 2 weeks and he glorified his past more than he did Jesus.

Argument: The Goal for all believers, teachers or not, is to accurately represent God as our Master. All genuine believers are in the process of being conformed to the image of Jesus. All of us are ambassadors of Christ to a lost world, and the world is listening. A spiritually mature believer is to know, and be in pursuit of, the goal of becoming a perfect or complete Christian. That is, one who does not offend in speech or giving cause to stumble.

Application: The goal is not to be confused with sinless perfection in this life. That is not possible. Not until we reach glory will we be totally free from the effects of sin. We are, however, called to pursue the goal of perfection in this life. We are not called to settle for business as usual.

Reaching the goal of spiritual maturity is through controlling our speech (James 3:3-4)

Explanation: James again gives some very easy to understand real-life situations to illustrate his point. He first talks about how horses are controlled and directed through the use of a small bit. He then talks of large ships which are controlled and directed by the rudder.

Argument: Each of these devices, the bit and the rudder, are small in comparison to the size of the object that is controlled. In much the same way, our physical tongue is small in comparison to our whole body. Yet the small tongue is a member that is too easily misused.

Application: Does your overall pattern of speech reflect your spiritual heritage? If all of your words for a week were recorded, would an impartial listener come to the conclusion that you belong to Jesus?

The Goal of spiritual maturity is endangered through impure speech (James 3:5-8)

Explanation: James moves past comparisons in verses 5&6 and directly names the tongue as a fire. He declares that though the tongue is small, it is capable of doing a great deal of damage. The symbol of fire is almost always shown with a negative view. James is clearly showing the negative side when he states that our speech is capable of “defiling our whole body” much like fire burns everything in its path that is flammable.

We dare not underestimate the potential for destruction with improper or impure speech. Many of us as believers have a tendency to downplay the negative effects of sinful speech, when instead we should be careful of what we say and how we say it.

Illustrate: On September 5, 2020 a gender reveal party started a forest fire in California that forced evacuations and burned over 10,000 acres.

Argument: Believers are to realize that our words are very dangerous and that we should think before we speak. A sportswriter named wrote this in a column for the Atlanta Journal back in the 80’s:

“I am more deadly than the screaming shell from a howitzer. I run without killing. I tear down homes, break hearts, and wreck lives. I travel on wings of the wind. No innocence is strong enough to intimidate me, no purity pure enough to daunt me. I have no regard for truth, no respect for justice, no mercy for the defenseless. My victims are as the sands of the sea and often as innocent. I never forget and seldom forgive. My name is Gossip.”

The old children’s rhyme got it very wrong when it teaches “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Words can indeed hurt and scar others for a lifetime. John MacArthur says the ancient rabbis compared the tongue not to a dagger or sword but to an arrow because it has the capacity to inflict damage at long range.

Application: There may be some who need to deal with the sins of the tongue

First, if you have sinned against another through gossip or slander, go to that person and ask for forgiveness.

Second, bring your speech to the Lord and ask Him to bring it under control (Ephesians 4:29)

Third, understand that just because something is true, doesn’t mean its your job to share it - consider if it is helpful, and if it isn’t, don’t say anything.

Consistency of Purity in speech is an expectation for every believer (James 3:9-12)

Explanation: James finishes his section on speech with an exhortation for the believers to achieve consistency in pure speech. At first glance, this does not seem to be in the form of encouragement. After all, in verses 7&8 he has just shown that while all types of animals come under the control of man, no one is able to tame the tongue. With such an unruly member that is full of poison, what hope does a believer have?

Again, the goal is not sinless perfection, but a continual pursuit of the goal of being spiritually mature. For this to take place, the individual believer must understand that this is the expectation that God has for us. James illustrates his point again through easy to understand examples.

He uses the example of a fountain and asks a rhetorical question: does it send forth sweet water and bitter water at the same place? Answer: NO

He discusses trees and asks another rhetorical question: can a fig tree produce olives? Answer: NO

Argument: James is showing dependence upon the teaching of Jesus again. His words here bring to mind what Jesus said about such things as recorded in Matthew 12:33-37. In v. 33 Jesus declared that “the tree is know by its fruit.” And in v. 36 of that passage Jesus gave the warning that for “every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.”

The believer will not face the condemnation addressed in v. 37 (cf., John 5:24; Romans 8:1), but we will give an account for the words we have used or misused as believers. There is the very real possibility of loss of rewards at the Bema that should spur us on to pure speech.

Application: We who name the Name of Jesus as Lord are not given the option of just settling. We are not allowed to say “it’s just too hard to have purity of speech” OR “this is just the way I am.” If the Holy Spirit is indwelling your life, then you aren’t stuck just as you were (cf 2 Cor. 5:17).

We are called to trust God with every area of our life including our speech. Through Christ we are more than overcomers, and that applies to our words as well. Le the prayer of the Psalmist be yours as well: “let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14)

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