Recent epistle readings by James have been very interesting and challenging. Several weeks ago, James wrote a warning about the tongue and the trouble that it can get you into.

He notes that a great forest can be burned by a small fire. He calls the tongue a small fire. It is an image that I can appreciate. I have gotten into several “jams” with words which have hastily slipped out of my mouth; formed by the tongue.

As a young Vermont legislator, I made a flip comment about my Party Leader that ended up on the front page of the statewide newspaper. I was embarrassed and humiliated and then I had to go an make a sincere apology to the man. I can try and explain it away by telling you that I was very inexperienced, very young (only 29) but, really, I just didn’t think before I opened my mouth and the words fell out.

Think about the tongue for a minute. James refers to it as “a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits” (James 3:5). The tongue is a multi-talented, extremely important bodily organ. It stands guard over the entrance to your inner body. It helps to keep your mouth moist. It fights illnesses. It helps you to swallow. It tastes your food. And it forms your words.

We all understand that the tongue does not put our words into being. The brain, perhaps influenced by the heart, does. Our thoughts, or maybe our thoughtlessness, put our words into being. James warns us that even though we can tame all the creatures of the earth, we cannot “tame the tongue.” He also points out that blessings and curses should not come from the same source.

Why should we care? Well, for one thing, there is a commandment against taking the name of the Lord in vain and by inference, the use of indiscriminate language. There is a commandment against giving false statements. There is a commandment against murder and an interpretation that the use of words in a harmful way can be a form of murder (gossip).

Thinking about it, just about every commandment can involve the tongue and our words. Violating these commandments disrupts our relationship with God. But nothing will cause God to withhold His grace from you because God loves you unconditionally. Read James 3:1-12 for a very important life lesson.

Terri